Pjrt

Another spaniel to consider would be the Field Spaniel. All the ones I’ve met have been calmer and more sensible than most of the Cocker Ive known. The fieldy has a more moderate coat as well. funny you should mention dachshund. I was thinking about this post earlier and the standard wire dachshund popped into my head! I adore dachshund my preference being the mini wire and mini long. Some of them are mouthy barky dogs but definitely worth considering. They are kinda like stretchy terriers really. Edited to add... I read your post again and still think a Border Terrier fits like a glove!

I would take a good hard look at the Border Terrier. A good breeder will choose you the right puppy. Many BT are able to moderate their behaviour to suit the time & place/space. They are a hardy rugged yet amiable & biddable little dog with a pretty low maintenance coat & really can be almost anything you want them to be.

This will sound harsh but think about it like this....... youre living in your house enjoying your life and then you are suddenly forced to share the house with a person who is rowdy and attacks you . How would you feel even if that person then moved to a granny flat in your back yard.......your still not going to enjoy living in your house anymore. And how would you feel if a loved one that shared you home with you, began giving that new person equal attention? Please think about how the dogs feel living every moment of the day like this. Even when separated there is still anxiety. Just because YOU “love both dogs so much” doesn’t mean THEY will love each other. YOUR love doesn’t necessarily translate to THEIR love.

Oh I agree. I personally wouldn’t lobby for tighter laws. I was more just suggesting things that the OP might think to do. We have plenty of laws, guidelines, etc that are poorly enforced as it is. Perhaps I should say lobby for better enforcement, in as far as that particular aspect of all of this goes. I had another crazy idea years ago. And that was to cap the purchase price of dogs. Say $300 for example. So no dog bred in any environment could be worth significantly more money than another. Would that change anything? I’d love you to pull that crazy idea apart for me!

So how can you act on what you know? I applaud you for recognising what you see, but how do you act on it? Maybe go into the council office that covers the area where this breeder is located & have a chat about what you know & whether the breeding operation aligns with council policies, whether roadside sales of pets is allowed under local or state laws etc. unfortunately if they meet all the local government criteria, and cannot be seen to be breaking any animal welfare laws, one can you do? You can sort of start to see why many of these operations are busted through covert surveillance! As an aside, I like to look at the reasons why we have what can be perceived as less than desirable commercial dog breeding facilities. A couple of decades ago there was a strange shift in attitudes regarding dog breeding. When the first few of the really horrible cases of puppy farm busts hit the media, there was naturally an outcry, and the cogs began turning in the “war against puppy farms” . In the race to legislate them out of existence, all that happened was pedigree breeders sort of shot themselves in the foot, where it became positively taboo to actually breed dogs! Breeders eyes suspiciously breeders who appeared to breed volume as well as or in favour of showing and ‘hobby’ breeding. The phrase “oh I only breed when I want something for myself” became the cry of the respectable pedigree breeder. At around the same time, breeders of all colours where marginalised to city fringes & rural areas, further from their market and further from scrutiny by the masses. Add to this the law makers busily deciding what constitutes a puppy farm and how & where dog breeding facilities should be run, basically making it legal to run large scale commercial dog breeding facilities. For whatever reason, pedigree breeders thought they’d be exempt or able to side step these laws, but in fact, to law makers, dogs are dogs, no matter their parentage, where they come from or who breeds them. The owners of commercial breeding facilities can quite legally say that they are registered breeders, licensed breeders, breed papered dogs etc, because it’s true. It’s just a different version of all of those things than what the ANKC system offers. Morally & ethically, we all know that large scale facilities with 100’s of breeding dogs is never best practice for dogs but it can all be legal these days Theres a whole new generation of puppy buyers coming through now who are going to find it ever increasingly difficult to decipher what class of registered licensed breeder they are dealing with. These people have grown up online. When I go online around pet sites, all the advertising that pops up is from designer dog puppy farms. Never once have I seen an ad from an ANKC breeder. If ANKC breeders want to claw this back, they have to breed dogs, in volume, and not see it as some sort of offensive thing to have a few quality dogs breeding for the pet market. The current supply & demand has to be met somewhere, and while fewer and fewer pedigree dogs are being bred, it’s not rocket science that the market turns to where there is supply. Easy to access, in their faces, supply.

Are the city locations retail outlets? If so, see if the retail outlets hold and membership with any pet industry associations. Pose as a puppy buyer and see if you can get names of individuals or names they operate under. Are the puppies the correct age and have vet work according to state legislation and animal welfare acts etc etc. Find out as much as you can. Information is power. The RSPCA can only act on existing law. Lobby to tighten laws.

Also there really is nothing to stop ANKC registered breeders from breeding non pedigree purebreds and mixed breeds as long as they don’t try to pass them off as ANKC registered

I implore anyone operating in the animal industry who is disgusted by and decries puppy farming, to take a long hard look at themselves if they support PIAA in any capacity. They are this countries biggest fans of puppy farming!

Because of shit like this for a start....... government turn to industry bodies like the Pet Industry Association of Australia for advice when drafting legislation...... check out the retail and breeding directors. Between them they own the countries biggest commercial dog breeding and retail puppy point of sale .....and all the other ‘respected’ companies there. https://piaa.net.au/about/ And most of these big shiny commercial puppy breeding facilities are council approved, and hold all the licenses they need, and operate within animal welfare guidelines. So the RSPCA can do little about it And.....money talks

Everyone else has great advice. I would also install a baby gate ( the 1 metre high version) or an internal screen door in the laundry so that the little guy doesn’t feel so trapped. I understand not wanting to upset the cats and letting them have their own sanctuary in your bedroom. So by having a see through barrier at the laundry, your pup might be a bit happier, while still contained in the laundry.

https://www.awlnsw.com.au/animals/59413/ Unfortunately it sounds like he may not be the easiest of dogs to place. I realise none of it is his fault. I worked with Fox Hounds years ago. I admire them a lot. I even dream of owning one. But they are not a simple breed to accommodate in a modern urban world. I hope the big guy can find a soft place to rest his old bones

Yes I think you would struggle to find anything here. I know breeds have their nuances but would a Wirehaired GSP be a suitable dog? They are definitely here. I think you can find Wire vizsla here and the Spinone too

Hmm that’s a tough one! Of course my mind jumped to thinking, what’s the size and shape of a Keeshond but with a short/er coat. Most of the breeds I thought of, have quite different temperament.....Elkhound, Husky etc Although smaller, I thought of the Schipperke but I think they are a good bit more lively, talkative and more fearless but I’ve only known a few. Then Cardigan Corgi popped into my head for some reason? The ones I’ve met are somewhat alike to the Keeshond I’ve know, as far as temperament goes. The problem here is no breed is quite like a Keeshond!

Years and years ago when I worked at a Newfoundland kennel, when we had to give AB’s or wormers etc, they’d always need about 10 huge tablets. We’d basically make a fist with all the pills and ram it down their throat pretty much into their guts, let go, withdraw arm! Saved a lot of drama !

are we talking dog or cat here *confused

Would they fit in a pill applicator? Sort of like a syringe gun especially made for the job.

I know the cat thing is a bit off topic here, but I just cannot fathom how someone can say a cat is theirs, an animal they claim ownership of, profess to love, often deeply, but are willing to open the door every morning and see them off to fend for themselves for the day. That is not responsible nor love. My cats do get outside, but are fenced on my property and locked inside EVERY time I leave my property, even if it’s a 5 minute return trip to check my PO Box down the street or walk next door to the neighbours. I view my cats ability to understand the perils they face outside of my property as about equivalent to a toddler. None of us would expect a toddler to keep themselves safe if wandering at large. At least toddlers wouldn’t decimate wildlife. I get so irate and find I have little sympathy every day when I see multiple lost cat posts on lost pet pages with the owners wailing and moaning about how upset they are that ‘fluffy always comes home for dinner, or is never gone this long’. How about you just don’t open the damn door, or supervise outdoor time! I myself have taken nuisance cats to the pound. If they are genuinely loved and missed and properly identified then someone should come and get them. If they have been well bred and reared, and kept healthy, they should be suitable for adoption. If they have been let down by their owners and the system it is certainly unfortunate. But I really feel whether unclaimed strays are adopted or euthanised, it’s preferable to a life on the street where their health, safety and welfare are perilous. I also think feeding individual cats, and colonies, that are not conducive to human interaction to the point where they would integrate as house pets, is misplaced welfare, empathy, whatever. I know none of it is the animals fault. Bloody humans

I’d like to know too! I suppose it’s like Maltese ‘Terrier’. The breed is Maltese but everyone tacks on Terrier

The next thing you should do is contact some breeders of Brittany Spaniel. Ask to meet their dogs. Brittany are nice dogs for sure, but I know some of them are VERY serious workers and have out of control activity levels! They need a balance of physically & mentally challenging activity. They are sort of the Kelpie of the Spaniel family. Let breeders guide you as to whether a Brittany is the right choice for you, and if so, let the experienced breeder match you with the right puppy. https://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/breeders/brittany.asp

I’d hope people could manage to put it in the general waste bin, not the recycling bin. But at the end of the day I’m getting so much less angry as I get older that I’d just have a momentary groan, rectify the situation and move on, and be glad someone at least tried to pick up and dispose at all!

I started a debate here years ago on the subject of depositing properly bagged dog doo into domestic bins out for collection. I was acrually shocked that people would be opposed to putting bagged doodoo into a domestic bin on a suburban street that was clearly out for collection, but had not yet been collected. There are so few bins in suburban back streets. To me a bin is a bin. And I’d rather find bagged doos in my bin even after collection, than people just leave it on the footpath or verge to be stepped in. Obviously bagging it and taking it home is gold standard if your out walking in the suburbs, but if you’re walking for an hour or more, and don’t find any other bins than domestic ones.... As for the beach, pick it up and remove it from the beach. And take it home or put it in a bin. I’d be a bit cranky if my kid was digging a hole at the beach, as kids do, and hit a buried treasure.

Years ago when I worked at kennels we had one run set aside for aggressive & dangerous dogs. Dogs housed in that run could not be touched and the run not entered. The run had a shallow slide out tray for feeding to facilitate feeding and cleaning of the tray without having to enter or touch the run.

I’ve known 2 Porties for grooming. One was a tiny undersized female curly coat who was pretty much the shyest dog I’ve ever met in 30+ years of pet grooming. She wasn’t even truly relaxed in her own home. She was sweet and obliging, but consumed by anxiety and crazy shy. The other was a wavy coat male. A big solid boy. He destroyed his owners home and could escape Alcatraz! Once he got out over a 6 ft metal fence and survived getting hit by a truck! He was a lovely dog but quite stubborn and a bit of a nightmare of a puppy. To a large extent, breeding, rearing & training makes the dog what you want it to be. Breed selection is still important though. one breed that popped into my head that you might take a look at is the Curly Coated Retriever. They are medium/large dog with a biddable temperament. They are trainable and will take plenty of exercise. The coat is easy care and pretty low maintenance. If brushed regularly shedding can be kept to to a minimum, certainly no worse than the Beagle and Cattle Dog. Doggy Day Care is quite accessible in most areas these days, and is an option for working people.

I will never understand why people have made raw feeding so complicated! I like Ike your Happy Meal analogy. I always compare eating a whole fresh apple to eating a slice of apple pie!

That’s thought provoking. Unfortunately in relation to pedigree pure breed dogs, if the heart disease is found in the breed, ‘breeding away from that’ is limited to looking within the same breed, a massive restriction to work with. Eta...I only listened to the short grab on the FB page.....now listening to the whole podcast..