Weasels

1. I'll stick with kelpies :D I'd like to have a red & tan one day. 2. Canaan dog or dingo (would never want to own a dingo, but some do look good) 3. Border Collie 4. Husky 5. Black Shepherd Plus honourable mention to Aussie Sheps, Shelties and Whippets!

That's actually incorrect. The majority of the adjudicators on the RTT are from different occupations. The usual rules of evidence etc do not apply in the tribunals (as they are lawyer free zones and Joe Public would not understand the rules nor would an adjudicator) thus it is not on balance of probabilities. Yes, sorry, Danois you are absolutely right, they can be from any profession. But in the South Australian RTT specifically only 2 out of the 14-or-so members don't have a law degree. I was referring more to their approach to cases than the actual application of legal principles, although they still have to follow the legalities of the Residential Tenancies Act and justify each decision accordingly. Also, a couple with a baby in their arms is very unlikely to be their most sympathetic case even of that day. I still think gathering and presenting documentation and specifics and sticking to the facts is the best way to go

My dogs know full well where all the aircon ducts are too They love to lie flat out on the tiles under the ducts all day in summer. When we are out on walks they run from shade to shade too, even tho it was only 23 degrees when we went out this morning. I know there are heat-tolerant kelpies out there but ours ain't them!

Thanks Sally and Tex Feeling much better now Still feeling very malicious tho' Got some great poo pics that I've been emailing to the strata managing agents and the land agent. The strata agent says to keep them coming It's ammunition for the next tribunal hearing. I send 2 versions - "The daily blog" with funny titles "The Scoop on The Poop", "Another Day, Another Dollop" and an up-date and warning that the official whinge/complaint about their lack of effort for the files (and not for them to take to heart)is coming :D Great idea, the more evidence they have the more they've got the ability to impose some asskicking Absolutely, photos and a written statement from you that they are disruptive will be helpful. The RTT hears all kinds of crap from both tenants and landlords, but the bottom line is they're lawyers and will go with the balance of evidence. They definitely appreciate someone with accurate records and a clear commplaint over someone who rocks in with a screaming baby in tow saying everyone is just picking on them

Hi Missy Sorry you're having trouble with your dogs. It sounds like it would be best to keep them separated for now when you can't keep an eye on them, and spend time with them individually too so they don't feel the need to compete for your attention An in-home trainer is really the best option for dog-dog interactions because they can observe the more subtle communication between them. Two things that jumped out at me - I really doubt that a walk 3-4 times a week is enough for a working dog in the prime of his life. I have kelpies both around 2 years old, they get at least an hour of off-leash running and fetch every morning, plus agility and herding classes weekly and the occasional afternoon walk. I feel this is the minimum they need to keep the crazy under control. Also lots of mental stimulation like training, treat toys and kongs, or play can make a big difference and can be better than exercise for tiring them out. The other thing that I worried about is getting a dog for your dog - that's a lot of pressure on them both, and on you if you don't really want another dog. Many sheepdogs are more interested in their people than other dogs, and would probably respond better to more time with you. My dogs get along fine but aren't really best friends, they are mostly interested in what the humans are doing. If you do keep the new girl you will need to decide if you will still love her even if your boy dog isn't interested

Me too! We've taken our dogs to a farmstay at Margaret River and they just looked so happy having all that space to run and sniff! (and roll in sheep carcasses :rolleyes: ). And it was so relaxing for us to not have to constantly scan for bikes, other dogs, joggers etc. I think it is a great idea

I've always been partial to this one - (and just to show no animals were harmed in the making of this photo, here's 5 seconds later - ) Edit - love the second photo of the gsd Edit edit - oh, and this one too

There is a recent discussion of dealing with reactivity in the kelpie thread Weez does this too (the barking and lunging, not the redirection fortunately). We are working with a trainer to gradually decrease distance and increase speed of scooters, bikes and skateboards without him reacting using counter-conditioning and focus exercises. When you think about it from a dog's perspective there is a lot wrong with skateboards - the speed, the noise, and the fact that Humans Shouldn't Move Like That Sheepdogs in particular have the double whammy of wanting the world to be 'just so' and also the instict to stop things that are moving fast. I'm actually more amazed that my girl kellpie is so good with skateboards rather than that my boy freaks out

Yes, but they do have the majority of control of the direction breeds go in. Most use this power for good. Some do not.

This If he had foot fluffs he'd blend right in with the Chinese Crested :p

I could be wrong but I understood that valium is only a muscle relaxant. I would worry that if a dog did start to panic, only to find he didn't have full control of his body and not knowing why, it would lead to a very distressing time

I think this is one of the reasons why Joe Public are wary of 'show people'. If you see a dog with beautiful temperament, multiple sports titles or a great working ability yet are dismissed as not worthy of breeding because they have floppy ears or a white blaze on their chest, people are going to question the value of the standard. If you don't breed to the standard the end result will not be a generic looking non breed dog. The standard is the blueprint, if we make it as we go along what is the point. The total package makes a great dog worthy of passing on its genes. I'm not sure that's true, plenty of dog breeds have been bred purely for ability with no thougt to appearance and are still distinctive and recognisable because they are still from a restricted gene pool. I think having standards is fine personally, especially for companion breeds, but I also think incorporating tests relevant to their purpose to determine their breeding potential, like schutzhund used to be for GSDs, has merit too.

I think this is one of the reasons why Joe Public are wary of 'show people'. If you see a dog with beautiful temperament, multiple sports titles or a great working ability yet are dismissed as not worthy of breeding because they have floppy ears or a white blaze on their chest, people are going to question the value of the standard.

What I like to call a 'mystery mix' :D

It depends on what you define as 'better'. You can carefully assess any adult dog, regardless of breeding, to determine it's worth according to a set criteria. You do find good pet dogs in ethical rescue, because if they get a bad dog come through, they will not put it up for sale. It's all about why you buy the dog. Cross breed dogs will never be better than pet quality, and so if your criteria is higher or more specific than pet quality, or you need breeding quality, you need to buy a purebreed dog. The logic works if you look at numbers. Careless breeding can produce a wide mix of desirable and undesirable traits, and only once the dog has grown up can you separate the wheat from the chaff. So inefficient and so tragic. Pure breeders are able by careful breeding to produce a much higher proportion of dogs of a specific quality, and they sell to a specific market that wants those qualities, and while there are no 100% guarantees, the numbers work in their favour. Probably not a good idea to say such things when there is plenty of evidence to the contrary. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chips_%28dog%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rip_%28dog%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rags_%28dog%29 Quite a lot of SAR dogs are also crosses, and I was told that the preferred military dog for Vietnam was a black kelpie/lab. Watch "send in the dogs" quite a few working crosses there too. I don't think anyone is saying no crossbreed can ever be anything other than a pet (there are plenty of crossed pigdogs, stockdogs and sledding dogs that work for a living), just that they can't then inject their working ability back into the lines of a carefully maintained breed.

I think it also comes down to WHO buys the dog. And what and when too! By which I mean which stage of life the owners are at, and what type of dog they are looking for. We were happy to get rescue dogs because at our current age/situation we have the time and money to put into training them, so predictability wasn't a big concern. Down the track when we have kids and other animals I will probably feel differently and be more cautious about our next dog/s. (although we were very lucky in that our dogs are good with kids and both seem to have a good working ability we can put to use on a smallholding in the future. Also both our dogs look pure, but we'll never really know). Also I think getting certain breeds from shelters is less risky too, as I am pretty sure a lot of kelpies are surrendered just because they are too much for people, not because of any underlying issues. Edit: I think we might be talking at cross purposes about the phrase 'better than pet quality' too. To me I immediately think of that as a dog that can do a job, but it also encompasses show and breeding quality, which are a very different set of criteria.

Kwinana Freeway -> Right on Thomas Rd -> Left on Rockingham Rd -> Right on Kwinana Beach Rd should do it There's a car park just behind Wells Park on KB Rd. Edit - I think anyway I'm just going by google earth...

And just for support RV, here's our (healthy & happy) skinny minny - (it's hard to get a photo of her where she isn't bringing a ball to me!) I have to do a bit of a double take when I see a lean Lab too It's far more common to see overweight ones out and about

Excellent post Steve I find that in a discussions of ethics, 'because the ANKC said so' to be a fairly fruitless line of argument. This is one of those threads where I find myself agreeing with parts of both sides of the debate

Persians! That's why I have 3 of them. Aw cool I'm perfectly happy to admit I've strayed out of my depth in talking about cats

Maybe you just can't get a bad Kelpie. ;) I just figured I was such a kelpie tragic I have a blind spot for their faults

I'd never thought of getting a breed calendar! The last couple of years we've just bought the calender put out by the shelter Fox came from. But I had a look and found this one - link - which might be too cute to resist next year :D (edit: it is brown trout, but the dogs looked good to me )

You must admit that isn't a breed trait though. Sounds like yours is broken ;)

The only safe cats in Australia are indoor cats. But she had a clear idea of what she wanted to achieve and she set out and did it. They now breed true, and she's introduced new patterns (marbling as well as spotting) and it's a very interesting exercise in genetics. But she did it by applying for a licence, outlining what she wanted to create, then used her knowledge to bring it about. She didn't start by crossbreeding indiscriminately then deciding she had some cute cats she wanted to make into a breed. The "Australian" part of the name refers to the fact that they were developed here, I don't think it's got anything to do with it being a more suitable breed for this country. I mentioned that because one of the breeder websites I read was marketing them as lower prey drive, and happy to be permanently indoors so therefore more suitable for Australia and to coexist with our wildlife. The indoors part is cool, but I'm struggling to picture a cat breed with low prey drive... (although of course I've seen individual cats that are too lazy to chase anything!)

Forgot to say Alyosha - I did read up on Silken Windhounds, they look like beatiful, healthy dogs And seem to fit the niche they were bred for. Gayle I had a look at the Australian Mists too, interesting idea but I would need some more convincing that there is such a thing as a 'safe' cat for Australia (through inherent traits rather than responsible pet ownership anyway). But I could well be wrong, and I think it's good that they're trying