Willem

Yes,thanks for getting the topic back to educational posts, as Mcfarlon demo's here conditioning Foundation For Off lead Distance Recall https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsO66m4e820 Meanwhile, here in UK, in 2006, the method of using tapping to give an instruction to down stay so any lost dog could be recovered if it had a remote activation tracking beeper on. See the vid demo carried out on normal exercise, 2008 vid clip....over 20 e-stims occure in the 4 examples shown Excercise For *Lost Dog Recovery https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdwIMrcW0hc * Appx 3 years ago Tri Tronics sold out to Garmin, the lost dog recovery exercise is now possible up 9 miles with the garmin-tri tronics integrated technologies http://www.garmin.com/en-US/explore/onthetrail/sporting-dogs#track-train . wrt 'lost dog recovery': hm...dog out of sight...owner hits the button when the dog is just crossing a highway or railway (owner can't see where the dog is)...outch !... ...typical example where people use a tool without considering possible scenarios - scares me.

...that (the mystery) is another 'ticked box': quote form the Wikipedia link: Diagnosis is achieved most commonly by serologic testing of the blood for the presence of antibodies against the ehrlichia organism. Many veterinarians routinely test for the disease, especially in enzootic areas. During the acute phase of infection, the test can be falsely negative because the body will not have had time to make antibodies to the infection. As such, the test should be repeated. A PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test can be performed during this stage to detect genetic material of the bacteria. The PCR test is more likely to yield a negative result during the subclinical and chronic disease phases.[2] In addition, blood tests may show abnormalities in the numbers of red blood cells, white blood cells, and most commonly platelets, if the disease is present. Uncommonly, a diagnosis can be made by looking under a microscope at a blood smear for the presence of the ehrlichia morulae, which sometimes can be seen as intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies within a white blood cell.... As you used Adventix, it is likely that the tick(s) have fallen off, so it is unlikely that a paralytic tick would have had enough time to inject enough venom; however, one bite from a brown tick - before it died - could have been enough to infect the dog with the Ehrlichia bacteria.

..if it is Ehrlichiosis 'response to the drug may take one month'! quote from the Wikipedia link: 'Supportive care must be provided to animals that have clinical signs. Subcutaneous or intravenous fluids are given to dehydrated animals, and severely anemic dogs may require a blood transfusion. Treatment for ehrlichiosis involves the use of antibiotics such as tetracycline or doxycycline for a period of at least six to eight weeks; response to the drugs may take one month. Treatment with antibiotics like Clarithromycin and Azithromycin is being studied. In addition, steroids may be indicated in severe cases in which the level of platelets is so low that the condition is life-threatening.'

Wikipedia Obviously one party paid a price, knowing / admitting that it was a discounted price; the other party delivered the dog, thus fulfilled their legal obligation as part of the contract. The discounted price indicates that the legal obligation of the other party was not only to pay the agreed amount, but also to provide additional goods and/or services. Based on the nature of this agreement and the goods involved the party that bought the dog for a discounted price would have serious problems (if there is no written document) to proof that the legal obligations would differ from the standards usually adopted for those kind of business. Edited:...spelling....

do you know what kind of tick it was? ...there a few diseases that are spread by brown dog ticks were the symptoms would tick most if not even all the boxes of your description, see brown dog tick and Ehrlichiosis.

not a big deal... ...had a chat with Waggle (pretty helpful)... I might order a Ruffwear and check how it fits ...worst case would be I have to send it back (so shipping with delivery and return would be more than the AU$ 17.95 I paid for the cheapo :D )...I will sleep a few nights over it...

the cheap (< AU$ 18) backpack I ordered via eBay for some testing arrived...the findings so far: quality wrt finish and material is pretty good for the money; fits perfectly when she stands; doesn't fit when she is running (leg pits and belly strap too tight respectively slips into the pits); doesn't fit when she sits (leg pits and belly strap too tight); size 'S' I ordered seems to be too small for her (nothing left for further adjustments), however, also with longer straps the problems mentioned above would still occur (too tight or too loose depending on posture); so overall totally uncomfortable for her; It has the same strap arrangement like the Ruffwear Approach; I can't see that the Ruffwear would address these issues as - IMO - it would require some stretchable straps that give a little bit way when she is running or sitting. It might be a BC specific issue (narrow but high chest)? ...I guess I give up on this idea...

First: I really appreciate your balanced comments and well-thought-out and valuable input . There are only a few points I see a little bit different. E.g. wrt snakes: I'm absolutely convinced that you can achieve the same result with positive reinforcement, however, as you said, 'if the capacity is there for harm, then you have to assume harm will occur'...so if a lot of people start now snake avoidance training based on positive reinforcement with deadly snakes there will be bites too. Hence - in this specific case - I prefer the e-collar to minimize the period of time a deadly snake needs to be handled. I understand the antipathy regards e-collar, and while you could do a lot of torture to a dog by e.g. using a thin cord (which is freely available) for recall training, unfortunately it is the human nature that make them more keen to apply torture if they only have to press a button (how convenient!). But maybe there is a solution: it should be pretty easy to code respectively to lock the receiver in the e-collar requiring a special code to unlock it. If those codes are only released to authorized people it would definitely minimize the potential damage done by those collars. Similar systems work for bank transaction etc. etc.. An e-collar manufacturer could produce collars that are controlled via mobile apps, and every time an authorized person envisage to do training employing the e-collar he/she has to request clearance to use the device....the clearance could be for a specific date or specific number of shots to minimize the risk of misuse....o.k., this 'giving permission' involves more work / effort for the manufacturer (or distributor?), but he could also raise a fee for this... So there are ways possible to address the concerns of both sides (pro and con e-collar supporters)... Edited:...usual spelling ...formatting errors..

Why are you not ready to breed with him? Did you have a conversation about when you would breed with him and how often? Uh... well ... Wouldnt that be covered in the agreement - verbal or written? This sounds like a reasonably un-related matter. Actually sounds like a friendship or house sitting arrangement gone sour - I'm sure we've all been there, done that, in one way or another. I'd keep the house sitting separate to the gripes you have over the breeding terms. Chalk that one up to experience and don't house sit for them again. I would write a list of things directly related to the dog and the breeding that you want to address and have a cup of tea with them to discuss it. Eg. Where your dog is to be housed during the time, can you drop him off 2 or 3 times during the course of her season or pick him up when they're satisfied he's done the job? Can you renegotiate the terms of the contract? Can you buy them out of the contract & have him desexed? What would you consider fair payment for his service? How many mating's do they expect from him - how many times per year do they expect to access him? What do you think is fair from your point of view? What would happen if you moved interstate with him? Formalise the agreement, get some clarity around the things you dislike and hopefully you can move on, because honestly you sound a little but whingy - but I would be too if I thought these arrangements had been sprung on me - but I'd say there has just been a miscommunication here. IMO that's a lot of good advice given here...consider also future advantages an experienced breeder just around the corner can have regarding breed specific (health) issues; that might save one or more trips to the vet.

...that's an oxymoron...you know it was a discounted rate, you paid him and you got the dog...so that makes a contract between 2 parties with legal obligations. I can only speculate that you meant 'not a written contract'. While written contracts and their small print can be a PIA, sometimes they also make live much easier. Edited: replaced 'legal contract' with the more precise wording 'contract between 2 parties with legal obligations'

...did anyone listen to the interview they put up in this link?....anyone?

...and that's why she got bitten in the knee?...maybe the dog owner should check the eyesight of his / her dog.... The reports said that she was bitten when she walked away... Edited to add: podcast ...there is an interview with the mother...can't get the link to the podcast working directly?

ah, I get it now...it is ok to make jokes about kids getting bitten, but 'poor little bird' stories have to be taken seriously... Man you are so uptight I could play you like a harp nah, I don't think so ... saw your comment and video in the 'Managing Prey Drive' thread...maybe that's a good idea: if your want to take your dog to Bunnings make sure you have your camera with you and running all the time to record all the naughty kids that want to tease your dog :laugh: ...

...you draft here a total different scenario: in the incident that happened in Bunnings the girl only attempted to pat the dog, however was called off...when she walked away the dog bit her. That is what was published so far in the media, everything else is speculation. She was called off and responded to it in as it seems an appropriate manner...

...just a side note: Bunnings do deliveries too, of course this cost extra, but you also save on your own fuel; yes, I can understand that this is not an option for everyone and will also depend on where you live, but it can be also quite convenient (I just got some 3.6 m yellow tongue boards delivered and it would have been a PIA if I had to get them on the car / trailer by myself - in this case the delivery was just $50, but saved me at least $25 in fuel too).

ah, I get it now...it is ok to make jokes about kids getting bitten, but 'poor little bird' stories have to be taken seriously...

I agree with this. The parent of the child has enough to deal with taking children with her and shopping at bunnings, now she's got biting dogs in the mix too. If people want to take their dogs to bunnings, or anywhere else, then they need to be watchful for situations like small children approaching and muzzle their dogs if they're likely to bite. ...to make it worse and what really puzzles me: I recall a recent thread where a little bird was caught and killed by a dog in a garden and posters gave their 'poor little bird' comments - here a kid was bitten and a poster who showed so much affection for this 'unfortunate' little bird in the recent thread suggested here that 'the kids should go in leashed as well'...on the one side it is 'poor little bird' and on the other 'stupid kids...their fault...' attitude. I don't get it!

...'Madelyn had attempted to pat the dog before she was told not to, and it is when she walked away from the Jack Russell that it bit her, Ms Hungerford explained....' ...that's a quote from here My link ...

Bunnings is responsible for the safety of the premises - hence they (respectively their insurance) have to step in in the first place if an accident happen. That doesn't mean that - after some consulting with their lawyers - they (respectively the insurance company) won't send a letter to the dog owner asking for reimbursement. In no way Bunnings action takes away the responsibility for this accident from the dog owner. And I just can't recognize what information shared here leads to the conclusion that the parents 'have clearly gone for the 'you'll be right approach...that's pure speculation and definitely not clear!...the parents might or might not have asked the dog owner whether patting is o.k....and even if they didn't ask: as I pointed out before, just by bringing the dogs into Bunnings it could be assumed that the dogs are absolutely kid & people friendly - if not (which obviously was the case) the dog owner has to adopt appropriate measures to ensure the safety of all visitors that could come in contact with his dogs, no matter whether by accident or intended.

...the area where you / I live will play a role too, maybe the vets in QLD are cheaper than here in the Illawarra :D ...the classic 2 would cost me $726 p.a...but that includes the third party liability (not included in the PIA) and the 100% reimbursement; on a $3,000 invoice that's alone $600 I would have to pay out of my own pocket if I would go with PIA as they only reimburse 80%.

obviously the control wasn't appropriate...on leash...off leash...that's not the point...in an aisle that might be just 1.5 m wide a 1.5 m long leash doesn't give you much control! big difference! ...here you have all the choices to avoid that your dog(s) get too close to kids, you are even allowed to walk your not so friendly dog (as long as you have control)...Bunnings T&Cs clearly puts the responsibility to the dog owner...by taking the dogs into the premises it could be assumed that they are absolutely people and kid friendly - unfortunately the dog owner misjudged his dogs....that's not the fault of the kids!

...I guess you missed this: 'Bunnings operations director Michael Schneider then said that while customers weren’t being encouraged to bring pets inside, “as long as pets are under appropriate control, are not aggressive and do not compromise the safety of our team or customers they are welcome”. ...the 'appropriate control' is the duty of the dog owner, not the parents ....the kid didn't bite the dog!!!

...it says 'But before her little girl could get within patting range, she said, the dog — believed to be a Jack Russell terrier — allegedly bit her on the leg.' ...the dog didn't even bit into her hand...which could have been expected if the intended patting triggered the accident. The point is that if dog owners take their dogs into Bunnings (or other self-service outlets) they know that there are other people around and that it is not possible / practical to keep a 'safe distance' all the time. Lining up on the check-out can cause some accidental contact - any dog confronted with such an scenario has to be absolutely stress resistant. A dog that can't be patted by a child should not be taken into Bunnings!

...excess is now according to their website always $150: $150(Up to 8 years)... $150+20%(8-10 years)... $150+35%(10+ years; however, they also include 'third party liability'...that is something other dog insurances won't cover?...I would pay between $43.19 (Essential) and $65.38 (Ultimate) p.m....not the cheapest insurance, but considering the package the best value I found so far...

...yep, that would be an alternative, under cover, with water...