Inevitablue

a Thundering of Aust Cattle Dogs a Congress of Aust Cattle Dogs - decision making & ruling Bassets always look like they are off in their own little world... so I suggest a Pondering of Bassets!

OH is having so much fun taking photos of our new pup. I think this photo is really cool!

I dont want to say no to breeding. I love my breed so much and tell everyone about just how versatile and wonderful a good one is. If/when I do it, I will be definately keeping the pick. Breeding the horses became a bit of an obsession, researching lines, families, finding sires/dams to complement conformation etc. Then the nutritional aspect of the mare etc etc. The first foal I delivered, I have never been so excited before. Like unwrapping a christmas present to see the colour, sex, conformation and markings. My first attempt at breeding resulted in something really special. (thats him in the sig at 16months old). Maybe I fluked it, but I get excited at the thought of breeding really special animals. My biggest hurdle I would need to prepare for is parting with the puppies. Horses are different...food, water, some company etc and they are relatively happy. I can't ever see myself keeping multiple dogs in runs though. No more than 2 or 3 for me.

If thats David Clarke, I had a pulp cap put on my dog's canine tooth many years ago, at Sydney Uni. He knew dentistry backards, but for just a scale and a few minor extractions I'd stick with my normal vet. I do remember him saying that canines were a nightmare to extract tho. GA vs sedation.... are the dogs remotely aware of whats happening around them with just sedation? (lol.... stuff that! I know I'd opt for the GA for myself everytime over sedation)

Can everyone else access the site? Just went to call them then but just missed out on office hours. For the past day I cannot get access just the 'Internet Explorer cannot find the page' message.

Toilet training is getting there, she just drinks like a fish so I have been a bit lazy with the running to the back yard (2 storey house, with living areas at the front of the house) so I put some artificial turf on the balcony. If she didn't wee so much then I think it would be 90% done. She is the hardest one I have had to toilet train, but I always knew it would be. She was raised in concreted kennels. She picks things up so quickly...have had to make sure the OH stops doing things sequentially...like sit, drop, speak, as she is anticipating it all and he still rewards her She is very mouthy, and again OH has to be reminded that it is zero tolerance of teeth on skin. He is wayyy too soft 'she isn't biting too hard!' She has learnt to not go for ankles... I cracked it when she nailed me full flight, head tilted sideways to maximise the amount of my calf muscle she could fit in her mouth. Each weekend she swims in our pool with us, trying to solidly establish where the steps are. On saturday she was actually jumping in - real big dog jumps! - with just us calling her to come. I am taking a slight parvo risk, but its a calculated one. She comes to cafes for brunch (smothered in pats from strangers), swimming in Botany Bay, already had a sleep over at the MIL's, met cats, horses, parrots, bunnies. She has played with countless dogs, learnt not all dogs are friendly (glad it was just a cocker that taught that!), how to get rid of unwanted exubrant annoyances (lol... the boxer pup at puppy school) by just laying still and being boring... I could keep going on. Oh! and been chased by a cranky cockatoo!

I have been removing water in the evening to help with toilet training. I think my 10wo pup drinks excessively, which I am trying to curb slightly. The week before I picked her up was when that heatwave was on, over 43 degrees for 5 days straight where she lived. I'm thinking the constant drinking became a bit habitual. Apart from her morning wee, the rest of the day is just clear water with zero smell.

Such cute innocent puppies Here are some photos of the not so innocent Tess at 10wo She learnt 'speak' reliably in about 5 min.... the 'be quiet' command is now taking a tad bit longer! pulling faces chasing down the camera and lastly...alseep on my doona!

Blokes in stubbies and singlets are always magnetically attracted to a 'bluey'... :D

Can you get a friend to come puppy sit for at least just next week?

While it may work for some, it doesn't work for everyone How much did you give? Labs are a pretty big dog compared to a Cavalier. My girls get the equivalent of 5 pieces of tinned pineapple per meal. Perhaps it was not enough to be noticable? It took a couple of days to "kick in" too. Or you could just have a very determined sh12 eater! I do believe this is the case because she KNOWS she is not allowed, but still does it! By 5 pieces, you mean you give like 5 whole pineapple rings to a Cav per meal? No, not rings, five of the little pre cut wedges of a ring. Thank goodness for that! Cos I'm thinking if it takes that much to put off a Cavalier, I'd be going through a few tins a day with Labs!! I used crushed pineapple and gave a few dessert spoonfuls plus some juice for a couple of weeks and it did no good. But I might try again, I'm tired of it working for others and not me ;) My friends Lab would try and catch the poo as it exited her own bum, so disgusting :cool: She gave it a cup of pineapple juice morning and night, and after 2 weeks the dog had finally decided that poo tasted grose.

Don't get too worried, with the right help you will sort it out. My little girl tried a similar thing over a wing a week ago (ACD pup). I tend to think that breeders feeding pups out of one large bowl can exacerbate the issue in a pup, but thats just my theory. They learn to hustle and bustle for food and that it can be a limited resource if they're not vigilant! For the last week I have been giving her wings, leaving her for a few minutes then approaching with a really high value treat. I have established in her mind (and will continue to foster it) that when I approach her she is not losing anything, but gaining something better. I also scruffed her hard when she initally did it, but that's not a recommendation as the timing, intensity and duration has to be spot on. Her response was not as intense as your pups but I have done the higher trade with adult dogs (and the confrontation - but thats a personal choice) and it has worked very well. She is still your little mate, but is a little creature working out how to control and influence her world.

The farts on dry food are enough! I dont think my senses could handle tin food farts

I took on a 4yo deaf girl, and she slotted into life quite easily, and I was lucky that she did have excellent early socialisation...zero obedience work though. My male was with me from 5 wo.... found dumped but he was easy as we already had a SBT for him to hang out with. I socialised him extensively as well... but an incident at 8mo undid everything and made the next 18 months HORRIBLE I have a pup now and she is such hard work because she is the only dog in the house, plus she currently can squeeze through the pool fence. She comes everyhere with me. The only break I'm getting is when I have to go somewhere like the supermarket, then she is put in her crate. Its tiring but I know that all this will pay off in the long run. Plus I find it rewarding to watch her development, when she is brave, or feeling proud when she bounces back quickly after something scary. LOL this isn't rewarding...but reassuring to know that I have correctly dealt with any challenges from her now. The 4yo I took on had serious food aggression issues.... and dealing with that in a 25kg dog vs a 5kg puppy is a different ball game! (yep I still have 10 fingers ) I think raising a puppy is made a bit easier if you have another dog for the puppy to hang out with.

haha too funny. Jake would chase them around the breezeway in the stable block. Usually killed them with the 'squish with front feet' technique. However would then push them along with his nose trying to get them to run again. Was quite amusing

They need boundaries just like other dogs do. Spaniel pups, like most pups can be mouthy and jumpy. Some can be pretty hard headed about certain behaviours. True, I just had boxers in mind when I made that comment. Should have clarified.

What I was going to suggest. Nice and cuddly for your daughter, she already likes the 'look' of a golden retreiver, so the Welsh or English SS will have a nice soft coat. Will love getting 'girly' hairbrushing sessions. Enough get up and go to play with your son, especially if you keep him/her fit with the running. Cat friendly too. Another thought, a spaniel will be manageable for your kids as they grow, and they are so amenable that you wont need to spend all your time curbing behaviours.

Years ago I bought a SBT puppy for a partner. I didn't know any breeders so I rang the SBT Club and was pointed in the direction of a litter than contained the colour and sex that I was looking for (noooooo.... not a blue! :D ). Phone call and a 5 hour drive later I had myself a puppy. The breeder was very helpful. We already had a SBT girl and out of curiosity contacted her breeder asking if we could come and visit, simply because we wanted to meet the sire and dam (exOH already had dog when we met) they were very obliging and spent a whole saturday afternoon with us. My past 2 ACD's have been rescues, but about 5 years ago I decided what breeder my next dog would come from. I had met several dogs bred by her and had researched the lines that would give me the temperment that I wanted. Luckily she is still breeding. When I lost my boy in April last year, I was a bit emotional and sent her an email explaining that when I was ready I would love to get one of her puppies, even sent photos of my previous 2. She was lovely, replied to my email saying I was more than welcome to come and spend time with her dogs long before I was ready to get a puppy. I have my new puppy now and she has been extremely helpful. Of the 8 puppies, 3 were given main registration, the one she was running on, one going to another breeder and my puppy. She said if I want to get into breeding she will help me chose a sire, even saying there is a nice dog in the Hunter Valley who would be highly suitable and is keeping with the lines started by Val Kirk many years ago. We will keep in touch as I hope this new little girl will bring some credit to her kennels. My experiences in buying puppies from breeders has been very good. Asking questions about starting out breeding, to other breeders has not been so encouraging!

I know lots of people who use the Coprice, and they now have a puppy version. Many have even commented that the dogs were calmer on it. If your not happy with the protein levels just supplement with chicken frames etc. I find Advance like rocket fuel, never liked the idea of paying a premium for Hills Science Diet when the main ingredient isn't even meat and wouldnt touch any of the Pedigree range. Long term I have mainly fed Pro Plan with no issues, and if money was tight then I would go to KMart and buy Optimum in bulk bags (cheaper than Coles or Woolies!) Next choice would be the Coprice, with chicken added to the diet. No cereal byproduct, no preservatives, colours or flavourings Back to the Supercoat, when I looked at the ingredients of it ages ago, I thought that the puppy product was quite good. If I was feeding Supercoat I'd be giving my adults the puppy formula. From memory, meat was the main ingredient in the puppy formula and cereal was the main ingredient in the adult formulas.

Absolutely gorgeous Naomi. Soooo innocent at 4 wo. Counting down for everyone. Tess is awesome. Comes to work with me and oozes maturity at work, then it's feral time when we get home. I would be hard pressed to find a puppy doing more socialisation than her....but she is an ACD and I know how important it is for them. So far she has been swimming in Botany Bay, brunch in the city, afternoon drinks at the pub, met cats, parrots, rabbits and plenty of adult dogs. Played incredibly gently with a 8 mo chi and put a boistrous 15 wo boxer in its place at puppy school. We have learnt not to get possesive over chicken wings, mastered the stairs and doing sit and drop off verbal commands only. Oh... and that socks are awesome to steal!

When I took out insurance for my 2 dogs, one was over 7 at the time and could only get accident only. Correct me of I'm wrong, but can't the brachy breeds can still get accident cover.

If you can't afford to replace your car, you insure it.... For some people why is being without a car more important than saving the life of their animal. As an owner, if you dont have access to money to pay $1000 upfront for some treatment, then how can you look past insurance? I dont blame vet's if they ask for money up front, however I would like to think if the client was well known, and the vet was confident of the persons financial position and morals then there would be some leeway. A vet goes to work to earn money....to pay their own bills, they cannot afford to risk being left without payment. Why should their income suffer? I have done pharma reping and I know plenty of vets (usually single vet practices) that cannot afford to be left with a $900 antivenom bill. Its hard core to say that 'how could the vet just let the animal die'...well majority of dog owners are aware of insurance, so how could a pet owner be so underprepared for the likelihood of a largish vet bill. Perhaps the vet should take out income insurance :D

More photos! and finally...look at those chompers....coming to a shoe near you! lol

Member of Dogs NSW, so all good at that end. 12 March will make her 3 months old. I will bring her out for a look. Thanks for the advice.

Thanks for that.. wow that early! I will be there with the Queen of the Commando Belly Stalk in tow