RedFeather

I would love to get Bas to a point where he can be a pet therapy dog in aged care centres. Don't know if he will ever really be calm enough but he's only young, hopefully he settles down and can enjoy some visits to old folks :) But that's basically all volunteer work, usually facilitated by a therapist or lifestyle coordinator in the homes.

If I came home and my dog was gone, I would honestly assume he had escaped. Because spitz. That said, he is very, very pretty and there's no way I would ever leave him tied up outside a shop etc. My husband says the same about the shelties he had growing up. It doesn't help that Basker loves all people and would make friends and follow anyone. Probably wouldn't ever leave him in a front yard either. But it's not enough to stop me letting him outside when I go to work, our fencing is good and honestly he would get crazy and destructive inside even with all the mental stimulation in the world.

Sorry to be a n00b, but how do you know if your area is a high or low risk area for heartworm?

Hmm...my 5 month old fur baby is teething a lot right now, maybe I should try a whole frozen fish? He seems to be into the frozen things at the moment but not so much with the bony things like turkey necks...fish bones being a bit softer might hit the spot...

My Lappie is a dream at home. Will usually obey most commands first time, especially if he can see there is a treat in it for him. But outside of the home, everything else is just far too exciting to be bothered by a simple treat. There are PEOPLE and DOGS so why would I do what you ask just cause you have a treat? So...stubborn spitz breed? Maybe. I just think he's highly distractable and not hugely food motivated.

Finnish Lapphunds like to hold hands. It's super cute!

Ooh, this is a good idea! Eventually we want to be able to move the cat litter out of our spare room (because we want to be able to have guests in there and not have them sleep with the litter box lol), but are struggling to work out how to keep the dog out of the litter when the time comes...currently the spare room is the cat's domain and there is a gate across it, but this won't be a permanent solution

I knew a Welshie who belongs to some friends. He was a pretty perfect family dog, loved his kids and tolerated their cat just fine :) That's all the experience I have though

My husband was freaking out at the fact that our Lappie might get to 25 kilos. He was all 'that's a big dog!'. I pointed out that Leonbergers get to 60+ and he shut right up about our nice medium sized 'coffee table' dog

Nope. This is just his puppy coat, apparently they usually get their adult coats around 8-9 months. Then he'll have a double coat, so harsher and waterproof on the outside and fluffy underneath. Apparently they aren't big shedders except when they start their annual/biannual coat drop.

Our trainer at puppy/obedience classes has a Leonberger but I've never seen it...I have looked at pictures, they are pretty darn cute! That said, she is equally in love with my Finnish Lapphund :)

Baskerville is now 18 weeks old. Time is flying by!! This was a couple of weeks ago, what a handsome boy!

Baskerville loves to pull the fluff off things. Nothing may be fluffy except him! He had a toy covered in orange tennis-ball style fluff. That produced some interestingly coloured poops...

My husband despairs at my need to rush my cat in over minor things. But...she was my first baby, and any rash, or infected claw, and she goes straight to the vets. Because with us she's feisty and won't let us look at potential problems, but get her to the vets and she freaks out and goes completely still, and can be easily examined. Needless to say, when I found a lump in her neck she was at the vet the next day. It turned out just to be a swollen lymph node, probably due to some illness that the cat didn't even let on she had, but I was a worried cat mummy for around 72 hours. I will absolutely be the same with our new baby Lapphund and hubby will just have to deal with it.

I think charts like these focus more on dog owners who perhaps aren't quite as educated about their dogs as the average DOL forum user. People who buy a bulldog because 'it's so cute look at its face' and don't think about the problems that it might have with its health etc. This is also about health, longevity, cost and not just intelligence. Of course, it's hard to actually rate a dog's intelligence, because what are you actually looking at. Health and cost and longevity however are easier to quantify. Worth keeping in mind that this chart will include puppy farm dogs as well as well bred dogs. A bulldog from a reputable breeder who health tests and isn't breeding for over exaggerated features will be very different from a bulldog bred for $$$. Also, no lapphunds. Must be cause they are so awesome they don't fit on the chart :laugh: :D

Our pup was running after my husband and didn't realise he'd gone around a fence...ran straight into the wire fence! His eye was a bit red like this for a while but he didn't seem to be in any discomfort (although I suspect his poor puppy pride may have been hurt).

I keep feeling like a bad puppy mother for not trying to get my Lappie to keep warm. Little bugger insists on sleeping on the coldest surface he can find. Arctic dogs...what can you do, eh? :)

We got some RC from our breeder...our puppy liked it well enough and did fine on it...I however couldn't stand the smell of it! Or the greasy texture. We've switched over to Meals for Pups at the moment, which pups will also eat quite happily and he's doing fine. It smells better and isn't greasy and gross. Since we fill a lot of chew toys, the fact I couldn't stand to touch it or smell it was a big deal for me. We are in the fortunate position of having a family member who works at a pet store and gives us a nice discount :)

My reading of the OP suggest to me that there is a plan in the future for longitudinal research - are there conditions and signs in later life that may be due to stress or lack thereof as a puppy. But a PhD is supposed to be done and dusted in 3-4 years, meaning this study is likely to be laying the groundwork for future research. If I were a breeder, I'd want scientific and peer reviewed research available that helps me to make decisions about how to raise a litter to reduce stress to the mother, and potential health/other problems in the puppies in the future. If that is indeed the long term aim of the research then it could be very valuable.

My pup cares not for his Nylabone. Well, maybe a bit, it does tend to get moved around his pen so he must be picking it up and putting it down...but he'd much rather chew on things that he can then eat. Pigs ears (yes yes I know, very fatty), chicken wings, beef dog jerky strips...if not that, then cardboard. Cardboard is fun for destroying. And sticks for chewing. Sigh. CHEW THE DAMN CHEW TOYS DOG! lol Discovered my local Foodland sells a good variety of chicken frames, turkey necks, marrow bones etc. Nice to have a dog friendly supermarket nearby!

If this student posted a full participant information sheet with her original post, she'd be howled down for writing too long a post for anyone to read. If you want more information, then email her or call her, I can tell you she will gush about her research as long as you're prepared to listen (I too am a PhD student so I know from experience). Steve, if you have helpful insights into the topic, I'm sure the OP would appreciate your input and expertise. The thing is, in order for anything to change at any kind of policy level, you need peer reviewed research. Saying 'anecdotally we know that...' will never influence top-down change in animal welfare laws. Also, if you want vets to be able to treat stressed/anxious/sick dogs later in life, they also need peer-reviewed research. Personally I wouldn't go near a vet who doesn't treat based on peer reviewed information. And how is anyone going to get research you 'really want done' when you are so guarded when it comes to helping a student in the first place? Have you tried approaching veterinary students and saying 'hey, I'd really like to see some research going into x...'? It really annoys me when people s*** all over research that's being done because you can't see the point of it. Fun fact - scholarships to do a PhD are very competitive and actually you won't get one if your research is pointless.

South Australia does have some good 'no kill' rescues too. SA Dog Rescue (although they are struggling at the moment and may not be taking new dogs), Adelaide All Breeds rescue in the Adelaide Hills I believe https://www.facebook.com/pages/Adelaide-All-Breed-Dog-Rescue-Inc/224826754237905?fref=ts

Cleveland - I know you say you want a puppy and not a rescue, but I see you are in SA. We have some really good rescues here. Try looking at SA Dog Rescue and Adelaide All Breeds Rescue on facebook, they are both really good organisations that are no kill and have an extensive fostering program so dogs are temperament tested with all kinds of situations.

Our breeder has a Facebook group for owners of dogs she has bred. Obviously, as her most recent litter went to their new homes (Including mine) last week, it is very active right now. I am also friends with the breeder on facebook so she sees photos I post even if I forget to put them in the group.

Baskerville joined our family this afternoon. He's been playing happily, and is zonked out for a nap now til some more people come round to play :)