fido666

Junket tablets were my saviour with my worst chucker, she was a real machine. Just a tip though, give at least 2 hrs before travelling, allow only half an hour and you'll end up with Junket all over your car seats. It's a pudding base and works by setting the stomach contents into a gel, no liquid to eject that way. You find it in the puddings and deserts aisle at the supermarket, IIRC the plain flavour is hard to get now. I recall a post on a similar thread ages ago, that person used ginger snap biscuits to good effect. My Collie bitch is a drooler and does chuck if the trip gets too windy, she seems to be OK if I have the male in the back seat with her. The back seat buddy has helped as it gives them both more stretching room, being comfortable helps I think. Good luck! Corine

When I first started training and trialling in obedience the books by the author of those articles were our "bible", the methods he uses were the ones we were taught at dog club. They might not be the most modern ways but that doesn't mean they are wrong. The methods of training back then were fairly universal, I trained using them and competed at trial level. If certain training methods work for you and your breed you will use them. I use motivational training methods as well but they just don't work with some dogs. One school of thought in particular is very food reward oriented, just doesn't work if the dog isn't food motivated. The author of the articles has been using those methods for many many years, it's what he knows. I've been to one of his workshops, some time ago of course, but I thought he was very good at the time. Each of us makes a judgment on our training methods, it can be highly subjective. As with most things read in magazines it should be judged with a balanced view, it's up to us how we use the information. Cheers, Corine Edited for spelling.

I've PM-ed LL, sounds interesting. Cheers, Corine

RIP sweet Thomas We all hope our pets will stay with us forever but nature has other ideas. If they must go we all hope it is as peaceful as Thomas' departure to the bridge :rolleyes: Hugs Rozzie and Mr R Regards, Corine

Some lovely photos in that first clip, the one of the BC belting trough the weave poles is awesome! Cheers, Corine

RIP Marika, run free at the bridge . Sad that she went but 13 is a good innings. That being said, I was devestated too when my 14.5 yo Rough Collie girl went a couple of years ago. Sending cyber-hugs for Margaret at this sad time . Regards, Corine

So sorry for your loss Allerzeit . Border Collies can have a genetic disorder known as Ceroid Lipofuscinosis (aka CL or Storage Disease). I wasn't sure of the symptoms so went looking for info and found some at BC Club of NSW, click on the "CL Information" link. You mentioned yours was a cross but some of the symptoms sound awfully similar. I hope you do get some answers, must have been horrible to watch her going through all that. From the above site - Symptoms include:- Regards, Corine ETA info on symptoms

Hi Tiggy, If you must leave your girl in the laundry please ensure she has secure footing, tiles are too slippery for a dog with a bandaged limb. My boy Duncan had a similar operation for a different reason and my surgeon's bill was $3000. Do you know what type of cruciate repair Sophie is having? How was the diagnosis confirmed? BTW, I came out of my GP's surgery a while ago to find my car had been reversed into, totally wrecking the bumper and pushing in one of the lights. With all these similarities, perhaps we are long lost twins ? Hugs for Sophie and do follow the surgeon's post-op recovery instructions, be prepared for a long recovery period. Regards, Corine Edited for spelling.

Do some research on the net (from a reputable site) and go armed with this on your next visit. I challenged the vet when my boy was a puppyy and he wanted to give him the ProHeart shot. He went off to check my evidence while we waited and came back not 100% agreeable but prepared to listen and do further investigation. At the time the ProHeart shot was relatively new, but being a Collie owner I was aware of Ivermectin sensitivity and knew I had to be cautious in that regard. I have since had my boy DNA tested and he is a carrier of the MDR-1 sensitivity gene, while not affected he could still be sensitive to the "mectin" family of drugs. MDR-1 sensitivity affects Collies, Shelties, Aussies, Borders and a number of other breeds, put simply it causes a build up of the suspect drugs in the brain and can have dire consequnces including death. My current vet is in full agreement with me on the ProHeart shot, it's too much drug in the body for too long. To the sheltie owner who uses Interceptor, I hate to tell you it's on the list of danger drugs too, every monthly preventative I know of is :rolleyes: . I have returned to using daily tabs, far cheaper and safer IMHO. Cheers, Corine

Hi Warley, I got one of my girls at 5mo from her breeder and she was a baggage to toilet train. Part of the problem was that she had been in a kennel situation until I got her and had learned to pee on newspaper whenever she needed to go. She was let out of her pen for exercise but must have thought the paper was the proper place to toilet. I lost count of the hours I would spend out in the yard only to have her go inside as soon as she came indoors. Eventually I corrected the behaviour by moving the paper gradually toward the back door, then outside till she worked out that grass was OK too. I gave her heaps of praise every time she went outside. You should have seen me the 1st time she peed on lead, it was at a dog show and people looked at me as if I was nuts with all the whooping and cheering . Hopefully your pup will soon catch on, it's soooo frustrating when they don't seem to get it. Regards, Corine

We had a ridiculously busy Christmas and I'm ashamed to say we didn't get around to taking doggy chrissy photos. I didn't even get a chance to take any of the doggie pressies being unwrapped, the OH unwrapped them before I could ;) . One of our friends gave them some toys and bikkies, one of the toys had to be thrown out after 10 mins because Duncan chewed the top of the "Dog Cola" bottle. I guess he just couldn't find an opener and wanted his Cola :D . Cheers, Corine

This is exactly what my PPS trainer did, she was quite clear the 1st lesson was for handlers/family members only. She went through the basics of her particular training methods, how to use a clicker, etc. There was no direct socialisation for the first couple of lessons, this was done so no puppies felt stressed from a threatening situation too early in the course. Some other posters have commented on the use of the correction "No" or "Uhh Uhh". I can see the trainer's logic in this (flame suit on now) as she is probably trying to reinforce that you need to associate the word with the desired action. Think about what type of action your dog can perform to the command "No", none really. It's far better to say "leave it" or "back" or whatever you want the dog to do. I admit I say "No" and "Uhh Uhh" too, old habits die hard. Not having been present in the class I can't comment on how good a trainer this one was but give her a chance or ask her to explain why she uses these methods. Cheers, Corine

Love the pic of Chloe on her back with all her toys, I'm amazed she didn't throw them all off. She looks like she was having fun with unwrapping her pressies too ;) . Cheers, Corine

Hi ya Kel, Mine are on the EP Holistic Duck and Oatmeal, I also use Nutrience Holistic Duck. I had some samples of the fish one but I decided 3 protein sources and an IBD afflicted dog don't mix (plus it pongs something bad and Duncs has enough fish breath as it is ). If I'm not mistaken both have glucosamine and chodontrin which is good for his joints too (gotta love arthritis in a 2yo dog NOT). They seem to prefer the Nutrience, probably because it has a few extra yummy ingrediants over the EP; it's also the cheaper of the 2 but only slightly. I've had a small sample of the Nutro Lamb & Rice to try on him, he liked it but it wasn't enough of a sample for me to know if he will tolerate it as well as the others. Cheers, Corine

Not sure on that, can't hurt to ask. Cheers, Corine

Hi Sheridan, My boy has Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and has an intolerance to chicken protein because of it. I feed the Duck & Oatmeal and he is fine on it. Even Hills Z/D Ultra which is sold only at vets for hypo allergenic dogs contains chicken. I think you will find that the chicken protein in dry food gets modifed by the cooking process so does not have the same nasties in it. I also feed him Nutrience Holistic Duck and he's fine on that one too. I did get some samples of the fish one but opted to stick with something which has 1 novel protein source in it, not 3. Cheers, Corine Edited for spelling errors.

Hi Uforia, I did not mean to insinuate your was a free for all but many are. A lot of vet clinics run them but get the junior vet nurses to take the class. Not knocking their nursing abilities but most are not qualifed to run dog training classes and will just turn it into a play group by stealth. Your initial post mentioned Puppy Pre School so that is the scenario my post was aimed at. Your pup wnet straight to basic obediance, at 10 weeks I feel she is a bit young for this level. I don't know the stucture and content of your program though so don't take my word as gospel. Your idea of sitting next to the smaller pups has merit, just remember some can be as dominanant as big dogs too. I fully support puppy preschools as early training and socialisation, as long as they are done right. Cheers, Corine

Hi Uforia, From what you have posted it sounds to me like your pup was just overwhelmed. The wrong type of socialisation "taught" at some puppy schools is worse than not taking them at all IMHO. Puppy school should not be a free for all play session. First and foremost the pups should learn some basic manners (sit, etc), so they learn how to behave in the home and around people. Socialisation should be introduced slowly and at first with dogs of like size and disposition. I have attended and assisted in quite a few puppy programs and all were conducted with the mental welfare of the pups in mind. If a little Maltese is scared you don't go shoving a Doberman pup in its face (as an example), you find another puppy that isn't over the top who is happy to approach quietly. At the programs I have attended first intros are done with the instructor supervising the intros, usually sitting down between the 2 pups, calling them in with treats and then luring them away from each other (again with treats). The idea is they get close enough to scent one another but not so close they feel threatened. I have seen many timid puppies improve with confidance afetr a few sessions of this type of interaction. Most owners like to see their puppies play with other pups but it is the pup's long term perceptions which need to be managed carefully at this point. While socialisation IS important it must be done right. I hope your puppy does gain some confidance but don't let the instructor push her into a situation she can't deal with at this point. JMHO, I'm sure there are many knowledgable professional trainers on DOL who can advise you also. Cheers, Corine

I hope your little fellow is OK? It must have been very scary the 1st time and not easy to watch the others. Regards, Corine

Have a great time Antoinette! We used to camp up there with my brother's family and had some fun times. We had a really bad storm one night that scared the bejesus out of me though, tents and tall trees don't always mix. I've done a fair bit of fishing on the bottom lake, caught some flying Gurnards there once - a very strange fish which croaks in the water like a frog. Cheers, Corine

Hi ya all, A very merry Christmas to you all from me and the Duncmeister!!!!!! Stay safe on the roads everyone and spare a thought for the firefighters who will be spending their Christmas Day risking their lives to defend others homes and property. May all your pooches remain injury free! Regards, Corine ETA: Love the baby Chlo-Bo bics Kel, what a cutie

I'm an ex-committee person of this club and have participated in running many trials there. I can't recall a trial ever being cancelled for heat issues but I was there before the new rules came into force. A LOT of work goes into organising and running a trial, the decision to cancel would not have been made lightly. It's not just the club that is put out, the judges, stewards, vendors, etc who are organised for the day all get inconvenienced too. I personally feel the ruling has merit for competitors, their dogs, and officials alike (try cooking 600+ snags in that kind of heat ). I take the point the OP made though, people run their dogs around the show ring in such conditions and think nothing of it. If you bomb out in your age class it's all over quickly but should you be lucky to take the class and have to go on to group or in show then you are in the ring for a while. The one time I went to a show when it was hot I was in the ring for all of 2 minutes, it was cooler there than at home as the AC had died and at leat there was a breeze blowing. Any waiting time was in the shade of a gazebo or the indoor pavillion at the ground. If it was as hot as last weekend I would not have gone. Cheers, Corine

Pups will find the most absorbant material to pee on, Carpet is just the best for that . If you do catch her in the act or about to go, whixk her outside (mid-stream if you have to), take her to her place and praise her if she finishes it outside. Do as others have said with the praise and treats. Until she is 12 mths old don't expect her to be accident free, she's still a baby after all. Also, because your pup is 6mths old it might take a bit longer to housetrain her. The breeder may only have paper trained her rather than formal housetraining. I had terrible trouble with a 5mth old who had only ever been on paper in her run or outside on the grass. I had to work on making the paper smaller, moving it closer to the outside door, and eventually had to resort to taking the paper out on to the grass so she knew it was OK to go out there too. It was a struggle but we persevered, eventually she got the message. Good luck and enjoy your new puppy ;) Cheers, Corine

Hi Arolf, We buy human grade steak from the supermarket, never pet mince. I'm not talking eye fillet here, just any cheap cuts of steak they have on sale. We've found this is usually cheaper than the so called dog meat or even human grade mince. Also when buying steak for ourselves we keep all the trimmed off bits aside and freeze it for the dogs too. We normally add rice or potatoes and some veggies to this. My boy can't have chicken either as it sets off his IBD, leading to vomitting, Diarrheoa, and weight loss. My boy weighed only 18kgs at his last vet checkup, at his most recent one he now weighs a whopping 25kgs (he's a 2yo Collie Rough). He's doing so well on his new diet we have to cut his rations back me thinks. We also feed a premium kibble in the mornings, not a huge amount just a couple of handfools for brekkie, with a little cheese. We use either Eagle Pack Holistic Duck & Oatmeal or Nutrience Holistic Duck. Not cheap I realise but you don't need to feed a lot of it. I don't know if your Woolies is the same as our Safeways in Vic but the quality is usally OK and cheaper than the Coles down the road. Your dogs upset tomies could also be stress caused by the new arrival, it sounds like it's all settled down though which is good to hear. Cheers, Corine

Perhaps employ the services of a dog walker? Yes I know, too early for most but you might get lucky. My OH walks the dogs for up to 1 hr each morning. it helps to tire them out for the morning at least. We haven't had any complaints but I know they go nuts at birds sometimes. Cheers, Corine