mixeduppup

I think if they choose to report it they can. I'm pretty sure it's the same as Dr confidentiality so only if a warrant is issued do they need to abide by the law and release info (don't quote me on that). I might do some digging and find out exactly though.

More than that. He could (should?) be prosecuted for blatantly neglecting a dog's basic needs. Poor little dog must have been in agony. I'm thinking about doing that. I'll give the RSPCA a call but not sure they can do much on hearsay and vets have confidentiality so not sure they could do anything unless they had to or wanted to. I never knew vets had to keep animal cases confidential. I didnt think they would, especially from the RSPCA. I know the vets have to call the RSPCA if they dont think the animal belongs to the person who brings it in. I would have thought it would be the same if they think an animal is being mistreated. I work at a vet and everything is very confidential. it's just like going to a dr or a psychologist. I don't know the oarticulars about the vet and the case in general as I hung up pretty quickly before losing my head. I called the RSPCA and took his particulars but without seeing the dog I don't think they can do much. well i learn something new every day.. :) I still think its strange as I know my dog wouldnt give hoot if anyone knew her business... haha I understand its a medical profession but its animals, not humans, so it wouldnt make difference to the animal if someone knew their medical conditions. I work at a vet and we go by a confidentiality agreement, we can't tell anyone anything about who came in, who got what treatment etc.

I think OH is suitably freaked Katdogs - I just spoke to him and he's trying to be very brave and hold it together... puppy of course seems completely unaware that he's eaten anything he shouldn't. Remember that Labs tend to have guts of steel and can pass all sorts of things that would upset a lesser dog... *grin* Don't panic! T. My friend's lab eats things that would make other dogs very sick and she doesn't even notice. just keep an eye on him but labs have amazing stomachs I know one that pooped out two sponges and a super ball once.

More than that. He could (should?) be prosecuted for blatantly neglecting a dog's basic needs. Poor little dog must have been in agony. I'm thinking about doing that. I'll give the RSPCA a call but not sure they can do much on hearsay and vets have confidentiality so not sure they could do anything unless they had to or wanted to. I never knew vets had to keep animal cases confidential. I didnt think they would, especially from the RSPCA. I know the vets have to call the RSPCA if they dont think the animal belongs to the person who brings it in. I would have thought it would be the same if they think an animal is being mistreated. I work at a vet and everything is very confidential. it's just like going to a dr or a psychologist. I don't know the oarticulars about the vet and the case in general as I hung up pretty quickly before losing my head. I called the RSPCA and took his particulars but without seeing the dog I don't think they can do much.

Yep, getting up is the hardest part. Sunrises normally take care of themselves. I would suggest having a good light filter on your camera though, otherwise graininess could become a problem in lower light.

Yep, I know plenty of farmers that are fairly rough on their dogs, but if they are sick they will rush them to the vets no questions asked. I would be calling the RSPCA too, surprised the vets didn't actually. Me too!

Yeah I'll make a call. I lived on a station for a while and this guy was rough on his dogs but if any were sick he'd make the 2-3 hour trek to the vet no questions asked. If you have dogs and they get sick it's what you do!

More than that. He could (should?) be prosecuted for blatantly neglecting a dog's basic needs. Poor little dog must have been in agony. I'm thinking about doing that. I'll give the RSPCA a call but not sure they can do much on hearsay and vets have confidentiality so not sure they could do anything unless they had to or wanted to.

Same! I almost cried when I heard what happened to that pup. I couldn't imagine one of my dogs going to a home like that

I had someone interested in buying a young dog that I had for sale. I spoke to him twice and he seemed good, he ran a working property and everything he said sounded great and I though that it sounded like a good match. I decided to have one more conversation with him just to double check a few things that didn't add up and SO GLAD I DID. He told me that he had bought a young dog from someone else and the dog had stopped eating, it took him 2 weeks of not eating before he drove 40mins to take the dog to the vet in an emaciated condition where it promptly died. I asked him why it took so long to take it to the vet and he didn't have a reason. He said it was bad breeding that the dog stopped eating and I said it was probably a blocked bowel or something similar and if a dog goes off its food for more than a couple of days something is wrong and you need to seek a vet straight away, not wait until the dog is literally dying. he then tried to offer me half the price I had on the dog even though I had told him a few times that it was non-negotiable and then told him I wouldn't be selling my dog to him anyway. I was so glad I triple checked and found this out and my dog didn't go there. I guess it goes to show how checking, checking and checking again is so important. This particular guy is still searching for a young working dog so if you own any that you have for sale feel free to pm me for further details.

Well, the questions centred around their suitability as regular dometic pets. I have not seen your dogs with your visitors, but my dogs will not let anybody approach me whether it is inside the house or outside. I have to strategically place myself in a position so that any movement by others will be away from me. A few years back I was walking the dogs and a neighbour started to become aggressive and raised his voice. Winja was up on his back legs staring him in the eyes and barking at him. The dogs are protective instinctively, they know their business and they do it flawlessly. But I would not expect them to be listed as your everyday take home dog to be left with young children who naturally have friends that come and go. In my experience that would not just be irresponsible but criminal. They are a special purpose dog, and if you do not have a special purpose, then another dog should be considered. Regards So what are your dogs' special purpose? Do you have a stash of sheep or poultry somewhere in suburbia? I believe that the maremma will give itself a purpose, whether it is guarding a flock or guarding your house/you. My maremma is polite when out on walks but will guard the yard unless we are there and tell him it's ok. He has backyard pets and protects them religiously but his 'purpose' has been adapted to suit his living environment and depth of socialisation. That's the great thing about maremmas, if kept in a non-working situation they will always have a purpose as long as their management is correct.

Thanks guys, had a last convo with the buyer tonight and he said something that made me change my mind and I told him to look elsewhere. But I've taken down the suggestions here and pm'd in case I sell to anyone up there in the future. Thanks again

I have a kelpie pup I've just sold and need to find affordable transport. Who do you guys recommend?

One of the pups working the ducks. This is Flick! She's turning into a really nice all round dog with heaps of style.

Ammo musn't have got the message that he can't be a domestic pet. Here he is playing fetch.

I imagine if left to go feral they would be highly intelligent and not easily caught.

I think you can also breed father to daughter but not mother to son. Correct me if I'm wrong. very wrong ok thanks. I wasn't sure if that was a done thing. You hear contradictory reports.

I think you can also breed father to daughter but not mother to son. Correct me if I'm wrong.

I know that line breeding can be used to produce desired breed traits. I myself own a line bred bitch and she is almost the perfect copy of her grand grand dam who she is linebred to. It also starts to show up genetic faults after time though if not done properly. I think inbreeding is more mother to son matings, which is frowned upon generally.

In the 'Maremma goes feral' situation the dogs are left for six months at a time. Your friends obviously have a working relationship with their dogs and I would expect that to be the minimum criteria for keeping Maremmas. I know a tea tree farmer who started with alpaccas to protect his weed eaters (sheep) but when the wild dogs came down they wouldn't move from the opposite end of the paddocks. They only reacted if approached directly. Absolutely useless. Interesting point about the other dogs. The Italians have used the Maremma for guarding together with another breed for herding. OK, I don't know any that aren't checked on at least once a week. Yes the working dogs and maremmas usually get on very well. My maremma has an inseparable bond with my kelpies and they are the only dogs he'll let "chase/herd" his ducks without him stopping it. I've never picked up on that until you mentioned it. Perhaps they inherently know that their stock won't be harmed.

That's interesting because my friends can easily approach the maremmas they leave out in the paddocks and the dogs just walk with them as they take the sheep in to be marked or the goats to be culled or separated. they would never let anyone they don't know do that but they're happy for the people they know to muck around with the stock all they want. They also don't seem to mind their workings dogs. I think they switched from alpacas to maremmas because the alpacas were attacking their dogs but the maremmas don't seem to. I think perhaps if they introduced dogs they didn't know they may change but I couldn't be certain. This however is one particular set up and I don't know how other maremmas respond in other situations.

So you don't agree with many people that keep their dogs like that in rural areas? They usually keep them in pairs. Would that be considered intelligent company or do they need the company of humans to be considered proper maremmas?

I had a lady try to argue with me when I told her my maremma was in fact not a large white golden retriever. She'd never heard of the breed so apparently it didn't exist...

I think you're being idealistic. You're negating the dog's natural behaviour because you have an idea of how you want it to behave rather than how it naturally behaves. A dog's meal should be a time of peace, not a lesson in anxiety and aggression, with both you and a cat hovering around it. No training needs to be done apart from the dog being left by itself to eat.