Kavik

Scout and Malvin caught my eye

Some of the pups from AWDRI are pure as well (surrendered litters) :)

Do they only want pure or is cross ok? AWDRI have lots of Kelpie and Kelpie X pups at the moment if they would consider rescue. http://www.workingdogrescue.com.au/tag/kelpie+awdri+available/

I wouldn't send them a Kelpie either, but a Lab is more sturdy and I think could cope OK with their situation. Our oldest and youngest kids are about the same age (my oldest is 3 months older than her oldest, and my youngest is one month older than hers) but she has one in between.

I'm curious as to what others expect from clubs in the way of things like merchandise, activities, membership offers, newsletters etc. Two of the clubs I train with offer club merchandise (shirts etc) and newsletters. The one I currently train the most with is good about club bonding - ask about member achievements at the start of each class (eg quallies from recent trials), and have a little group meeting at the end of the beginners/intermediate training (not sure what they talk about as I am in the higher class), do demos and hold stalls at various events, have an inter and intraclub competition once a month etc What types of clubs do you belong to? Agility clubs Does the club/s you belong to offer enough to benefit ALL members of that club (pet owners/show and dog sport competitors/breeders) This is what is difficult for the sports clubs I think - how to make it accessible for people just wanting to do it for fun but also provide the correct structure, instruction, progression and intricacy for people looking to compete. What is seen as essential/very important for those wishing to compete can be seen as boring by those just wanting to have a go on the equipment.

All 3 of my dogs sleep in crates and only one has done Crate Games, and that only started recently when I did some SG online courses (he is 6 years old). You don't need Crate Games to get them to comfortably sleep in there, mine all did that before I had even heard of Crate Games. It is useful as said for teaching self control and drive, to prevent the dog from rushing out of the crate as soon as the door is opened, and for building value for the crate so they will easily go in even when in a more interesting environment.

Thanks HW, I agree. I will suggest they wait or an older Lab but he may not listen (you know what family is like! Harder to deal with than the public sometimes! You can only suggest and hope they listen!) - I just want some ideas so if they decide to go ahead sooner rather than later I can send them to a good breeder.

Really? All the ones i've met have been big softies and pretty laif back but then I've only met 4! They are a big spitz - spitzes are not easy to train! And they can be dominant in personality, certainly do not fit into eager to please. I don't know how tolerant they are of young children. And with that lovely double coat = LOTS of shedding!

I agree and think Goldens are generally a bit quieter, and suggested them, but he preferred a Lab. He was thinking about a Newfie sort of but really, I don't think they need a hairy, drooly 80kg dog :laugh: That is nearly twice as much as I weigh! How on earth would you fit it in the car Malamutes - not an ideal temperament I think to have around young kids if they haven't had much experience - difficult to train, very big and VERY hairy! He was also partial to a GSD, but again VERY hairy! and while I have one, I've had health issues with him and just about everyone I talk to who has one/has had one has also had health issues, and so I'm not sure about suggesting them, also I don't think they need a dog that could potentially develop protective tendencies, with people coming and going a lot in the house.

They have to be in the crate to do Crate Games :laugh: Better for them to be used to going in there and be comfortable in there before you start adding the criteria of the games (which are for helping self control/distraction training/understanding of release cue). Feed her in there, throw some treats in there so she hunts them out, give her a nice bed in there.

I think Burkes has a good point :) I do all my training before the dogs get dinner (if I am going to an evening training class, they don't get fed til I get home). With your fetch problems, until you get her reliably bringing the toy back, I would keep either her or the toy on a leash, so she can't practice the behaviour of running off with the toy - the more she practices running off the harder it will be to fix.

Yeah I am thinking Lab puppy = bulldozer and going hmmm could be interesting :laugh: but if and when they decide to get a dog her husband isn't the type that can be persuaded otherwise - he is a strong personality - so I am trying to steer them in the right direction. I will probably end up doing a bit of the training :laugh: I thought I was doing pretty well managing to persuade him that a Malamute was not a good idea! :laugh:

The K9Pro one is likely fine as it is a designated long line - I was more talking about if you are using a rope (OP was talking about using a water skiing rope)

IMO you want a long line to be made of a material that is comfortable to grab onto anywhere on the lead - you don't want to get rope burn if you have to grab it in the middle!

What about something like nosework (scent detection)? I think there may be someone trying to bring it in as a sport from what I can gather on the grapevine. Scentwork is all motivational, heaps of fun and certainly challenging! And would not be as demanding physically as agility. Or there is Rally.

Thanks guys, I am not as familiar with Labs or the health problems breeders may screen for in them.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/this-dog-has-a-nose-for-archeology/story-e6freoof-1226463394595?sv=438658fe0984b8a0d7a8aae5505c19b5 ********************************************************** MEET Migaloo - the wonder dog that can sniff out a 600-year-old human skeleton buried almost 2m underground. The three-year-old female black labrador cross is believed to be the world's first trained archeology dog. She is destined to work on surveys of Aboriginal sacred sites across Australia, with other dogs now likely to be similarly trained to work on excavations at ancient civilisation sites such as Egypt, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. Brisbane dog expert Gary Jackson trained the clever canine using 250-year-old skeletal remains from an Aboriginal burial site, on loan from the South Australian Museum. "She's got an amazing nose, with a strong drive," he said. "It has taken us more than six months of training, field trials and a final search test. "But the dog is hitting bone fragment with 100 per cent certainty every time." Mr Jackson, owner of Multinational K9, at Narangba, has trained cadaver, koala, quoll, bomb and drug sniffer dogs. But he insists Migaloo is the world's first dedicated archaeology dog and the new world record holder after her latest test on a 600-year-old aboriginal burial ground on Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. He said the previous oldest bone find was by trained cadaver detection dog Candy owned by Bill Tolhurst set 25 years ago on an excavation site from the Battle of Snake Hill in Ontario, United States in 1812. "At 175 years old that was the oldest human bone find in history and that is why this is so important. "Migaloo has beaten the previous world record by 425 years. "This is a big deal. We now know a dog can detect 600-year-old bones up to 2m underground." Dog expert Brad Griggs, of the National Dog Trainers Federation in Melbourne, said it was a huge breakthrough. "What on earth is that dog picking up on? What is left to sniff?," said Mr Griggs. "This dog has a real gift. She is quite remarkable."

Thanks guys!

Yep, relationship building will help with a lot of those :) Plus, if you get the chance, might be an idea to look into signing up for Susan Garrett's next lot of Recallers - that made a HUGE difference for me! Lots of really fun games that help with relationship building and recall. I still practice some of them every day because they are great fun and help to build lightning fast responses to your cues. I have had problems with Kaos running out of the ring in agility, been an issue from the beginning. This year he has only done it once so far, and I admit it was on a day I was not on the ball and not feeling 100%.

What situations are you having problems in? Is it the same environment or are you taking the training somewhere new where there would be more distractions? What exactly is she doing when she doesn't do what you ask? My experience with Kaos has really shown me the importance of engagement/relationship building in training, expecially if you are aiming for competition, and especially if your dog is on the more independent side :laugh: This means working on getting and keeping their attention with active games that will keep them interested. Tug is generally seen as the holy grail for this :laugh: and even though Kaos still won't tug in a training or trialling environment, the work I have done on it (the LOTS of work I have done on it! every day) has improved his tugging 100% at home and I think has also improved his attention at training and trials. I challenge and push with this every day. I also play lots of active food chase games which I can take on the road with me to training and trials. Another thing that has made a big difference is proofing our basic obedience commands: sit, drop, stand. Kaos knows these very well, as part of an online course I had to test his understanding by seeing if he could still do them when I was in different positions ie lying down, sitting, kneeling, and also when I was running around. At first he struggled with some of them (sit from a drop when I was lying down) and now that he has the hang of it it has really imrpoved his responsiveness to those commands.

Temperament and health.

Considering what I read in GSD threads relating to temperament testing, it can get pretty literal as to what is being tested when this is being discussed :laugh:

So you can tell whether a dog is a good ratter by seeing how it reacts to other dogs of the same breed when placed in close proximity?

Honestly I don't care about the show circuit, most important are temperament and health.

They want a puppy (the whole puppy and kids growing up thing, you know how it is). Timing is still under negotiation but he can be persuasive :laugh: I plan on helping them with the training, they will need guidance with Lab puppy ( = destruction on 4 feet often :laugh: ) + 3 young kids!