trinabean

Yes. I love most dogs, but usually gravitate towards bigger breeds. I recently visited my sister interstate however, and fell in love with one of her Chihuahuas. He was such a friendly, cuddly little guy and a real character. He's also so little and 'portable.' A dog that small is no trouble to fit into cars or take places. :laugh:

Beautiful. :)

Yes, and no pet insurer will cover them for what will be deemed a "pre-existing condition." I agree, don't take a pup from this breeder. They could be in for a lot of heartbreak if they do.

Those poor boys! I hope they make a full recovery, looks like you rescued them in the nick of time.

Thanks for posting that Alkhe. The dog was beautiful to watch and I loved the ending too. All that stealth and mounting tension and then......"oh, it's not real, oh hey, there's my ball!" :laugh:

This sums up how I feel too Ellz. I can appreciate the good in many breeds, though there are many that wouldn't suit my lifestyle/ family. I wouldn't dismiss a breed as my 'least favourite' because of a few badly behaved/ tempered individuals. I can understand though, that some people might be traumatized by bad experiences (eg. dog bite) that make them wary of a particular breed. I'm not saying it was your intent Blackdogs, but this sort of thread can become quite divisive. The poor old terriers and bull breeds usually come out the worst. Just saying.....

Me too, far easier to keep happy! According to that study, my breed came in at a whopping no.48 out of 69. Bah, intelligence is over-rated! :laugh: I think the study is bollocks. Even if it's not bollocks, I wouldn't use it as the basis for choosing a family dog. Intelligence being only one aspect of a dog breed. In fact, not denigrating any of the breeds higher on the list, but some of the loveliest family dogs aren't near the top of that intelligence list (CKCS to name but one). The amenable nature of a "less intelligent" breed should rate highly when choosing a family pet. I think Allerziet only posted it to answer an earlier question in the thread re. the most intelligent breed anyway. :) I agree - Golden Retrievers aren't exactly renowned for their intelligence...but they are great family pets!! They're so biddable and friendly (in my fairly limited experience unfortunately!! I LOVE them)... Just as an example :) Well, they're no.4 on that list! :D Really!? After the GSDs you mean? That's awesome!! Man I'm proud :D hehe I've just always been told they're "dopey" or something... Well there you go, they're probably just calm and content. :)

Me too, far easier to keep happy! According to that study, my breed came in at a whopping no.48 out of 69. Bah, intelligence is over-rated! :laugh: I think the study is bollocks. Even if it's not bollocks, I wouldn't use it as the basis for choosing a family dog. Intelligence being only one aspect of a dog breed. In fact, not denigrating any of the breeds higher on the list, but some of the loveliest family dogs aren't near the top of that intelligence list (CKCS to name but one). The amenable nature of a "less intelligent" breed should rate highly when choosing a family pet. I think Allerziet only posted it to answer an earlier question in the thread re. the most intelligent breed anyway. :) I agree - Golden Retrievers aren't exactly renowned for their intelligence...but they are great family pets!! They're so biddable and friendly (in my fairly limited experience unfortunately!! I LOVE them)... Just as an example :) Well, they're no.4 on that list! :D

Me too, far easier to keep happy! According to that study, my breed came in at a whopping no.48 out of 69. Bah, intelligence is over-rated! :laugh: I think the study is bollocks. Even if it's not bollocks, I wouldn't use it as the basis for choosing a family dog. Intelligence being only one aspect of a dog breed. In fact, not denigrating any of the breeds higher on the list, but some of the loveliest family dogs aren't near the top of that intelligence list (CKCS to name but one). The amenable nature of a "less intelligent" breed should rate highly when choosing a family pet. I think Allerziet only posted it to answer an earlier question in the thread re. the most intelligent breed anyway. :)

Me too, far easier to keep happy! According to that study, my breed came in at a whopping no.48 out of 69. Bah, intelligence is over-rated! :laugh:

And off-topic but...the prices on some of the 'already-trained' dogs for sale.

People think just because you cross with a poodle that they are low allergy and non shedding. This is often not the case A.Family friend has a rescued Labradore x Standard poodle ,he sheds heaps of hair all over the house and when my daughter stayed there while studying her asthma returned and she needed to use her puffer for the first time in a few years. edited spelling. Have a look at Airedales. Yes Purdie, I was thinking an Airedale might fit the bill too. :)

We talking about the bolded stories at the top of the page? Two stories of dogs attacking either each other or another dog. Two stories of dogs hanging themselves. Two stories of dogs getting out of the yard and being knocked over and killed. One story of a dog being poisoned. Those ones? I wondered the same thing TT and how it was relevant to this discussion (ie. the OP was about a dog biting a child). It's just another excuse for the Bull breed haters, to jump on the media hysteria bandwagon. You might tell that to the sites owner then? I wouldn't bother, because everyone here has a right to post. I just get annoyed at ignorant people who bag Bull breeds because of the media. My boy who is no longer with me, was one of those "vicious" breeds, yet the moment a child, or a small dog came near him, he immediately dropped on his stomach, I never trained him to do that, he sensed they were smaller so didn't want to scare them. The media & Hugh Wirthless are the reason that BSL came in. Are you saying the breeds reported as Bull breeds by the media are falsified? What breed was the dog who charged into the house and killed the poor little girl, a Labrador reported as a Bull/Mastiff X perhaps? Actually there is a very well documented case in the USA where a working collie-type severely mauled a toddler on a farm in the mid west. This was reported all over the USA as a pit bull attack because, in the words of the editor - pit bull attacks sell, collie attacks don't. No I am not saying the dog that killed the child in Melbourne was a labrador, but it certainly wasn't an American Pit Bull Terrier. It was a mutt and who is to say it wasn't a Bullmastiff x Labrador x Staffordshire Bull Terrier x Golden Retriever x Rottweiler x Border Collie - which makes it 1/2 "nice" breeds and 1/2 "horrible" breeds - so which "half" attacked??? Badly bred dogs + ignorant owners = trouble. Precisely Sandra.

I'm not offended, I'm bemused. I don't know which Group areas you've been visiting but Hounds don't generally spend their days at shows snapping and snarling at passing dogs Most of the time they're dozing! And since when has a display of aggression in a crate meant that: * the dog necessarily felt "threatened" * that the dog would necessarily bite? All I can say is that it appears that some folk have a somewhat misguided view of the degree to which temperament VARIES between purebred dogs. If you have a breed with a temperament that is not dog tolerant, or is protective of territory or property then you'd expect a far less tolerant approach to passing dogs. Show dogs are as varied in their temperament as those who exhibit them. The differences between breeds is not simply cosmetic. There's a lesson that needs to be pounded into the heads of puppy buyers - and it ONLY tends to be taught by responsible breeders. I think the point HW is making about puppy buyers is the bit that I've bolded. And yes, responsible breeders do try to educate people about their breeds specific needs/ characteristics. But a lot of people still, unfortunately, see the differences between breeds as being largely cosmetic.

We talking about the bolded stories at the top of the page? Two stories of dogs attacking either each other or another dog. Two stories of dogs hanging themselves. Two stories of dogs getting out of the yard and being knocked over and killed. One story of a dog being poisoned. Those ones? I wondered the same thing TT and how it was relevant to this discussion (ie. the OP was about a dog biting a child).

Bingo Mantis. You guessed one of my "nice dog" breeds that bit me in my childhood. Ouch! I don't have a scar on my bum though.

A very expensive nursing home..... And can they possibly repay some of the money to help him out now? You won't see them for dust!

I would love to see random dog breeding under control but that is pie in the sky stuff at the moment. As for the bully/mastiff breeding,as has been pointed out many times in this sort of arguement, these sort of 'people' will just move onto other breeds. And considering Victoria apparently has tough laws on these 'sort of dogs' it obviously isn't working. It is a difficult problem, the answer in my opinion is to make people responsible for the actions of their dogs, no matter what breed. I tend to be of the opinion that these sorts of people choose the Bully/Mastiff types of dog for a reason. I don't think they possess any training skills to extract aggression responses out of anything otherwise they would just own anything from a Labrador to a Great Dane and get the same aggression responses and attack results?. I think with the breed styles taken away from them to produce preditory behaviour from other breeds, they would struggle to achieve it?. I still think there is some merit in the madness of legislation, take the Bully/Mastiff's off theses people and give them a nice well bred Cocker Spaniel instead, the commumunity would be a safer place :D Give one of these Numpties a Cocker Spaniel, add a little bit of neglect perhaps some aversives and a big scare during its fear period and you would probably still find them walking down the street with the dog off lead resulting in a dog attack. Currently the average Cocker owner is on average reasonably responsible ( because the real numpties have other tougher looking dogs) and will keep aggressive dogs out of situations where they can do damage. But if Cockers were the last and only breed available and these numpties ended up with them then I can assure you there would still be dog attacks and suddenly it would be cocker spaniels being banned.... There are plenty of numpties who own all different breeds and mixtures of now, I know plenty but fortunately the dogs they own are good natured dogs, but had the numpties I know owned dogs of genetic aggression, they would bite people for sure given the lack of responsible management these owners provide for their nice dogs. I have never yet seen aggression put into a dog, aggression, gameness and predatory behaviour is bred into a dog IMHO. M-sass you seem to be simplistically dividing dogs into 2 categories. In your words "nice dogs" and then "dogs of genetic aggression" who are "bully/ mastiff" types. Such a simplistic equation is ludicrous IMHO. Of all the breeds of dog who have bitten me as a child, NONE were bull breeds. All were what you would consider "nice dogs" as far as breed is concerned (think of some of the most popular breeds in Australia). So in my humble opinion, any breed can become aggressive in the wrong hands. My children are at greater risk of being bitten by my sister's human-aggressive small breed dog, than by my gentle and well-socialized bull breed.

I thought the puppy classes offered through Murdoch TAFE were quite good. It's further away from the areas you've mentioned and isn't a doggy daycare but the class is well-run. As far as socialization goes, all interactions between pups are supervised by qualified trainers, who explain body language well. It a puppy class focussed on the basics (starting on focus, 'si't etc, positive/rewards-type training). I think a doggy daycare is run from there also, but I haven't used it and can't say whether it is good or not. Good luck in your search. :)

Makes you wonder what they think sometimes! Naughty Cavalier girl sneaks off........ "God I love this luxurious indoor turf " :laugh:

Yes, there's something in my eye! A lovely welcome home for your OH Dxenion. :)

Happy birthday Stan! Enjoy your birthday pie!

:laugh: I share Mac's disdain for crocs.....They are ugly!

No great advice that hasn't already been covered but you have my sympathy! My pup came from a reputable breeder and was a poo connoisiour. I had some success sprinkling pineapple juice over his food, but I think he may have just grown out of it too. Well sort of, he'll still try to eat a 'cat crunchie' out on walks if I don't catch him in time!

Oh the pictures say it all! What a transformation and a journey for Pearl. Worlds away from where you found her Carlo11. Well done Carlo11 and Kelscats and all involved in giving Pearl a happy future. Don't be shy with updates, I love seeing how she's going. :)