Kavik

So the 570mm one would be competition size?

I am glad you are finally enjoying dog ownership

Sorry can't help - mine have always been good eaters and will eat what ever I put in front of them.

Vickie - why does she suddenly need to have a sit stay?

Wow! Great work caffy and Snazzy

I don't show my dogs, but I like to have all my dogs, whether competition dogs or not (only one is competing) to be their ideal weight.

Really? Bugger. Kaos had his first go on sheep at a Bungendore clinic. He was great but I had no idea what to do

Yep down the hatch here too!

Is that a recent incident? I didn't hear about it. From memory happened a few years ago.

Yep there was a death at my local park too - didn't see it but heard about it - Dachsy gotten by a Malamute.

If I had known how she would cope, or that it was a possible outcome of taking her to the park, I wouldn't have done it. I didn't realise at the time that it could cause the issues it did

Having a dog who will have lasting behaviourial issues for the rest of his life because I thought letting him run with strange dogs at the dog park and allowing him to learn how to "manage" them and himself was the right thing to do, I will have to respectfully disagree with you on the above I will never take a puppy to a dog park for a free for all ever again. When I have a puppy or young dog again I will do what I did with Daisy and set up play dates with dogs I know are friendly and well balanced. They might not be strange dogs for me, but they will be dogs my pup/dog hasn't met before. I don't think a pup/young dog needs to meet dozens upon dozens of strange dogs to have a stable and balanced view of other dogs and to be able to interact with them appropriately. The last thing I would do with a timid dog would be to take them to a dog park that was full of dogs I didn't know - way too much of a risk for me, but then again, I have seen what can happen when it all goes wrong. Unfortunately I have had the same experience with Zoe :rolleyes: Some timid dogs may learn to cope and manage themselves, but certainly not all do, some become aggressive.

Goldies are definitely in the top for obedience! And given what you've said about her liking toys with some work she should do nicely at it Training and competing is a learning curve too, there are many paths to the same end in all sports, listening, watching and learning from the top people helps to give you an idea on the more popular methods for teaching an exercise.

Seminars are usually given by well known and respected trainers in the field, normally about a specific topic or type of training. For example I went to a seminar on training contact obstacles for agility, and one by a different trainer on instructing classes.

You don't need to know all the theory, some of us just find it really interesting I don't think you will need to treat her any differently. The only thing you may find is that the work you have done on manners etc may conflict with some foundation work for competition. Of course it all depends on how seriously you want to take it anyway and what your goals are. Day to day training doesn't have to take up that much more time, you can do most things (apart from tracking) in small bursts. Going to classes, seminars and competing does take up more time. Edited for sense

Does she enjoy playing tug? Have you looked into Training in Drive? This utilises the desire to chase and if you can harness it and put it on command/demand you can get some super performances in whatever your preferred sport is.

Guide dogs are mostly Labradors though. IME Labradors DO enjoy exuberant, rough play with other strange dogs. Not all breeds do. I only let Kaos mix off lead with dogs that 1) I know and so know their temperament and play style or 2) Are another working type such as Kelpie or BC - they tend to have the same play style and generally it is more like running in the same direction together rather than playing/roughhousing (one example that comes to mind is a herding seminar I went to - we let all the dogs off for a run - the dogs ran together but did not play) I DO NOT let him mix with breeds such as Labs and Staffies who tend to have a much more full on physical roughhousing style of play, as Kaos does not like it and will react to a dog like that coming up to him to play. I hope I have learnt from my previous experience not to get my dog involved in something he is not comfortable with and is likely to make him react.

I am sure my attitudes towards this subject are influenced by having a dog aggressive dog, where I think that off lead play at the dog park contributed to her becoming aggressive . I sometimes think about what I would do differently if I had my time over again with Zoe (apart from the times I think I would not have chosen her at all if I had known better how to pick a future performance dog) and I would definitely change the way I socialised her. Having met and seen lots of working dogs like other Kelpies and BCs at training, competing, dog parks and at the dog daycare I worked at, I have noticed many of them are not comfortable in a setting with lots of other dogs running around trying to play with them. If I had known that, I would not have taken Zoe to the busy off lead park that I used to go to with her as a pup. Of course there is no way to tell how much of a difference that would have made to her temperament, but anything would be an improvement on her attitude to dogs.

The only successful sports dog I have had is Kaos, and he doesn't mind saying hi to other (polite) dogs, and has a couple of doggy friends, but is not interested in playing with other dogs and would not enjoy an off lead dog park with dogs bouncing all over the place wanting to play. He is honestly more interested in 'working' with me in agility. He plays with Diesel at home, but if he thinks a training session might be in the offering, Diesel gets told where to put his playing Diesel is easily distracted and has a short attention span for training, and enjoys playing with other dogs. I just think they have different personalities more than anything. I have to work much harder with Diesel to keep his attention on me and off other dogs, though that could be training issue too. He is different to my other dogs in many ways.

I'll take a stab in the dark as to who they got it from

I think it depends on: 1) The individual dog. Some enjoy playing with other dogs and some do not. Diesel enjoys meeting other dogs, having a sniff and occasionally a game (less often now he is getting a bit older, but he does still enjoy a romp and chase). Kaos is less interested in other dogs - he has his 'friends' and other dogs he can say hi to and run with, but he is not interested in 'playing' with other dogs and he dislikes other dogs trying to start a game with him. 2) What you plan on doing with the dog. If you are interested in competing in dog sports then you want your dog to tolerate and ignore other dogs and focus on you and the job at hand. You don't want aggression but you don't want the dog leaving the ring to play with friends either!

I run into this lady with a Schnauzer at the quiet park I go to (I think a large Mini, looks a bit too small to be Standard) who has NO control over her dog and the dog will literally follow me around the park no matter how far away I try to go! I get anoyed as I want to do some training with Kaos - send aways etc, fun stuff, but then worry about what will happen if her dog tries to take Kaos's toy when he is going to get it. Unfortunately 'Please come and get your dog' does not work (the dog has no recall) and neither does yelling "PISS OFF" to the dog

Just be aware that tyres can be dangerous and dogs can get hung up on them and injure themselves. Probably more of an issue if you have a fast powerful dog.

I would avoid the dog park at the times these people are there. I would also be careful at dog parks for this very reason. I am sure they were a contributing factor to Zoe developing aggression towards other dogs, and yours are still at a vulnerable age. EFS

I got tunnel sandbags for Christmas so that should be fine.