Chris the Rebel Wolf

This one might be good: http://www.divinecreatures.com.au/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&category_id=15&product_id=1895&vmcchk=1&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=17 They are in Petbarn's catalogue next month

Not at all, you were completely responsible. If this home were indeed wanting to breed in a responsible manner, they would and should have said as much.

Something else that can help control ticks is trying to eliminate anything bringing them into your yard in the first place; possums, rats, mice and feral cats can all bring ticks into your yard and having control measures for them may help if you have issues with this. Remember if you are spraying your yard, do it in weekly intervals for three weeks - that way, you can hit that laid their eggs deep down the soil, especially if it's loose or sandy soil. Good luck!

Nice one :D

How'd you go, can they get one for you?

Comfortis is by far the most effective flea treatment I have come across (I work in a pet shop and have tried literally all the pills and spot ons on my dogs!) and I cannot recommend it enough. The offical line is that is is completely safe to mix with all other medications; I had not heard about Ivermectin dangers when using both - but as nearly all Heartwormers are using either Ivermectin or one of its derivatives, I would feel pretty safe with doing both. There is also Interceptor available if you want to combine your wormer and heartwormer into one dose, which is monthly. I use Interceptor alongside Comfortis and have never had any issues. Can I please clear up the issue with Advantix and cats for any duo owners. Yes, Advantix can be dangerous to cats, BUT the only period in which it is dangerous is when you put it on the dog and it leaves that little wet patch, which takes a couple of hours to dry on most dogs. If the cat licks this wet patch, it can get sick, and friendly cats/dogs should be separated until it is fully dry. After that it is absorbed, and is not dangerous to cats

In my experience, dogs with joint problems can vary greatly in the response they show to glucosamine bases products; some dogs respond only to one brand, others have a good reaction to many, and each dog is often different from the last. So it can be just trying different products and finding which does work best. As for an alternative to Joint guard which, while fantastic, is one of the more expensive joint products out, Vetalogica have a new one out which is called something quite basic - I think it's Joint Formula powder. Pearnese powder can also have great results and is one of the most affordable brands ;)

At least in our Qld Petbarn stores we can special order them, I am sure the NSW stores could for you if there is a PB near you

Proheart is a tablet form and should be given monthly. It uses moxidectin which is a related chemical to the mibemycin that Interceptor uses. Like with most of that family of drugs it was a wide safety margin although there are breeds (Such as Rough Collies) who are known to have sensitivity issues. I would strongly advise you not to treat for intestonials 'if/as needed' - some intestional worms can be quite dangerous even in small doses. Did you know hookworm larvae for example can actually burrow through the skin to invest dogs and other species (humans included?) It is important to remember, wormers do not PREVENT dogs from picking worms up, they kill any they have picked up, which is personally why I approval of a monthly dose like Interceptor. From the personal point of view I would far recommend Interceptor over Proheart because Novatris have so much research in and backing of their product, Proheart is more a 'no name' brand.

My sympathy goes to both victims, the lady who just wanted to take a walk and the cattle dog who was never trained to do any different.

Oh, I was already certain about the one on the left, I agree - Briard dancinbcs, do you know any adds that that dog has been in? Because I haven't seen any up here and would love to track some down and see if it's the same. I suppose I just want the righthand one to be a purebred so I can figure it out :p None of the suggested breeds seem to fit, but thanks everybody for input :D

Oh I wouldn't put anything into the size vs image of the dog - Advocate's large dog pack, 10-25kg, pictures a Ridgeback and a Husky and you'd be hard pressed to find either of those in that weight range. I'm not al all going by the Advocate size packs, just the photos - they are collected independently by marketing groups who wouldn't care what it was for, they'd just get told 'pretty looking medium dog picture!'

Okay breedspotters, my coworker and I desperately need your help! We have been driven nuts for weeks because we can't figure out what breed of dog is pictured alongside the Briard on Advocate's medium dog 4-10kg pack. Here is the image: We are confounded by the one on the right, the black and tan one. If you have any ideas, please share them!

He may have just been happy I was playing with him :D Soon as I got home and seen it on the ground I towed it around and played tug of war with him ;)

Here's a few snaps of Zeke with his latest toy - he's been waiting for that palm frond to drop for two weeks! He looks like a demon in the last one :p Then he had a drink from his wading pool :D

I'm a firm 'blame the owner, not the breed' in this type of situation. ANY dog that is attacking a person, whatever the breed, has a reason for doing so, often poor (or non existent) socialization. Banning pit bulls will NOT solve dog aggression problems. The solution is better education for dog owners and potentially even harsher penalties for owners of dangerous dogs, though that could be a separate debate in itself. There was a case locally where a lab attacked three people - it's female owner, her son, and an elderly gentleman next door who came to help. ANY dog is capable of attacking. Pitt bulls unfortunately sometimes attract a certain type of person as owners, the type who are not at all concerned with training and socialization. So they tend to wind up in the news more often. I feel sorry for the dogs - I have met plenty of very lovely Pitt Bulls in my five years in the pet industry and they are lovely dogs IF raised well.

I'm sorry you have to deal with such an awful situation. I would continue to get in contact with the police. Mention specifically that you have the order, and yet you have photos of the kids hanging over the fence, and that you are worried because the father and possible kids are purposefully taunting the dog. Think about mentioning that you are worried about their safety as well since they are antagonizing your dog and hanging over the fence - two bad combinations. Also mention you're worried about him being baited. Also well worth reinforcing some training with your dogs not to accept food from anyone but the family.

I crash tested one of the newer toys Petbarn are now stocking for dogs - Hagen's Dogit Mind Games. http://www.hagen.com/uk/dogs/addinfo/dogit_mind_games.cfm Brought one home for Zeke, my lab/cattle/pointer mix (Mostly lab, and in eatinh habits especially!) We had a ball with this. The dog has to nudge aside cups or sliders to get the treats underneath, and the puzzel can be set up three different ways. The sliding cups were the easier for him to get the hang of. The round slider took him longer, as as for moving the cups, one must have smelt so good he picked it up and ran away with it for a while :p An all round sucess and a great toy!

I would rather be poor and happy with my pets than have more money, but be without the joy and everyday livetime enruchment i get from my dog and my other pets.

Petbarn doesn't stock taperwormer-only products I'm afraid (I work there). They are a bit more specialized and you can get them from vets - Droncit is another possiblity you can get form vets that covers tapeworms. We do stock lots of all-wormer products such as Interceptor, Milbermax, and Drontal ranges - remember that there is no spot on product that covers tapeworms. There are also different types of tapeworms, some of which can be caught by people so it is very important that you keep your dog on a regular tapewormer treatment