Niques

Clastic, I don't know how anyone could call you a terrible owner about what happened! How scary James wasn't wearing his collar any of the times he got out. Thankfully he never left the cul-de-sac - I imagine it would be doubly terrifying losing them away from home. Thank goodness you managed to find them. The only time James has escaped without our knowledge he was actually returned to our neighbour two doors down as the neighbour who found him assumed he was their labrador Luckily James was well acquainted with them and their labrador and they quietly returned him to our yard. Never found out he'd gotten loose until about a week later! Ruby is becoming very efficient at gutting things, isn't she! How sweet of your neighbour to tell her to stop Cheeky puppy. Does she destroy her blankets/other bedding or just things with stuffing?

My 11 month old dog has gone off his dry food (Nutro Large Breed Puppy). His base diet consists of dry in the morning and some form of bone in the evening. He still eats (although maybe with a tiny bit less enthusiasm than usual) bones, sardines, egg, fruit, etc. Just not his dry. I even mixed in the egg and cottage cheese this morning and he barely touched half of it. This is a dog that's normally thrilled to be fed. Still pooing regularly. He vomitted this morning but I don't think it's related. Any ideas as to the sudden behaviour change?

I have an entire male labrador who will only bark at lizards. Unless your ears can somehow detect enthusiastic bum wiggling he'd be a piss poor guard dog. Actually, I lie. He will (very rarely) bark in frustration if the newcomer doesn't come close enough for him to jump on/lick/run into. That said, he's only just coming up to one year old so he could develop a protective streak yet. I very much doubt it, but he could. Nonetheless, as a boofy, very confident black dog, he's probably a reasonable visual deterrant. You know, when he stops looking like a cuddly, over-enthusiastic puppy

Yes, it does seem very much like a Canberra thread. I think the rest of us shall just have to be honourary Canberrians. I love how in this photo she looks like she's got a mo. It's very Inspector Closueau... ;) I hadn't noticed her little mo. Pop a trilby hat on her head and the impression is complete. Shhh! Don't make me even more puppy clucky ;) They are gorgeous dogs, though. There was an ex-show prospect who used to attend James' puppy obedience classes. I had thought they were a beautiful breed just judging from photos - sooo much more stunning in real life! I'm rather intrigued by Herbal Hoover. The way you described it I couldn't help but picture someone rubbing spices on him like he were a Sunday roast James went through a phase of smelling like clean linen He's never smelt very doggy. He leaves dog odour behind but if you sniff him directly it's not a doggy smell.

I do the same. My writing turns rather quaint when I'm doing essays or writing up research and my speech can't help but follow suit. I'm also terrible after having watched too many English television shows. Period dramas are the worst - I tend to start lapsing into the accent and vocabulary after a while :D Wuffles, you have me longing for an Australian Shepherd puppy now. The three of them together is a perfect shot. KTB, I was sitting here thinking that Goofy was the perfect name for the beautiful boy until it occured to me that I'm thinking of Pluto, not Goofy. He has a look about him that is pure Pluto. Such a mournful face - I hope there's a bright future for him. Especially given he's being moved on so urgently

Never poor form to vote for yourself Happy Birthday Ava!! :D I have to sometimes wonder if James is trying to be as embarrassing as possible. This morning he found a puddle at the end of a footpath. I'm not talking a big puddle. I mean one that was probably only 2cm deep. At its deepest point. He proceeded to lie down on top of it and roll about like a lunatic. It was both bizarre and hilarious to watch. And a wee bit embarrassing to be holding the leash connected to the crazy dog

James likes mango but only when cut into small pieces. Actually, same with most fruits, really. If it's too big he spits it out. Charming animal. I tend to agree with your way of thinking, Max#1. The trouble is my understanding of consequences, when it comes to dogs, is very poor - it's something I need to do a lot more reading on and implement with some of James' behaviours. I am lost What do MDTL and MDTM mean?

Fruit???!!! Oh the injustice of it all! :D He does actually like fruit. Very much. Has a couple of frozen blueberries with his breakfast and then we might share an apple or banana at some point during the day.

Forgive me if I'm being particularly obtuse but the answer is evading me at present - what is the RSPCA's motivation for introducing laws that would restrict/criminalise the practices of registered breeders? Is it somehow financial? A misdirected sense of ethics?

Catching up, but jumping in to say, yes I agree. Seconded. That thread took a rather sharp turn for the worse! I can vividly imagine the "Ruby and the tarp" incident - it is so something James would do. Would be absolutely hilarious if we didn't have to be so despairing whilst such things are happening Now that is an inventive use of livestock parts. Person1: Whatever could we use the bull's penis for? Person2: Let's let the dogs chew on them! Mildly disturbing. Yet very funny :D Puzzles sound like a good hobby to get back into. I tend to do them with my step-mother if I'm visiting and used to do them with my grandmother many years back, but have never really done them at home - it always seems like a good idea to start messy, space-consuming activities in someone else's house The recent posts have inspired me though - I think I'll have to pick up a few this week. Is anyone else's dog starting to feel the heat at night? James' panting drove me insane last night - I'm trying to work out what to do with him so he's cooler. In other news, my brother and his fiancée are here for a week or so and, of course, Master James went insane. I popped him on leash around them and he attempted to strangle himself. He eventually calmed down when I started shovelling fruit down his throat but he was eating it in such a resigned way that I'm sure he knew that its purpose was simply to distract him :D Poor boy.

There are poo bags with "How to pick up poo" instructions?

I looked like an inept self-harmer when James was teething - had the most wonderful scratches down the inside of my forearms. And I'm constantly covered in bruises. That's the worst of it for me. Although I'm sure owning a dog has done my knee in. I've had all sorts of troubles and pain with it starting right after he came home.

Are we talking just the tongue or the whole mouth? Fully pink tonuge but I think (I feel guilty making him open his mouth for me and try to make it as brief as possible for him ) that he has lots of black/grey discolouration on the roof of his mouth. Pretty sure he'd be a useless herder - "Sheep. Sheep!! Come play with me, Mr Sheep!! Pleeeeeeeease?!?!". Awesome, awesome segue from an unpleasant topic to a much more pleasant topic. James is adorable and clearly enjoys possessing the Power of Flight. Aww, thanks, both of you. James is quite convinced that one day he will take flight. There's a little bit of Dumbo in him. Resourceful puppy! James likes to curl his head around and surreptiously lick glasses left on the coffee table - heaven forbid he learn to actually tip them over! That's certainly interesting! I figure that by feeding the dogs these things we're just improving the efficiency of the meat industry - the whole animal is being put to use (what with lamb ribs and other strange bones, ears, snouts, hooves, tails, etc.) rather than just what's fit for human consumption. Did Hoover like the snout? James never seems to enjoy dried things like that so much - he's had a pig ear and dried roo tail once or twice and he eats them (Duh - he's a lab ;)), but it never seems to be with enthusiasm. Hope you're feeling tip-top soon, KTB!

Oh no, poor you, Max #1! It's very embarrassing when yours is the dog that takes off. I had to laugh when I read he did it twice though Hopefully you'll be able to have a chuckle about it later. Although being in a non-fenced area must have been terrifying Max and his "invisible" flies are also funny Raz's festive look is very cute! Do you have much of a battle putting his t-shirt on or does he enjoy/tolerate it? James isn't toy focussed at all. He likes to chase things at the park but not retrieve them - strange, as he always retrieves at home. He is, instead, unbelievably dog-focussed. Yesterday he followed this poor other dog around like a bad smell. It was probably nearly 10 minutes in before he even looked over at me to check I was still around and that's only because he had a moment while he was waiting for her to finish with the water. I'm quite concerned about that but can't think how to fix it. It really is sad. I think a great deal of it is due to heavy urbanisation - greater population density, more cars, more dogs (who are more likely to be less trained/exercised as a result of the above) means people are now overly cautious.

I'm in Brookfield. Wouldn't it be a funny coincidence if your inlaws were just down the road. Lilli_star, James gets 3/4 of a cup of dry for breakfast and anywhere between 300-500g of meaty bone for dinner. I think the packet suggests 350g or so of dry a day - he'd be enormous if he ate that James also sets the street off. There are a couple of yappy dogs across the road that start up and the "street" BC who plonks himself at the cul-de-sac entrance each day likes to tell James off everytime we walk past

Aw, look at ickle Hoover, all tucked in! I love how the Elbie photos morph from wariness into glum acceptance Where did you find the doggy Santa hat? I was just thinking today that we need one. James already has his Antler ears (not game enough to try them on yet). Wuffles, a meet-up would be brilliant, although we are on the other side of town - out Kenmore/Chapel Hill way. How long are you up here for? Lilli_star, I think you're in the best position to judge what's best for Ruby and given the worst case scenarios that could arise (what with the GSD next door and difficulty containing Roo) I think you made the best choice :rolleyes: Some of the judgements on DOL...if the dog's happy and healthy and you're happy and healthy then there's not much that could result in the end of the world :D The whole puppy food thing completely through me into a spin. Especially given labs are technically large breed and James is oddly short (I think) as it is. I had just planned on continuing him on puppy food until 18 months Certainly interesting to hear that people don't. I eventually got around to checking his breeder's instructions and she recommends using it until at least 12 months. Sooo, we bought our first bag of adult food today. His current lot should run out right around his birthday. I'm really loathe to change it over - I feel like while he's on puppy food he's still a little puppy :D

Kuma and Ava's party looks like it was a hit! :rolleyes: James and I are very jealous (especially of those biscuits - yum!). Loving all the photos. Ava, in particular, is a very photogenic pup. Very, very exciting, Ravenau! Hopefully those 12 days will just fly-by for you. Are you all prepared? We had our usual Sunday dog-park outing today, and encountered our first dog there just before we had planned to leave. James was (mostly) very well behaved with her - huuuuge relief. Although he has a tendency to sniff female dogs' bums to the point where they get a little cross with him so had to reprimanded once or twice. Thankfully he was all knackered out so he could only muster a little bit of energy to play. Even then the other owner kept commenting on how much energy he had - if only she knew that was James at his most exhausted Forgive the photo overload "I'm coming to get you, ball!!" "Nearly there!" "...oh, I've missed it, haven't I?" "Prepare for take-off!"

Oh, I am so relieved to hear about everyone's LLWing problems The rest of the forum sort of gives the impression that if you don't have this sorted by a couple of months, your dog (actually, more likely YOU) have problems. James isn't normally a strong puller (except to sniff trees), it's more that he walks just a tiny bit too fast. We alternate between the head halter and flat collar when walking - the head collar gets popped on when I know we'll encounter other dogs (otherwise I have little to no control over him) or on the few occasions when he's pulling like a steam train. I was very proud of him today. He used to be nearly as reactive with people as he is with dogs, but we have slowly been working it down to the point where he'll make a move to go to the person but can easily be called back. Until today. The council have finally gotten around to fixing our local road that was torn up by the recent flood so there were quite a few people around the footpath. On our way back home we got stuck walking right next to a meandering worker - James didn't pull once!! I was so pleased with him. Until we got to our street and he started stalking a leaf on the ground, thinking it was a bird So my dog's a little bit daft Our definition is simply not pulling on the leash. I used to not care about where he walks, but now I'm not so sure - he seems intent on blocking me in! I try to move to his left (so I'm not kicking his heels in front of me) and he moves left. I move right and he moves right. Silly boy. Kyojin is walking like a champ! Fingers crossed he keeps that up for you, Minxy! Kuma has a very thoughtful, expressive face. And amazingly large paws What a cutie. Play as a reward looks like it works really well for Max - you two are very good together! I've made a few attempts to weave play in as a reward, but only when we're outside and mid-play and I'm trying to teach him to calm down when asked (i.e. dropping the toy and sitting or lying nicely) before playing again. I think it's really too much effort on my behalf ( ) to rile him up to the point where he'll work for a toy. Very impressed by Max's swift drop, however! James has a very slow, "Yeah, okay, I'm getting there" process most of the time. KTB, Hoover and Elbie look like they're having a very secret conversation behind the weeds there ;) And exclusive club of two. I hope I haven't missed anyone there - lot to catch up on. Good luck to those doggies being assessed (tonight? tomorrow?)!!

Aww, Max on the table is gorgeous! He reminds me very much, in appearance, of "Dog" from Footrot Flats. Fly-chasing sounds very amusing to watch. James' latest habit is to fish beetles out of the swimming pool and slowly torture them. I iz pensive puppy.

Thanks for posting the sheep herding photos! It's great to see working dogs in action. Hoover and his new friend look like they could be twins - hope you brought home the right puppy :D Elbie's weaving is looking good! As sad as the stories of past pets are, it's lovely to see what an impact these animals have had on everyone's lives. I myself had a very morbid moment last night thinking about James' lifespan and the idea simply devestated me. I've never had a pet die before - my childhood rabbit had to be given away when we moved to QLD (and I always felt the little fellow was pure evil anyway ) and my turtle ended up in a creek. So the thought is terrifying. KTB, hopefully you get some helpful advice on Elbie's growling. From my (very inexperienced) point of view, the desensitising and rewarding that you're doing sounds like a good plan. James found himself doing some gardening this afternoon. His little digging corner was filled in (poor chap - next trip to Bunnings will be to get him some sand for his clamshell) and the hedges were trimmed - the helpful boy found himself a Mock Orange branch and proudly carried it around all afternoon. Christmas shopping is a scary thought. I'm planning taking advantage of the Myer One members sale this week but still have no idea what I'm actually getting anyone

KTB, that's a very sweet read - thanks for posting. It's a Canon 500D. First foray into the DSLR world so there's much to learn. And it's James' TV stardom, not mine - can't promise you he'll hop off his lofty pedestal to mingle :D Ava and her brother are hilarious Very resourceful puppies! James loves to swim but hasn't yet worked the swimming pool out. The big chicken hovers on the very top step and splashes about. This summer I'll teach him how to get in. Hooray for the stitches coming out! Very pleased to hear that's Ava's feeling better.

Very vivid descriptions, Max#1 - sounds hilarious from a bystander's perspective. Probably not so much from yours I'd forgotten they adjust the heights for the littlest team member. I have my new camera today Have absolutely no idea what I'm doing Really need to read the manual. But had to have a little bit of fun with it first (be warned - photo overload!):

Tennis balls. Doesn't care for them at all. Will fetch practically anything else thrown but has never bothered with tennis balls.

Someone had a productive day! Can't wait to see some footage of all the agility and flyball dogs when they start learning I would love to do flyball but have heard it's not such a good idea for labradors. Had a letter from our breeder yesterday containing a copy of James' television debut! Totally Wild did a segment on breeders when he was 7 weeks old and he and his litter starred. I'd forgotten how unbelievably adorable they were! Will try and upload it at some point.

Fingers crossed Satch doesn't get it, Wuffles! J. and I saw two beautiful collies out this morning. We've been gradually moving our morning walk earlier as it's getting so hot - as much as I'd like to avoid the other dogs, walking any later would kill us both But we've been meeting all sorts of interesting dogs - it was a very cute sharpei (or sharpei x) yesterday.