~Anne~

:D Say what?!! Your fiancee??? You live with your brother??? Have I missed something here PC? I am gobsmacked. ;)

It does sound like it may be neurolgocial. Maybe a stroke or some kind of seizure disorder?

Bump - for those that might be interested and may have missed this. Some of the one way flights are as cheap as $60 for 2 people

Webjet have a 'double the deal' deal on if anyone is looking for cheap arifares to Sydney for the MDBA Awards in March. There are a few good buys in this promotion. http://www.webjet.com.au/sale/?utm_source=...SW=intro1%20%20

Electrical storms can make them open too. You can switch off the auto opener Tess and use the door manually if you prefer.

It could be both or either. I would be taking her to the Vet. Perhaps you can leave early?

Wow! Do they name them like they do pedigree dogs??

Your own records basically. Back when I was involved we had paper records only, and I still had those until recently. Nowdays there are programs much like dog pedigree programs. You would record the birds ring number and year and that is its ID as such. And if you buy from a good breeder, then you would be able to get your birds pedigree. They just dont look quite as impressive without names. But I am sure you would list all their wins. I bred a couple of Grand Champions and had some really good wins. I miss the birds, but can no longer keep birds due to having developed an allergy to them! Thanks. I assume it might be a similar thing with chooks and other feathered friends? Does anyone know about rats and guinea pigs though??

But then, how do you determine ancestory and such?

What makes a Budgie eligible for exhibition? Are they papered? A little off-topic but an elderly gentleman down the road sells budgies.... his sign proudly displayed out the front says "Baby Bubgies" for sale. 6 years on and I still have a gigle everytime I read it.

But what makes them a pedigree? See my post above.

Wow, how scary for you. I am so glad it turned out ok. In the latter half of last year, I received a very sad phone call from someone who adopted 2 Pugs from me. They were litter sisters and had always been together, and to this day I swear I have never seen 2 dogs closer than these two. They shared everything! They would each even chew on the same bone, one on either end! Anyway, to cut a long story short, they were being walked off lead as they had done twice a day for some time. Both would always come when called and neither would wander away from their owners side. On this particular morning, one of the girls decided she was in a rush to get home and she took off ahead as they were about to leave the park, straight across the road and straight into the path of a car. She died almost instantly. I am miss paranoid when it comes to wlaking dogs off lead and, over the top it may be, but I will not and have not ever allowed my dogs off lead without being in a securely enclosed and fenced area.

But feline aids is not genetically inherited is it? I believe it is a virus, not a genetic fault. No, I must admit I haven't. :D Cat breeders scare me! A question for those who say they have "purebred" rats, mice, birds or guines pigs.... can you define what purebred is in these animals? Do you have pedigree papers that show the parentage? Are they registered with a body that keeps records of ancestory?

What state are you in? If you are in Sydney, then I can give you the name of a fabulous specialist in this field and this may rule out the need for a scan. I have an epileptic dog and we see a Neurologist by the name of Georgina Childs. She conducted a few simple neurolgical tests on my boy, combined with his history of seizures and other things, and concluded that a scan was not neccessary as it appeared that it was idiopathic epilepsy. Epilepsy does change the behaviour of some dogs, as does the anti-epileptic medications that the dogs are put on. One of the chnages is related to aggression. The quality of life of any dog with epilepsy is up to the owners to consider. My Pug, Monte, has a great quality of life even though he has suffered more than 300 seizures over his life. We have never experienced major aggression with him, but he will sometimes take play a bit too far and will suddenly zone into a second or 2 of aggression. These days this occurs very, very infrequently though. He is more laid back, docile and lethargic than the other Pugs, but he also has many moments where he is just as active. He still plays and enjoys his life, he just simply sleeps and dozes more than the others. Monte was first diagnosed at 18 months and is now a couple off months of 8 years of age.

It is interesting isn't it. The humble mongrel cat, or moggy, is relatively free of genetic issues. It is also interesting that the cat world doesn't think of the moggy in the same way that the dog world thinks of cross bred dogs.

Chicken and beef are two of the most common allergens apparently. All most ALL kibble contain chicken or beef products. Discard the kibble (or find one without allergens) and fee another kind of meat such as goat, kangaroo, lamb or camel.

Whatever you do, be carefull about what trainer you seek the services of. A person who adopted a Pug from me engaged one who decided the dog needed 'breaking' to stop dog aggression and he dragged the 8 year old Pug around for more than 2 hours forcing it to do different things, in the heat, before her owner said enough and get the hell off my property! This trainer comes from the Penrtih area.

I only have a few comments to make.... surprise, surprise. :D The document is very poorly written, based on anecdotal evidence, and filled with controversial assertions. I am actually surprised at the lack of intelligent analysis and factual information in the document and because of this; I find it hard to take it seriously. The fact that the National CEO has put her name to this document is remarkable. The RSPCA, and all those who are involved in one way, shape or another with companion animals, should firstly and foremost look to creating national unity on legislation and laws. The fact that each state administers independent laws and legislation, sometimes in direct opposition to each other, is farcical. Secondly, there MUST be a national enquiry to determine where the issues really are, what current legislation exists, what it achieves and where the failures are, and what current practices and processes can be improved, refined and made particable.

I hope this poor fellow is still ok.

To my knowledge, the Royal Guide Dogs Association trashed the breeding program some years back as they could not get conformity among the off-spring. I also believe that to this day, this has not been achieved and is no nearer to happening than it was when the Blind Society started the original breeding program approx 20 years ago. However, they (the LAA) do have a standard of sorts and the breed is registered on a registry for specific puporses, and that is to have it as a recongised breed and to breed dogs true to type.

Well done everyone... and a special well done to Amanda!

Personally, I think $700 for a dog of that age is a little over the top. Yes, the dog has value and in today's market and being a Pug, it has a reasonably high value... but not that high. Still, if someone is prepared to pay that much then so be it. I would hope though that it is desexed. If it isn't, then the person trying to sell it for the inflated price of $700 needs a good hit across the head. My rescues were all desexed, vaccinated and treated for their individual health issues and they were only priced at $300 on average. This was regardless of age though.

In some ways, the fact the word 'purebred' is added shows that 'purebred' dogs are still highly sought after.... that at least is a positive at any rate. I never sdvertised my rescue Pugs as pure or not pure. I never felt the need. They were simply just Pugs. In fact, I really can't recall anyone seeking specifically a pedigreed Pug even.

Can you quote a source for that? I am curious to see where it comes from as in all the research I have done, and all the discussions on DOL, I have never seen this stated anywhere as being true and fact. I am not sure the Tenterfield Breeders would agree with you on that point. They maintain that they are completely different dogs.

Then you would be discounting a lot of 'pure breeds' then. These 'breeds' are not ANKC recognised to my knowledge; Mini Foxy Koolie American Bulldog White Shepherds Curly Coated Retriever (not 100%v sure on this one... I am sure someone will advise me of those I am wrong on anyway ) American Water Spaniel and many, many, many others. To my knowledge though, all of the above are recognised under other registries.