espinay2

6 is probably the top number for me that I like in terms of managability.

Some creative ones there! :laugh: They have a set time to do it in. The dogs are used to being groomed so it is no big deal for them (poodles have to be used to it even for normal grooming). They are often clipped off afterwards (they are 'normal' dogs both before and afterwards, though before a comp they may have their coat grown out longer so that there is more to work with). They don't actually look like that for long! The ONLY thing they are changing is the hair - nothing else. Not really any different to a human hairdressing competition. I don't see any unhappy dogs in the pictures :) .

ReSTYLE Aussie show suits

I am always careful with chiro. While it has its place and I have used them, I would be wary about chiro on a such a young dog given growth plates are still so very soft and can be easily damaged. Limping could also be all manner of things that chiro wont help - eg pano or ligament damage or OCD. Definitely recommend seeing Sandra as soon as you can.

She bakes heaps - this might be a plan . after me saying to give the doggies more meat and less cereal :p :laugh: I see the dilemma. I wouldn't go adding rice etc to the main diet, particularly if she continues to feed the Advance rather adding as 'extras' things like the chicken, eggs, fish etc and even some yoghurt (cheap to make yourself) if she can afford it, plus any healthy leftovers from her own meals if there are any. But a bikkie as a cheap 'treat' she can make would IMO be fine if fed in moderation (and the dogs dont have any allergy issues with the grains in questions). Now just to confuse things, here is my 'basic budget plan' for when the budget is stressed. It does rely on having access to good sources and storage though: Things to buy: Basics: Chicken frames (I buy a 10kg box for $10) - or alternately chicken pet mince (between $1 and $1.50 a kg on average) 'Pet mince' - From your local butcher - my local butcher makes one that includes various offcuts plus things like heart, tounge and liver. Average seems to be around $3.00 a kilo. Basic meal (for a larger dog - scale down for smaller) - one chicken frame and 1/2 cup pet mince. You can get away with just feeding this for quite a while. It is a reasonably good diet in an of itself. Added extras: Fish oil capsules (around $16 to $20 for a bottle of 400 at a discount chemist). average 2 per day per dog (1 for a small dog) Alternately (or as well if the budget allows), no name brand fish (sardines, mackeral, salmon etc) once a week. Eggs: one egg once a week (or two if you have them) Added added extras: Yoghurt - a spoon or two a few times a week. Healthy table scraps Treats such as the dog bikkie recipe given above.

I agree here (though I might go for the no name sardines, mackeral or salmon instead of tuna - also look at the no-name brand cat food sardines. They are generally just sardines so an ultra cheap way to add fish). How about making some dog biscuits? Really easy and cheap to make. A bit of plain flour, some porridge oats, chicken or beef powdered stock, garlic and veggie oil (and a little extra water if needed). Make into a dough, roll into a log and cut into slices. Bake in an oven until cooked and as crispy as you want them (slow oven is best). You can add other flavours depending on price and availability - only limited by your imagination.

True story. Was once on my bed with a member of the opposite sex when the white creature in my banner below suddenly jumped up on the bed and tried to get between us when we were getting closer. It is not about jealousy. Getting between or 'splitting up' is a typical calming signal a dog will display when a situation is getting 'heated' or 'tense' and they want to calm things down. http://www.abetterpet.com/abetterpet2/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/CalmingSignalsA.pdf

Royal Design Royal Diamonds Desire by Design Diamond Desire Designed for Royalty Designed for Desire

Becuse it is THE best hands on way for you to learn the craft of judging. It is part of your education for becoming a judge. There is a LOT that you will learn as a breeder that will be VERY important to you becoming a judge and frankly it is not an experience or knowledge you can really get any other way. And frankly it is not something you will understand until you actually start getting some hands on experience. Start by actually getting in the ring and handling your dog. For one, you wont know how to be a good judge if you dont know what it takes to be a good exhibitor and learn the ring ettiquette yourself from both sides. Then start learning what it takes to actually BREED the dogs you will be judging. Which is not an easy or simple process Here is some reading matter to get you started. It will be important for you to read and UNDERSTAND and be able to put into practice (i.e. show through what you do that you know and understand it) a lot of the information in these books BEFORE you even consider judging dog, as it will form the foundation on which you make your judging decisions. http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DSH134 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DSH160 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DAN107 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DSH170 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DAN114 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DSH153 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DAN125 http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DG198 http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DG208 http://breedingbetterdogs.com/details-breeding-dogs-to-win.php Certainly aim to become a dog judge eventually. It is a commendable goal. But don't expect to 'fast track' the process without putting in work to prove through your actions your worth to the dog world first.

You are judging breeding stock. By being a breeder yourself you are aware of the process and what is involved in CREATING breeding stock and some of the finer points involved in doing that (I am not talking mechanics as such but the genetics of selection etc). By breeding champions you have theoretically been in the show ring long enough to know the process and to know the ins and outs of the show ring, and to produce dogs that have stood up to the scrutiny of your peers. If you want to be a judge, your work must first be judged. Not a perfect system (no system ever is) but IMO it makes perfect sense. And BTW, judges who blow off about how bad everyones dogs are before they even get their hands on them, don't get entries.

Amazing what a little time and work can do :)

No way! As mentioned this advice is dark ages stuff and now well known to be detrimental.

It is spring! We humans have often very much lost the feeling for the change of seasons, but animals generally do not. The sun is rising earlier and earlier and it is getting warmer. Spring brings new vigour

Dogs do most of their exercising and activity in the mornings and evenings (dawn and dusk) so if your dogs are provided with opportunity to play and socialise and to be active at these times, then putting your Berner pup in the pen during the day is IMO preferable for at least a while longer. Give her a bone to chew or stuffed kong and make going in there pleasant by giving her a treat when you put her in there. All my dogs love going in their runs and run to stand in them and wait for their treats :) . Large breeds like your Berner grow for a long time and have soft growth plates. At this age it is easy for an injury to occur (and a small chip can lead to issues such as OCD), so supervising play for a bit longer is a good idea.

Though as someone who breeds several poultry breeds as well, I can tell you that many purebred poultry breeders look down severely on birds that do not breed true and and it will take MANY generations of culling (i.e. mostly killing birds that do not meet the grade) before a breeder will let birds 'out' of their yard when they are doing a cross for some particular purpose (such as working on a new colour). For many breeds though, crossing - even crossing of certain colours within the breed - is considered a big no-no among those that are serious about the breed. Good quality pure lines are valued. For example, at the poultry Nationals this year, some birds were selling at the auction for up to $900 each with the average being around $300 to $400 for a good quality bird.I should add that many breeders do keep records of their breeding lines, even if they don't identify the individual birds (though that is sometimes done too).

Not quite. Any dog born of two parents of the same breed IS purebred but it's a genetic dead end for the most part. Without a pedigree (that provides a record of proven ancestry) and registration with its breed register, the dog is lost to the future of the breed, no matter what its quality. That may not matter a damn to pet buyers but it certainly matters to breed fanciers although most breeders of non-pedigreed stock aren't thinking that far out. You may be perfectly happy with your dog PL but please don't try to justify what the breeder did here. It's a middle finger in the air to what a lot of folk here strive for. It's done and you're happy - can we move on from it please. EXACTLY. It is is middle finger to the future of the breed. This is not a breeder looking to the long term welfare and continuation of their breed. This is a breeder who is only looking at the here and now. As a pet owner you may be perfectly happy with that and that is fine. But DONT expect breeders, or those that are looking at the welfare of the breed in the long term (read multiple generations over decades and more) to be. Lets move on.

Likely in the majority of cases in this situation the dog is returned to the breeder for rehoming. Or it is done with the breeder playing a role. There are a few rare cases of 'rescues' becoming show winners. Again in these usually rare cases the LEVEL OF PROOF which was established by the breeder has been maintained.

Go back and read my post about 'levels of proof''.

No, it takes way more than one or two generations!!!! A 'Moodle' is not a breed so crossing two crossbreed dogs does not in the next generation magically create a pure breed!!!! (what you have Is an f2 cross) This is NOT what we have been talking about at all...

I think there are different layers being discussed, and some are confusing these layers. Sticking to the ones under discussion (without muddying the waters with issues such as 'landrace' which will only confuse some I think), here it is in a nutshell: 'Purebred' - a dog which has both parents (and grandparents and great grandparents) of the same breed. A purebred dog will 'breed pure' in that its progeny will all look and act alike in accordance with a type or standard. All other concepts being discussed are about LEVELS OF PROOF that a dog is pure of breed. A dog that is deemed to be pure of breed based on looks alone has a lower level of proof from one where the parents are known. It may still be a pure bred dog, but there is a possibility that it also may not be. Pure breed rescues will often accept this lower level of proof for the sake of the dog who generally looks and acts like their breed. In a rescue situation, that element of the unknown is accepted as the dog is generally being removed from the genepool (via desexing etc). A Backyard breeder also offers a lower level of proof which can vary in degree from very low to almost no proof, to a reasonable chance it is what they say. A dog with a certified pedigree however, has an even greater level of proof. Its breeding is agreed, known and certified for many generations, making its genetics in terms of its breed a well known entity. Level of proof becomes particularly important when someone is considering BREEDING a dog. When breeding a dog it is more advantageous to have the highest level of proof available. Particularly for the breed, as this ensure the breed continues in a pure and known form. Breeders who provide a lower level of proof are a bit like a river backwater. They do not contribute to the main stream of the breed going forward through the generations and the genetics are 'lost' to the breed as a whole as it is not documented on that central register. Proof is also important when someone wants to be sure about what they are getting instead of leaving some level of doubt that sometimes has them asking sometime down the track 'do you think he is pure? now I am not so sure' (edited to add - or if they have a breed where positive proof of what it is....or is not ... is potentially important, such as under current Victorian legislation). Be on this forum often enough and you see those posts from time to time from people buying 'pure bred' dogs from unregistered breeders. Some may be willing to accept this lesser level of proof. But it is fact that without a certified pedigree, that element of unknown - that lesser standard of proof - will always be there.

Smells like rain? You may be smelling Petrichor ('the scent of raIn') even though it is not raining as a result of smelling Geosmin, an organic compound (and contributor to producing that scent of rain), which may be on the dogs coat if it likes to lay in dirt sometimes?

Seridan, it is about NON-permanent residency status, not someone who is a PR. In other words, someone who is in Australia on a TEMPORARY visa such as a student visa, which usually is for a few years only. While the woman does sound rude, I can understand why they may want to make a rule for adoptes that they be in this country long term. Exporting a dog IS a very expensive exercise, particularly for someone who is a student (and may potentially need to rely on family overseas to agree to pay for the dogs transport). That said I don't doubt there are those that WILL take their dog with them. But the RSPCA is not the only place to get a dog and if you want to go the rescue route, perhaps talking to some other smaller rescue organisations who have a more 'personal' approach may be worthwhile. Regarding not being able to play with the dog. The issue maybe as simple as insurance. It can be a liability issue if someone handles the dog and something happens (e.g. they happen to get bitten or injured). Employees and official volunteers are covered by insurance. Potential adoptees who are there with the specific purpose of assessing the dog for adoption are also likely covered. Liability cover for others who 'just want to play with the dog' is likely a lot more tenuous so policies on who can handle the dogs would be put in place to reduce their insurance liability and risk. In regards to 'strays from India and Bali' etc I am guessing in most cases it would be people living over there for a period of time, adopting a street dog as a pet (likely NOT from a welfare organisation so no comparison to this situation really) and then deciding to bring them back when they return. As the quarantine requirements may take 12 months or more to complete before the dog comes back the dog is likely to have been in the persons posession for a while. And yes, to my knowledge just as many, if not many more, are left behind then are ever brought back into Australia.

No, purebred rescues will rescue dogs based on phenotype. In other words how the dog LOOKS. Based on experience they may consider that a dog looks enough like their breed for them to take an interest in its welfare. Purebred rescues may also do their best to determine any particular rescue dogs genotype. In other words, who bred the dog and if they can which individual dog it is. But this is not always (and sometimes depending on the breed - rarely) possible. In a large number of cases where genotype is established, the breeder will often take responsibility for the dog - leaving more resources for rescue to deal with dogs which can only be identified by phenotype (looks) alone. Take a look on my website - the 'in memory' section is best to start with - you will see photos of dogs which have various levels of identification. One where the pedigree is known, but is unregistered, one which was identified by looks alone and the rest where the pedigree is certified. All are 'purebred' dogs of the same breed.

In the days before the Limited Register not all puppies in a litter were registered by registered breeders. Dogs sold as pets were generally not registered as they were not used for breeding.These pups were definitely purebred and generally came with a written pedigree (my first pup came with a hand written ten generation pedigree) but not a registered or certified pedigree. These dogs were purebred, had a pedigree, but were not registered. Dogs that come into rescue, if their origin can not be traced, may be considered pure ad a best guess baded on knowledge of the breed, but do not have a known pedigree. Without a known pedigree, their true status is tenuous and based purely on looks rather than genetics ( phenotype rather than genotype). This is the same for backyard bred dogs where pedigree is unknown either fully or partially. A dog which is pure and has a guaranteed pedigree has both a known and guaranteed phenotype AND a known and guaranteed genotype.

No a dog can HAVE a pedigree. A pedigree is a guaranteed family tree. Just like an official birth certificate is for people. The ANKC only manages and guarantees the pedigrees of specific breeds (there are many more world wide) and will only issue them for dogs whose family trees only contain dogs of the one breed ( there are technical exceptions but they are not really relevant here). Any dog can have a pedigree (family tree) and technically EVERY dog has one whether it is known or not. But not every dog has one that is officially guaranteed or certified.