Staff'n'Toller

Please do seek some medical advice on it, I got painful sunburn (in London of all places!! ) and I do have some scarring from it.

Never seen a microchip related sarcoma myself.

You can also ask how many bottles they are happy to give you at one time. We do multiple bottles for clients with large dogs so they are only paying one dispensing fee, not a dispensing fee per bottle. May end up comparable with the trouble of going to the pharmacist.

Ehh, I spent about 2 hours (walking only) in a park with seeding Rye grass about 2 foot high last week and I was miserable for the rest of the day and evening, and sneezed for about 2 days afterward as well.

Yes, that is an interesting thought. She is actually already very good at watching the dumbbell after I throw it for her to retrieve, so perhaps throwing the toy and then letting her run to it past the poles is an idea? At the moment she runs, then I throw when she's successfully negotiated the last pole (so it lands in front of her). The only issue is that then I can't choose whether to reward her or not, so if she buggers up the entrance, she still get the toy? She has officially gotten the all clear to try some jumping (hooray!) but I'm an overprotective dog owner, so she'll be jumping at ridiculously small heights for a while yet! I'll try to get my paws on a copy. Not sure if anyone I know will have it, but sounds useful. Do the exercise without any obstacles first so you know for sure she understands. I'm pretty sure in 2x2 program you throw once they have entered and towards the end so you know they have got the entry right and haven't popped out either. You may want to get the Susan Salo Foundation Jumping so she learns how to visualise her line and how to collect herself. It starts with simulated poles on the ground first.

Put her in a sit (stay) and place a tug or ball 2-3 metres away. Come back to her vicinity, release her when she looks at the tug, rinse repeat. If she can hold a sit then throw the item while she holds a sit. It'd be nice if after you throw the item she didn't actually look at you at all, her focus was purely on the item. Add poles, jumps etc after that. Susan Garrett's Success with One Jump is a good DVD, would give you lots to work on even if she was jumping at 100 or 200mm due to her elbow issues..?

I would still have your son tested when you've got time, as the others have said. It's nice to rule it out. Some allergies will get worse and I suppose you'd want to know for absolute certainty he is not allergic to dog dander. I bath/blow dry my long haired dog in molting season approx. fortnightly and not because he is dirty or stinky but it's just easier to blow out the coat and get the rest with the furminator!

Oh yes you would know her! Sorry, forgot for a moment! :D Funnily enough November/Dec/Jan is when I have the most time to train as well. Severed a tendon (on a piece of glass we *think*).

I don't know any clubs that don't break for the summer. Instructor break, too hot for the dogs, snakes etc. etc. You know all that anyway. I know of a private agility instructor but she is South East not Outer East. PM me if you want info, although I have no idea what her holiday situation is like since my agility dog has one leg in a splint!!! :D

x 3 for Puppy Power. I've just replaced mine with a Kramar (from our Vet Wholesaler) and I'm unhappy with the build quality- the door latches are not lined up properly. Will be looking for another brand next time.

I used to use them quite regularly. I think they're still good, I know they use fresh water. These days I use the Tru Blu hydrobaths as they have a glass door that opens sideways so the dogs can jump in and out, and the drainage is better so you can get their feet dry. Also they can see out more so they seem to be happier. There are two Tru Blu baths at Pars Garage (Shell servo) in The Basin. They have devoted their courtyard out the front and it's all fenced for the dogs.

I have received my above-mentioned treat pouch from Clean Run, & I must say, I am very impressed with it. A bit of a "rolls royce' it has lots of different compartments, one for your clicker & another which is a dispenser for poo bags on a roll. The pouch itself has a simple opening & closing mechanism which is not dependant on hinges which can fail (as we all know). It simply has a magnetic catch. It has a clip on the back to fasten to your belt & also loops to put a belt through, but no belt comes with it. A plastic zippered sandwich bag fits inside perfectly to keep it clean, & best of all, Bindi thinks that the treats that come out of it are the best Ooh that looks really good! I've been using my doog for classes but can't quite fit my phone in and my car key and fob, so this one might be a winner!

Novartis do have one, but they don't sell it in Aus. You could do an MDR1 test and switch to Heartgard if it's clear. I'm not sure what the supermarket lines are these days.

True about breeds, my Stafford has more odour than my Toller, he's hardly ever bathed and people cuddle him and remark he doesn't smell. Non-doggy people will always notice the different odour. Same as I know when I enter a house where they never open windows, or where there are smokers!! Often when people are feeding cheap food you can tell, the smell comes out in the coat/skin if it's not being nourished. I think a good quality vacuum makes all the difference, I think it smells a lot less in my house since the Dyson/Miele Cat n Dog.

I'm happy to grab an Aussiedog red frisbee from somewhere around here and post to you via ground shipping, but it may not be any cheaper than if Aussiedog organise postage for you. The red ones are quite strong, been tested on lots of dogs. He used to do an ultra tough white one so might be worth emailing to see if he has any of those lying around.

Royal Canin does mature foods in small/med/large dogs. Actually their mobility support prescription food has therapeutic levels of Green Lipped Mussel powder and good levels of omega 3 & 6 so it's a bit of a favourite with our clients but you might need to feed slightly more to maintain current weight, just seems the dogs build a bit of muscle on it and thin down a little.

Nah - I would never think that and I thought you were suggesting the rest of us didn't want to help people at all, lol. Apologies, was only talking in respects of myself and my original post. Excuse me while I dig myself into a deeper hole. :D Hope I haven't caused offense to anyone here - seriously. ;) ;) I really should ban myself from posting when I've had a bout of insomnia the previous night!

I think it is pretty evident that the most of us are not mean at all :D lol. And for me it goes without saying that family can have free advice and assistance if they would like or need it. That's always been the case with me, in whatever way I can provide it and whether it relates to dogs or not. I'm not taking your post too much seriously SnT, but I'm not sure if you are just making an off the cuff comment or whether you are making a pointed statement for some reason or other. Probably the former :D. Nah it was off the cuff ;) , just thought perhaps I was coming across like I don't want to help people at all. :D

I think sometimes we just suffer from instructor burnout. :D

I should say I'm not totally mean :D, that family and close friends get pretty much - 24hr phone support - just because they are family/friends and I inherently like to help them if I can. I don't think my family should have to pay for common sense advice. I've just learned to make my answers short, fairly closed and artful with your average Joe Citizen.

Yayyyy great answer. Too true. Too often it's just a "Oh this person is Dog Trainer lets see what I can glean for free without actually having to do any work with my dog". I find the longer I have been in this area, the less info I give. If they really wanted to fix their dogs issues, they would make the effort to come to training.

It's self rewarding behaviour, and the great outdoors are much better than solitary all day long. What is she getting for environmental enrichment (brainwork) everyday??

Krispy Kremes has gone into receivership.

Spunky!

Check with your Vet about stopping the metacam before you do. I know with injuries in people often anti-inflammatories for a set course is the prescribed treatment for muscular injuries. Metacam and Rimadyl are both of the same class of drugs so the side effects can be the same. They are very safe if given as directed, with a meal, and if you notice any lethargy, vomiting or diarrhoea you STOP dosing immediately and seek further instructions from your Vet. Otherwise both drugs generally have a good margin of safety and for many older dogs are given over a long period of time (months and years).