Echo

The German Shepherd Dog Club Victoria (Skye Branch) is pleased to announce an upcoming seminar by dog behaviourist and trainer, Vicki Austin. Please find attached flyer for the seminar, along with Vicki's resume. This seminar deals with the topic of socialisation and training of puppies, with emphasis on developing well adjusted animals, which are able to fit easily into society and are a pleasure to own. Suitable for Obedience Instructors, those who run puppy kinder classes or any enthusiast wanting to learn more about the socialisation and training of puppies. As with the Steve Austin seminar we held last year, this will prove to be a very popular event and we anticipate that places will be filled quickly. To avoid disappointment, please book and pay as early as possible. Seating will be limited. We would be pleased if you would distribute this information amongst your friends. Bookings can only be made by using the booking slip supplied, which must be returned with cheque/money order. Thank you in anticipation of your support. Julie Urie Skye Branch GSDCV Ph:5968 8441 Vicki Austin Overview.doc VICKI AUSTIN_GSDCV flyer.doc

I have left dogs there and found the people to be very friendly, helpful and knowledgable. The kennel facilities are old, but were well maintained and very clean. My dogs were in good condition when I picked them up and were happy to be left there again on another occasion. The people who own it now have done a huge ammount of work on the house, kennels and property, which were all very run down by the last owners. I used to drive past there and think 'what a dump', but you can easily see how much better it looks now. This is very handy to the airport, so also convenient place to leave the dogs when I have to go interstate. I will take the kids there next time I have to travel and will be confident they will be looked after well.

I just looked at the other thread, but couldn't see exactly what this product is. Maybe I'm going blind in my old age, but can someone give a description or post a link to this product? Thanks.

As per the notice FH posted above, the closing date for ALL entries has now been extended to 25th April. If you don't waste any time, you will still be able to enter, including the Obedience.

Although this does sound like a serious incident, 30 puncture wounds does not equal 30 bites. Most dogs have 42 teeth and one full grip bite alone could easily result in many separate punctures. I agree that we should be asking the question 'why' and not just automatically label this dog, or any other involved in such an incident as BAD or SICK.

Pull off the outer cover and inside you will find an adjustable screw. By moving the screw up/down you can vary the pitch of the whistle. Replace the cover once you have chosen your desired setting. I have a Sprenger whistle and the setting I have on mine is not silent. It is set to make a high pitched sound that is audible to the human ear. This setting works very well for my dogs and it can be heard for quite a long way. I use it by making short, sharp toots, not one long continuous blow. The short toots seem to be picked up much better by the dogs. Then you have to charge the whistle, just the same as you would a clicker. With the dogs close by, toot and treat immediately. Repeat this process until the dogs recognise that the toot means reward. Once this is achieved, then gradually move to tooting when the dogs are a short distance away and when they come to you, reward/treat. Reliable response over further distance is achieved gradually and once the dogs are tuned in to the sound, I find the whistle a very good way to attract the dog's attention at quite a distance, without having to yell your lungs out. We have quite a long driveway and sometimes the dogs will be down at the gate barking. Rather than go out and yell (which the whole world will hear) I just use the whistle to bring them back to the house....works a treat and the neighbours never have to hear me yelling at the dogs. I also use it when we are out and the dogs are off lead at the park or in the bush....works just as well there also.

Under these circumstances, you are not liable for any Vet bills to the neighbour's dog. I have been through the same thing with our neighbour's dog, which ended up quite badly chewed and a $650 Vet bill. I did not feel guilty or obliged to pay one cent. It is not your fault if neighbours cannot control their own dog. The council ranger assured me that there would be no repercussions for either my dogs or myself.

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How do you clip a GSD to perfection....I don't get it.

Thanks for putting that up, but is there more to it? Doesn't seem like the full story in these two clips.

Same opinion here.

Thanks, that's great.

Smooch and Everythings Shiny, thank you both for the reply. I think I will buy some of the collars. Cheers Julie

I will be attending a dog show in the Hunter Valley (NSW) in May this year. The show will be held in Pokolbin and we are staying on a rural property nearby. Can someone tell me if there is a need to worry about Ticks in this area? If so, what is the best product I can buy to deal with this? Thanks.

One of my dogs went through exactly the same at 5 years old. Bloat, spleen removed and gastroplexy. She was at the Vet for 3 days and when she came home she had lost a lot of weight. We started off feeding 5 small meals per day and over time, gradually got her back to two a day. She remained on two meals for the rest of her life. Once she had fully recovered, she lived a normal life, doing all the things our other dogs do, without any further worry. She went on to live to almost 13 years of age, which is normal for her breed and her death was totally unrelated to her episode of bloat. I'm sure your Vet will give you full instructions on his aftercare. Don't worry, he's past the worst of it, just needs lots of TLC. Best wishes to you and Kenny.

Get a crate or a small pen you can set up inside. No matter how well you puppy proof everything, there will always be something the little darlings will get into. Keeps puppy and your belongings safe at times when you're not able to supervise.

I like the suggestion about the bell. Just a tiny one, somewhere on your left hand side would be a good idea. She can use this to orient herself to stay on your left. I would walk her without the other dog. She needs to have confidence in you as her leader slowly built up. Too much time spent with the other dog will diminish her desire to be with you and if they always walk together, the other dog will become an emotional crutch for her and she will find it harder to cope when he is not around. As already suggested, stick to the same route for a little while. Familiarising her with things is important and her confidence will grow if she is not hit with unexpected change before she is comfortable with the first step. Kirty, I sent you a PM about the tracking.

Fascinating video. Thanks for posting. Excellent work from you and the Vet to get this little guy back on the road to recovery.

As previously stated, there are reasons why a litter of pups might not show the level of activity/interest that is ideal at the time of viewing, and they are all valid. I breed GSD's and have faced this same scenario a couple of times when allowing people to view pups. Especially if they have had a huge play session just before the people arrive, no ammount of stimulation will get them up and active. Once they are tired, that is it until they have slept and recovered. Even if they are very tired, they will not usually hide. They will still come out for a quick investigation, before losing interest and dropping in a heap. However, I would be very concerned at the bitch's behaviour. All of our bitches are extremely social and can't wait to meet visitors and show off their babies. In fact, seeing how happy and friendly they are,is considered a big plus by prospective buyers. You may find a bitch that is not all too happy with strangers near her babies, but if this were the case, I would expect her to be out of her kennel to check you out and make sure you were not going to harm them. Under no circumstances would I expect a bitch not to come out of the kennel when called by the owner. The disinterest from the pups may have just been bad timing on the part of your visit, but the bitch's behaviour, if reported accurately, would be enough for me to walk away and look somewhere else.

I'll second the Vytrate suggestion. Excellent product and my dogs/pups will drink it very eagerly when it is offered.

http://www.ohmidog.com/2011/12/06/cumberland-county-drops-adoption-ban-idea/ Fortunately, public outcry has now caused this proposal to be scrapped. So sad that it was ever considered in the first place. Don't think the same type of thing will never visit our shores, especially in Victoria. Given the huge ammount of bad press towards dogs lately, I think we can expect more twists and turns in legislation as time goes by. Given the direction legislation has already taken, I would not expect them to be favourable.

Yesterday,Dr. Karen Hedberg did a presentation for our GSD club members on GSD health disorders. Quite a bit of what she covered was on gut disorders and was very interesting. Dr. Hedberg is recognised as being one of the leading vets in Australia, when it comes to health problems concerned with GSD's. http://www.gsdcv.org.au/sites/default/files/file/Breed%20Affairs/Immunological_Disorders_in_the_GSD_Hedberg.pdf If you check out this link, it contains the lecture notes that she presented. You may find some helpful information here.

I live in Cockatoo and am regularly driving around Emerald and surrounding areas. Will keep an eye out wherever I go. I hope you find her soon.

I have already booked for the Melbourne one in January. Really looking forward to this. Can't wait.

Yes, everyone should be very careful. I know someone whose GSD was killed last week. This was in the Pakenham area.