Dxenion

Currently have a Sony DSC-T300 which replaced a Sony DSC-T1 when that died. Also use the photo button on my Sony Camcorder HDR-SR11E when taking photos of my fish or as a backup if the T300 battery goes flat. These are from the camcorder: .

I am also trying to decide on my first DSLR but their weight and bulk is putting me off. Don't discount P&S - they have their advantages in being small and lightweight. A photographer once told me that the first rule of photography is to have your camera with you! Some of my P&S photos: Edited to add that I've been keeping an eye on the Sony Nex5. Whilst some may say it's not a true DSLR, for me it combines the best of both worlds - the functionality of a DSLR and the compact size of a P&S. Just waiting for the price to come down a bit.

This is a link to another thread about the same thing. There might be some information in there that can help you.

I wonder if Mr Jeff Corbett is aware that dogs are allowed in outside dining throughout NSW, not just in Newcastle. NSW COMPANION ANIMALS ACT 1998 - SECT 14A Dogs not prohibited in outdoor dining areas in certain circumstances (1) The relevant legal restrictions do not prohibit a dog (other than a dangerous or restricted dog) from being in an outdoor dining area if: (a) the dog is under the effective control of some competent person and is restrained by means of an adequate chain, cord or leash that is attached to the dog, and (b) the person does not feed the dog or permit the dog to be fed, and © the dog is kept on the ground. (2) However, if the outdoor dining area is within a public place declared by a local authority to be an off-leash area: (a) it is not necessary for the dog to be restrained by means of a chain, cord or leash, and (b) the dog can be fed while the dog is on the ground, but not using any apparatus provided for the consumption of food by humans, and © the dog can sit on a person’s lap, but must not be allowed to sit on any table or chairs or make contact with other apparatus provided for the consumption of food by humans. (5) An "outdoor dining area" is an area that: (a) is used for the consumption of food by humans, and (b) is not enclosed, and © can be entered by the public without passing through an enclosed area in which dogs are prohibited by this Act or the other relevant legal restrictions, but does not include any part of an area that is used for the preparation of food. (6) An area is enclosed if, except for doorways and passageways, the area is substantially or completely enclosed, whether permanently or temporarily, by: (a) a ceiling or roof, and (b) walls or windows (or both).

Agreed - shoes have alot of different scents on them however you can train to first target shoes and then secondly to shape for only those that have your scent in them. Dogs can be trained to detect and retrieve any number of different objects in the home, all of which are likely to have your scent on them - the dog is able to differentiate between them for the target item. It's a standard skill for assistance dogs. Agreed - money does carry alot of different scent but there is an underlining odour that is consistant and is detectable by humans. We have trained one of our dogs to detect money (notes only) so that he can indicate on or retrieve whatever has money in it - the most that has ever been in one spot is $225. The reason dogs are trained to only detect over $10K at airports is because everyone has money but the authorities are only after those carrying large sums of cash as it could be suspicious (ie drug deals etc).

At first I thought that presenting him with irrefutible facts might be the way to go re the ACD and Kelpie (print out and present the ANKC or FCI international standard) for Australian Kelpie (click on EN alongside the name) and Australian Cattle Dog (down the bottom of the page). Then to stir him up, mention that the stumpy tail cattle dog is a recognised separate breed in the ANKC as per this breed standard and that the Australian and international recognised colours for the Kelpie are black, black and tan, red, red and tan, fawn, chocolate, and smoke blue as per the breed standard. Then there's the argument that why would Law Enforcement Officers breed, train and work with GSDs if they are so likely to turn on you. Why would these organisations waste so much money and put the lives of the officers in jeopardy every time they went to work. Why are GSDs used as Guide and Assistance dogs if they are so unstable? Rethinking this idea, no matter how unargueable the facts are, if he is determined enough it will just give him fuel to continue arguing his case. I wonder why he sounds so determined to prove you wrong? It's a stab in the dark but could he be threatened by the knowledge you are gaining from the course as it would mean that something he used to be considered as being the Subject Matter Expert on, will no longer be the case and unintentionally you will have taken that role from him? Letting him near your dog seems like it would be a bad idea as it sounds like he doesn't respect your rules about your dog. It will end up being detrimental for your dog and your training. If you can't leave your dog at home, can you put your dog in a travel crate when you are at your Dad's place? From your description, I think it could be that roughing up your dog has less to do with the dog and more to do with asserting his power and authority over you. If you don't give him the chance to do that, his behaviour can't be reinforced - sounds alot like dog training, doesn't it? I have seen first hand how agreeing with everything that someone like your Dad says takes the wind completely out of their sails. Arguing is only effective if you have something to argue against! However, if you can get him in the same room as Poodlefan, I'll put $50 on Poodlefan - an experienced, qualified and knowledgeable debater and a worthy opponent!

How about your shoes. I presume your shoes are only worn by you and would therefore only have your scent on them, therefore making it easier to target. Shoes are forgiving, not damaged as easily as a mobile and it's a useful trick. At the start, the dog may bring every shoe it can find but then it's just a matter of shaping to only bring the ones with your scent. It's important not to forget the shaping. We trained our pup to put the shoes in the wardrobe (still trying to get the OH to do that!) and at the start, he was taking every shoe he could find to the wardrobe. After a few embarrasing occassions where I had to retrieve our guest's shoes from the wardrobe, we shaped him to only bring ours. Another useful object to find and retrieve would be the leash. Money is an easy scent target as it has a specific odour. The only thing to watch out for is that as per Staranais situation, the money can become a high value item and you may find yourself at a party having to explain why there are a pile of wallets by your feet!

Is the sort of thing you're after?

Can you recall anything happening the first time this group went past and other than an assumed difference in skin colour, was there anything else about them that made them stand out (style of clothing, scent)? You stated that the first time Henschke did this, you were very surprised - how exactly did you react as he may have linked your reaction to this particular group. How did they react as they may have inadvertantly rewarded his behaviour as well ie he barked + they jumped back = reward (to the dog). A similar thing can happen with the relationship between dogs and posties ie the dog sees the postie and barks and chases the postie + the postie rides away (which they were going to do anyway) = reward. Each time it happens, it reinforces the behaviour until you train a new incompatible behaviour (in the dog, not the postie). Were you with him the second time it happened? What did you do? Without knowing the details, it's possible that you may have reinforced the initial response. If they come by at a regular time and you are happy for him to only react the same way he does with a group of kids, you could train him not to react and/ or replace this current beheviour with a new incompatible one.

Did you receive my PM re Canidae agent?

Not sure what you mean by a hot meat but our GSD is allergic to: Beef Chicken Sheep Pig Emu Kangaroo Camel Rabbit Crocodile Also possibly allergic to whitebait, bait sardines, river prawns and yoghurt - still testing these Goat and Venison are two safe foods that he (touch wood) doesn't react to and we can only use two specific dry foods (Canidae grain free salmon and Eagle Pack Holistic Anchovy). For us, venison is currently a safe bet but that may not be the case for all protein allergy dogs.

Our 6 month old pup was attacked on a beach by a large breed dog that dragged it's owner across the sand to get to us. Although it didn't make contact, it did psychologically scar our pup for life. That same pup is now 11 years old and we still have to monitor any dog introductions very carefully. Your pup is in a crucial developmental stage and a bad experience could scar her for life. Trust me, it's a lot of stress having a fear agressive dog thanks to the action of a irresponsible dog owner all those years ago. Whilst socialisation is very important, you are right to limit it only to stable friendly dogs that will give your pup a positive experience.

There are a number of dog bowls like this on the market that have a raised cross in the middle of the bowl. The idea is that it slows the dog down as it has to eat around the obstacle. If you don't wish to buy a new bowl, you could try getting the same effect by putting an obstacle in his bowl eg a number of metal egg rings or some dessert spoons. We used the egg ring idea for the first couple of days after our pup came home because he was hoovering his food up so fast we were worried it was going to shoot out the other end! For an off the wall idea, try putting all the ingredients from one meal into a container and pour a cold broth (eg beef, chicken etc) over the top, just enough to cover the ingredients. Place it in the freezer and serve the next day as a dogsicle. Zeus will be forced to slow down as chews his way through his frozen dinner. Over time, you just add less broth until the frozen broth is only just holding the solids together.

I like this one the best as it seems to be the most relaxed of the couple shots. Years ago, a pro photographer who specialised in romantic portraits (sorry can't remember the name) told me that if his subjects appeared a little uncomfortable during a shoot and his usual tricks to relax them weren't working, he would stop and 'adjust' the settings on his camera, without actually doing so. What he was really doing was secretly waiting for the couple to relax (thinking he wasn't shooting) and that's when he was able to capture something special. I recently watched the Will and Grace series on DVD. In Season 4, Episode 24 - Hocus Focus (yes I am a Eric McCormack tragic), Glenn Close played Fannie Lieber (a homage to Annie Lebovitz) and used a similar trick (waited until they forgot about the camera) to capture a beautiful image full of emotion. Congrats on your first engagement shoot. More pics please.

This apparently qualifies as a comfortable sleeping position for our 5 month old! P.S. The pup is supposed to be on the other side of the baby gate (OH guilty as charged)!

I posted some information about our temporary fencing (which could also be used to make dog runs) in this thread. Is this the sort of thing you're after?

NewID - newborn ID collars. Easy to remember because it sounds similar to a popular womans magazine. Colour Pups - adjustable ID collars for newborns Adjustapup - adjustable puppy ID collars

One of our German Shepherds has severe protein allergies and his list of banned foods is as long as my arm. We had no end of problems trying to offer a varied diet until we found Happy Paws Treats (they advertise on here) which has a huge range of training sized dried treats that are 100% pure (no additives) and they make it themselves so have full quality control over the product. We also use products from D4DOGZ (also advertise on DOL) which also has a huge range of treats from alternate animals (eg crocodile) but if you want them for training, you'd have to cut them up to the size you need. D4DOGZ treats are also 100% pure and they now also have a physical store in Beechworth VIC. Both online stores have excellent service and fast reliable delivery. I'm more than happy to fully recommend both.

Slightly OT but as a number of posts are now debating on the business/ hobby status of breeding, this page from the ATO is relevant. To sum it up: Back on topic re no wonder people go to BYBs, many people have experienced the same situation as stated in the OP. From this and other threads, the general consensus seems to be that breeders have all sorts of reasons why they may accept or reject the OP's email and that a buyer (especially a first time buyer) may not be aware of the breeder's bigger picture. Clearer communication may be the key to not losing that perfect puppy buyer who may have looked like a tyre kicker in their original contact. Some breeders are including a contact form on their website which invites the buyer to provide the specific information they are looking for. I think this is a great solution as the buyer then knows exactly what the breeder wants. For those breeders who don't have a website and don't advertise, I wish I had an answer on how to communicate how a buyer should contact you and what information they need to provide in their first contact. For buyers, the general consensus seems to be that when looking at a pedigree/ purebred puppy, do the research on the breed first and then contact either the breed club via Dogs NSW, Dogs VIC etc and they will be able to link you up with a registered breeder. If the breeder has a website, visit the site and then contact them (via the method indicated on the breeder's website if stated) with some basic information about yourself, asking what further information they need and how they would prefer you communicate further with them. As a puppy buying customer, you would expect that the breeder would bend over backwards for you but the bigger picture is that they have created a life, invested a considerable amount of time and money to do so and want to ensure that this little wriggling bundle of love goes to the best home possible. It's up to the buyer to show that they are that person, remembering that initially, the breeder doesn't know you from a bar of soap. If a breeder has certain terms that you don't like (ie no papers, non refundable deposit), go elsewhere. They are unlikely to change the conditions just for you unless they already know you. The attraction of BYBers, pet shops and puppy farms is that the pup is ready now and that they will bend over backwards for you. The disadvantage is that you may not see the parents, the conditions the pup was brought up in, vaccination records or pedigree paperwork - things that may not matter so much to a buyer who just wants a pet pup. Purebred breeders are up against that in a 'want it now' world. I believe that communication is the key to matching breeder, pup and buyer and forums like DOL provide an excellent opportunity to do this. For the OP, although you would prefer a breeder from your home state so that you can see the parents, pups etc, I can say from experience that if there are only one or two breeders in your state and you don't like their terms or their pups aren't what you're looking for, don't give up. Other DOLers have mentioned great breeders interstate and if you wish to see the parents and pups and can't travel interstate to do so, there are other options like receiving videos via email (as I did) or Skype for realtime video viewing. If the breeder is willing to video the parents and pups and send it to you, it's a sure indication that they are someone special. The video emails worked for us and allowed us to view and pick the exact pup we wanted as well as see the dam, the home the pup was brought up in and some of the life experiences the pup had before he came to us.

Our vet advised us to use betadine (diluted) for cuts, abrasions and rashes. We also use paw paw ointment on cuts and rashes and find it works wonders.

We bought a few ultrasonic rodent repellers when we moved into our current home. When you first plug them it, it seems like they're attracting the mice but in fact it's driving them out of the roof and walls. Haven't seen either a mouse or the evidence of once in 2 1/2 years. No traps, no chemicals, no risk of hurting the dogs but it does come with an advisory not to use them if you have pet rodents as it will drive them up the wall!

To identify the exact time differences between the first and last runs, you could ghost one video on top of the other and then watch the replay. You would then instantly be able to see where the differences are. It's sort of like what the motor sport shows do to emphasis the differences in lines that drivers take. If you don't have an editing program that can do this, feel free to PM me and I'll have a go at it on the program I have here.

Just finished re-toilet training a 17 week old pup after his 30 days in quarantine. For a while there, any concrete was fair game which was understandable. What worked for us was that for the first 2 weeks, we kept him on lead whenever he went outside so that it minimised the chance of going in the undesired spot. If we weren't quick enough to avoid accidents, we relocated the deposit to the area we wanted him to go in and then used a product like Urine Off to clean the soiled area. Relocating the deposit also relocates the scent and that is what attracts them back to the same area. A product like Urine Off not only cleans the soiled area but completely removes the scent that attracts them back to the area you don't want them to use. Time and patience (okay a lot of time and patience) produced the desired result for us. Also, taking him outside by himself helped because if one of the other dogs was out there with him, he preferred to play rather than poo. Removing distractions speeded up the process! Good luck. Edited to add that we also acted over-the-top happy when he toileted in the desired spot and gave him all sorts of highly desirable rewards (Happy Treats rated the highest). This made toileting in the right spot light years more attractive than the concrete. As your pup is already house trained and will toilet on command, it would just be a case of positively reinforcing that toileting in the 'spot' is the best thing ever. Another thing I read somewhere is that some dogs can feel vulnerable when toileting and something to consider is that she might not feel comfortable toileting in the area you want her to. A change in location could also be the answer.

Find it hard to go past a GSD or WSSD puppy. Then again, find it hard to go past any puppy!

What training did you do with this dog to get these great results and have you seen CM do something similar? Always looking to expand my toolbox with different training ideas. CM, Victoria Stilwell, Turid Rugaas, Susan Garrett, Kikopup and Puppy Prodigies (just to name a few) all have different methods of handling dogs but the one thing they all have in common is that their methods work. Granted, the only trainer I've seen successfully handle red zone dogs is CM (and I'm on the lookout for any other red zone trainers to see what method they use) but I believe if you have a variety of humane methods in your kit, you are more likely to have just the right one that works like a charm on that particular dog. I think CM has chalked up so many sucesses because a lot of his body language comes from that of dogs and I think dogs can be the best teachers of all.