Yonjuro

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/newshome/18991813/puppies-being-sold-with-fatal-diseases/

Unsuspecting dog lovers across Perth are increasingly being sold puppies with potentially fatal diseases including parvovirus, warns the state's consumer watchdog.

More than 30 cases of ill animals being sold by breeders have been raised with WA's Consumer Protection unit this year, with some breeders prosecuted and others forced to pay compensation.

And families planning on a buying a new pet have been warned to do extensive background checks first.

"If you were told a dog has been vaccinated and you get it home to find it's sick, or you bought a small breed of dog but it grows really quickly and you realise it's a much bigger breed, these are the types of scenarios where you may be entitled to redress," Commissioner for Consumer Protection Anne Driscoll said.

Sellers have also been warned they must comply with the Australian Consumer Law - meaning pets must be "fault-free" and match the description given.

Mandurah pet owner Don Jacobson, who bought his flat coat retriever Kaja two years ago, only recently found his pet has a severe case of hip dysplasia, which will cost thousands of dollars to alleviate future pain.

Kaja's breeder was pursued by Consumer Protection and forced to pay back $500 to Mr Jacobson.

"The breeder was in total denial, then she ignored me and in no way could I consider losing a dog that I had had for two years," Mr Jacobson said.

"It is not treatable and all you can do is alleviate the pain and help the dog out."

Awesome news! Great photos, thanks for sharing this story - I love a happy ending :)

There are quite a few Westies around my area, mini schnauzers, plenty of labs, my next door neighbour has a boxer/ ridgey that is a big sook, but barks like a beast :laugh: All sorts at the local off-lead dog park, what surprises me is I seldom see a GSD these days?

... like some others here I am saddened that we live in such a society that has become increasingly litigious.

Hell, my 6 year old daughter is not allowed to do cartwheels or handstands in the school playground incase she hurts herself and someone gets sued!!! It is always the good and responsible majority that pay for the mistakes of the minority.

I think the major issue is socialisation - or lack there of as T mentioned. I might be naive here but I believe that if more people concentrated on early and thorough socialisation then I don't think there would be so many frightened people and dogs. Fear breeds more fear and this worrying for all dog owners.

I am actually empathetic to Trudy08's plight. She has been through some horrible stuff, but, I think this thread has become so fear based that continual posts on this merry-go-round are serving no purpose except to alienate certain individuals. Respect is a two way street.

I have no problem with big boofy dogs being walked off-lead around the streets by responsible owners, it is the ones that never get walked or socialised (big and small) that I would worry about - these are the ones that cause problems when they escape.

Jesus, I didn't say I didn't think it was not serious to break laws - read my posts... If you want to pick my posts to pieces read the whole thing in the context it is meant - don't pick out bits to suit your agenda (whatever it is)..

You know if you read slowly and concisely you will get the gist of most of my posts.

I said, there are loads of people out there that don't care about the law or what you want or need..

Next time I see a perfectly controlled dog off lead, I will congratulate the owner on such a wonderfully trained animal - BECAUSE it doesn't bother me that the well behaved/trained/controlled animal is off lead..

If it bothers you - go dob it in..

You can't make people care about the law - all you can do is dob them in.. If you want to spend your life dobbing every single off lead dog owner into the local council, then go for it.. I for one, have much better things to do with my life than dob every dog owner in that looks like it has a dog walking off lead..

You obviously feel my last post was aimed at you, it was aimed at everyone who feels its ok for off leash dogs to be walked in on lead areas, if you fit into that description then I guess you are part of my target. I have not picked apart your posts, despite the fact you seem to have picked apart mine earlier on in his thread, and called me contradictory, which is a lot nicer than when someone on this forum called me crazy, but to be honest none of those labels really bothers me.

What I'm attempting to point out is that the very people you support, could be the very people who help stricter dog laws be put in to place, its very simple for you to be part of those restrictive laws all you have to do is NOTHING. Let all the perfect off leash dogs sail passed you and say nothing, or you could go one step worse and congratulate the owners but if you really want to help society, you could compliment the owner and say "You do realise this is an on leash area don't you, I wouldn't want you to be fined". By doing nothing you are enabling the off leashers to take away our (and your ) freedom to walk our dogs. It will happen, google dog attacks and new dog laws, I am not making this all up, it will affect us all. Its not to late if everyone abides by the current law and makes sure our dogs are kept secure and on leashes where required and that stops most of the dog attacks it can only help us stay with the law we have. I'm not attacking you I just think there may be a downside to walking off leash dogs that may not have occurred to you.

I know this is a small forum and does not reach a lot of people but its been worked out if you tell one person, and that one person tells another the word will spread like wild fire. In political circles its accepted that if one person writes a letter or an email to an MP on a subject that means 500 people feel the same way, which in their eyes is 500 votes. Taking that a step further if a group get together to try to stop dog attacks and get new laws made that make parks no dog allowed, we are all sunk. Off lead dogs don't just piss off other people with dogs, its not just dog walkers that get attacked.

If you see an off leash walker, ringing the police won't help or the council, they want a name and address, just reminding nicely that this is an on lead area puts the thought in their heads that people are watching and caring what they do, they may tell you to F off but they still heard you, words that are said or written that you know apply to you are never forgotten, human beings are very susceptible to suggestion. All the off leash walkers I've encountered I've said very nicely (apart from the ones with scary dogs, I haven't been too nice then) "Are you aware this is an off leash area" and I haven't seen them since. They don't know who I am, perhaps I work for the local council, what do you think? You can't make people care about the law but they do care about being fined.

Steph don't take this personally its not meant that way.

You quoted me - if you were not responding to me, then don't quote me..

Edited to add - in my opinion, there isn't a downside to walking a well trained/behaved dog off lead. I wouldn't do it but I have seen a few and to be honest, they are a non issue.

You don't have to lecture me on the problems of outdated dog laws - I have been a dog owner and a member of this forum long enough to know what is and isn't OK..

So you spend your spare time making sure all the off lead dog walkers in your area are aware it is an on lead area or they can be fined - good for you..

I have much better things to do with my time - like enjoy my walk with my dog, instead of worrying about something that is of no concern to me (remember I am talking about well behaved/trained dogs who don't run off to meet me and my dog - they simply go about their walk like I do)..

If the dog was off lead, menacing and appearing dangerous - it probably wouldn't have an owner with it in my neck of the woods. So in this case, I would put a call in to our local ranger and let them know there is an off lead dog at such and such location. Now that owner should be fined.. Not the one, causing nobody any harm, minding his own business..

No wonder we can't take our dogs anywhere anymore..

If you have aren't too concerned for you dog. I'm happy for you. But some other people on the forum are more vulnerable and have more fragile dogs due to age, illness, size etc. SO I do see why they would be concerned. I've had a dog that was very capable of defending herself. She could easily kill smaller dogs if she wanted to. But breaking up a fight is just an inconvenience on my walk. Nobody wants to deal with this stuff every time they duck out for a walk.

I just think we shouldn't have to go out of our way to make things more convenient for people who want their dogs to be "free range". Why some people believe they deserve special rights? I don't know. I'd like to see what happens if there are NO leash laws- may the best dog win... losers can R.I.P.

If there were no leash laws no one would leave their houses, imagine us all walking off leash, all those looney dogs that are normally on leashes running free, actually I see your point, we could have no leashes every alternate week, I'd just stay at home while you all battled it out. It would certainly thin out the herd.

I guess there might be some wannabe off leashers out there that might think they'd like to have a crack at practicing their off leash style.

How ridiculous. You have made some reasonable comments somewhere in the middle of your 50 odd post diatribe, but now this is just getting silly. It is not a battleground outside everyones door.

I have made some reasonable comments have I, I've been called crazy and contradictory you must be confusing me with someone else.

Everyone else is being ridiculous I thought I'd join in. A cartoon of a dead horse springs to mind, oh yes that was you, speaking of ridiculous. We've got one bloke on here romanticizing his childhood with wonderful even tempered dogs, a positive utopia. A few other people having no problems with off leash dogs, so I thought that if off leash walking is ok for some, then why not for everyone. Who are we to judge who is proficient at walking off leash and who isn't.

Are you familiar with the term flogging a dead horse? :)

....and for what it's worth I am an on-lead in on-lead areas and off-lead in off-lead areas dog person.

Jesus, I didn't say I didn't think it was not serious to break laws - read my posts... If you want to pick my posts to pieces read the whole thing in the context it is meant - don't pick out bits to suit your agenda (whatever it is)..

You know if you read slowly and concisely you will get the gist of most of my posts.

I said, there are loads of people out there that don't care about the law or what you want or need..

Next time I see a perfectly controlled dog off lead, I will congratulate the owner on such a wonderfully trained animal - BECAUSE it doesn't bother me that the well behaved/trained/controlled animal is off lead..

If it bothers you - go dob it in..

You can't make people care about the law - all you can do is dob them in.. If you want to spend your life dobbing every single off lead dog owner into the local council, then go for it.. I for one, have much better things to do with my life than dob every dog owner in that looks like it has a dog walking off lead..

You obviously feel my last post was aimed at you, it was aimed at everyone who feels its ok for off leash dogs to be walked in on lead areas, if you fit into that description then I guess you are part of my target. I have not picked apart your posts, despite the fact you seem to have picked apart mine earlier on in his thread, and called me contradictory, which is a lot nicer than when someone on this forum called me crazy, but to be honest none of those labels really bothers me.

What I'm attempting to point out is that the very people you support, could be the very people who help stricter dog laws be put in to place, its very simple for you to be part of those restrictive laws all you have to do is NOTHING. Let all the perfect off leash dogs sail passed you and say nothing, or you could go one step worse and congratulate the owners but if you really want to help society, you could compliment the owner and say "You do realise this is an on leash area don't you, I wouldn't want you to be fined". By doing nothing you are enabling the off leashers to take away our (and your ) freedom to walk our dogs. It will happen, google dog attacks and new dog laws, I am not making this all up, it will affect us all. Its not to late if everyone abides by the current law and makes sure our dogs are kept secure and on leashes where required and that stops most of the dog attacks it can only help us stay with the law we have. I'm not attacking you I just think there may be a downside to walking off leash dogs that may not have occurred to you.

I know this is a small forum and does not reach a lot of people but its been worked out if you tell one person, and that one person tells another the word will spread like wild fire. In political circles its accepted that if one person writes a letter or an email to an MP on a subject that means 500 people feel the same way, which in their eyes is 500 votes. Taking that a step further if a group get together to try to stop dog attacks and get new laws made that make parks no dog allowed, we are all sunk. Off lead dogs don't just piss off other people with dogs, its not just dog walkers that get attacked.

If you see an off leash walker, ringing the police won't help or the council, they want a name and address, just reminding nicely that this is an on lead area puts the thought in their heads that people are watching and caring what they do, they may tell you to F off but they still heard you, words that are said or written that you know apply to you are never forgotten, human beings are very susceptible to suggestion. All the off leash walkers I've encountered I've said very nicely (apart from the ones with scary dogs, I haven't been too nice then) "Are you aware this is an off leash area" and I haven't seen them since. They don't know who I am, perhaps I work for the local council, what do you think? You can't make people care about the law but they do care about being fined.

Steph don't take this personally its not meant that way.

You quoted me - if you were not responding to me, then don't quote me..

Edited to add - in my opinion, there isn't a downside to walking a well trained/behaved dog off lead. I wouldn't do it but I have seen a few and to be honest, they are a non issue.

You don't have to lecture me on the problems of outdated dog laws - I have been a dog owner and a member of this forum long enough to know what is and isn't OK..

So you spend your spare time making sure all the off lead dog walkers in your area are aware it is an on lead area or they can be fined - good for you..

I have much better things to do with my time - like enjoy my walk with my dog, instead of worrying about something that is of no concern to me (remember I am talking about well behaved/trained dogs who don't run off to meet me and my dog - they simply go about their walk like I do)..

If the dog was off lead, menacing and appearing dangerous - it probably wouldn't have an owner with it in my neck of the woods. So in this case, I would put a call in to our local ranger and let them know there is an off lead dog at such and such location. Now that owner should be fined.. Not the one, causing nobody any harm, minding his own business..

No wonder we can't take our dogs anywhere anymore..

If you have aren't too concerned for you dog. I'm happy for you. But some other people on the forum are more vulnerable and have more fragile dogs due to age, illness, size etc. SO I do see why they would be concerned. I've had a dog that was very capable of defending herself. She could easily kill smaller dogs if she wanted to. But breaking up a fight is just an inconvenience on my walk. Nobody wants to deal with this stuff every time they duck out for a walk.

I just think we shouldn't have to go out of our way to make things more convenient for people who want their dogs to be "free range". Why some people believe they deserve special rights? I don't know. I'd like to see what happens if there are NO leash laws- may the best dog win... losers can R.I.P.

If there were no leash laws no one would leave their houses, imagine us all walking off leash, all those looney dogs that are normally on leashes running free, actually I see your point, we could have no leashes every alternate week, I'd just stay at home while you all battled it out. It would certainly thin out the herd.

I guess there might be some wannabe off leashers out there that might think they'd like to have a crack at practicing their off leash style.

How ridiculous. You have made some reasonable comments somewhere in the middle of your 50 odd post diatribe, but now this is just getting silly. It is not a battleground outside everyones door.

Great news!!! ... and very considerate of Takoda to refrain from trashing the surgery :laugh:

Black Wolf is a brand that has a black wolf in the logo, their backpacks are available throughout Australia.

That is a great article! Thanks for sharing.

Aussie is right - this thread is going around in circles.

Totally bomb proof dogs are out there, they stay by the side of their owners no matter what..

I would rather walk by one of these dogs than one that is a complete lunatic on leash.. I know what it is like to have a reactive dog on lead - it has taken months and months of work to get him to the stage where he can walk around the park, without reacting to every dog he sees.. He is happy reactive, he wants to see the other dogs and is submissive as well but at 27kg of bull breed, he could be a nightmare on lead if he wanted to.

Lucky for me, with loads of great advice, training and persistence, I can now walk him without these problems.

I am very lucky, some people never get the resolution I have with Ziggy. A lot of reactive dogs are not submissive or friendly - they simply don't like other dogs in their space and as dog owners, we have to respect each other and what we all want for our dogs.

There are many people who live with dogs like this every single day - they want to walk them in a on leash area, without the threat of unknown dogs coming at them.

If your dog is totally bomb proof, personally I have no issue with you walking it off lead. But if you or your dogs attention lapses, I am sure you will understand when I kick your dog away, that I have spent so much time and energy 'fixing' my dogs issues and I don't want them undone.

As for the off lead thing being illegal, well realistically there are loads of people doing stuff that isn't legal or moral every day - in the grand scheme of life on earth an off lead dog (in control) is hardly an issue..

The off lead dogs that are aggressive are a different issue and that is the OPs original gripe (not off lead dogs that are in total control)..

There is plenty we can do but if a dog is intent on attacking your dog and it outweighs you, then you are in trouble. The same goes for dogs in packs - if they decide to attack, you are in trouble.

Find areas that you can walk with a good view all around.

Go at different times to find the best time with the fewest irresponsible owners and loose dogs.

Drive to the places, so you car is only ever a few minutes walk away from where you are.

Check out houses around the area and know the ones that have dogs - if you need sanctuary against offending dogs, knowing what yards you can enter on your walk helps heaps.

Carry an umbrella with a pointed end, if opening it in the face of a dog doesn't deter them, then sure are sh*t the pointed end will do some damage in a scuffle.

Lastly, there will always be irresponsible people - there is nothing we can do about others (other than report them at every opportunity) but we can look out for ourselves.

For the next person to tell they shouldn't have to watch out for roaming dogs, guess what - you should and you do have to..

There will always be others who don't care what you want, they don't care about the laws.. Respect and manners are long gone in today's society.

So for you and your dogs to take the safest walk, take some or all of so many great suggestions posted in 32 pages and give it a shot.. You may have to go a town or suburb over to find a nice place to walk, where it is peaceful enough for you to enjoy your walk.

Very well said. Thank you.

...after 27 odd posts on this thread today Trudy08 I think we all understand your position.

Excellent to hear that things are going well. I'll bet Milo is looking great with the new diet and training?

Fingers and toes crossed that Cody will be okay soon.

The punishment should befit the crime IMHO... stick a tight collar around HER neck and let it get into the same state...

T.

More than likely this Troglodyte doesn't have a neck :D

Woman fined $8000 for animal cruelty

Yahoo!7

September 12, 2013, 1:37 pm

A Maida Vale woman has been fined $8000 after leaving her dog restrained by a choker chain that became embedded in the animal's neck.

Nicole Peta Easther, 38, who now lives in South Australia, was fined in her absence in Midland Magistrates Court and ordered to by RSPCA costs of $7500 after being found guilty of animal cruelty

The court was told that Easther owned a four-year-old male Staffordshire bull terrier known as Dawg.

A Kalamunda Shire Council ranger found the dog at the woman's address with a choker chain embedded in its neck.

The skin surrounding that part of the choker chain around the dog's neck was red and inflamed and was emitting an abnormal smell.

The dog was taken to the nearest veterinary hospital for treatment and the ranger contacted the RSPCA.

An RSPCA inspector examined the dog at the hospital.

About 4cm of the choker chain was embedded in the dog's neck and skin had grown over the part of the chain embedded in its neck.

In his sentencing remarks, Magistrate Benn said that “this offence involves suffering which could have been very easily prevented.”

He also said “the penalty needs to act as a general deterrent given the dog is entirely at the mercy of its owner.”

RSPCA Chief Inspector Amanda Swift said the RSPCA did not recommend the use of choker chains for any reason, particularly for tethering animals because of the end result.

“If people need to contain their dog for a short period of time, RSPCA recommends an enclosure with adequate food, shelter and water with appropriate toys and items to keep the dog occupied,” Ms Swift said.

...must be trained with bully sticks :D

is it worth it?... not with a beauty like Merlin. :)

I'm not really into the bladed shredders, I honestly think Furminator TM an overly marketed tool, the ads and youtube vids look great but there are just too many negatives for me to take the risk with a double coated dog.

Both my staffies were bought from local families with litters from their family dogs. They were $500 each. There is NO WAY I could have convinced my partner that it is necessary or desirable to spend $1500+ each on the pups. To be honest, I would have had difficulty swallowing that myself ... In my family bargain hunting is like a religion :laugh: . We had just bought our first home, and are both in fairly low paying jobs.

If you decide down the track that you want to breed pedigreed SBTs, my guess is that your thoughts will change. You'll see spending that money as an investment in a dog that's a good representative of the breed standard and you'll pay it to get a pup from health tested parents that's been whelped and raised to the best of the breeder's ability. You'll look at pups tht most people think are cuteness overload with eyes that see conformation faults that may lead to ongoing soundness problems and you'll want none of that.

And when the time comes for you to sell your thoughtfully bred pups, you'll put a price on them that reflects the time and effort you went into selecting your breeding stock, whelping the litter and raising it with optimum care.

Sometimes, just sometimes with dogs you do get what you paid for - or didn't in the case of dogs with completely preventable health issues.

Good breeders don't need to hold a gun to anyone's head to get the prices they charge. I don't see anyone suggesting that those who don't want to pay that sort of money should have to either. But consider for a moment what's paying for the forum so many people turn to for advice on raising their pups. Seems to me that some people aren't fully aware of how much registered dog breeders contribute to providing the informaton so many people gain here. "I'd never pay that for a pup" you say. But here you are, benefiting from those who do. Extolling the benefits of bargain hunting doesn't sit so well with me in that regard.

I'm not suggesting that all dog owners shouldn't be here and share in the wealth of knowledge this forum provides. But perhaps a little more respect for the aims of this forum and what it seeks to promote is called for. If your view is that there's no way in future you'd buy an ANKC registered pup (or a rescue), don't expect that to sit well with everyone. For some of us, cost is not the issue that drives what we buy and IMO the more you learn about dogs, the more you'll value what a responsibly bred pedigreed pup means.

FYI, I've never paid more than $800 for a pedigreed pup. The last one was free. :)

+1

Good points

So sorry Jules, Run free Joey.

Don't forget that the meat stuffs should be frozen for at least a couple of days before feeding. You should be okay with butcher bought stuff for a once off, but best to freeze all before hand. Fish generally needs around two weeks.

Would people really say it's imperative to freeze food? I tend to freeze when buying in bulk, but if I see a bag of fabulous looking beef hearts or the like marked down at Coles, that will likely be dinner for Gus. Is there any benefit other than the parasite killing that I'm missing?

There is the danger of parasites, bacteria and worms - stuff that is generally killed when we cook to eat for ourselves. I would say 9 times out of 10 it will be fine, however, the more you opt for not freezing the greater the chance of one of these nasties coming your way eventually.

I should add that a dogs constitution is far stronger than ours and they are able to cope better with something that is not 100%, I suppose an argument could be made that this combined with regular worming should combat most. But it's not really a risk I would want to take with any regularity.

today I picked up some chuck steak, some chicken livers, and some soup bones, Parceled it all out... now to work out quantities (I'm also going to add a little raw vege...

Don't forget that the meat stuffs should be frozen for at least a couple of days before feeding. You should be okay with butcher bought stuff for a once off, but best to freeze all before hand. Fish generally needs around two weeks. At the risk of some people jumping up and down, with the vegies it is good to steam, mash or puree them so the dog has the best chance in extracting the maximum nutrients.

Be careful with large weight bearing bones as there is always the potential to crack or chip teeth.

Good luck and keep us posted

You have done so much for your beloved Joey. You are doing the right thing in giving him his wings. I went through this in March and I feel your heartache acutely. Take care.

Gorgeous Mita !

I can tell you right now that even capsicum spray directly into the face/eyes (used by police) won't work on a dog that has passed the point of "intent"...

T.

Wow, that is scary. I would have thought that the spray would mess with the vision and smell to the point that the dog wouldn't be able to continue an attack, assuming it didn't already have hold of the person or dog?

Now a taser might do the job nicely :D But seriously, a walking type stick that could emit a suitable electric shock would be great for the elderly.

A taser would possibly work - but not one of those piddly personal use ones you can buy over the internet... you need the higher end professional ones like the police carry.

I know that capsicum spray doesn't work because a policeman tried 2.5 cans of the stuff on one of MY dogs - 2 of my dogs were having a full on barney in my own back yard, the police were "visiting" a neighbour and heard me yelling and trying to pull one of them off the other, and came over to "help"... boots, batons, capsicum spray - nothing worked because both dogs were way too far gone in the heat of the fight to detract them from their purpose. The 2 dogs finally succumbed to exhaustion after the longest 6 minutes of my life...

Now - if the policeman had done what I asked/instructed - grab the back legs of one of the dogs and pull - there would have been no need for the amount of paperwork he ended up having to do for discharging all that capsicum spary, the dogs would have had less injuries, and all would have turned out much better than it did... *sigh*

T.

What a horrible situation you had to face. I will admit that I am surprised the sprays are so useless in situations such as this, but you have first hand experience and that is good enough for me.