Her Majesty Dogmad

Sorry I'm curious - where did you get an Affenpinscher/Iggy cross?

if they were serious they'd be thoroughly investigating any rescue groups listed rather than charging them to put their name there and taking anyone who is willing to pay the $60 fee.

Poor fellow, no excuse for beating any dog and no excuse for others in the know not to do something about it. What a horrible owner. AWDRI would probably be a really good place to start, they are set up for working breeds!

There was a chipped Catahoula in Renbury last year - I contacted the only registered breeder I could find - no reply ... The dog was rescued, not sure by who.

Quite often I'll have a chat to someone and end up patting their dog. The last dog I admired and was making a fuss of was a large black dog in the vet, it was an Akita cross and he was just lovely. Contrary to what DOL members may have read about me in some members' presumptuous posts on this forum, I like dogs of all kinds - with nice natures - I just happen to currently own small dogs. :)

It is wonderful to see the transformation these neglected and misunderstood dogs go through. The really sad thing is that all it takes is decent food, proper treatment for fleas and/or worms, bit of grooming that some people seem incapable of giving and yet is just basic care. 16kgs I had no idea they were so big. That is most people's reaction the first time they actually meet one! Not many people realise how substantial a dog they really are. That is why you will find me going on about folks really needing to understand their temperament, because you're not dealing with a little dog you can just sort of flick off. They are powerful & substantial with all the mental tenacity of a true terrier. They appear very laid back as far as terriers go, but cross them & you will soon see the full power of their inner terrier! Crikey - i didn't realise they were so big either! Def. important for them to go to a breed savvy home.

And for your interest, I too was turned down for a rescue dog I applied for and I wasn't happy either, I thought that it was wrong as I had done what was asked of me - taken my dogs with me to meet the dog and they all got along really well. I put on my big girl panties and got on with life and thought it wasn't meant to be. It was a rare breed I was very keen to have so it wasn't going to be a situation that was likely to repeat itself in the next 10 yrs or so. That's life.

Quite. Wondering if you've ever applied for a job? Did you get it? Did you apply for any other jobs after getting that job? Did you get them all? Probably not. Did you then say to yourself "well, that didn't work for me, I'm not going to ever apply for a job again." Or did you begin a campaign of harassment against the company that didn't hire you? Perhaps, most likely not. With regards to how I respond to people, I normally prefer to speak to them and discuss other options available. If it must be done by email (ie perhaps that is their preference), then I take the time to explain why this particular dog is not suitable. I also suggest other options to consider. One example though, if they haven't got any fencing then I'm not sure what you'd expect me to do there - i wouldn't be recommending any animal for them. Likewise if they live in a loft apartment and work full time and study or go out in the evenings - what would you recommend for that? (This was a recent surrender to my rescue group, no dog would be suitable for this life but someone had allowed them to have a puppy, they finally worked out for themselves that this wasn't a good idea). So many scenarios to consider and I take each one as an individual case so can't give a blanket answer to all but suffice to say I'm naturally a helpful and understanding person who hates the mass euthanasia of unwanted pets so I do my best. I've had more than one person tell me that because I've said no, that I have forced them to go to a petshop. No I haven't. They probably wanted an excuse to do it in the first place because they wanted "easy". They are the ones that are lacking something (ie common sense, reasoning ability, conscience) - not me.

Sadly there are many of us feeling the same way these days. RIP little Foxie. Hope the two offending dogs are found, their irresponsible owner should not get away with this and they should not be inflicted on innocent people and their animals. The poor child who had to witness his dog being mauled to death will probably have nightmares for years to come.

Woody is magnificent, i really like his colouring :)

Pretty partial to white (and they can have some patches). Also very much like the light brindle tiger look. I've had a few black dogs and have promised myself a tan scruffer one day. My neighbour was telling someone that I walk the white dogs and then take the coloured ones out - not planned, the dogs walk together if they have the same abilities ...

OMG Rozzie, I picked him up from the pound and named him - so lovely to see him, he was a dear little soul!! Thanks for giving us an update.

I'm sure he'll be OK, the screaming was most likely more the fright because he's blind. If he's not right by Wed morning then I'd take him. Keep an eye on his mouth where he cut his gum though in the meantime and take him before if he's worrying you ..

Wear an old t shirt the night before you go and leave that with your dog!

I've sent them a message on Facebook with advice on what to do - ie go back to their breeder or how to more safely rehome themselves. They are in QLD, i have no idea if there is a GSD rescue there. Maybe do some Google searching if you are determined to find one :)

Unless it's an off leash dog area, you are breaking the law unfortunately. I was doing this with one of my very old and small dogs who also just stayed with me. Another person had a young dog and hers just chased the ball. It's a massive local oval. Some mornings there was 1 male jogger and that's the only other person I saw at 6am. Somebody complained to the council so they put notices on the gates saying any off leash dog owners would be fined $950 by the council. With the lack of places to go in this area I think it is highly unreasonable and cannot understand the reason for the complaint. Perhaps it was other people at other times, I don't know. Usually it is the bad owners with no control over their dogs that ruin it for everyone. Legally however, I don't have a leg to stand on so I've stopped goign at that time and never let the dogs off the lead in the ovals any more.

It's a misunderstanding of the breed. Italians simply don't cope at all well in shelter/pound environments.

They are just gorgeous and yes if they were in NSW there could have been "blood" spilt fighting for them :laugh: :laugh: Maree CPR They are in Nsw. Somersby RSPCA is a short 30 minute drive down the freeway from Hornsby :cool: The RSPCA would never release to rescue though!!!! I am in Queanbeyan...... I do like little dogs but am not a special fan of Chihuahuas although I've been known to help them anyhow! Maree, I'm nr Hornsby ...

Dogs are pack animals, I don't believe it is fair to leave a young puppy on its own for 9-12 hours every day. You can all tell me that breeders etc don't agree with me and general pet owners don't either, but I have been working with dogs for over 15 years, talking to many people getting rid of their dogs or dealing with dogs who live alone and so on, and I've formed my opinion based on many years of experience. We'll all have to agree to disagree.

Doable yes but fair - I don't believe so. Far better if they have a companion or some attention during the 9-12 hours the owner is out.

It's disgusting. Cannot believe the RSPCA aren't interested - actually I can. Is there an Animal Welfare League in WA as they also investigate cruelty. How about contacting the local Council and the Dept of Primary Industries (WA) - there have to be some laws covering this.

I'd recommend a dog of 4+ for full time workers and get a rescue dog that's been assessed in foster care as being OK to cope alone for long periods. Personally I would never have a puppy or dog under 2 yrs of age and leave it alone for 9-12 hours a day. From my experience those that do often encounter behavioural issues associated with loneliness. This can be breed specific but I still would not do it, even if it seemed a breed might be ok with it.

Here here T. It's very unfair to judge dogs in a pound environment from how they behave in a cage for one thing. I've dealt with hundreds of pound dogs in 15 years or so - in pounds, in shelter environments and in my and foster carers' homes. Very, very few had any real issues ... I've also known purebred dogs owned from puppies to have issues. You can't say that dogs are in the pound because they have issues - it's the owners that have the issues - they are frequently deadbeats who shouldn't own a dog. Sometimes a person dies and the family puts the dog in the pound - there are a multitude of scenarios causing a dog to end up there.

Something to think about very carefully - always research the market you are producing into. There are many, many German Shepherds abandoned in NSW at least, of all ages. There are 2 German Shep rescues here and they cannot keep up. Perhaps it isn't the same in your State ...

Two pups are double trouble and I know that many breeders won't sell two litter mates, perhaps in many cases it depends on the breed as well. I'd start with the puppy first, they need training spanning over a few months generally. Then I'd get the mature dog - who will be much easier to train if needed but if it has been in a foster home, then the work should have been done for you and it will simply be a case of making sure the two dogs are compatible. Alternatively, if you get the mature dog first and settle in, then perhaps when you get a puppy having a trained older dog will help by providing guidance to the puppy. Obviously any dog you get will need to be tolerant of having a puppy around, you don't want them to be too rough ..