Gertrude139

Carrot! my last Lab was obsessed with carrot and both my huskies will leave fresh chicken or a bone for a chance at some carrot! We used very small cubes of cheese for extra difficult training tasks, they will do anything for cheese. Pigs ears are a great treat to leave them to chew on for a while when you go out.

For me the biggest issue is that they actively refuse to deal with rescue organisations. I don't think I know a husky or mally that wouldn't fail based on prey drive alone. Once a dog has failed the test a breed specific rescue should be allowed to assess and rescue the animal if they believe it can be successfully re-homed. A breed specific rescue organisation will make sure the new owners are suitable for a more demanding dog, if that is the case once they have been properly temp tested outside of a pound environment. They will also have the best idea about which traits being demonstrated are due to the stressful pound environment, which are breed related and which are of concern. Most rescue organisations will give an initial trial period, sometimes with access to a free behavioral trainer to make sure the dog is suitable and settles into the new environment as expected. I realise that the RSPCA may not be able to achieve better results on their own due to a range of issues, many of which have been listed by others in this topic, but it is clear that there are a lot of rescue groups which are able to but the RSPCA refuses to let them help. This article is written by the Alaskan Malamute Rehoming Aid Australia's NSW coordinator about her experiences. http://deathrowpets.wordpress.com/2012/10/09/rspca-nsw-working-with-rescue-groups-or-not/ A no-kill policy is unrealistic but the kill rates from the RSPCA are beyond excessive. Until the public can be educated about puppy farms, backyard breeders and the responsibility that comes with owning a pet, which is the root of the problem, we will have to work on the band-aid solution. There are some amazing pounds out there doing an incredible job to find homes for the majority of their animals and the RSPCA needs to be pressured to follow suit, starting to deal with well known and reputable rescue groups would surely be the easiest and smartest option for them. I agree their test sucks but; an organisation their size is always going to have a test and it will never be perfect. Once they have decided that the dog is not suitable for everyday walk-ins to adopt it - that is where a rescue group should be able to step in.