Staranais

...or other dogs. Ideally, no, but some dogs do have dog aggression (or predatory aggression to other animals), and they can still be great pets if the owners are conscientious about training & controlling them.

I always assumed that the reported greater incidence in skin disease in blue staffords was simply due to the fact that they tend to be bred by breeders who care less for health, and more for colour. If you look at the SBT websites on DOL, some of the blue-only breeders are really dodgy looking. Registered unfortunately doesn't automatically equate to knowledgeable or ethical. I guess an increased incidence of skin issues could be a direct consequence of the skin colour though? Someone could research it, would be reasonably easy to do, and would make quite a cool project. If the skin troubles are a direct consequence of skin colour, then even blues that pop up in non-blue litters will have a higher incidence of skin disease. If it's just due to poor breeding, then blues from non-blue parents would have the same incidence of skin disease as their non-blue litter mates. Not me though, I'm busy.

Ooh could you give us a summary of your research? Sounds very interesting.

Huh?? What rock are they hiding under? Try asking for a serum antibody titre test, or an antibody level serology test? ETA - they're all the same thing, they just may have heard of those phrases!

thanks so if i noticed my dogs were crook it would be worth getting the titre test done? Do you know if a killed vaccine will still have the same affect as a live vaccine? (parvac vs c3 or c5) Too late by then to be any use. A titre is best done a few weeks after vaccinating to prove the vaccine worked. If you got it done now, it may still show that the last vaccine worked. Killed vaccine is said not to last for as long as a live vaccine. All the modern research on duration of immunity, showing that C3 vaccines tend to last several years, has only be done on live not on killed vaccines. Killed vaccines also tend to have have nasty chemical adjuvants in them to increase the immune response, so I prefer live for my animals.

Again, how sad for everyone. Perhaps there needs to be more public information campaigns about how even a friendly dogs can perceive a little child as prey, or as a subordinate, and how therefore even safe, friendly dogs should be kept away from tiny children? Seems a lot of people don't understand that. I'm sure this gentleman would have kept his dog well away from his grandchild if he'd known the risks. I love my dog, but I'd never trust her offleash with toddlers.

How sad for everyone. The mother probably "shouldn't" have had the dog in the room with the baby, but many people just don't understand dog behaviour, and I'm sure she would never, ever have done it if she understood the possible consequences. Poor woman, now she has to live with it her entire life. How sad.

Some one who listens to my goals & helps me work towards them. Some one my dog likes and is comfortable being around. Some one who has a good understanding of how my dog thinks, can read her body language well, and who isn't scared of working dogs running at them clicking their teeth ("no, those are happy teeth. We can show you naughty teeth if you like!"). Some one who actually does get results, quickly and effectively. But who also understands that retaining my dog's enthusiasm for training, and preserving the trust in our relationship, is just as important as getting results. Some one who is able to suggest the best methods available for me and for my particular dog - who has lots of ways of looking at behaviour problems, and lots of different motivators and tools in the toolbox. Like Cosmolo, I have met few good trainers who are extremists. I've met several crappy trainers who only had one way of looking at things - who believed that all bad behaviour was caused by dogs wanting to take over the pack, or thought that all dogs should wear check chains, or thought that all dogs should work for food, or that all aggression was just a sign of fear, etc. But all the good trainers I've met have known how to use many tools, and many motivators. Dogs are individuals, and canine behaviour is subtle and complex. I don't think anyone looking at it from one perspective alone one can be a good trainer.

Depends, if I were building drive yes I'd end still in drive with her wanting more & thinking about it, but if we are just working and I've rewarded her at the end of a track (for example) then I use the "enough" cue when I put the toy away & she'll flip out of drive and trot off and do something else. I try to end on a high note (we normally run back to the car off leash with me praising her the whole time), but I don't want to finish with her actually in drive. Particularly as we're trotting through paddocks filled with stock, LOL. On the other hand, when we're tracking, I generally play with her until she's had the edge taken off her drive & she's a little tired, which I don't always do when doing obedience or recalls (I tend to just give her a few bites and leave her wanting more there). So I guess they're two different situations. Sorry, may have just confused the issue more.

Can someone please explain, how is it different to regular old massage?

She had a slight left hand fore limp at 4 - 5 months old, but it improved greatly with rest, and only flared up again last week. Being a paranoid dog owner I did take her to the vet back then, but we only shot elbow rads, which of course were perfect. Looking back, I really wish we'd also shot shoulder films, and possibly got a diagnosis much earlier! But it's very hard to tell an elbow from a shoulder limp by observation & palpation, and they were pretty convinced it was an elbow issue she was having, so that's why we only took the elbow shots (note to myself in future - always, always take radiographs of both joints when client's dogs come in with a shoulder or elbow issue!) She only has clinical signs in one shoulder (left hand), although has radiographic changes in both, so we'll probably just operate on the limpy one and wait to see what to do with the other. Ashka, thanks for your post too - I'm sorry to hear what a nasty time your friends had! Fingers crossed everyone that my girl works out better. I'm hoping to get her well enough recovered that she can work (track) for me still. Dogsport may be out now, unless we're really lucky. She's currently on fish body oil (lots of it), MSM, glucosamine, and chondroitin. We'll probably dabble with chiro after surgery, not sure how much help it will do, but hey, it will make me feel better. Any other suggestions very welcome.

I think Erny was just suggesting that the OP's dog would likely get sick because it had already shown a reaction to the previous vaccine? Titre test just checks out if the dog still has antibodies in his blood from the last vaccine. If he still has sufficient antibodies, that proves he's still immune, so there's absolutely no point vaccinating him again. Works for parvo, hepatitis, and distemper. You can get it done at the vet.

Basically it involves opening the shoulder up and removing any bits of cartilage floating around, removing any cartilage flaps & dead bits of tissue, and smoothing it all down. The choices are by arthroscope (faster recovery, but a little more $$$, and they occasionally miss bits), or opening the shoulder joint right up. I'll be doing a whole lot more research before we decide when to go ahead & which option to pick, believe me! Prognosis is around 90% return to full function after surgery, but 10% of dogs have some degree of permanent lameness even after surgery. There is also an increased risk of arthritis (DJD) as the dog ages, although not a certainty. Cost, between $1400 and $1800 per shoulder (I think it might be a little more than that for members of the public though - I get a student discount, and I'll be baking the surgeons lots of cookies).

*bump* just in case

Do you work for PETA by any chance? Obviously s/he's never been on a farm. A regular wire farm fence won't keep dogs out. My malinois slides through farm fences with ease. You'd need to do deer fencing around your farm to keep dogs out, a huge expense to farmers. People need to control their dogs in rural and urban areas.

Then no offence, but I really hope you never breed. There are many genetic issues that only become apparent as the dog grows older.

When my avatar girl (Kal, RIP and bless her cotton socks) had open stomach surgery to remove a large bone that had lodged in the lower end of her oesophagus, there was a period of 12 months where she showed considerable discomfort. After dotting from Vet to Vet thinking something was still very wrong (and being treated as though I was some sort of hypochondriac by proxy) I finally found a Vet who was able to explain the likelihood of the discomfort - ie scar tissue (there's another word for it but can't recall it just now) occurring from the surgery site and attaching itself to other parts of the body. This eventually disappeared (as I was told by this Vet that they would) but until they did, Kal did appear to be in considerable discomfort. If the stomach is tacked to the abdominal wall by sutures, could not this cause the dog some discomfort with movement? Adhesions? I don't know, Erny - but I would imagine it depends exactly what you tack together? I'm thinking that perhaps Kal could have had all sorts of things randomly stuck together by adhesions after her surgery, causing the discomfort, not just the stomach stuck to the abdominal wall at one point as in a gastropexy? I don't think the stomach would move around much anyway relative to the body wall, it's attached fairly firmly to the spleen & liver anyway. ETA - have just had a look in my very huge small animal surgery text book, it doesn't mention it as a complication? In short, I don't know. ;)

I think you're thinking of the vomeronasal organ? The dog's "other" smell system that processes smells to do (mostly) with sex. My old boy used to do this when he smelled the urine of on heat, or almost on heat, bitches - get an intense, far away look in his eyes, flick his tongue, and chatter his teeth. ;) I don't think that would be going on here, though.

In that context, I think it is exactly the same as the reflex that causes them to kick their hind leg when you're hitting an itchy spot. My girl often licks the air when I tickle the right spot. It's not a communication, IMO, just the way her wee brain is wired up.

Spotty I wonder if you'd feel that way if you'd bought a pup that developed a problem that may be inherited? I bought a puppy from a registered breeder that showed health problems from the day he came home. He died at 12 weeks of age after almost $2000 worth of treatment. He was our puppy and he was our responsibility. Money was the last thing on our minds. We had lost our little guy ;) The breeder offered her condolences, but we never expected her to open her wallet too. ETA: People need to take responsibility for their own dogs. You buy a dog knowing that it could have problems, inherited or not. It is your responsibility to pay for it. Who knows what has happened to the puppy in the 9 months that it has been home. Well, I guess that means breeders will save a lot of money on health testing, I mean, why should they bother to do hips and elbows at all, or screen for any genetic disease, if everything becomes the owner's problem the second the dog is off the property? To me, if it's a purely genetic issue causing the problem, then it should be the breeder's responsibility (up to returning the purchase price of the pup, anyway). If it's down to poor management, then that's simply the owner's problem. If it is a combination, then both owner and breeder should help make it right.

Yes, I agree. Most of these type of trainers have only one way to fix dog behaviour issues (it's all about dominance/pack structure). Talk about one trick ponies. If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail...

Thanks, Erny. Yup, I'm pretty gutted. And heartbroken! I've got the surgical angle pretty much covered - the benefit of being at vet school, I guess, I get all the good specialists on my case! We're giving her 3 weeks, then proceeding to surgery if she hasn't improved (and possibly even if she has). Just wondering if anyone had any success with chiro, acupuncture, supplements, etc. It's a long shot, I know! But every little bit helps.

Wow, sounds like an interesting story behind that comment!

If it's the surgery I'm thinking of, it involves tacking the stomach to the abdominal wall with a few sutures. So it can still bloat, but if it bloats it won't torsion/twist on itself (the really dangerous bit of a GDV).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't I send you the first two Through specialist canines?? Sorry if I have you confused with someone else Yeah you did, thanks, they were really good! I'm not at specialist canines anymore, since I'm reluctant to post with my real name for several reasons (including being hopefully about to enter a profession with very dim views on certain training tools, and I figure there's no point posting if I can't say what I really think). If I can find the second two, and you'd like to borrow too, you're more than welcome. They're not as good as the first two, but they're OK. I don't really like his way of teaching the retrieve. Gets results, I'm sure, I just don't like it. But not sure where they are, so no promises until I go have a hunt round!