Chris the Rebel Wolf

Backyard breeders in my eyes account for just as much of the problem as pet shop pups/puppy mills. Of course they are all linked as an issue, but particularly in my region, there are only two pet stores that sell pups, and hundreds of BYB. Working in the pet industry, I see a wide range of owners and breeders and it becomes a real struggle to push the education message into ears that are closed to it... some people will buy any SWF that looks at them cutely and some people will wait months for their special dog. Some people will listen, and some people you can beat your message into with a 2x4 and it still won't hit home.

Brought many tears to my eyes to see such suffering in our canine families... agree the fine was disgusting and a more severe punishment, never owning any animal again and a bigger fine ALONGSIDE paying ALL costs were called for.

Link here Let's hope it's a change in the trends!

I get all the time when I tell people Maya is an Anatolian Shepherd "Oh yes I can see the German Shepherd in her face colour" and then have to explain that she is not any type of cross!

Thanks so much for the tips all I have a good base to research now :)

I got this the other day when I mentioned on a dog-related website y dogs were primarily outdoor dogs. I was told that I shouldn't have dogs because they aren't part of my family because I keep them outside. Which is funny if you know me and my kids :D I politely disagreed and left the person to their prejudices.

Looks good Persephone :) (Can never see your username without thinking of Firefly :p) Any particular model you recommend Rozzie? :)

Owey my heart breaks for you having to go through such an awful event as this. My deepest sympathies to you and the family. Bailey was a lucky little fellow in one respect - he had you guys to love him, and nobody could have loved him more in the few weeks he had. Big big hugs for you guys. Good luck with the breeder; while of course money is not the object here, the breeder does not deserve to get away with what has happened here.

So, I'm beginning to think about my next camera and which direction I want to go. I've read some older threads with great suggestions from the very knowledgeable DOL photographers, many of whom do breathtaking work :) I'm aware that due to my preference of point and click snapshots, I'm not going to be looking at anything that'll take magazine quality photographs. I just don't go to many places I'd be comfortable lugging a huge camera and lens around and set up for the perfect shot; I'm basically a snapshotter who likes a little camera in the pocket to pull out and get trigger happy with whenever there's a great subject (basically something with fur!) My subjects will mainly be dogs, so something that can capture photos indoors, outdoors and get some motion shots would be awesome. Both my kids are waterdogs so I'm umming and arring over having a waterproof camera sitting around. (Theoretically this could be an entirely separate camera if a waterproof one isn't otherwise versatile enough to suit my needs) Budget would certainly be nothing over $500, so basically what do you consider will get you the best picture quality without going into the many hundreds of dollars :) I'm currently using a Panasonic Limux DMC-FH2 which occasional in good daylight gets me the sort of quality I generally consider the best of what I'll see from this particular camera: But I loose a lot of detail in low light, no matter which settings I trial, and a lot on motion shots, and whenever I zoom even a little, and even in daylight success is quite sporadic. A little better quality would not go too far astray :) I've also begun to get these dots scattered over my pictures, which I am guessing is due to sand sneaking into the camera as I have cleaned the lens with lens cleaner to no avail. I'm not sure it's worth sending it in for cleaning since I'm thinking about a new one anyway. Thoughts? :)

Recently my family said goodbye to our Staffy, Shadow. She came into my life almost ten years ago when my family moved into a house after living on a boat, and we decided we wanted a dog. It was me who came up with the name Shadow after two days of the family being unable to agree on anything, since she followed us about and was the right colour for little Shadow :) Shadow grew up with Zeke, my old boy, teaching him his manners as a puppy. Though I had moved out by the time I got Jayne, who crossed the bridge too early as well, she welcomed his an his maniac terrier energy into her world every time we visited. More recently she was one of the first dogs Maya met outside her immediate pack and as usual, Shadow accepted her with a wagging tail, the way she did everybody. Shadow loved lying on mum's best sheepskin rugs, chasing balls, sticks and any toy you'd throw for her, barked incessantly at possums, and was an all around good natured Staffy. Though she was the whole family's dog everybody knew that meant my mum's dog, and my thoughts are with her as she goes on her morning walks each day alone. Shadow broke her leg - I think hopping down off the couch - and due to the hardship of previous surgery on her knee ligaments and the necessity to insert a steel plate (which was have increased the odds of damage to the other leg and also the odds she would be in pain) Mum opted to have Shadow put down. We miss you girl.

Makes me very sad to think this could be true and this family have been attempting to get their best friend back when he was already gone. Does anyone have video or other solid evidence he was alive during the past few months?

*disgusted* People like that moron shouldn't be allowed to own dogs. What a totally disgusting attitude he had. I highly doubt his dog was trained or socialized in the least. I feel for the owners and the neighbour who was walking the little dog. Thankyou, strongly agreed.

We have been selling tons of the Thundershirt at work, I didn't think they'd be quite as effective as the claims, but everyone has such great things to say about them - and that's what sells the product best in my opinion! You can be the best salesperson in the world, but nothing hits home like some positive word of mouth. Thanks for the Dr Harry link, Pets1, I knew they were being featured, but I was busy and missed the show. I was surprised though at the price 'from $60' though and wonder if that's the norm for big cities - we're selling all sizes for $45.

Fan of Comfortis for fleas, nothing works as well as it and I've tried the lot. I pair this with interceptor for heartworm/intestional control.

Did anybody else read somewhere in the linked articles that they were only allowed to keep 3 or 4 of the dogs involved? I swear when I read them the other day I saw that and recall thinking 'Well I wish they'd taken the whole lot off them, but 3 is better than 250 and at least they'll be in the public eye and hopefully getting better care now' - but now when I re-read I can't find any mention of how many animals they were allowed to keep? Only that half were put down but surely they haven't been given the okay to keep over a hundred dogs and cats after this sentence?

I am going to get on of these done for Zeke... put it too the test and see what his results come up as :D

Hmm, I just noticed today at work, we got some new Kurgo goodies in. I'm wondering if the zip line might work for what you want? http://www.kurgostore.com/auto-zip-line-trufit-smart-harness-with-plastic-quick-release-buckles/ If not, check out Kurgo's website under the "Dog Travel" section, they may have what you need :)

I worm myself and partner once a year or so as I come into contact with many pet species at work :)

Well, never knew that. That's nuts, when the council have provides doggy drinking fountains and doggy bags then officially call The Strand a dog prohibited area?! I want to see this map they reference in the exclusions, but the map provides is such a grainy image I can barely make out which areas of the Strand are no goes! I had a look yesterday and as far as I could work out dogs could walk up and down The Strand but couldn't go on beaches. That I knew about - it's signed clearly they aren't allowed on the beaches and also the area by the rockpool. That's why being thrown off the grass by the waterpark surprised me - no signs that I could see, but I will be double checking if there are any next visit.

Often there are nesting shore birds on beaches such as sand plovers, who nest in the dunes or other parts of the beach, camoflaged from people but easily sniffed out by dogs. Many times people let their dogs off leash on beaches to run around when they feel they aren't being watched or nobody else is there. Dogs kill nesting shorebird chicks, destroy eggs and nests and frighten the parents away from their nests for good. In NZ last week roaming dogs wiped out an entire colony of endangered fairy penguins. Dogs are not allowed on some beaches to protect wildlife or for other very good reasons. I'm all for excluding dogs from bird and other animal nesting site beaches. But what about man made beaches that wild animals are never going to use due to heavy foot traffic? I see no point in making these beaches no dogs allowed.

Well, never knew that. That's nuts, when the council have provides doggy drinking fountains and doggy bags then officially call The Strand a dog prohibited area?! I want to see this map they reference in the exclusions, but the map provides is such a grainy image I can barely make out which areas of the Strand are no goes!

So on a visit to the local foreshore this morning, Maya and I were told to leave a grassy area in front of the waterpark by a lifeguard on duty there. Maya was on her lead of course and acting very calm and well-mannered, lying down, not bothering any of the dozen or so people sitting on the grass at various points around us. I was told by the lifegaurd that 'no dogs were allowed in this area' which I found highly disappointing - it wasn't as if we were actually inside the waterpark or on any of the play equipment, it was just a stretch of grass! It got me thinking - has anyone else been thrown out of public areas or places you feel you ought to be allowed with your dog? Are the areas you're not allowed to take your dog but feel you ought to be?

I recall a case a few years back where after being charged for animal cruelty and given a [piddling] two year animal ban on owning dogs, the puppy farmer in question was caught with a dozen more dogs in a family member's name. They were charged a second time Of course people will try to find ways around these things but what would you rather - no ban on animals given to these puppy farmers? I for one think it's a fantastic result and applaud the 20 year ban on owning further dogs or cats. If they are caught with further pets under another name, they will eventually be caught, and fined and punished yet again.

I always get the odd customer at work complaining about the RSPCA prices. I really makes me sad to think some people find $200 too much for a dog adoption. You know what's going to happen to the future dogs of those owners if they need vet treatment, or even just a box of wormer

Sometimes I would get this occasionally when I had Zeke's best buddy Jayne. He was a Jack Russell x Chui and very small and lithe looking, though you couldn't tell him that - typical little dog syndrome, though he was ten feet high. But most people actually commented on their bond together. Zeke and Jayne absolutely adored one another and most dog people could very quick see the bone between them.