blakkjackal

I suggest getting a yoke type harness and making up a pair of shafts for the cart as it will reduce the risk of the cart hitting the dog on the back legs when there isn't that much weight in it. I have a garden cart for my dog and he's pulled our freezer home from around the block. We do weight pulling so I used that harness but for "casual carting" I'd probably try to find a half decent harness as it makes things so much easier. :)

Hmm... The dolls are a little creepy. :D

It's a marketing trick. That's all. Of course mini breed foods have a smaller kibble size and vice versa but in general there are no major differences and they most definitely aren't always the ideal choice for the breed.

Like these? It's just how the colour looks on a newborn pup. You can only get merles if at least one of the parents is one.

I've never had a problem with dew claws and I know of no people who have. I've also never had a dog with no dew claws as the practice is illegal from where I come from (as a preventative, not as a treatment to an already existing injury). It is considered as a cosmetic procedure the same way as tail docking and ear cropping is and really that's how I feel about it too as all of the mentioned practices have had their purposes in preventing injuries. Why is one of them still justified but the rest are frowned upon?

Do everything you normally would but with her wearing the jumper. Behave like it doesn't even exist. Maybe go for a walk or do something else that takes her mind off it. She'll get over it.

How do they know the dogs were stolen? Pretty sure it said the owners of the bulldogs were away? Bite marks and blood can mean many things, dog fighting being on the bottom of the list.

This might interest some of you. Of course that is only a very generalised picture as you can only include so many dogs but it should get the point across.

For me anything less than 2 hours of exercise a day seems like not enough. We probably do around 7-10 km's a day if I just take the dog for walks (excluding off lead time) and about half of that if there's other kind of exercise included in the day (weight pulling, flirt/spring pole etc.). Staffies are very athletic little dogs, a lot of people think they can't handle long distances but pfft, even a chihuahua should be able to clear 10 km's if properly conditioned to it. Edit: You never mentioned the surface you run on. I'd be concerned if it was asphalt/concrete. That is bad for joints.

Like these? Hailey has the saluki look. :D

True, but at the same time you end up feeding an awful lot of bone which will make the dog feel full without actually eating anything nutritious and can cause stool problems.

Butter is alright. Shouldn't be used excessively but ok as a treat. Bread is useless, dogs aren't very efficient carb users at all. If the dog is already eating dry food there is zero point in adding in even more carbs as kibble already contains plenty. You'll get a pudgy, bloated-looking dog by adding unnecessary carbohydrates in a dog's diet. You could try adding a splash of canola oil into her food for extra calories though. Animal fat is always better but it does the trick and is very inexpensive. Dogs are carnivores and fat is their main source of energy. BlackJaq, the problem with the chicken parts you mentioned is that they are very bony. Not much actual food on them so you'd have to feed silly amounts to get noticeable weight gain on those alone..

I absolutely adore my current dog. He is perfect for what & who he is. But still.. My dream dog would have more drive, more persistence, more "fire". In a way I'm super lucky to have this one as he has made me realise what exactly it is that I want from my next dog.

Pork has got plenty of fat in it and it's not too expensive either. Tongues are pretty fatty too I hear. You definitely want to increase her fat intake as that's the only thing that's going to put weight on a dog.

I agree in the beginning the pit bull was simply a "pit-bull- terrier". Any fighting dog of bulldog and terrier blood. Back in the day the breed was basically "using whatever works". No one really cared about keeping a close eye on pedigrees as long as the dogs performed. The reputation of the Breeder, the Kennel and the Dogs were worth more than the pedigrees. If you had winning dogs, that's all that mattered. The Dogmen never really cared about pedigree papers. Why would they bother? They know where to get the best blood. It was all about reputation. If you have a good "game" bloodline people will know you (and your dogs) and people will seek to breed or buy from you. So why would they need Pedigree Papers when the dogs speak for themselves. It's pretty simple. Now I think this is where the confusion comes from. The fact that the 'Books' were never really closed for the Breed( because there was really no "Book" in the first place) has caused a whole lot of breed mis-identification. The breed was never well defined, which lead to the "pit bull" term being used very loosely worldwide. The range of breeds, colours, sizes, temperaments, types, associated with the Term "Pitbull" therefore doesn't come as a surprise. Yet the APBT as a breed probably has one of the worlds most documented histories when it comes to pedigrees. If you have a pedigree you can pretty much trace it back all the way to the earliest ancestors (that were kept track of, that is -- most producers would fall under that category though).

I think these two sisters somewhat represent that "real" old type. Freia & Fricka, working line shepherds. Fricka's back is slightly too sloped for my liking but apart from that they look like they sure could work sheep all day, if not all week.

Alrighty here's a link I think might be useful to some people. What is a "pit bull".

Oh dear, poor thing. Makes me sick how people can let their pets get to that state. Good on you for taking her in.

Sorry. Interesting, have you even been to the Australian GSD National? Or a shepherd specialty show ? Not to the Australian one, no. But no GSD (Aussie or not) I've seen has had satisfactory movement. Maybe for the breed, but not when comparing to other, more normally moving dogs.

Yep, they have been separated a good while ago in Europe and I believe in the US too..? They're like the "pet" shepherd, easier all around but still maintaining the size/looks.Has everyone seen video? Dingo vm Haus Gero, supposedly the GSD with ideal movement. Unfortunately we've steered quite far away from this. :/ I posted that video earlier in the thread. It might move nice for what is desired by some in the GSD but I still cringe when I watch it. Sorry somehow missed it.I too think even that dog is far too angulated and his pasterns look terribly weak.

Sorry.

Yep, they have been separated a good while ago in Europe and I believe in the US too..? They're like the "pet" shepherd, easier all around but still maintaining the size/looks.Has everyone seen video? Dingo vm Haus Gero, supposedly the GSD with ideal movement. Unfortunately we've steered quite far away from this. :/

Germany or Europe in general would be my best bet, although a trend of slowly replacing GSDs with Mals can be seen...

There's still decent ones in working line GSD's but unfortunately they too are riddled with health problems (skeletal, allergies etc.).

Coyote rollers? If you're handy you could probably build something similar.