kelpiecuddles

Next to the post button is a button that says 'use full editor' if you click that it will take you to a post page, underneath the post box is a spot where you can 'browse' for a photo from your computer and then click 'attach this file' to include it in your post :)

I really like the leave it up to the buyer option that a few here use. As a buyer I would be happy with it because it would probably mean that those that weren't serious would drop out of the picture giving me a better chance of getting a pup that suits me :p and as a breeder I can see that it would be an easy way to weed out the tyre kickers.

Thanks for your thoughts Bjelkier and Airedaler, I'll be looking for a dog for some pretty heavy duty training and to be a foundation dog/bitch for a breeding program focusing on that work so it will be an interesting process.

OK so since it's kind of the topic can I add another question in here... If someone approached you as a breeder who you didn't personally know but who was very clear about what they wanted and why and was asking to come and spend some time with the pups and have a fair bit of input in to the choice how would you handle that? I only ask because this is something I may be having to do down the track and while I do trust a breeder to choose the traits that I am looking for would possibly be ones that breeders may not commonly be choosing pups for so I would be looking at the quite subtle behaviour that suits my needs.

I don't understand, do you have further info on this from elsewhere? It doesn't say anywhere in that article what the circumstances of the bite were, just that he was bitten, he may well have stuck his arm in front of the dog not using his head and the dog may have thought it was the offender. There's any number of other ways it could have happened that don't involve the dog actually deliberately turning around to bite his handler. Unless you have some other source that explains what happened better?

Our basset breeder selected two that he felt would suit us and left it up to me which I preferred although he did recommend one over the other, in the end I went with his recommendation. The next basset I buy will be bought for a very specific purpose so I hope to have a little more input but in the sense of some good joint discussion about the different traits of each pup and which would suit what I am after. So still lots of breeder input. The breeder sees them every day so they will always know them best at that stage.

The place I work at sometimes does the same sort of thing, pups are taken on a consignment type arrangement, if they aren't selling the breeder takes them back and when they sell the pet shop will give them whatever the agreed payment is for them. Puppies don't tend to be at the store for long, usually just a few days to a week at most. Probably comes down to them being reasonably sensible about the sort of breeds they take in terms of what people are likely to actually want. Doesn't mean I agree with selling pups, just wanted to give an example of one way its done.

Wow, I wouldn't be drugging a puppy just because it isn't used to sleeping yet, that's really wrong unless there is a diagnosed issue and I doubt you'd find any vet that would give you drugs for a pup to make it sleep. I'm also not a fan of totally withdrawing treats. There's nothing wrong with using treats as long as you are using them at the right time so as not to reward bad behaviour.

My aunt uses the same sort of service in Melbourne and has been very happy, hers is a breed specific service. The prices people have listed here are actually more than what I was thinking so Ill have a bit more of a think and maybe tweak a few things although there are a lot of low income earners around here son I have to be careful not to price myself out of the market.

I think it can work Yvonne but the only groups I've seen that made it work well would carefully meet and greet all clients prior to the boarding and would only accept approved dogs, most of their clients were regulars.

My parrots are kept on a totally separate property to where I live so I am able to board birds at my house without having to have them close to any other birds. I've personally had psittacosis so I know how crap it is and have worked in an AQIS quarantine facility so I'm comfy with what must be done :)

That's so sad Ams None of the pet shops I've worked at would have taken peis, too much dog for most pet stores.

I've worked in a number of pet stores over the years that have sold puppies(not something I agree with but I like the rest of the job). I've never seen a puppy not get sold. Most pet stores won't take pups that they don't feel will sell so they'll only take the cute one...

OK so I'm not going mad, I was sure I had heard them called Brittany Spaniels at some point! At any rate, they'll just be plain old Brittany to me from now on.

Just curious. I used to do it a little bit many years ago but recently I've been given the opportunity to take over a friends little on the side pet sitting business as she is moving in to full time work. I'll be keeping some of her prices but I'm also offering a few services she doesn't already offer so I was wondering whether people might be willing to tell me how much they would expect to pay for each of these things: Quick visit(as in 10 minute drop by to take a dog out to the loo) Feed, pooper scoop yard/litter tray and bit of a play in the yard for 1-3 animals (couple of cats and a dog or vice versa for eg.) Feed, pooper scoop and proper walk for 1-2 dogs Two feeds per day plus a walk for 1-2 dogs Special needs animal requiring an extended visit to administer medications or similiar boarding of small animals such as guinea pigs or birds at my house, per cage per day (please note that I am able to sufficiently quarantine small animals from my own, this is important to me to be able to do this, especially with birds) ETA: In terms of experience I have many years experience with my own animals which include everything from dogs, to reptiles, to large parrots, small fluffies and high end fish tank set ups. I also have vet nursing experience and have worked as a zoo keeper.

Apologies, I've always just called them 'a brittany' when I've seen them but I must admit I had thought they were a spaniel. Lesson learned :)

What about a Brittany spaniel, bit smaller and still very smart, the ones I have met haven't been as high energy as the tollers and BCs I've met

Just a thought as I haven't actually even bothered to google it but could it be one of those annoying masculine/feminine word differences that plagued me in the one year I learnt French?

It's not quite a V blackjaq, it's kind of half way between a W and a v. :)

My german friend pronounces it with a w but there is kind of a very faint V inflection on her w when she says it, so it almost comes out vwyler'. Not sure how else to explain the way it sounds to me

Holy hell, people are actually charging nearly $3000 for a mutt!

Oh yes, I'd like a maned wolf too, but only if you can get one in blue. BTW: Pretty much my favourite non-aussie animal so you get major bonus points from me for that!

Any dog trained for a purpose will have had a lot of effort put in to it, whether that purpose be to herd, to hunt or to be a well adjusted member of the family. The type and intensity of effort differs by breed but that's about it. My kelpie required effort to ensure she had a good off switch, whereas my basset was already chilled but we concentrated on barking tendency of the breed.

Most activities involve some level of risk. People who do dog sports recognise the risks to their dogs joints that need to be managed, people who live/walk their dogs in bushy areas recognise the risk of snakes or ticks, those who's dogs work in the armed forces know the risks to their working dogs and people who live on the land and have working dogs recognise that there are risks associated with the way those dogs work. it's not about the risks it's about being sensible and managing them, plenty of people drop feed to cattle off the back of slow moving utes and dogs may follow along, that doesn't make them irresponsible, it's the reality of life on a farm, unless the farmer is tearing around the paddock, which they won't be under those circumstances then the risk to a dog who is used to being around slow moving vehicles isn't huge.

and when pronouncing german words pronounce the second letter out of the ei, ie combination. So you pronounce the weIm and the weIl