cowanbree

Love Goldies but I am not a Lab fan. Have an aussies but not fussed on BC. Breed shelties but have very little interest in sables, I only like tri and blues.

Where is she located? I may be able to tell her when a show is on that she could attend and hopefully meet other breeders. Lots of breeders don't advertise

I would take two and rotate them so everyone has a turn and everyone has company

I would go to a show and talk to some of the people. Sheltie people will know who does the best debarks. Love the breed but they can really bark

I am looking for a slicker brush to help get through the double coat of a sheltie when they are dropping coat. Any other time I use a Mason and Pearson's but when they are moulting they are next to useless. I have had a wooden backed slicker for years which has been great but the dogs have chewed it beyond repair. Can anything recommend a slicker that is up to the task?

I have marking issues. I attribute that to the fact that I have 3 entire males that constantly haggle for top position. Most of the time it is only an occasionally event but currently my old boy (14yrs) who has been top dog all his life is marking inside because a younger dog has taken over as top dog. Very frustrating and very difficult to get on top of as they never mark in front of you

The problem is none of these breathe which means the dog can't wear them for long periods. I have been looking for something that is at least semi waterproof (or fast drying, offers cushioning for a sore foot and can be left on for 10hrs. No luck yet

I have an old buy who has had on-going issues with an interdigital cyst for nearly 3years. It got extremely nasty and was constantly infected and the end result was we had to amputate his outside toe. All the infections have cleared up and the foot itself is looking great but because of the issues he has had he isn't walking properly on that foot and is walking on the side of his outside toe. This puts a lot of pressure on the foot and is quite painful which makes him a very lame dog. I was thinking in people he would be put in corrective shoes that retrain or at least cushion the foot but do we have things like that in dogs? I know there are shoes around but would they work in this instance?

I don't really think you have enough information to know if they are reputable breeders. I don't personally take deposits but many of my breeder friends do and I can understand why when they breed a litter thinking they are all sold and when they are on the ground everyone has changed their minds or got one somewhere else. As for their communication, they may not be e-mail people. If you have questions pick up the phone and ring them. There is nothing wrong with the questions you have but I find most pet people aren't that interested, they are more concerned about getting the right sex and colour so while I am happy to answer any and all questions I wait for them to be asked. I find I am very seldom asked about health testing let alone anything else and my last litter was the first time in 25yrs of breeding I have been asked to see the pedigree. They get one in their puppy pack anyhow so it wasn't an issue but I did wonder why they wanted it

I have used it in the past for my old boy Mac who had IBS. I just added it daily to his food and it did help. No particular brand, just what the health shop had

Is she taking temperatures? In most cases there is a significant temperature drop which means puppies within 12-24hrs or off to the vet I go

Oh yes it is a big issue in my family. My parents very seldom visit here as they can't accept the dogs. Mum believes if you have to spend any more than $100 at the vet the dog should be pts and if it is elderly looking and no longer pretty it should also go. Apparently because I have more than one they are neglected but my brother who has one dog that lives predominately outside, is fed the cheapest rubbish they can find and not taken to the vet because it is too expensive - well an ideal home. I just ignore it nowadays. Almost never mention my dogs to any of my family and life is a lot more peaceful

You could always take a retired dog from a breeder. I have placed a couple with older people I wouldn't otherwise consider but these dogs have a return to breeder clause and they have a home here for life. I consider it sharing, will only do it locally where I can keep an eye on the dog and won't have any more than 2 at a time. It is win win for both of us, dog gets a super life and one on one attention and they get the dogs company and the security of knowing they don't need to worry about the dog

As a breeder I get a lot of enquiries from older people wanting puppies/dogs. My most recent was a very frail gentleman in his 80s who was so lonely after losing his sheltie but wanted my 7mth old extremely active lad who was not at all suitable. I always consider what is best for the dog concerned and if you consider a sheltie will generally live 16odd years and the average life span for people is mid 70s it does mean that if you are over 70 with no back up in place a puppy isn't suitable. Yes you may well be able to provide for the puppy currently but odds are the dog will not live out his life with you. I encourage older people to look at older dogs or rescues.

I didn't enjoy 3 dogs. I found 1 was always left out when they were playing and I could take 2 dogs everywhere but 3 was too many which meant I had to leave 1 home alone. 4 is much better

I have heard great things about Rose Hips Canine Powder for arthritis and would like to try it but unfortunately the dog version is not in NZ as yet. It has to be a powder for my special needs dog and I have found a herbalist selling Rose Hips powder so I was wondering if this is a viable alternative? Has anyone tried just straight powder?

In this case it is. What else is different? His parents have still had all the relevant health tests, he is still eye and vet checked and he still comes with a lifetime of breeder support. A lot of NZ breeders only register the ones that are going to be shown or bred so I guess it is more the norm here. So how does anyone keep track of the positives and negatives in the lines? Pedigree papers arent just a piece of paper they are intrinsic to being able to track issues for generations and making the person who buys them take pride in what they have over and above anyone else who is breeding them. I can't speak for everyone but if I sell one without papers it is being sold as a pet and will be desexed so there will be no future generations for that particular puppy. As to if that puppy has issues, I keep in contact with all of my puppies and am as interested if this puppy has issue as I am in one registered on the limit register. Registering them doesn't make you a better breeder. So how is this information that may turn up over the years passed onto other breeders if the pup isn't registered? How is it passed on if the puppy is registered? Perhaps Australia is different but in NZ the only thing held by the NZKC is the name. Health testing and any arising issues are not recorded with them.

In this case it is. What else is different? His parents have still had all the relevant health tests, he is still eye and vet checked and he still comes with a lifetime of breeder support. A lot of NZ breeders only register the ones that are going to be shown or bred so I guess it is more the norm here. So how does anyone keep track of the positives and negatives in the lines? Pedigree papers arent just a piece of paper they are intrinsic to being able to track issues for generations and making the person who buys them take pride in what they have over and above anyone else who is breeding them. I can't speak for everyone but if I sell one without papers it is being sold as a pet and will be desexed so there will be no future generations for that particular puppy. As to if that puppy has issues, I keep in contact with all of my puppies and am as interested if this puppy has issue as I am in one registered on the limit register. Registering them doesn't make you a better breeder.

In this case it is. What else is different? His parents have still had all the relevant health tests, he is still eye and vet checked and he still comes with a lifetime of breeder support. A lot of NZ breeders only register the ones that are going to be shown or bred so I guess it is more the norm here.

I don't think it automatically means they are a bad breeder unless it is contrary to the relevant KC rules. In NZ we don't have to register all the puppies and a lot don't. My last litter I registered 3 of the 4 puppies. I didn't register the 4th because the owners were not at all interested in whether the puppy had a piece of paper with a fancy name so I might as well save the cost of registering him. That puppy came from the same health tested parents and had exactly the same care and love that the other 3 had.

When my cat had her eye removed she had a bloody discharge for quite some time, it did clear up. My vets advice was as long as she is happy and eating well just keep an eye on her unless the discharge becomes heavy

I had an aussie that had a obsession for pills and had many a rushed trip to the vet. He finally told me to keep washing soda crystal on hand and use those at home to induce vomiting. Worked a treat and saved me many a trip to the vet

I always do a meet and greet and give them a card with my phone numbers on it saying if there is any issues at all I want to hear about it. Has always worked well for me and has the added benefit it anything dodgy is going on the neighbours give me a ring at work. In the 9yrs I have been here I have had to come home twice for bark (both times over in season bitchs) and once because we had prowlers,. Fortunately the neighbour had scared them off before I got home but I do feel a bit safer knowing they are keeping an eye on my dogs

I believe as a breeder the fact that I chose to bring that puppy into the world makes it my responsibility to make sure he has a happy life. Not only will I always take back or make some arrangements for any puppy I bred but my puppies can not be on sold or given away without my agreement and vetting of the new home. I do my best to pick the prefect home for each puppy but I am not perfect, have had 2 returned. One after 2 weeks and the other as a 9yr old. It was difficult esp in the case of the 9yr old that went from being an only pet to one of a number of dogs but we survived.

I think it would be great if it was legislated as part of sick or bereavement leave rather than additional. Not all workplaces are compassionate and understand. Last year I had an extremely bad year and lost 4 pets. Three of them I managed to arrange to have pts at weekends but the 4th one my cat Keriem was during work time. I only took an hour off and I can assure you work was not understanding, my boss even rolled his eyes and said another one. Not all workplaces understand why a pet death is very upsetting, to them it was just a pet, easily replaceable.