Podengo

I am *hopefully* waiting on a puppy now! Waiting to see if one of the other puppy buyers backs out, breeder has not heard from her in a few weeks. Hope that means she isn't interested! Puppy will be ready on 7th of Jan :D

I wouldn't choose to have 2 male Dobermans. If I did, I would make sure I was ready for the possibly of "crate and rotate", as the breed is known for same-sex aggression, and would be fully committed to providing the dogs the life they need/deserve even if they can't be let out together anymore... so separate feeding, walking, time with me etc.

DVDs I have really liked and found helpful: - Success with one Jump - 2x2 Weave training - 2 on 2 off contact training - Dial up the distance - Crate games

I want to finally just GET my own puppy and start any training with it, been a looong time coming! Would like to get a JD and AD with Mojo the Giant Schnauzer, and maybe a RN if I can sort myself out!

Odd isn't it. When I have suggested to friends they keep their cats indoors instead of letting them roam all over the place, get in fights, go and catch diseases and what not, they are horrified at the thought of taking freedom away from cats. I just don't understand it. All animals want to be free, I'm sure all of our dogs would love to be allowed to roam, but we don't let them roam because we LOVE them and don't want them to be hurt, why do so many cat people not feel the same way? I have a hard time feeling sorry for someone when their cat gets hit by a car when it has spent the last 4 years running around on roads... it was bound to happen, and if you loved your animal wouldn't you try to prevent this from happening? I just really don't "get" cat people!

Yeah this, in NZ too.

Hmm... Work her below threshold, move further away from the other dogs to a point where she will take treats. Practice LAT with a circle of cardboard on the wall or something similar to build the behaviour

My partner has a friend that insists it's okay to BEAT dogs when they do something wrong, i.e. smack and kick them repeatedly. It's disgusting, I will never let him in the same room as my dog, I think he is a vile monster.

Hanging out in the blazing sunshine here... rubbing cream on my poor sunburnt legs... YEAAH :D

In Dobermans the term dry is generally used when discussing heads, a dry head has tight lips, while a wet head had loose lips Dry head Wet head

With the Standard Schnauzer... No, never... He needs to keep moving, and taking him back to put over a jump again is going to make him frustrated and shut down... or frustrated and try to bite me! With the Border Collie... Yes, most of the time.

I once owned a very rare Doverman...

I love running silent courses, always a fun surprise to see how your dog runs. At our end of year Xmas night at agility we do a "Silent Night" course- no talking, clapping, clicking, stomping...

How affectionate is the Malinois? Would they enjoy a good cuddle on the couch after a hard day of working? Or would they rather take themselves off to bed in the evenings when it's time to relax?

I think they are good in the UK because of their agility system, I think it makes it a little more fun with people who don't have Collies... I love seeing oddball breeds in agility, and I love seeing them have the opportunity to place/do well, and if the field is dominated by collies they may not have a chance. Here in NZ it doesn't seem to be the case, there are a LOT of BCs, but also lots of other breeds doing well... At our show this weekend just past there were lots of mix breeds on the podium, a papillon placed first in a starters non-split class (so beat every other dog including BCs in that class!), the schnauzer I run placed, saw a golden place, a lab, various other little mix breed dogs and lots of other neat breeds. I don't think we need an ABC class at the moment, and because our progression is like yours (qualify/clear rounds) there are opportunities for dogs who aren't podium finishers to be able to progress through classes and earn some titles (AD, ADX, JD, JDX). I do think that the way CH titles (AG CH, AG GR CH, JCH) are earned is fair though, to earn a championship you should have to BEAT other dogs, not just qualify/get clear rounds I am happy with the way things are in New Zealand, with classes splitting into heights now it makes things fair for little dogs and big slow dogs too! Do they split classes in Aussie?

Brilliant video! I love watching weaving competitions on youtube :D

Libby our mix breed doesn't need any of her nails cut (including dews) as they stay short by themselves, but Lottie the doberman... her nails are awful, they all grow long so quickly! I think her foot shape makes her nails look horribly long very quickly, and her nails don't touch the ground like Libby's to get worn down.

Thanks for the advice everyone! The fence builder is coming on Monday to do the fence, we have opted for a 6ft fence (with trellis... can't budge partner on some things...), so as long as she can't climb it, we will be able to avoid the hidden fence... here's hoping!!! She should be coming home next Thursday for a trial, will post pictures of her

Thanks for your reply. I was thinking about regular electric fencing (as I grew up on a farm and all of our dogs/us kids were very respectful of the electric fencing) and was even emailing the council to find out rules regarding it, but remembered that the gas delivery men need access to our yard and would NOT be forgiving if someone turned the fence on and they got zapped somehow LOL. Thanks. Would your BC just run straight through the fence? Do you think it was because a BC has quite thick hair and may not have had full contact with the electric prong bits? This rescue dog is a Whippet x BC. Thank you! How long did it take to train your dog to keep away from the fence? I have been looking at this company > My link (I am in NZ)

Hey all, I am looking at a rescue dog who is possibly a fence jumper. She is fine with the 6ft fence at the rescue, but happily and easily jumps the 1m high baby gates in their offices. On my property we mostly have 6ft fencing, but there is a section at the front which is yet to be fenced and my partner wants to have it around 4.5-5ft (taller will ruin the look of the property and blah blah blah). So I am wondering if hidden fencing may help us. Has anyone used it before? Does it actually work? The dog will not be left in the yard while we are out (will be crated or loose in laundry), it's more just for toileting at night and to sit out and have bones in if the weather is fine. Our yard is not huge, so all of our dog's exercise will be outside of the yard... 2-3 walks a day, and agility and obedience in the evenings and on weekends. I think the only thing I can do in our tiny garden would be weave training and success with one jump exercises LOL. Please give me some advice, I really love this rescue girl, and feel really mean about getting a zappy fence, but would rather that than having a dog hit by a car... and with partner wanting a short fence I think the only way I could ever feel safe with the dog in the garden is if we have a fence like that.

There is a Huntaway at my club who did her cruciate in quite a few years ago, had it repaired and is still competing happily at *I think* 9-10 years old. She is an AG CH too

Oh yes and poodles! Loads of sporty poodles over here Papillons really stand out as the Border Collies of small dogs though

I don't think they are essential, but as was said, they make life easier! Crate trained dogs are more welcome in hotels (and other people's houses generally), a happily crated dog is safer to travel with, a crate trained dog won't get distressed about being crated if they have been hurt and need to keep still, it makes toilet training easier and they do better at the vets.

Papillons seem to be very successful in agility, there is a gorgeous one at my club who often beats Border Collies! I have a friend in the states who had a Pom competing at UD level.

I don't even have one yet, so that will be enough for now! I do know people that are competing with 3/4/5 dogs, have a couple of old retired dogs, and some young dogs coming up. Way too much work! I want my silly agility dog, and my serious agility Doberman... that's at least 5 years away, so don't have to worry yet! :D Though I do train/compete with other people's dogs... thankfully one person is retiring her old dog and taking her young one back off me, as I am running out of time to train/compete with dogs now, and I don't even live with them all!