Yesmaam

The GSD ban from 1928 - 1972 didn't work (not that there was a real reason to ban the breed in the first place but anyway...) so what makes the pollies think that banning another breed will solve the problem????

There are a lot of Mals on the American cop shows on Fox but they also have an equal amount of WL GSD's too. Some states use Mals only, some use GSD's only and some use both and anything else that works for them. It's not something new and they have been doing it for years.

No, some of GSD's here in QLD Police are duel trained as GP/ drug detection dogs. The comment in the article made no sense at all. The GSD's scenting ability is no better or worse than the Mal or many other breeds for that matter.

And as such, the GSD is still the preferred breed to use for police work here in Australia. There is also a big move around the country to use only WL GSD's. QPOL rarely, if at all, accepts donations anymore and are phasing out their stock of SL GSD's in favour of their own WL breeding. There are also MOU's across most states and NZ police dept's where they can share breeding and semen. This dramatically cuts the costs of having to purchase new blood all the time. The RAAF still prefer to breed and purchase Mals but they rarely, if at all, get operational live bites and catch people etc.....

Actually, I was speaking with someone in GMY yesterday about this who works with the German Police dogs. As the article says, not all states breed their own dogs and budget constraints in some states mean that they have to look for cheaper alternatives. He said, good GSD's are easily twice the price of a Mal so its cheaper to go through a few Mals to find a good one.

This has come up a few times in previous threads. To put things into perspective, government agencies across the world are all about cutting costs and saving money. With this in mind, anyone can make anything up to justify why a decision is made but this part of the article sums it all up "He explained that not all German states bred their own dogs, making the often cheaper Belgian Shepherd even more attractive when bought in bulk."

Research good genetics eg: just because someone owns a working breed dog doesnt mean it will work........

K9's written about the courses he's run for AQIS etc on his website before. http://www.k9pro.com.au/pages/AQIS-Training-Workshops-%252d-Handling-Dangerous-and-Aggressive-Dogs.html AQIS is not CUSTOMS....... They are completely separate organisations. He said that he runs training courses for Govern agencies, including Customs in his thread. I was curious to ask what courses for Customs he has run??? Cheers

Sweden always put in a good team at the WUSV's each year. I can tell you now that they use the prong on many of their competition dogs (if not all their dogs). Re: most people will not use them correctly, or use them too much, or use them as a first resort. I use the prong as my first choice of training collar. I have done so for years and dont bother wasting time with choker or anything else etc..). Have never injured my dogs though and funny enough, I have never seen a dog being injured as a result of wearing a prong collar either. I don't use them to walk my dog as this is not what they are designed for. They are a training tool and as such I use them while training only. I have seen many many people using them for all sorts of reasons (coming from an IPO background) but no injuries to dogs..... The prong is the preferred collar for most IPO clubs and the like where highly driven, thick nerved dogs are being trained. I am not talking about some of the bubbly happy driven dogs you see in some of the ANKC clubs either; I am referring to workingline dogs bred for the job. The prong is not designed to be used as a high stress training tool. It is to be used with a bit of feeling and is designed so that you don’t need to use anywhere near the same force required as some other conventional collars that are on the market. They are not designed to be tightly fitted around the dog’s neck either. As a rule of thumb, a two finger gap needs to be between the collar and the neck. So if needed a quick, snappy correction can be applied allowing the stress to be switched off the moment the collar is released. Remember, Dogs work naturally from stress to comfort. Incorrect use of any training aid sends unclear messages to the dog which can result in undesired behaviour so I only recommend that these collars are used by trainers who know what they are doing, ie: not Jo Blow from up the road etc…. I don't agree that prongs should be available to Jo Blow and the general public but I also don't support a ban on a very useful training tool (not that I would ever comply with a ban anyway)....

I suppose you support the common choker collar instead? A device designed to STRANGLE the dog as it constricts around its neck, causing it to cut off the air so your dog can't breathe resulting in a slow and painful death if not released............... Hey, this would make a great story. We could liken it to when Hitler hung his generals with piano wire..........lol

Just curious, what training courses do you run for Customs?

What makes me laugh about this article is that there is plenty of statistical evidence that proves common choker collars cause far more damage than anything else, yet here we are again with an anti-prong article...... The "BARBARIC TORTURE DEVICE".... "CLAMPED AROUND DOGS NECKS", “PIERCING THE SKIN”, the blood dripping, the flesh ripping hooks designed to injure and maim, oh the blood, oh the blood ahhhhhhh. It’s just total BS and completely unfounded. Find me the evidence to prove that prongs are as bad as they say......please someone.... Its all hysteria, unless someone can prove me wrong that is ;-) If anyone has a copy of the newspaper article, go and pick up your dog poos with it because that's all it deserves.....lol In the meantime, if we all emailed that "behaviourist" I'm sure she would get the message that her unqualified opinions are not wanted..... Just Google her name and you will find her website address.

Does anyone know anything about a temperament test certificate issued by Dogs NSW?

Me 2, I make my own version of RAW based on raw meaty bones and juiced veg/ fruit. I used to say to people who fed their dogs dry that they may as well feed them cardboard but cardboard is probably better for them after reading this.........lol.

Add a bag of "Lectric Soda Crystals" It can be used if your dog swallows something it shouldn't. Causes the dog to vomit instantly (within 30 secs). Where do you buy Lectric Soda Crystals ? Woolies, coles etc.... Look in the washing powder area. you buy it in 1kg bags.

Any future plans to design an Australian made obedience training jacket? I currently use a Schweikert obedience jacket.

Add a bag of "Lectric Soda Crystals" It can be used if your dog swallows something it shouldn't. Causes the dog to vomit instantly (within 30 secs).

The dogs in my Schutzhund club have to be social and stable or we don't accept them.

Just watched it. The focus was on inbreeding rather than the cause itself - the show ring....... They commented on how 'looks' place higher than health in pedigree dogs but failed to highlight how our desires in the show ring cause it.

In a nut shell, this is about 'dog shows' and how our constant desires to make something cosmetically perfect has caused irreversible damage in some breeds. It's not the first time something like this has been on tv/ radio and it won't be the last time either because the 'show ring' is the root of all evil. I disagree with Don's comments re: GSDCA's good breed survey - the GSD breed survey conducted here in Australia is not worth the paper it is written on.

I agree PF, The owner probably hasnt trained enough under trial conditions to prepare the dog properly was my first thought on this post.

I think you get get yourself into self destructive loops too.. dog not heeling well.. we stress and over train it.. dog gets sour/picks up on competition nerves.. and fails.. so we stress more and train more. If you're expecting trouble in the ring, I think you often get it. Body language changes and we tense up.. dog starts to worry what we're freaking out about.. its certainly the best recipe for lagging I know of.. and I've done it. Lets not forget that there are two members of a team in competition obedience.. sorting out our half of the team is often a good place to start. Its not just about the dog. very true.

I agree that a dog either has high drive or dos'nt, but its not all about working lines or breeds. Plenty of non working lines and breeds have drive to burn. Its all about the individual. I trained a Staffy with just as much drive as any working dog, and there are plenty of pound dogs on death row for the very same reason. Of course you are more likely to find a hign drive dog from a working line, but its not guaranteed. I would also argue that many potential pet line dogs do not have owners who know how to promote and nurture the drive from puppyhood like working dog owners do. Most pet owners automatically attempt to suppress high drive, and later when they want to trial they are trying to do the opposite. Yes, I agree with this also

It was a joke Corvus but while we're on the subject 'enthusiasm' or 'drive' is genetic, the dog either has it or it doesn’t. It's not something you can simply inject and you're away. 'Drive' in working line dogs when compared to non-working line dogs is light years apart. I see too many people fluffing around making more of a commotion than the dog trying to build drive in something that simply doesn’t have it or is very low. Quite funny to watch actually.............lol

Re "How To Get Dog Working With Enthusiasm In The Ring" Buy a workingline dog..................