sandgrubber

Tracking is wonderful fun for the dogs, and the feel is great. But the set-up of tracks is very time consuming, especially when you get past the beginner stage and tracks need to be laid several hours in advance. The need for the track layer to be at the end of the track when the search begins further adds to the time required. The way scent behaves makes some hours better than others. Early morning is often the preferred time cause tracks can be set the evening before and they're still pretty strong the next morning. If you want to do tracking, be prepared to do early morning work . . . and, in time, to help set up tracks for others.

If you have a couple dogs, I'd say do the ear thing on both. If one feels warmer than the other, then it's worth getting out the thermometer. I once owned a dog who deeply resented the 'rectal' approach . . . temperature taking was the only time she ever bit anyone. Guess what, the vet got it. If you have a similar dog, a muzzle may be a useful prelude to the thermometer.

TROY is now putting out a calcium syrup that is chemically very similar to the Sandoz product . . . half the price at our local pets and gardens shop (~$30/litre).

Asbestos is dangerous to the lungs, not the digestive system. The time required for asbestos diseaseas to appear is generally long in comparison with a dog's lifetime. So I wouldn't panic. I would, however, look for informed advice . . . and get rid of the worry cause it's better to have a worry-free environment.

I avoid early prog tests by waiting until the girls get really serious about mounting eachother . . . generally end out with a first prog reading > 5. But the method isn't 100%. I have missed the peak once or twice.

The change in AVA presents canine service providers with complex decisions. If the AVA recommends annual vaccinations, our backsides are exposed if we accept another vaccination regime. Now that the AVA has backed off, we have to re-examine our policies. Pro-titre testing people have been loud on this forum. In broad terms, my posts aim for a balanced perspective on titre testing . . . informed by scientific understanding, legal understanding, and understanding of what clients know and want.

My vet showed me how to do the microscope method. She said a cheap 100 X scope would do, but of course, more expensive binocular scopes are easier to use. All you need to see is the general pattern and shape of cells. I still do prog testing. I didn't find it easy to get the hang of it. But I didn't try very hard.

Wrong . . . quoting from the article cited in my last post . . . 'A "titer" is a measurement of how much antibody to a certain virus (or other antigen) is circulating in the blood at that moment. Titers are usually expressed in a ratio, which is how many times they could dilute the blood until they couldn't find antibodies anymore. So let's say they could dilute it two times only and then they didn't find anymore, that would be a titer of 1:2. If they could dilute it a thousand times before they couldn't find any antibody, then that would be a titer of 1:1000. A titer test does not and cannot measure immunity, because immunity to specific viruses is reliant not on antibodies, but on memory cells, which we have no way to measure. Memory cells are what prompt the immune system to create antibodies and dispatch them to an infection caused by the virus it "remembers." Memory cells don't need "reminders" in the form of re-vaccination to keep producing antibodies. (Science, 1999; "Immune system's memory does not need reminders.") If the animal recently encountered the virus, their level of antibody might be quite high, but that doesn't mean they are more immune than an animal with a lower titer. ' My vet says that KC (or BB, as the vets call it) vaccination doesn't work for very long, and that if people really want their dogs to be protected, they should take them in for a KC vaccination about two weeks before taking them to kennels. He says the annual KC is nonsense. Not all kennels require KC vaccination . . . I'm not sure but I think maybe you didn't get what Cavandra was saying and I don't think what she said was wrong at all. What you quoted says this "Memory cells are what prompt the immune system to create antibodies and dispatch them to an infection caused by the virus it "remembers." Which is basically the same thing - it sounded like she was saying that the presence of antibodies is reasonable proof that the dog has memory cells that ARE and WILL prompt the immune system to fight the virus. It's the only way we have of testing that the dog responds approopriately to the threat of that virus. Vaccination proves nothing, you could be revaccinating a non responder for years... The level of antibodies IMO, are mostly irrelevant.....a TT just proves as much as we can, that the dog mounts a proper response to the threat of the disease. Let's say a pup is vaccinated with the baby series of jabs, and a follow-up at one year, ending up with well primed memory cells. It is then not vaccinated for many years. If I understand the material I quoted correctly, one would expect TT to show a good response (many dilutions required) at one year. But at five years, the antibodies would probably be way down and TT would show poor immune response. The dog's memory cells, however, would be able to identify the virus and set off production of antibodies, thus conferring full immunity if the dog were exposed to the disease.

I would be interested to hear what this vet says about the difference between human and canine vaccinations. Can anyone think of a human disease that requires an annual vaccination (apart from the 'flu because of mutation) ?? In my experience human vaccinations last a minimum three years and often 10. Why does this not apply to dogs ? The vet in question says annual vaccination is neither necessary nor healthy. He says the ideal would be puppy shots at 12 and something like 18 weeks, and then a 14 month jab, then no need to vaccinate for many years. .. . perhaps for life, but 5 years would be reasonable.

On the agility question . . . as a Lab breeder, I think it's more a reflection on agility than on Labs. No . . . Labs were not bred for jumping and the are, according to the standard, powerful dogs. They are agile at the things they are bred for, and many of them love the sorts of things that are done in formal agility competitions. But the Labs who do well in competitive agility work are likely to be lighter and lankier than those who win conformation contests.

In choosing a stud dog for a maiden bitch, when just getting started, unless you're loaded with cash, I'd look for the best dog within a 200 km radius (or an N-hour drive), and let the bitch's breeder advise me about choices. If you have time and money to spare, you can look through the entire list of Gordons in Oz, and check out NZ, and dream about importing frozen semen. But I'd just aim for 'improviing the breed' on the first litter, and go for finding the perfect mate if you're still in the game come the next round. Chilled semen is not that expensive, so if you're a bit more daring you could widen your search to Oz-wide, assuming the stud isn't that far from an airport. Your breeder will know the relatively-local dogs, and it shouldn't be too hard to decide on a very good, if not fantastic, match. I personally look for a dog that complements what I think could be improved in the bitch, plus . 1) health 2) temperament; and 3) type and let my selection be affected by any information about how one line goes with another line . . . or how peripotent the dog is.

Can I take a stab in the dark and ask if it was Steve at Applecross Vets that you asked????? Yes, why?

Wrong . . . quoting from the article cited in my last post . . . 'A "titer" is a measurement of how much antibody to a certain virus (or other antigen) is circulating in the blood at that moment. Titers are usually expressed in a ratio, which is how many times they could dilute the blood until they couldn't find antibodies anymore. So let's say they could dilute it two times only and then they didn't find anymore, that would be a titer of 1:2. If they could dilute it a thousand times before they couldn't find any antibody, then that would be a titer of 1:1000. A titer test does not and cannot measure immunity, because immunity to specific viruses is reliant not on antibodies, but on memory cells, which we have no way to measure. Memory cells are what prompt the immune system to create antibodies and dispatch them to an infection caused by the virus it "remembers." Memory cells don't need "reminders" in the form of re-vaccination to keep producing antibodies. (Science, 1999; "Immune system's memory does not need reminders.") If the animal recently encountered the virus, their level of antibody might be quite high, but that doesn't mean they are more immune than an animal with a lower titer. ' My vet says that KC (or BB, as the vets call it) vaccination doesn't work for very long, and that if people really want their dogs to be protected, they should take them in for a KC vaccination about two weeks before taking them to kennels. He says the annual KC is nonsense. Not all kennels require KC vaccination . . .

Today I asked a vet -- one who I know keeps up with the veterinary literature -- whether kennels should accept titre test results. He gave an unqualified NO. He says titre tests measure only the amount of antibodies present . . . thus, in a sense, they tell about exposure to a virus, or a the dummy version of a virus in a vaccination . . . but they do not measure the dog's ability to fight the virus. I tried Google on "what do titre tests measure" and found that most of the articles that came up agreed with this point of view. The following link explained it succinctly without a lot of jargon http://www.caberfeidh.com/Titers.htm Curious to know what people think, cause this contradicts opinions that are often voiced on this forum.

I believe it is learnt behaviour. We are thinking it is also a seperation related behaviour. She used to escape when we first got her and that was because she was so close to me. Always escaped when i wasn't at home. She still is close to me but we thought we had done enough independence training to get around it. If I could afford it at the moment i would, cheapest around here is $25/day. She would have gone there from day one but circumstances worked against me... (too many things went wrong with the new house) In looking at kennels for sale, I'd swear I've seen a couple in the Melbourne hinterland that were getting $12 to $14/day for small dogs . . . they allowed lots of yard time and had high fences. You might find that kenneling is more affordable if you're willing to drive for an hour or so.

I'd suggest looking at http://www.rjwalsh.com.au/mini/index.htm . . . they make a lovely mini sulky great for pulling dogs . . . also http://www.chalosulky.com./ they sell leads, harnesses, etc., as well as some DVD's that I think have training tips, and gear to attach a dog to a cart. I haven't seen anything in NZ . . . but there may be some mushers around who have some idea. Cart pulling should be a great activity for a Rotti . . . it's one of their original uses as a farm dog in germany . . . and they certainly have the strength for it.

Curious: Is Digi biting aggressively? Or just using his mouth in a playful fashion that is very frightening to your son? I have a Newfie in kennels at the moment who occasionally grabs me by the arm. He's being friendly, but it's a little frightening to me. Otherwise, he's a lovely dog . . . extremely calm and great with other dogs. I like having him in kennels because he automatically becomes Alpha dog due to his size . . . but because he is so calm, he imparts calmness on the whole mob. If it's just scary but friendly mouthing, I'd guess you have a good chance of training the behaviour out. Or curtailing it with a muzzle.

I asked for advice about sulky harnesses a week or so ago and someone gave me a warning to look out for the law . .. that dogs pulling wheeled things were outlawed. I've been through the WA Animal Cruelty legislation, the Dog Act, and various laws relating to what is permitted on the roads and have not been able to find anything that says or implies that a dog-drawn (or goat drawn, or pony drawn) cart/wagon/sulky is not permitted on public roads. I find a bit on what is a legal dog trailer, but that's it. Can anyone give me any pointers as to where the Law becomes a problem?

Last I heard Liz Franks was seeing occasional patients through Andrew Buchannan at Mill Point Vet practice. You might contact him to try and learn her whereabouts. I recently sold a pup to an nice English physio who does myotherapy on humans. She might be willing to try a dog patient. She's NOR -- I think Hillarys . . . PM me if you want a contact.

I 100% agree. But why is it then that time and time again we have the labrador being touted in the media as the perfect family pet (no effort required and fine for the novice) and time and time again I come across labs that are either grossly overweight or bad mannered because the owners seem to believe that no training is required and just because their large dog isn't aggressive bad manners is okay. Where is this myth coming from? I completely understand why labs are popular they are great dogs but surely lab breeders must be dismayed by the fact that they fall into the hands of people who are unable or unwilling to give them the lives they deserve. I like labs, I like the breed description of labs, I love to see labs working be it as gundogs, seeing eye dogs or drug detector dogs, but there are too many members of joe public out there who own labs who shouldn't, or don't understand that they can sometimes be a large boisterous dog that needs correct training and upbringing. ETA: clarification. I agree only 50%. Some Lab puppies are terrors, but many are quite good . . . not destructive, not rambunctious, reasonably placid from day 8 x 7 = 56 on. Many of the Labs I get in boarding kennels have had no formal training -- nor did the Labs I was brought up with -- and most are great with children, older people, and complex social situation (apart from being notorious beggars). I expect and enforce good behaviour from my dogs, but many of my dogs get no formal training. I have never had a Lab take laundry off the line, destroy a retic system, or ruin furniture (ok they get it dirty, but that's because I allow them to get up on it and don't have a way to ensure they are clean before they get on the sofa) . . . they dig holes, but I've got ACRES of sand, so that's fine. The pups do jump up on people, but if consistently discouraged they pretty much stop doing so before well before they reach 12 months. All my dogs are calm. The only area where I have needed to do serious training is recall under strong distraction (which is inadequately treated in most beginning obedience or puppy training classes). The only 'training' -related complaint I've gotten from puppy buyers comes from people who let young children play with the pup without restriction, and end up with a pup the treats small children as littermates (chase, scream, and bite). I now warn puppy buyers about need to discipline their children when playing with the puppy. I think the word biddable is key. Because Labs have become a very popular family dog, much recommended as such, it is good if breeders who sell to a lot of pet homes select for traits that make them fit the bill and will easily comply with people's reasonable expectations without a lot of formal training . . . and if they choose to run more energetic (maniacal) and high strung bloodlines, they should be careful to advise puppy buyers that they are likely to have an energetic animal that requires considerable discipline, particularly in the first year.

Great links!!! Thanks. I didn't know anyone except RJ Walsh was making dog sulkies. Have you -- or anyone else -- had any experience with Chalo sulkies? Sorry, No. Don't forget that unlike the USA, I think in Australia like the UK it is illegal to use a dog for draught work on a gazetted public road (including the adjacent footpaths). The sled dog fraternity here generally only use forest trails or private land. Buggar! I have a private limestone track that runs out behind my property, which should be ok for starters, but it would really be nice to be able to use public roads. Do you know if that's a national or a state law? Btw. A book called The Pawprints of History (S. Cohen, 2002) gives a wonderful description of the outlawing of dogs as draught animals in the UK , and all the horrible consequences (tens of thousands of dogs died, many poor families lost their companion/draught animals as a consequence . . . and child labour was often brought in to do the work that was once done by dogs. The second legislative triumph of the RSPCA -- after banning bull baiting and dog fighting -- came in 1839, when dogs were outlawed as transport animals within 15 miles of London's Charring Cross Station.

Great links!!! Thanks. I didn't know anyone except RJ Walsh was making dog sulkies. Have you -- or anyone else -- had any experience with Chalo sulkies?

You can purchase a Dogtown DVD from National Geographic http://shop.nationalgeographic.com/product.../4313/1074.html

Good suggestion, but, no. The dorsal harness is completely different in how it puts stress on the dog and the design needs to allow for attachment from the top.

Maybe I'm a ratbag, but I also think it would be good to refer the breeder in question to this thread. It may be painful, but I think when people get refusals, it's good for them to understand why. I also do $100 deposits . . . but not puppy shows in a park. I will refund the deposit if the buyer gives good cause for their change of mind. I pocket it if the puppy buyer is mucking me around . . . eg, changed their mind and didn't bother to tell me until week seven or eight.