Kaffy Magee

My 8 month old dobie boy was and still is a dominant boy. One main thing i wanted to ask about which i think is sweet but know its probably not is when i call my boy over for pats he comes over and stands(or sits) and i rub his head/ears etc and he wraps his left front leg around my leg but not in a humping way, just lightly hooks it around like hes holding on to me. Is this a dominance thing or just a cute little quirk. He often leans on me which ive read is a dominance thing and today he peed on my leg BUT i think he was trying to pee on the side of his kennel,which he does and my leg was in the way. These are just little things that im thinking maybe should stop now. Its just little things like that....hes obedient and knows im boss but i just dont want these things to creep up on me. Am i right to be a little concerned?

I feed my dogs barf. I have read "give your dog a bone" by Billinghurst. Ive gone and bought some vitamins etc to add to the meals but the other i just felt stupid doing it. Here i am with cod liver capsules, vitamin e capsules,vitamin c tablets, kelp granules and brewers yeast(b group vitamins) mixing it in to the dogs food quietly so my husband didnt notice and think i'd gone nuts(more than he already thinks LOL). Anyway can anybody tell me is there an alternative? A multi vitamin/oil supplement? Even if it was in liquid form would be better. Anyone?

LOL, OOPS, Sniffy is the 18month old jrt and Pepe is the papillon!

I have 5 dogs, 17yo jrtxcorgi, nearly 5yo bullmastiff, 4yo papillon, 18 month jrt, and a 7 month dobie. Pack order goes as follows(i think) Bullmastiff, Dobe, Jrt, and either papillon or jrtx next. Now the issue i have is sniffy is always making sure pepe knows shes above him, always asserting her dominance and often has a go at him. It has been nothing too serious as yet. I used to treat pepe like he was above her, but have since realised he is not and i have to treat him accordingly. Ive been letting her domainate him but felt if it was getting out of hand i would put a stop to it. I always thought its best to let dogs sort it out themselves but im not sure. Anyway today whilst on the couch i hear sniffy and pepe having a scrap outside. I expected it to stop as quick as it started as it usually does once pep submits, but it didnt. Pepe started screaming, so i ran to oustide to see sniffy getting really stuck into him and ended up attacking until he fell off the verandah, upon which she tried to go him again!!! SO i rescued him and brought him inside upon which i find he is bleeding from the back of the neck Whilst it went on the other dogs tried to get involved and tried to attack him too, but werent really connecting. It was just like they were excited and were missing out on the action. Theyve never attacked pepe before(or any dog for that matter), im not really worried i think it was the pack mentality coming out in them, am i right. Should i be concerned? Anyway what should i do regarding the sniffy pepe issue. They usually sleep together at night and are always together either indoors or out. That will change, they obviously need separating, especially when im not around. What should i do with sniffy? When she starts acting all dominant should i reprimand her, has me allowing her to assert her dominance over pepe created this? So should i not tolerate any dominant behaviour over each other from any of the dogs? Or am i worrying about nothing, things like this happen? Advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

Just over 12 months ago i fostered two lots of cats and kittens. One day i noticed two of the kittens has crusties on its face. Went to the vets, all diagnosed with ringworm.Sadly the 2 cats and 7 kittens were put to sleep.And i freaked, so much because i heard how contagious it was! I freak at any contagious skin problems(chicken pox, ringworm etc ewwww gross). So i went to chemist who said dont worry too much as its not as contagious as they make out, particularly in adults. Mainly if you have a cut etc and it enters through there. Anyway, i vaccumed then sprayed F10 all over the room where the cats were kept a couple of times and all over the crates a couple of times, then placed out side in the sun. No one here caught it including my kids cats and dogs that came in contact with them, wlthough i still worry that the spores are still in the room. My dogs have been in the crates since and havent caught it. Anywya thats my experience, so gross.

I was feeding sardines in oil but switched to mackerel because it came in a bigger can and bigger pieces.. They love it!

WOW! I just watched that twice. That was awesome.Loved it.

My vet only does the two. The 6 week one then the 12 week one. They used to do the third years ago but now only do two.

I dont groom but at our local groomers their dog comes to work with them and hangs around the shop.Hes a shorthaired crossbreed. Its always got patterns and pictures shaved into its fur. Looks good but dont think i would do it to my dogs.

Thanks again for all your replies. Mum gave me her old food processor last night(FOR THE DOG? she exclaims thinking ive gone mad pureeing vegies for the dog,LOL) and did some vegies (the frozen diced homebrand ones are ok right?) and mixed it with some offal and egg. That was easier than i thought. They have been having chicken carcasses, necks and wings plus lamb necks and offcuts plus raw meaty bones. A little bit of dry and today i'll add some fish aswell. Does that sound ok? I also have some Vets all natural that i won at a show but i havent used it yet. Its for adult/senior so i shouldnt use that with my pup? Anyway thanks again.

Thank you Jed and Lilysmum. I can relax abit then.I was doing my head in. LOL. Im picking up a food processor today to mush up the vegies/fruit.yummo! Kiera thats a good idea I will do that. I might have to get a bigger freezer first though. LOL.

When it comes to feeding raw pureed vegies, yoghurt, egg, legumes etc how often do you feed them that per day or week and how much? Im feeding my boy 3 meat meals a day but in his paperwork the breeder gave me it says to give him all this stuff too plus some other stuff but not how often and what amounts. Can anyone help? I will probably feed a dry food too as i dont think im capable of feeding totally barf and getting it just right. thanks.

Kaya my beautiful 18 month old bullmastiff girl went to the bridge on Wednesday.And it hurts so much to know she was alone and in pain. I left my house at approx. 11am on wednesday morning and she was her usual happy self. I returned at approx 3.45 pm. She was no where to be seen. I searched everywhere, i rode the boundary of the property fearing she may have got out and wandered and been shot and dumped back over the fence line. I searched all sheds, and rooms even though doors were shut. I drove around the area, up the highway hoping to catch a glimpse. I visited our neighbours 1.5 km away and rang the others in our area. I rang the vet and left my details incase someone brought her in. Something made me go back into the shed.And there i found her, hidden away, eternally asleep. I found that she had vomited twice that i could see out on the verandah. I figured poisoning and terrified she had gotten into something that we had left out. But we could not find anything. We took her body to the vets for a post mortem. He rang me later that night and told me she had been bitten by a snake from the black snake family which he said would either be a tiger, red bellied black or copperhead). She had massive internal bleeding particularly of the kidneys. ;) I picked her up yesterday and we buried her in our yard. I have great plans for her burial site but i must wait as much as it hurts to as the fires a heading our wayand we maybe evacuating on the weekend. Kaya, Im so sorry i wasnt there for you when you needed me the most.I loved you so much and i hope you knew that. On Tuesday you decided you liked to play frisbee for the first time and so I bought you your very own frisbee the day you left and you never got to play with it I was looking forward to that. You made me so proud. You were out of my first litter and i knew you were the one the minute you arrived. I fell in love. You were also my first show dog. We learnt together(and still learning) and you made me so proud in the ring. I had great plans for you towards the end of 2007, early 2008, I had even picked out the boy i wanted you to "meet". You were such a beautiful girl, we had our ups and downs, but i could never have given you up. I feel for your mummy Keisha, she came looking for you next morning. She went to the shed she last saw you in and then went down the back to look for you where you spent so much time together. I know she is heart broken, as am I. We've both lost our baby. You've probably met your Daddy by now. He's big isnt he? He'll be there for you, until we meet again. You will never be forgotten. I was going to have a bullmastiff head tattooed on my right shoulder blade, facing my lioness, but had changed my mind as i didnt want to look too "butch". Well i now have a very good reason to go through with it, it will not be just any head, it will be yours, with your name, so everyone can ask "who Kaya was" and i can tell them all about you , my beautiful baby girl. Kai Pie, I love you, you will always be in my heart and never far from my mind. RIP sweet girl., Love Mum.

Hi Roody, you could try putting a light lead on him and just letting it drag on the ground until he becomes used to it being there. Give him lots of praise and treats while putting it on and when he is relaxed with it on. Always supervise though so there are no accidents. Eventually try picking it up, dont lead him but just pick it up and treat him for being relaxed. Then when he is comfortable with this i suggest just following him around while you hold the end, with lots of praise and treats. Once hes ok with this maybe call him to you with your happy happy voice while you have the end and treat, if he doesnt come try gentle pressure on the lead but dont pull as such. Treat if he comes and make a huge fuss. So you get the picture? Take it slow step by slow step, eventually try walking away while you have the lead and calling and PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE(oh and treat LOL). Im no expert trainer but i hope ive given you some helpful advice that works. Good luck and well done for coming so far with him.

My papillon WAS a humper as was his father and brother. I got so sick of it as he would go the ALL the way with the kids soft toys,(which we then threw out). We had him desexed and never did it again. Get him desexed i believe the longer you leave it may have less chance of stopping aftre hes done.

I pay 30 per year. That covers obedience agility etc. I have 4 dogs i take and its no extra. I think for puppy class you pay 1 dollar each class aswell.

Well, just an update. Sniffy has settled down now. She loves being wherever the kids are. We put a stop to her being on the bed and she spends most time outside during the day now. I also take her toys off her rather than her having access to them all the time. I have been doing some obedience and trick training with her and she is sooo smart. It really amazes me. she picks things up so quick , very intelligent little doggy. So even though the kids havent been doing these things with her she has stopped the growling and snapping at them. She did growl once the other day and she was promptly reprimanded and put outside. I think she was trying to push the limits again and see if she could getaway with it but other than that she is doing really well. Just thought i would let you know. Cheers

Sadly today i recieved an email from the stud dog owner i used 12 months ago. Mack has passed away after battling cancer. He was such a beautiful big baby only 3 and half years old. Far to young to be taken. His owners are devestated and my heart goes out to them. He was their baby, their only child and loved him with all their heart and soul. They are the type of owners i would want my puppies to go to. I feel for them and for poor Mack such a sweet loving gentle boy despite his huge size. Such a waste of a beautiful dog. I am proud to have a part of him in my girl Kaya. RIP Mack. Run free over rainbow bridge

We got a jack russell pup about 4-5 weeks ago.We wanted a dog the kids could play with and sleep on their beds. Sniffy was great when we first got her but now she wont let the kids touch her or pick her up. She growls, and snaps at them but is fine with us and accepts our authority but it is clear she thinks she is above the kids. All my little girl wants to do is play with her but she is too aggressive. She is aggressive with her toys and also her food, not just around the kids but the other dogs and cats aswell. We tried to tell and show the kids how to reprimand sniffy when she does this but they have no authority in their voice and it doesnt work. What are our other options. The kids are 4 and 7. Sniffy also bit me on the ankle and drew blood, i know she was playing but that is not on. How do i get her to play with the kids nicely and not growl and bite all the time? She did not come from a breeder she came from the pound at about 8 weeks so is now about 13 weeks. She has a big scar from a gash of some sort on her head so im not sure what sort of life she has had, her and her litter mates were consatntly running around out on the roads until someone brought them in to the pound after getting sick of taking them back to the owners. Any ideas anyone? I also posted this in training section but thought i'd try here too.

Hi suzyq77 i would like to see the photos also. It might sound sick wanting to see them but its all about learning for me. Thanks.