ziggyboy

I like this. Instead of building one though, I can even use a standard dog house and cut the side/rear side. It would make it inconspicuous and burglars wouldn't think there's a doggy door on the wall! Genius!

LOL, my curtains already have quite a bit of dog marks on them. I've recently put a sliding door pet door but it doesn't look good, and reckon bad for security. Easy to kick open.

Boronia, that may be what I need but the reviews on the site aren't very good. Did some googling on multi flap doors and there seems to be quite a few available overseas. Haven't seen one from a local store. Hi Haredon, thanks for the input.

I'm looking at having a dog door installed but I live in Canberra where we get quite a bit of sub zero temps in winter. For people with dog doors and live in similar climates, how does the door affect indoor temperatures? I have inslab heating and worried that my electric bills will shoot up as a dog door is just a thin piece of plastic. House insulation is currently pretty good and I've got good quality curtains to keep the cold out. A dog door might negate all that and just let the cold in... Thoughts?

Hi I know this thread is months old but couldn't this case be pursued in the courts? Negligence of some sort? Us pet owners can get done by neglecting our animals, wouldn't this be the same thing?

I know what some of you are thinkin.. "not another how much does it cost to desex thread..." I'm more curious about inclusions to in desexing a male puppy (18kg). My local vet in Canberra charges $370 but that includes everything including: Cost of the surgery Take home meds Accommodation for the day Consultation before and after surgery Consultation after a week including stitch removal Am I getting ripped off? To those advertising $150 surgeries, does it include everything in the list above?

It depends on the type of vaccine system used in your state. I believe it differs from each state vet association. Some have just the 3 vacc system and some have both the 2 and 3 systems. In Canberra, it is more common for vets to be on the 2 vacc system. Read here: http://www.gungahlinvet.com.au/petcare-info/articles/new-vaccine-schedules-for-dogs.html

Hi sunny1shine, I don't work for Costco and without wanting to sound too over zealous about Kirkland this is the last I'd post on the matter. As I have mentioned, Kirkland isn't really "cheaper stuff" sort of dog food. Yes it is cheap, but as I've mentioned time and again, the content is at par with those costing $100+, hence why my gf could not believe that it costs less than $50 for a bag. I know some people trust products purely on price alone without doing some research. I'm not saying that your choice, for example, is bad... it may well be the best dog food around but I'm saying people shouldn't judge Kirkland strictly because it's cheap. She also only used to feed her dog Pro Plan and Royal Canin before Kirkland.

This is something I also thought about. Breakfast is always my own gourmet making, and the rest are kibble with 30% protein. Since brekkie is almost always about 50% minced meat, maybe I'm feeding him too much protein. I'm thinking of reducing the minced meat and putting more veggies and carbs. Suggestions?

This can easily turn into a religious debate so let's all just beware! Jess, my girlfriend has a black Lab and feeds her Kirkland kibble but supplements her diet with eggs and sardines. She's more critical than I am with food content and she absolutely swears by Kirkland. She has compared other brands in detail and when she discovered Kirkland couldn't believe the price tag. She immediately bought 4 large bags when it went on sale. LOL...

Hi Jess, Kirkland is Costco's own brand so they are only available from Costco. From my experience with Kirkland products they are not at all like Woolies Homebrand, etc... they are more at par with quality brands.

During the daytime I leave my puppy in the backyard but he's got a covered dog house, lots of water and an automatic feeder so he gets fed while I'm at work. They should be eating 3-4 times a day. I have semi-crate trained him. He sleeps inside the locked crate at night but free to roam the house while I am at home. First couple of weeks I have been putting his crate inside my room but recently been leaving it just outside my bedroom (front lounge area). He has stop whining now so I think he's kinda crate trained already. I say "semi" crate trained because I don't always leave him in there like other people would. And I didn't follow strict schedules on when to take them out of the crate. It took longer but he's comfortable being left in the crate for some periods of time. Oh and also I religiously took him out to pee every 2-3 hours at night when I first got him at 9 weeks. It was very hard work but it has paid off. He can now hold his pee for about 6 hours so I would take him before going to bed between 11pm and midnight, and if he makes some noise maybe around 4am, but at times he lasts until 7am.

I have been looking at dog food content and have found that the cheapest commonly available quality dry food to be Optimum. Actually, Costco Kirkland is the best (again based on content) for the price. They're under $50 and if you read reviews online they are rated even higher than expensive brands such as Royal Canin.

Thanks for all your responses - both negative and positive. I've taken all of them on board. I realise that I may have come across as being too concerned about costs. Maybe it wasn't what I said but how I said it. My communication with the breeder has been both over the phone and via email. Just to be clear I am not trying to cut corners. I merely just try and find the best value in everything, and "value" doesn't always mean cheap. Like I've already said, I went with Jetpets, who aren't the cheapest (I have read breeders in this forum use cheaper pet transport companies). I think the breeder misunderstood my search for value as trying to be cheap.

I'm very well researched with the dog itself but not costs. OK can I ask how am I to know puppy costs without calling a breeder? Isn't the first thing about finding out costs contacting someone who sells them? Are people suggesting I research puppy costs before contacting a breeder? That does not make sense.