Podengo

Hopefully have a puppy on the way soooooon, then I shall order one from K9 Pro!

I grew up on a small farm, we had a house paddock fenced for the dogs which is fenced in deer fencing. Not good for tiny breeds but great for the Dobermans we had :)

I run a hydrotherapy pool and see a couple of older dogs that have had cruciate repairs on one or both legs, they're all getting around pretty happily and comfortably at home and on walks.

Team Unruly reviewed this harness Confessions of a Dog Gear Hoarder: Ruffwear’s Front Range harness

I try to support local business as much as possible. I raw feed, but as a back up I feed K9 Natural (made in my city! Christchurch, NZ). We buy Ziwipeak as treats sometimes too, but K9 is more readily available here. I have seen BlackHawk sold in NZ recently, and think I saw some breed shows being sponsored too, but it doesn't seem to have taken off. We have a few good kibbles available here so it's a hard market to get into I think. There are a few NZ made kibbles, then the imported ones like Orijen, Acana, Go! and Now Fresh or whatever it is called... And the Organic kibbles, then all the commercial ones (Hills, Royal Canin etc etc)

I'm a vegetarian, and I prey model raw feed :) I knew one dog on a vegetarian diet when I worked in boarding kennels, he was apparently allergic to every meat protein.

First family dog was a Doberman named Sammy and a German Shepherd named Roy. They were both great dogs, very well behaved! When I was about 9 or 10, after Sammy had passed away, our family got another Doberman named Poppy who was "mine" - mum still did the feeding and paying for stuff, but I took her to classes, walked her for hours every day and she was my first agility dog. My first dog as an adult is Elsie :) I got her when I was 20, she is the bestest dog ever! Elsie is a jack russell x border collie, obviously I have put a huge amount of work into her. A lot of my non-dog friends think she is amazing and all want their own terrier/collie mix - I have to keep telling them that she isn't an easy dog, I just make it look that way ;) Poppy Elsie

I feed pretty much exactly the same way as Black_jackal!

I agree its all about research and having someone prepared to put the time in. I think if someone is spending a couple of years researching and have their heart really set on one breed, why should being a 'novice' stop them? I know people that have been in dogs for 20 or 30 years that I wouldn't want getting certain breeds because they don't suit that kind of dog, and some people that have never owned dogs that would suit those breeds.

I would probably take your Brittany too :) Unless Elsie can convince me of her ability to catch things

I think I started in agility at a good time (started competing beginning of last year), I was using blind crosses almost from the beginning so well versed in them... Being a fast running handler helps too! I've not been wiped out by Elsie yet, but I'm sure that day is coming :laugh:

Thanks! It is very very competitive here, being a win based system, but I enjoy that, always pushing myself to handle better and faster! I'm not sure we'll ever make agility champion or anything, but we're in the top grade now and still enjoying the sport

I've got a handler spot in a seminar with Orenius/Emanuelsson in March! SO EXCITED! :D I love their handling style!

Elsie had some laser treatment done when she was seeing the physio. There wasn't a huge shocking change or anything, it was used in conjunction with physio exercises, massage and hydrotherapy... She is over her injury now :)

Here's a recent thread with a little bit of discussion on the topic :) Flying a puppy from Aust to NZ

From speaking to quite a few friends that have imported puppies in NZ from Aus, the rough estimate I am working by is anything from $1500-$4000 depending on customs fees.

Can't really go past a border collie or mini poodle! Can get smooth coat border collies if the fluff bothers you.

Swimming is a great full body exercise :)

Elsie has a Hurtta cool coat too :)

That's crazy :/ I train at an agility only club, and the only prerequisite for joining is that your dog is ok off lead around other dogs! We do have a limit of 15 new dogs per intake, so 60 new dogs a year can join... New being TOTALLY new to dog sport, if someone from obedience comes or someone with a second/third/tenth agility dog they can join up any time since they won't need to go into the introductory class or won't need a lot of one on one help in there.

Dobes certainly aren't uncommon here, there are pretty similar lines between the countries (unless your sister is specifically looking for working lines Dobes) and we do dock here (if she is looking for a natural puppy she is out of luck in NZ as there aren't really any decent breeders that leave tails on puppies).

Clearance of cats & dogs

I've had friends pay anywhere from $1800-$4000 for a puppy (including purchase price), customs can nail you with some nasty GST and transaction fees. The cost seems to vary based on who is working at the airport that day and how much they decide your dog is worth...

Elsie had an awesome weekend at the NZ Dog agility champs! She qualified for both the Jumpers B and Novice finals and scored herself a few ribbons! Novice 2 class she placed 1st out of 74 medium height dogs Novice 3 class she placed 3rd out of 70 medium height dogs Novice Final event she placed 3rd out of 23 dogs on a time of 30.08 seconds (winning run was 29.64 seconds!) Intermediate 3 class she placed 14th out of 82 medium height dogs Jumpers B1 class she placed 3rd out of 47 medium height dogs Jumpers B3 class she placed 3rd out of 50 medium height dogs Jumpers B2 class she placed 5th out of 48 medium height dogs Jumpers B final she had a refusal for missing a hurdle which was my fault, but a beautiful run otherwise!

There are quite a few breeds that I like, but don't like similar breeds because similar breeds are hairier :p