sandgrubber

One of the unfortunate things about poisons is that they are poison. I expect there's a lot we don't know about the stuff we use to control parasites, and a lot of it isn't good.

Has anyone ever used a scoff stopper to slow down their dog's eating? See http://www.scoffstopper.com.au/products/Scoff-Stopper.html Would something like this really help prevent bloat?

Great story. I wasn't planning on raising baboons. Labs are trouble enough thank you. They do tend to eat anything and everything so I guess caution is advised. But could can keep 'em in the house paddock when the crop is ripe and sweet.

My expert says you want Zn + Se on a daily basis. I have found a product called Selvita, made from feral carp, is a good solution. Five drops a day is enough for a 30 kg dog. It's really strong stuff. They don't mention the Zn on this add, but the zinc content is quite high. See http://jsenthunting.com.au/selvita-working-dog.php. edited to make the link work

I'd say good on the RSPCA. Seems like there's an enforcement vacuum here. Not that I know anything on the local situation.

Demand >>>> Supply for Boston Terriers in Australia. Exepct a high price and a long wait. I'm thinking about moving back to the US . .. where Bostons are available and reasonably priced. I wouldn' buy one in Oz cause it's just too difficult. and too expensive

I suspect this post fits into the 'myths' category. USA legislation comes down like a load of bricks on anything that might -- even with the remotest possibility -- be fatal to children. If someone's putting really toxic fire retardants [for Christ's sake, stuffed animals are not a big contributor to fire hazard] into children's toys, I'd expect that the powers that protect children would have given them a kick (of the $$ kind)where it hurts. I'm not ready to give up buying the $1 special from the Good Sammies that I've been giving my pups for many years now.

Are dogs and vines a good mix? would love to hear from anyone with a few dogs who lives on a grape growing property. I've been looking at a flight plan to get out of WA kennel zone for a couple years now. I'm a US/Oz dual national, which gives a few advantages. Looking at a beautiful 13+ acre property in California with pond, great soil, lovely environment, and excellent bore . . . 8 acres in Pinot Noir with documented returns from grape sales. I breed Labradors on a small scale (mostly chocolate). Love to hear from anyone with relevant experience.

I think 7:30 report puts together a bunch of stuff and only decides what they're going to put on on the day . . . .so if there's a big breaking story they can give it lots of air.

Another concern in 'best time to' is your own schedule. It's much better to do puppy school when you have some time to follow up on what you and the puppy learn. I get lots of people in kennels who seem disappointed that their puppy went to puppy school and still isn't obedient. You probably know it doesn't work that way. . . . but some people seem to expect one class is going to result in a well socialised, well trained dog.

I could also see fining the reporter for confusing the plural with the posessive and saying the dog died during surgery only to go on and say the dog died after surgery. Where are the grammar cops when we need 'em.

Desensitising is possible. It's called 'crittering' and is sometimes done using an electronic collar for dogs with a bad history . . . or for dogs that show an inclination . .. of stock attacks. I agree with others, for rodents, it's more sensible to keep the little guy in a secure pen, well away from the dog. for more information, try google with 'crittering' and 'e-collar' as keywords.

If you buy a trampoline-style dog bed, consider the covering and how hard/easy it will be to replace. The frame should last for a long time. Many dogs can go through a hessian cover in a fortnight. You need to shop around and try around to find things your dogs won't destroy -- if you have that kind of dog. You'll find many sources. Just stick to commonly-available sizes (I've found many of the Big-W/Bunnings sorts of 'made in China' brands are fine and cheap initially, but once the coverring goes, it's hell to find a good replacement.

Good luck Tango. Sorry it had to happen to you. Hope the second home you found has been a good one. And good luck also to Tango's owners. It's good to see, occasionally, that the owners are as faithful as the dog.

A response without copying all the quotes and quotes and quotes on quotes. Gets snarly. I have met some nice pittis in the US (California) . . . I was born in the US and lived there most of my life. I have also met some not-so-nice pittis. I am against BSL for pittis. It's bad law . . . it does not deliver justice and condemns a lot of innocents. The ambiguity of breed identification is bound to create problems. But I'm also against the cultivation of circumstances that end out with dogs and occasionally people getting maimed or killed. No number of pictures of dogs curled up with kittens is going to successfully counter what seem to be the best available statistics. (Might add, I think adding new potentially problematic breeds to the mix is a bad idea. I can imagine what will happen when the underground elements get their hands on a few of the more aggressive sorts of fila and we end out with a 60 kg vicious dog becoming the 'cool' thing in the blood-sport underground. I also think BSL is not entirely bad, as it keeps pressure on the breed communities to keep their acts clean, not breed for aggression, and avoid selling to people who may think brutality is entertaining). As before . . . if you think the available dog attack / fatality statistics are worthless, please provide better ones, or even say how better ones could be constructed, given the huge ambiguity around breed identification.

Lots of good evidence points towards the 3 canine core modified live vaccines producing at least several years of protection, possibly life long protection, in most animals after the initial puppy series. But not all vaccinations cause lasting protection for an animal, even if the animal does seroconvert. Some do, some don't. It's not an unbreakable rule that seroconversion after a vaccination = lifelong protection. I could name several production animal vaccinations off the top of my head where the body demonstrably doesn't retain protective immunity indefinitely (despite what the titre test may originally say). But just because a titre test shows there are no demonstratable antibodies lurking around does not mean the animal is not immune. The memory cells are responsible for the amnamnestic response which is what would protect the animal if it is resensitised. Proving that an animal seroconverts ensures you have stimulated a response and the animal will then have memory cells for this atigen. Having no antibodies present in a titre test three year on does not mean that the animal does not have immunity. Depends on when it was last vaccinated: if you did a titre test, say, at 18 weeks when the pup got its last jab at 12 weeks, I'd expect a good titre reading. If the reading was low, there would be reason to go for a third puppy jab. Another vaccination-related thread (on the Breeders Community Forum) suggests that a bitch needs to have active antibodies to be able to produce milk that protects pups from disease . . . so a different vaccination regime, or titre testing, may be appropriate for brood bitches.

I think there's a lack of information, and possible a lot of fear-based misinformation, regarding 'baiting' in dog fighting (about which I know absolutely nothing). I've tried to move the 'bait' question to the BSL forum, where there may be more people who have a sense about whether dog fighting is or is not a real concern.

Sorry. No gameplan. No game. Sometimes drunk. Sometimes cynical. High IQ and like word games, but not good at politics. Basically sincere. I don't like BSL, but I also detest denial, and I keep smelling rat in those who say their breeds are great with children, etc. [what about strangers and unfamiliar dogs?]. I do think the pressure needs to be kept on, and directed effectively, to select dogs, regardless of breed, to end out with less DA and less HA behaviour in the dog population. And I think unspeakable things, preferably including desexing, should be done to people who use dogs to satisfy their own desire to see blood flow.

I've considered this and decided that it does not matter. If say Dogs Victoria are the recipient of 20 letters stating the same - it is no different to the protocol required to request a special meeting, whereby a letter is written by one member outlining the issue with signatures from supporting members. So the more letters received by the State CCs, the better. I have received an initial reply from Dogs Victoria - they agree the document is negative and will take up the matter directly with the RSPCA. If you know the way inforation is processed, it's likely you are right. I'm in WA and the RSPCA here seems to pretty much stay out of pedigree dog breeders' way.

I'm surely not sober enough, and may not be intelligent enough, to put everything that's going on in this thread together. A few key points: Some parts of the RSPCA are being pretty whacky about pedigree vs. X-breed Definitive objective data are not available and the best data available are hard to interpret. In my experience, organisations are pretty quick to bin letters that are clearly adaptations of a 'form' letter. .. .but that may not be true of all organisations and may have been worked out by the relevant persons in this case. the RSPCA are in a position to gain sympathy because there are some shonky pedigree breeders out there . . . and some of them think they're doing the right thing and think they are acting in the best interests of 'the breed'. I'd say if you have thoughts, it's probably better to write them out yourself rather than send a form letter . . . if you feel strong enough to do so. . . .or take the form letter and hack it so that it clearly represents your personal opinion.

Hey guys . . .please read and contribute to the 'Studies About Dogs' thread in pinned thread section of thethe 'General' forum. There have been some great things written about dog topics (behaviour, breeding, health, diet, etc.) and many of the key findings are published online in some form another. Some great articles have been posted to date. I'd hope to see more come up . .. and people looking to this thread when they want well-researched articles.

Our breed standard calls for bidability Traditional job: retrieval of shot game, often in wet conditions, or before that, pulling in of fishing nets in very cold, rough waters. I've had some dogs that are gung-ho. I've had some dogs that won't quit. I've had some dogs that are keen on everything (ie, game in the 'I'm game' sense). I've had some dogs that are real athletes. I've had some dogs that have emotional IQ's that would fit in the top 5% if they were matched against humans. I've had some dogs who were faithful to a fault. I've had dogs that love water and have to be controlled lest they commit suicide by swimming into ice flows in a frozen river during spring break up. I am still confused about which are 'game'. I don't mean to be flippant by suggesting a 'game' litter. I just find the definitions put forward on this thread are all over the place. Perhaps it's better to say 'exceptional' rather than 'game' to avoid confusion.

BSL is deeply linked to dog fighting and social aversion to it. I have never seen a deliberate dog fight, and hate the whole idea. I am so disgusted by it that it may blind me to the details. Every time there's a epidemic of dog thefts, someone mentions the fear that dogs are being stolen as 'bait' for a dog fighting ring. Is this total paranoia? Would real dog fighters steal dogs that are incompetent fighters to train fighting dogs? Or would they be more inclined to go for SBT's and other dogs that have a 'fighting' chance? Or would different people have diferent tactics for training their dogs? I cannot see how it would help prep a dog for a good fight to set it against a dog it can bring down and kill without really trying. My guess is people are stealing dogs to resell them or breed them and resell the pups. (Inspired by the latest 'dogs going missing' report on the general forum)

Not sure if this would work . . . I'm from WA and don't know how things work over your way. But could you ask someone to report the dog, claim it's a cross or an 'unknown' bought from a petshop, and get a NOI, and end out getting a breed assessment done? Note, I'm not advocating falsifying the breed. I've seen some pet shop Labradors that definitely aren't Labradors, and some pet shop cross breeds that were supposed to be small dogs and ended up waist high. I think you have an honest case for saying the breed is uncertain.

That was nasty and not very balanced. I try to base my opinions on solid evidence. I've been asking for numbers. Please give some indication of where the CDC statistics to which you refer can be found. I started this thread cause the anti-BSL people had been saying look at the CDC numbers. I found some numbers on the CDC website . . . those from Sachs et al. They didn't look good for the pit bull or rotti. fyi: I do not generally favor BDL or BSL , though until the present BSL situation is resolved, I support import restrictions on breeds that I think will make an existing situation worse. If, as it sounds from other people's posts, the dog fighters are using dogos and filas to come up with bigger, stronger fighting dogs, we don't need it. People wanting a good pig dog or guard dog have plenty of options as it is. I agree that BSL doesn't work well and ends out causing the deaths of many good, lovely, dogs, and heartbreak for their owners. I think those working to end BSL need to be honest in recognising problems in getting some individuals/booodlines within their breed to fit into society, and, to the extent that those problems are being perpetuated and made worse by a small group of people who love blood sport, I think breed fanciers need to come down on the group in question. As a Labrador breeder, there is no way I'm going to be able to approach a dog fighter as a 'peer'. As an APBT fancier, perhaps one who owns some awesome dogs, and who can talk credibly about bloodlines in the breed, people like you may have a chance. Attacking and vilifying people who ask honest questions is a good way to turn the undecided against the APBT.