JRG

I have leased out bitches to friends on the same terms as dancinbcs. Just be sure that you fill in and lodge the form on the back of her registration certificate and get the dates correct so that you get your girl re registered into your name at the end of the lease. I expect the leasee to pay ALL the expenses + I get choice of puppy (if I want one) or the equivalent in cash. I also make a strict rule for myself not to interfere!!

Barkley at 4 months and Barkley at 2 years Just a bigger version of the same boy!

More than one way of doing this, ask a greyhound vet - I understand that the greyhound breeders do it all the time to keep their best bitches in work until they have the credentials to have a "top of the range" litter.

I feed once a day - early in the morning. Pups and youngsters twice a day. Lots of treats etc if I am going out and they are shut in, also when they go to bed.

Happy New Year to you - and all 4 footed friends! :) :)

we have had the laminate "Day Tiles" for 20+ years in the kitchen, laundry, passageway etc. All good. They look like cork but are much more serviceable than the cork tiles they replaced.

1.5 hours is nothing - took me 4+ hours to clear a couple of pups though Melbourne from New Zealand!

Good news that all went well. A little caution - since they did not find the "culprit" keep an eye out for an abscess forming again. If the grass seed, or whatever it was, is still hanging around it could flare up again in a few weeks. I had a bitch who had a similar experience and it kept flaring up for months until it was eventually located. Who would think such tiny things as grass seeds could cause so many problems!

I have used it for orphan babies just two+ weeks old. If I remember rightly I made small balls of slippery elm and honey and broke it off in tiny pieces to feed to the pups in my fingers. The babies were still being bottle fed at the time and just sucked it off my fingers!.

The problem with grass seeds is that they can travel a considerable distance from the point of entry which can make locating them very tricky.. If it a grass seed causing the abscess better to get it found and removed (if possible) otherwise you are going to have ongoing trouble until it is found. No idea on prices in the city - I live in a rural area and prices for vet work tend to be a bit cheaper.

Mine love all fruits and veg except, like SG's, will spit out green beans! I regularly feed whole apples and oranges - the apples go very quickly but it takes them a while to peel and eat the oranges. Some are very good at peeling an orange, others do not have the knack and wait for others to start the job then take over!

My original brood bitch would throw in a silent season and the first thing I knew was when she was standing flagging her tail for my dog! The vet I had at the time used to laugh and say "I see she caught you out again!" She always had pups if I mated her and averaged 7 or 8 a litter

"Watched the Crufts agility finals. Thanks so much to everyone who replied, seems barking is accepted as I noted dogs in the Crufts youtubes barking and achieving remarkable focus. JRG, including a field bred a spaniel in the final" I saw that too - probably why it was in agility not the field!! :laugh: (just teasing)

Empty plastic bottles are the favourite here -I take off the lid + plastic band round the neck and the labels. I also find that a tin with the lid firmly on and a couple of pebbles inside is very well received - makes a great noise when the pup runs around with it or plays "football" Only problem is that suitable tins are hard to come by these days but they last a lot longer than plastic!

I use Protexin as well. Started using it when I had a boy who had intermittent problems with his digestive system.

Not for his problems, but could be worth it for other (health related) reasons

One of the problems is that often the breed standards are not really specific and fit a range of types. A number of years ago I was asked to take a working bred girl to the breed lecture for aspiring show judges. It was most informative and at the end of the night, the consensus of opinion was that the working girl fitted the breed standard better than the show bred girl! Equally, the fashions in the ring change and what was judged to be exceptional twenty years ago might not get a look in in 2014

Almost all the gundog breeds have working lines and show lines, some more obvious than others. In some breeds the working lines have almost died out because of lack of use and in the breeds of more modern development the split is not as noticeable. On the whole, the working dogs tend to be smaller and less exaggerated than the show dogs eg shorter ears, less feathering etc. The working dogs are more athletically built than their show cousins and their drive has more purpose. Some breeders try to breed "dual purpose" animals.

Another really classy working springer spaniel (already fully trained!!)- however, at this stage, looks like it will be another working cocker that will need training!

Not at all - do what you like. All I am saying is that over the years I have been as successful as you in getting suitable homes for my dogs

Well, all I can say is that I must be a lousy dog breeder! Only been breeding for 38 years, sold pups interstate and overseas and never asked for photos of yard or people (in fact I would probably be suspicious if people sent them). I try to get to know all my puppy buyers either personally or by correspondence but I find that choosing pups at 8 weeks old is largely a shot in the dark and, for myself, I just keep the one that appeals to me. For others, I let them choose for themselves - with my input - then i can't be held responsible if they choose the wrong one! Have I made mistakes? ofcourse I have, but I am just a poor dog breeder trying to give people the puppy they are looking for and, on the whole, I think I have been successful.

Meet Alice

Is this likely to be the end of this saga or is there more still to come? What has happened to "white knight" Mark and his political aspirations?

Hang wet tea towels on a clothes horse and blow air on them. I have done this with great success to keep puppies cool.