Christina

Depends on your lifestyle & where you live so really variable. When I lived in the city my dogs were walked locally or taken to the beach 8 mins drive away daily. I would also pop 1 or 2 in the car for a ride if I was going to the local shop & would be in & out quick. Now I live rural it really isn't practical. They have masses of room to run outside & play & exercise with each other as well as when I play with them. Due to the dirt roads can't take them in the wet, I slip never mind them. Hot & dry & its so dusty & snake risk. In between seasons I walk them around the 4 streets which is all that's here or take them in turns in the car if I go to local shops & go for a walk just to keep them socialised & used to the lead. They are happy & don't care. Rain, forget it, too hot & they don't want to go out in it. They all live inside, no doggie door, snake area but they spend a lot of time outside with me & a little out there on their own but soon let me know when they want to come in. They are with me most of the time & tear around the house under my feet anyway.

Could be, they can get it the same as us. One of my cats gets it at this time every year. When the birds start nesting in the gap in the cat run & the cedar tree next door wafts over that lovely smell & my night scented jasmine is in full bloom with gorgeous perfume in the air Georgina gets a bit of gunk in her eye & coughs now & then. She is 11 years old & its been the same since I lived here for 6 years so I know exactly when it happens. Nothing prior. It stops at the beginning of December. If you are not sure though a vet check never goes amiss.

Cute, much better to keep a hairy dogs face trimmed. An easy was is to pull up all the hair on top of her face, from nose tip to eyes & put the scissors flat across & trim it all off, then angle the scissors away to do the corner of the eyes & trim under her chin. If she will tolerate clippers you can just run them down the centre of her nose & trim the rest, it looks neat when done like that.

The joys of entire males. If I don't want it peed on I either move it or fence it.

Fair takes your breath doesn't it. A recent puppy enquirer said to me that her teenage daughter said she would like to breed the puppy & she supposed there was a lot of money to be made. Before I could reply that she was on the phone to the wrong person she said she couldn't be bothered & just wanted a pet to spoil & desexed was good. As I spend $300 per puppy at the vets + all the other expenses involved I am really rolling in it, not. They must think you churn out pups every few months, everything goes perfect, big litters & they cost nothing. Unreal.

Silly dog owner. How to win friends & influence people. Not Would have been better to accept what the CC wanted & show later. Every judge will now know who this dog & owner are. Without the fuss it may have been forgotten in 6 months.

My girls stay the same, more or less. Still play & go stupid & don't tire even when really fat near the end. They get a bit more sooky later on but they are like this anyway. Lots more belly rubs so it may be my fault. Tara did a funny thing when she had a fake pregnancy one time. She gathered all the toys around the place, I mean heaps of them, into a bed & guarded them & growled when the others came near. Should have known why. It was so funny & puzzling at first. All different I guess. Good luck for babies.

Very good post Steve. As usual One simple, (but not foolproof, what is ?) way of checking for problems is to phone someone who has a pup from every litter you have bred a year or so later & ask. Some you hear from forever but not always. I have done this for years. They can be quite suprised but I just explain that I always check on my breeding to see if any health issues have cropped up that are not able to be tested for as it helps me to know. They are always quite chatty & friendly & honest. So far good reports for the last 7 years I have been doing this. Winning the shows is a delightful bonus but health & welfare has to come first.

My vet provides a printed sheet with all the things that are checked & ticked off. If there is a problem on the checked things it is marked. Adults are patella checked yearly & this is written on their vaccination certificates.

South Australia does now require you to register every pup & all litters. No exam here but doing an exam does not make anyone ethical or even competent, on paper & for real are not the same. In all walks of life there are registered & qualified people that one should run a mile from. Even builders, doctors, mechanics etc that do years of training & still stuff it up. The puppy buyer should use at least some common sense & do some research. Buying a pup is not like buying a dress. They should realise that health tests do have paperwork they can ask to sight. What is testable & common in the breed can be found at the click of a button on the internet. Also photos of good examples of the breed. There is so much advice available but yes it can still go wrong & its not always the breeders fault. What they do about it is where the ethics come in. If the place is filthy, the dogs look neglected, the pups don't look healthy etc they should have the sense to walk away. It would be a great word if all people were ethical but its often not enforceable really.

You are not a bad person obviously because you have posted here & it bothers you Could be that you just don't really know her yet. I bet if there was something wrong with her or she had an accident you would be really upset, even though you don't realise it. Sometimes at this age they are wriggly & active & always seem to do something naughty a lot of the time & you need eyes in your bum so can seem like a lot of work. You will be fine & love her soon I am sure.

Phone & ask the vet. I wouldn't give a pregnant animal any kind of medication without checking first. My pregnant cat caught a bird. There was bird guts & a big worm on the floor, panic. The vet said Milbamax was safe for cats but many wormers were not safe for use in pregnancy. Realised afterward the worm may have already been in the bird guts & that's why the cat left it

Silly to get 4 dogs all at once if you are not used to them. If you are 4 pups is fine, but not the best idea, but not 4 adults. Only ever had 2 entire females that would fight but only about once a year, with no warning. All desexed have always been ok. I can never keep 2 entire males together, they have always fought once older so have to keep seperate. Having more than 2 would not allow you to spend enough individual time with each one, which is essential. Depends on breed too. Mine are not a breed that fights or has aggression really. Also small enough to part quickly if things go wrong. I would not like to try & seperate 2 large dogs that are trying kill each other.

Which suburb in Adelaide are you ? I know a few groomers who groom from home but no use to you if you are too far away. I don't use salons. Elise who sometimes comes on here has a salon near Payneham Rd. Link http://www.goroad.com.au/the-spoilt-dog-gr...illage-381.html

Last time I looked there a few years ago I found it depressing, clinical & reeking of disinfectant to the point where I couldn't breathe, dogs nose is more keen than mine. Depends what you want. I would do the drive & check here for small dogs, looks fabulous & small number of small dogs only http://www.bedbiscuit.com.au/index.html

Or my childhood favourite song by Burle Ives. There was an old lady who swallowed a fly.

Never mind about all the people. Got to love dog people . I remember seeing a horse go down in a race on TV & saying Oh poor horse, hope its ok. Never mind that the rider could have broken every bone in his body.

2 more things that have not been posted. If you give raw chicken wings or necks watch your puppy. They can still choke on them so young. Don't leave it with him if you are going out. Watch your children don't fall on him. Small pup, wobbly or boisterous toddler, accidents can happen.

No advice on toilet training, you will get plenty. Other advice is to get them desexed now. They are old enough & the last thing you want is for them to mate. If you miss the signs & they do mate so phone around now for vets that do early desexing. you are an for giving them a home

Puppy weight is not important, as long as its enough. That fat little puppy can grow into a trim adult, the same as human babies can. I wouldn't ever diet a growing pup if it is not "average " weight. They soon run it off as they grow so why worry.

My 5 will all sit, wait nicely & eat their own food without bothering each other at all. Put 5 pigs ears or bones down & they will kill (as much as toy poodles can ) to get each others as well as their own. If I want to take them all away I can, me scary. So being this food aggressive I have to say yes I would breed.

Your dog may leave the snakes alone if trained, maybe, but Will the snakes leave your dog alone ? Dog may not see the snake & tread on it, end of dog, he won't last until you are home from work if bitten. Keep him inside when you are not home next time may be fatal. Scary stuff.

Poodles & cavaliers are bred as companion dogs & should live inside IMO. Not expert on cavaliers but poodles are people dogs & need to be around people. Small dogs are not suited to living outside. Your dog wants to play with its doggy friend so why not have them both inside ?

The other bonus is that he will not be marking his territory. People forget that their male dog can smell the bitch on heat down the road & further away. Never noticed any change in my many desexed dogs over the years apart from this, which is good.

Interesting question that I haven't heard before. I guess you don't have to register your dog at all. Just the microchip & a phone number that is contactable is the way to go.