G.S.P.S/K

Hi all- just wanted to share with you something I witnessed yesterday which horrifed me and would certainly make me reluctant to fly my dog anywhere. I work at the airport. Whislt driving on the tarmac yesterday we saw something fly off a trolley and land on the road right in front of our car- forcing us to slam on the brakes- we only just avoided hitting it- it was a puppy in a crate. So not only did the puppy fly off the trolley (due to high winds) and crash onto the road- it only just avoided being run over (luckily we were adhering to the 20km/h speed limit which baggage handlers seem to ignore) and moreover- I was wondering exactly how long was this puppy left on the tarmac on a 43 degree day.. we stopped and checked on the puppy and it seemed ok..and some baggage handlers came and placed the crate inside... but we were still horrified that this could occur... we will report it but unfortunately it seems to be a grey area as to exactly who's fault this is- everyone seems to be blaming someone else.

Thanks for all the replies, some good news: the vet said its a bit inflamed, she as aggravated it slightly, but with some more strict rest it shouldn't be a problem! I was so relieved, as I was imagining him telling me she would need surgery again.

My beautiful little Staffy X is 2 years old and has undergone 4 surgeries for luxating patella since June 1 last year. The first one was for her right knee which was successful, however this had been followed by surgery 3 times on her left knee. Her most recent surgery was 12 weeks ago & at her last vet check 6 weeks ago all was well. Today I get home and she's limping so I very gently manipulated her leg only to hear and feel 'crunching'. Checked her other leg- no crunching there. I am taking her to the vet tomorrow, but my questions is this- is amputation the best solution now? I am loathe to put her through another surgery to 'fix' her knee if there's no guarantee it'll work. She's already endured 10 months of confinement and because of this has had some personality changes and will now require 're-socialisation'. It will devastate me to amputate but I think this would be more humane. His anyone else experienced something similar with unsuccessful joint surgery? And to those that have an amputee: How is your dog's quality of life? Thanks.

And thanks Nic oh lah for your understanding and the others who have been kind, because some earlier replies made me regret ever starting the topic.

Flaves, he's not my EX yet, and he's not the spiteful type, he wants one because he loves them. I'm not sure what he's response will be when I tell him I'm leaving and want both dogs, I'm just going on past discussions that he'll want one. For all I know He may well agree to me having both (although he'll be very upset about it). To others who have talked about separating the 2 dogs that's not an issue, they've mostly been separated anyway due to one of them having repeat knee surgeries- the issue is I don't want to lose either of them.

Why do people have to be really arrogant and nasty when all people like me need is a bit of a sounding board, as I'm yet to have the official discussion with my OH. As I said its an extremely painful and heartbreaking thing for me and I can't stop crying over it, and am devastated to be hurting my OH in this way

Thanks for the replies guys. Sandra777 I wouldn't be going back on my word as I never agreed to us keeping 1 each, that was just what he said he would want. Also by my argument that he hasn't had dogs/pets before what I meant is I'm better equipped to look after them and I was the driving force behind getting them. He wouldn't have got a dog if I wasn't in his life. He may well now after experiencing them however. I should add my deal to him is I wont make any claims on the house or shared possessions/ furniture if I can have the dogs.

Hi guys, just wanted your advice on a particularly painful subject for me. I have made the decision to split with my partner who I have been living with for 2 and 1/4 years. We have acquired 2 dogs together during that time. I plan to take both dogs with me. In the past we've discussed hypothetically what would happen if we split. He thinks he should have one I should have the other, but I don't want to choose between them. What I want to know is, do you think I have a case to take both? I'll give you my reasons: I am the dog lover and have had dogs before, where as for him they are his first pets.I pushed to get the dogs.I chose the breeds that I wanted.They are registered and microchipped in my name.I have a lot more time to spend with them, he works long hours.I know a lot more about dogs and their needs- I have worked as a groomer, done work experience at a vet, and obedience trained 2 dogs prior to the current dogs, and constantly extend my knowledge by reading books, magazines and things online about dogs- he is not interested in any of this. He loves the dogs and has paid half of their required expenses such as food, flea/worming, vet bills and the cost to buy them in the first place. It will break my heart to see him say goodbye to them for the last time, but he has also stipulated that if we ever did split he wouldn't want shared custody as it would be more painful for him to have to keep saying goodbye and to keep seeing me than to never see us again. Is it fair for me to take both dogs?

Yikes, it should have been groomed for the first time months ago! Just like most people on here have said 4 months old is the best age to take it (if going to a salon) for the first time (so its fully vaccinated), but brushing and bathing and if possible getting it used to scissors and clippers prior to that is a great idea. If your pup has only been bathed and brushed chances are it will be water-matted and you are only brushing over the top of knots. It will probably need to be shaved close to the skin to get rid of the mats. Also regular combing with a fine toothed comb to really check for knots is a good idea. Getting your dog groomed regularly such as every 8 weeks is also a good idea- more often if you can afford it. When I worked at a salon we had a couple of dogs who came every week, quite a few came every 2 or 3 weeks but the majority came every 4 or 6 weeks. If they came every 4 weeks they'd usually get a haircut every 2nd visit and a 'bath & tidy' on the other visits- this involved brushing/combing out knots, bath, nails and face/feet/toilet passages trimmed. Regular clients also got a better price than those that only came a couple of times a year or less. Best to get on to it ASAP, especially in Summer- dogs can get so uncomfortable with knots between their toes, knots blocking their ability to toilet, nails too long to walk properly; not to mention grass seeds and hot spots etc.

I love brown, especially a two-toned dog who is mostly brown, hence why I have a GSP (who is more brown than white) and a brindle Staffy X. I call them my "brown babies"! I also love blue and red and tri's. solids particularly in black, white, or gold as well as 'black and white' i find boring.

Just out of interest: do many people's short-haired or smooth haired dogs get hot spots? I know they are most common on dogs like Goldens and particularly in the neck folds, that's why I'm curious. Also if your dog's had them: do they also suffer from sensitive skin and/or allergies?

My breeder raised the pups completely outside but I wasn't so much worried about the socialisation (or lack thereof) as I was about the pups getting cold at night or eaten by a fox or snake! Luckily they were fine and the kennel was heated. I think you're right about certain breeds having different socialisation requirements though. Similarly, within breeds there are always different temperaments and hence dogs with different responses to things. Anyway my GSP is 8.5 months and has never batted an eyelid at any indoor noises or goings on. He loves my hairdryer and comes running into the bathroom and sits at my feet when I dry my hair, just waiting to be blow-dried himself. Also I can vacuum around him while he sleeps on his bed! He is also excellent with poeple and other dogs. My other dog on the other hand barks and tries to chase the hair-dryer and vacuum. The only problem issue I've had with the GSP they may have stemmed from spending his first 8 weeks solely outside is that he took ages to toilet train. Compared to my Staffy/Kelpie X and the 2 dogs I grew up with (Cattle Dog/Kelpie X's), all of which had less than 10 accidents between them inside- my GSP was a bit of a nightmare. He's fine now though.

I just wanted to say: I feel your pain. My Staffy/Kelpie X had her right knee operated on for luxating patella in June. It was successful. 12 weeks later she had the left knee done. At her checkup/bandage removal 2 weeks post op, we heard the bad news it hadn't been successful and she'd need it done again. 5 weeks later she had the op again and at 3 follow up appointments (to get cartrophen injections) the news was all positive until last week (5 weeks post op)- we were devasted to hear that her knee was still luxating and that she'd probably require surgery for a 3rd time on the same knee! I can't stand the idea of putting her through surgery and confinement AGAiN, and have no idea what to do- like should I be taking her to a specialist or something... Sorry havnt offered u any advice etc, just wanted to say your not alone.

After working in a dog grooming salon for many years I saw many obese dogs, and my boss had no qualms about telling people their dog needed to lose weight! Most people weren't offended, they usually said "I know". I remember 2 extremely obese labs whose owner would always just say "they're big boned" to which I'd inwardly groan not to mention almost breaking my back trying to get them onto the grooming table and into the bath. I don't think desexing has anything to do with it either, it's all about diet and exercise. There's only one other excuse that can legitimately account for weight gain- dogs who are on certain types of medicines- there was one English Bulldog at the salon who used to be supremely fit and muscular, then he developed epilepsy and ballooned. My Staffy x Kelpie weighs around 10.5 kgs normally but since having 3 knee surgeries in the past 4 months gained almost 1 kg- so what did I do? Halve her food, and her weight's back down despite a complete lack of exercise while she recovers. It's easy to give your dogs treats every day, mine get bones, rawhides and other dental chews as well as carrots, apples and capsicum which they love. And I've never had a problem keeping them trim.

I would definitely get it done. My vet said if we didn't do it for our Staffy X Kelpie she would get crippling arthritis at a young age, and would be at increased risk of rupturing her ACL. I know they can still get arthritis after having the surgery, but the prognosis is very good. The recovery part is difficult, keeping the confined for so long, especially if you have a hyperactive dog like I do- and my girl has had both knees done in the past 4 months! We'll have to wait until next year before she can be in the yard with our GSP, and our vet pretty much said we should never let her play fetching games due to the sudden twisting movements dogs do, but apart from that she should be running and jumping again, living a normal life.

Nowstarin, is that only the case with Advantix? What about other products like Advocate and Frontline? I must admit I'm planning on getting ''Advocate for dogs 25kg' plus and using 3/4s of it on my GSP and 1/4 on my (small) Staffy X

I'm a former groomer, and we used to use a hard slicker (to break up hair that was sticking together), followed by a wide tooth comb, followed by a fine tooth comb (to really check the hair). After the bath we would use a soft-slicker and the fine tooth comb. Pin brushes we only used at the end of the groom on dogs with very long hair, such as Bearded Collies, to part the hair nicely. Can I also suggest you advise your customers that brushing and combing is far more important than bathing. So many dogs came into us water-matted, because people kept bathing them when they hadn't got rid of knots, thus making the knots tighter and tighter. They would then have the cheek to ask that their dog doesn't get clipped too short! It is possible to remove knots without clipping (by using a matt-breaker), however its very time consuming and can be painful and distressing to dogs.

After growing up with kelpie/cattle dog crosses, I knew I liked highly active, intelligent dogs. When I saw a GSP in my dog encyclopedia 11 years ago, i immediately loved the look of them. Upon doing some research I found they appealed to me for many reasons- high energy, intelligent, easy to train, friendly, good with kids & other dogs, smooth coat that requires minimal grooming, lean athletic build, not as common as other gun dogs. I got my first GSP this year. I also wanted a dog that had a clear size difference from the GSP, was also highly active, intelligent, friendly, smooth coated with beautiful brown markings hence my brindle Staffy/Kelpie X. They have different personalities but both love other people and dogs and I couldn't be happier with them.

I would think all dogs have the potential to swim, but it would be best if they are introduced to it whilst still young, and introduced slowly - i.e not throwing them into the water. It's probably the case that some breeds are better suited to it due to body type such as gun dogs and sheep/cattle dogs, and some breeds have a greater affinity for water. Bigger dogs mostly find it easier than smaller dogs- my small dog struggles when there are waves!

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here's a pic of the little killer... (if she looks big its because Ralph the GSP is only 4 to 5 months old in this one) Ab and ral.docx

Minimax- unfortunatly my mum rang up to book the 3 dogs in and said staffy X kelpie. Apparently they asked her "Is she more like a staffy or kelpie?" to which my mum replied "I guess.. she looks more like a Staffy". She's brindle with a slightly broad chest on an otherwise narrow frame.. The license point is a good one- I guess i just would have assumed that if the owner is happy for their dogs to share they should be allowed to. Even if they made me sign a waiver or something.. to say I agree that if anything happned between my dogs i wouldnt blame the kennel...

Hey guys, what do you think about this: the kennel my 2 dogs are booked into over Christmas won't let them share a run together becasue one of them is a Staffy X. Never mind the fact that she's crossed with a kelpie, is tiny and petite (weight about 10.7kg) with a body shape that resembles a whippet, and more importantly has been very well socialised, is extremely friendly with people and is submissive yet perfectly friendly with other dogs. Not to mention my other dog is a GSP who will be about four times her size by the time they go to the kennel. I can understand that those kennels who like to pair 2 dogs from different owners for company, are careful about some breeds, but seriously- they're from the same family and get on fine and I'm happy for them to share, but the kennel wont let them- and therefore charges a higher price because I have to pay for 2 separate kennels rather than one. My parent's old Cattle dog cross is also boarding with them at the same time and the kennel owner said the Cattle dog X and my GSP can share. I told them "actually they cant"- The old dog doesn't like other dogs and was never socialised properly. I think they will laugh when they see just how tiny and 'over the top' friendly my Staffy cross is. Also I tried about 7 other kennels but all were booked out so I cant really just take them elsewhere...

The city Im in is Kingston. I've looked up some other councils and note that Franskton has the same rules. City of Monash however (which is where our vet is) doesnt require desexing by 3 months nor do plenty of other councils I looked up. I will get vet to write a letter- if it comes down to that. So far the council hasn't come knocking. Just out of interest- what specifically are the growth/health issues some of you are referring to when you say early desexing is bad for large and giant breeds?

Just to clear up a few things for people and highlighting the difference between Customs and AQIS- (now called DAFF). Those ingredients are only a Customs issue if they come under CITES legislation (which relates to protecting endangered species, be it plant or animal) Pet food products are an AQIS issue and you cannot bring in ANY pet food products unless you have a permit (even things like Greenies from the USA which of course are much cheaper to buy over there). "Dog products" would only be of concern to Customs if the products were made from dogs- as dog and cat skin are prohibited as specified in the Customs Regulations.