Moselle

Omo dissolved in a bucket of warm water with about a cup of bleach and then thrown into the washing machine.

What states is debarking allowed? I suppose it's illegal in Victoria? Does anyone know of a good vet that does performs debarking operations in Victoria? Please pm if possible as I have a maremma sheepdog that absolutely despairs me; I have tried all avenues, training, citronella barking collar, shock collar and nothing but nothing seems to work.

I share your sentiments, Steve :D . What the heck happened to common sense? As you said, there is far worse taking place in a dog's life than debarking, how many dogs have met their death because they won't cease barking? I would hate to imagine.

Deleted.

Personally, I could not and would not return the pup as common sense would dictate that the breeder would not be keeping it alive as she has made it amply clear that she simply cannot afford the upkeep of veterinary care. To each their own but I could not rest easily in returning the pup with the knowledge that the pup will be put to sleep. I am happy to hear that she hasn't got the condition of megaesophagus although it is very possible to keep a dog with this condition alive and thriving. I have so much admiration for you given that you have chosen to keep the pup. I do hope that after this sad start that things start to pick up for you and your beloved pup and that she leads a full and very healthy life.

So does bathing! the hospital where we just had our baby girl doesn't even practise circumcision, we were told incase we had a boy. Mmm, a hospital that does not offer free choice! They pretty much decide what has to go.

Your tribute to your beloved Magnus was sooo sooo touching. You are a person to be reckoned with, Jed. SO much admiration for you. Get better soon and may life smile at you from now on.

No, but they can be very, very inhumane. I have a friend serving in Afghanistan at the moment, he asked a local why none of the dogs have ears, apparently it makes them more aggresive having their ears cut off. The dog fighting problem s endemic in many muslim countries and in Afghanistan it is a public holiday for the biggest dog fighting day of the year, apparently by the end of the day 100,s of dogs are killed and maimed. Religiously sanctioned animal abuse is stil abuse. When the taliban came to power in Afghanistan, the pets were rounded up and taken from peoples houses and burned on a large pyre by the religious zeolots. I read a book about a family who managed to smuggle their dogs out just before the dog killings began. The koran however has a subclause about dogs, it says about all dogs being unclean except Salukis, who are classed as the hound of Allah and not really dogs but something very special and quite okay to share a tent with. Err, no. You're friend is putting the cart before the horse. The dogs'ears are cropped off because (as your friend would have noticed) there are no vets within cooee; cropping the ears prevents injury and infection. ;) NB: There has always been dog fighting in Afghanistan. From the time there were shepherds with sheep there were fights between dogs. Common sense would indicate that severing a dog's ears is most definitely not to prevent infection esp. dogs with prick ears. Feeble excuse I'm afraid. Common sense and research could also prove that circumcision of little boys does nothing but it still goes ion in "civilised" countries! there is not a lot of common sense in the world wherever you go!~ I would love to know what kind of research has taken place to prove that circumcision of little boys does nothing? I think it goes a long way towards cleanliness - that is my experience, not on a personal basis as I don't have anything hanging between my legs but via....well, you know what I mean am not debating this topic read it on the net!! lol Been researched as much as the anti and pro tail docking! lol Fair enough :D Personally, I don't mind sharpei's providing we are talking dogs

Which begs the question, why breed BB with such severely squashed faces? I thought the idea of breeding was to better the breed and not make its life one of sheer misery. Shame that ;)

So sorry to hear about your sad loss, Moko81. My parents own a purebred fox terrier that has megaesophagus. He was born with no signs of this disorder, he was fed chicken wings, chicken necks, etc etc and never regurgitated. He came down with parvo in between vaccinations even though he never left the backyard. He was taken to the Werribee Animal Hospital and placed on a drip and given antibiotics. He came home 10 days later but was unable to keep his food down. Johnny was taken back to Werribee and the vets concluded that he had megaesophagus. They suggested surgery. When questioned as to why all of a sudden Johnny has this issue their explanation was that perhaps it was as a result of parvo; I never heard that parvo could cause this problem. After much research I found some info that stipulated that certain types of antibiotics can aggravate the esophagus. Anyway, Johhny is still very much alive and will be turning 10 in 3 months. He is fed dry food that has been soaked and mashed. He is able to keep this down without a problem. I wonder if your vet suggested ways you could have adopted in preventing aspiration pneumonia from occurring? I would hope so.

Why would BB be an expensive breed to care for and maintain? Crikey, I would hope that after having paid such a stiff price for a dog you should not have to continue walking around with your hand on your wallet all of the time and besides which, isn't that the whole idea of health testing? ;) Bulldogs are sensitive to heat and to cold, so you can't just buy one and keep it outside in the garden when you're out as compared to other breeds. In summer I would think you'd have to keep the air-condition running for a very long time. I think the breeder I talked to mentioned that as soon as it gets hotter than 26 degrees, you need A/C on ASAP. They're also prone to hyperthermia and over-heating which could lead to death if not properly monitored. It gets expensive to have the air-conditioning or heater running a lot, and in Melbourne 40 degree heat, oh boy! ;) There is a breeder of BB and boxers living about 2kms from my place, she is a registered breeder by the way and not a byb. Her bulldogs and boxers are kept in runs with no air conditioning whatsoever except for shade cloth thrown over the wire runs. :D

No, but they can be very, very inhumane. I have a friend serving in Afghanistan at the moment, he asked a local why none of the dogs have ears, apparently it makes them more aggresive having their ears cut off. The dog fighting problem s endemic in many muslim countries and in Afghanistan it is a public holiday for the biggest dog fighting day of the year, apparently by the end of the day 100,s of dogs are killed and maimed. Religiously sanctioned animal abuse is stil abuse. When the taliban came to power in Afghanistan, the pets were rounded up and taken from peoples houses and burned on a large pyre by the religious zeolots. I read a book about a family who managed to smuggle their dogs out just before the dog killings began. The koran however has a subclause about dogs, it says about all dogs being unclean except Salukis, who are classed as the hound of Allah and not really dogs but something very special and quite okay to share a tent with. Err, no. You're friend is putting the cart before the horse. The dogs'ears are cropped off because (as your friend would have noticed) there are no vets within cooee; cropping the ears prevents injury and infection. :D NB: There has always been dog fighting in Afghanistan. From the time there were shepherds with sheep there were fights between dogs. Common sense would indicate that severing a dog's ears is most definitely not to prevent infection esp. dogs with prick ears. Feeble excuse I'm afraid. Common sense and research could also prove that circumcision of little boys does nothing but it still goes ion in "civilised" countries! ;) there is not a lot of common sense in the world wherever you go!~ I would love to know what kind of research has taken place to prove that circumcision of little boys does nothing? I think it goes a long way towards cleanliness - that is my experience, not on a personal basis as I don't have anything hanging between my legs but via....well, you know what I mean

True enough, cruelty is very much alive in every nook and cranny, unfortunately. My gripe is when a particular nationality with certain beliefs tries to enforce those beliefs onto other people after they are the very ones to emigrate into another country. The point that I was trying to make is that I have had it up to my neck in people making absurd excuses for certain countries. Animal cruelty is just that - CRUELTY - and no excuses should be entered into!

yeah okay, some undemocratically appointed cleric wielding some political muscle to control its population does not apply here in Oz hence taxi drivers making life most uncomfortable when it comes to giving someone a ride who happens to own a dog. I once had my beloved chihuahua (about 7 yrs ago) in my bag, only part of her head was sticking out; I was walking around a major shopping centre, didn't go to a grocery place or any place that was serving or selling food, yet a couple of muslim men in their 20's saw me and made a point of alerting security guards and demanded that I be thrown out cause I was being offensive in walking around with my chi in my handbag! That had nothing to do with political power of any sort except their absurd religion coming into play! I resented that because the last time I looked I was in Oz and not in their country. How dare they come to Oz and start to dictate by forcing their nonsensical beliefs onto us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If I had any power they would soon be shipped back to where they belong. If they adapt to OUR way of life, fair enough but if they start exerting their way of life onto us that is an entirely different matter!

No, but they can be very, very inhumane. I have a friend serving in Afghanistan at the moment, he asked a local why none of the dogs have ears, apparently it makes them more aggresive having their ears cut off. The dog fighting problem s endemic in many muslim countries and in Afghanistan it is a public holiday for the biggest dog fighting day of the year, apparently by the end of the day 100,s of dogs are killed and maimed. Religiously sanctioned animal abuse is stil abuse. When the taliban came to power in Afghanistan, the pets were rounded up and taken from peoples houses and burned on a large pyre by the religious zeolots. I read a book about a family who managed to smuggle their dogs out just before the dog killings began. The koran however has a subclause about dogs, it says about all dogs being unclean except Salukis, who are classed as the hound of Allah and not really dogs but something very special and quite okay to share a tent with. Err, no. You're friend is putting the cart before the horse. The dogs'ears are cropped off because (as your friend would have noticed) there are no vets within cooee; cropping the ears prevents injury and infection. NB: There has always been dog fighting in Afghanistan. From the time there were shepherds with sheep there were fights between dogs. Common sense would indicate that severing a dog's ears is most definitely not to prevent infection esp. dogs with prick ears. Feeble excuse I'm afraid.

Good one, Hetzer!

Shame, no photos. Yes, maremmas are proving to be quite a discovery here in Oz, doing what they do best. They are an asset and every livestock farmer should have one or two or three.....sure beats the alpacas.

Yes they can be quite intrusive and actually expect that western society convey to their way of thinking. They complain about xmas carols, they whinge about pork being served on social gatherings, they moan about the crucifix being displayed on walls, they criticise women wearing bikinis at the beach and so it goes on. Very offensive considering that they have been welcomed into this country and yet think that they are the be all, end all! All I gotta say is if ya don't like it, go back where ya came from.

Her staff "exacerbated her paranoia and tendency to be in a delusional world", he told the daily. What a world, one can't decide whom to leave what without one's own flesh and blood rearing its ugly head. It seems to be the current trend to always question a person's mental status when things are not going to plan, how convenient. The son may not be deserving of his mother's inheritance hence the reason why Conchita has been left with a nice chunck of the money and so be it. If my kids were detached and too self centred and self absorbed I would be doing exactly the same thing!

I couldn't agree more. Anyone seriously wanting to rob a place would only need to bait the dog and that is the very reason that I would never contemplate using a dog as a deterrent. Much better resort to technology.

Why would BB be an expensive breed to care for and maintain? Crikey, I would hope that after having paid such a stiff price for a dog you should not have to continue walking around with your hand on your wallet all of the time and besides which, isn't that the whole idea of health testing?

So just cause people are prepared to pay x amount for a purebred dog justifies the breeder to take advantage of that? As for crosses going selling for more than the average pedigree pup ? Not so sure about that, in fact I beg to differ. I paid $1500 for my cavalier and I haven't seen any crossbred dog selling for that kind of money.

Bahahaha how so very very true, we get more transmission of disease from our human counterparts mostly due to bad hygeine practices than anywhere else. this reminded me, (bit yukky sorry). many places my daughter went in the middle east, the people defecated anywhere, just dropped their pants (males) and did it. and didn't even cover it up. I thought, sure!! but they (kids) were so amazed that they took pics as at one time their vehicle had to stop, and a nice pile was left. No water, loo paper, washing hands etc, and this boy (about 14??) had bread in his hand at the time. So yes, hygiene is all relative isn't it? I guess kissing my dogs would turn their stomachs as much as this did to us. I'm sure ppl think I am a pig as I forget to wash my hands after touching animals before eating. At the end of the day there is much less risk of catching anything from not washing one's hands from one's pet than human beings providing that the pet is wormed and healthy. The IQ of certain individuals leaves me perplexed.

Gosh, that quote is so touching, covered in goosebumps right now and my eyes are tearing. Cannot wait for the day when you are totally free of pain, Jed. You were heroic in trying to save your furbabies, kudos to you girl.

Well, that is a surprise; I have always been lead to believe that a BB produces 3 pups at the most.