sandgrubber

Berners have a bad habit of getting AWFUL cancers. Chessies are hard dogs, not for beginners. Whatever the breed, if you're going to get a pup, training the kids is important. I had one Lab pup I sold to a family with small kids. They allowed the kids to play run-chase games with their puppy and got into a mess with a puppy that nipped and kids that encouraged nipping by running away and screaming . . . which the puppy thought was a wonderful game. Those needle teeth aren't child friendly, and most gun dogs are mouthy.

Not sure what it's like in Oz these days, but in the USA I'm finding that there are various good fish-meal based dry foods on the market. Not too expensive. My dogs love them, results in great luster in their coats, and it's sooo easy compared to dealing with fresh and/or frozen fish. (Now using a salmon based version of ProPlan).

We're having a bad time with fleas. Our local population has gotten resistant to Frontline and related chemicals, and to the Soresto flea collar. One of my girls gets seizures from synthetic pyretheroids, which rules out Advantage and a bunch of other treatments. I can't get diatomaceous earth to work very well. Spinopsid-based meds aren't recommended for dogs with a history of seizures. I've been going over the girls with a flea comb and being totally grossed out by the number of fleas I find. Has anyone succeeded in reducing flea population by regular grooming with a flea comb?

My Labs are happy to eat pumpkin raw. You just need to slice it pretty thin. I sometimes peel pumpkin/winter squash before cooking. I just aim the peeler for the floor and the dogs clean up. Actually, they eat all cucurbits (squash/pumpkin/cucumber family) raw.

So is Haribo. It's no longer on the market. After going viral on Amazon the price went sky high. Then no more. http://camelcamelcamel.com/Haribo-Sugar-Free-Gummy-Bears/product/B008JELLCA But if you want something exotic to poison your dogs, Amazon does sell a nice dark chocolate covered bacon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00YSRKL8W/ref=ams_at_4918087722616_B00I5NL9KO

Xylitol is considerably more expensive than cane sugar, so it's most likely to show up in specialized foods such as sweets for diabetics or sweet health foods that advertize fewer calories and better for dental health (eg., gum). If you're like me and buy el cheapo p'nut butter, you're unlikely to encounter the stuff.

The few difficult clients are the worst part about running a boarding kennel. Far worse than picking up poohs. Another way to handle the 'outside of hours' problem is simply add, and make public, a hefty charge for after hours pickup . . . as many vets do for after-hours emergencies. If someone has a good cause and no money, you can always make an exception (and thereby appear as generous). But it's surprising how willing people are to do a schedule work-around to save $100!

Sorry to hear Ebony has problems. My 10 yr old Lab has been on PB for four years to control mild focal seizures. She 'went' epileptic after a cluster seizure episode brought about by synthetic pyretheroid flea control meds which she licked off of a puppy...she was treated with the same stuff. This first episode was terrifying: the convulsing was so severe that she flipped from standing to lying on her side, and this went on for half an hour before a vet identified it as poisoning and advised me that thorough washing to get rid of all the flea meds might bring it under control (it did). The seizures afterward have been short without severe symptoms like loss of consciousness, incontenaence, etc. She just tenses up, especially in front legs, loses coordination and lies down; she also stares. They put her on a fairly high dosage initially. I have halved that twice, and now she just gets a half a tablet once a day. On this dosage she still seizes once or twice a year, but I can live with that, especially as, these days, she wags her tail throughout the seizure. Every case of epilepsy is different. Not all end out with such an easy management regime as mine has, but many end out with stable solutions that allow the dog to live a normal life. It usually takes several months to work out the correct dosage. PB isn't the most harmful drug around, but it can do damage over the long term at higher doses. Once you get control, you may want to work with your vet on experimenting with lower dosages.

About this Course Dog Emotion and Cognition will introduce you to the exciting new study of dog psychology, what the latest discoveries tell us about how dogs think and feel about us, and how we can use this new knowledge to further strengthen our relationship with our best friends. Subtitles available in English 10-15 hours of lectures and assessments Taught by Brian Hare at Duke University https://www.coursera.org/learn/dog-emotion-and-cognition

Sorry to be a wet blanket, but those 10 reasons type commercial sites turn my stomach. Look at the "you might also like" clips. UGGGHHHHH!

I've heard discussions of robots deliberately designed for elders with dementia and severely autistic children. Apparently it's possible to design a cute furry that people get attached to. If I end up dysfunctional with Altzheimers, I hope someone will provide one for me. Until then, I think I'll stick with the real thing.

Johnny Who?

There's no hard cut-off. The probability of catching parvo, if exposed, drops off with each later vaccination. The specifics . . . how much it drops at what age . . . vary with vaccines, and with individual dogs/breeds (Rottis supposedly are higher vulnerability), and may also vary with the season. So, yes, taking a risk . . . but it may be a tiny one. From recent findings on gene expression and season of the year, the immune system seems to work harder in winter, and there's less parvo around, so it may be fairly safe.

Personally, I think it was a mistake to split retrievers up by color way back when (somewhere around 1910). Flatcoat health, particularly cancer risk, is a concern, and the population is small enough that it may be difficult to breed away from the health concerns. The whole practice of breeding for solid colors was some silly 19th century notion of purity. Too bad it made it into so many standards. For some discussion of the origins of yellow in flatcoat lines . . . . http://retrieverman.net/2008/12/12/sewallis-evelyn-shirley-and-some-flat-coated-retriever-history/

With my first litter of puppies I ended out paying a $120 vet bill for some puppy buyers whose puppy threw up on the way home. Turns out it was simply carsickness. Thereafter I was careful to fast puppies for several hours before sending them off in the car.

Another test for pain is to give an appropriate NSAID. If the medication results in a general rise in energy and a more cheerful dog, it's likely the dog was in pain. Not a foolproof test . . . it's still possible that the painkillers weren't effective. But generally, if painkillers don't seem to be doing any good, there's little point in giving them.

No contest: Import semen. Quarantine fees are out of control, and the risk of importing a dog who turns out to be less than expected are horrendous. Surgical AI and frozen semen are expensive, but the cost is trivial compared to that of live animal import. Should someone offer to give you a great proven dog with health tests, etc., I'd consider importing the dog, but not otherwise.

It's amusing, though, to see PDE making a big thing about closed registries and the virtues of (responsible) cross breeding . . . then recoil when the KC starts making moves in that direction.

Sheridan is correct. Latest blog post on PDE indicates KC is mailing breeder education stuff to X-breed owners on their Activities Register! http://pedigreedogsexposed.blogspot.com/2015/04/kc-mails-crossbreed-owners-urging-them.html PDE = Jemima Harrison is confused by the event. Quoting from the blog I honestly don't know how I feel about this. Is it inappropriate pimping in a country where several thousand strays/unwanted dogs dogs are PTS every year? Or is the KC is simply doing the right thing in trying to educate the pet or casual breeder before they willy-nilly breed their dogs? As it happens, I think well-educated pet breeders have much to offer and I don't think that breeding should be the sole preserve of show breeders. Personally, I'm surprised that the extra-mercenary AKC hasn't done this first :)

I saw that and the Basset article too. Is what they are saying untrue? i sincerely hope so I'd say the Dane and Basset articles are slanted, but basically true. Jemima Harrison tends to pick unflattering photos that make physical problems glaringly obvious and talk as though they apply to all show dogs in a breed. But IMO the tendency to reward exaggeration is real, especially for some breeds, and it has produced some unfortunate results.

Actually, I think it was an April Fool's prank :D . Good to see I wasn't the only one who fell for it :)

Not only in America http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9949491/Isle-of-Wight-moots-dog-DNA-database-to-tackle-fouling-problem.html If I remember right, there are pooh-DNA schemes implemented in Isreal and somewhere in the Benelux countries as well. Not that I take offense -- there's a lot of crazy stuff happening somewhere in the USA.

Dogs cope well with whatever human idiotic stuff they've learned to cope with. go to an AA meeting and talk with serious alcoholics about dogs and you'll hear lots of people talk about the dog as the only one who stuck by them when they hit bottom. A dog from a teetotaler family isn't going to be prepared to handle drink. dogs easily learn to spot and avoid drunks who take it out on the dog.. . .but may also recognize the sloppy drunk who will throw a ball for hours or scratch the places that itch.

KC report reveals plans for new crossbreed register A document leaked to pedigreedogsexposed by an insider at the Kennel Club reveals that the KC plans to extend its register to provide ancestry data for all dogs, whether purebred or crossbreed. The Kennel Club does, of course, already register crossbreed dogs on its Companion Dog Register, but this does not include pedigree data. This new move is the first step to a database which will allow people to track their dog's ancestry regardless of their dog's provenance. The confidential report makes no bones about the likely opposition. "Many KC breeders feel very strongly that the KC should be the preserve of purebred dogs only," it says. "However, there is much to be gained from embracing responsibly-bred crossbreeds." The report goes on to spell out the benefits: it is important that the Kennel Club is seen as a modern, inclusive organisation, representing all dogs. an increasing number of responsible cross-breeders produce health-tested puppies that deserve our support pedigree/health-test information for crossbreeds is of clear value to both breeders and buyers. an inclusive register detailing a dog's ancestry regardless of breed will be particularly useful in the outcross projects that are necessary in order for some breeds to survive. registering crossbreeds will provide an additional revenue stream for the Kennel Club The report even discusses the possibility of recommending that the conformation show-ring is opened up to the more recognised crossbreeds such as the Labradoodle and Cavapoo - but admits this may be for the future. A company search reveals that the Kennel Club registered the Kennel Crossbreed Club as a limited company on 20th August 2008, suggesting the move has been on the cards for some time. This might mean that crossbreed dogs will be KCC-registered rather than KC-registered - a small sop perhaps to the many breeders who will object to the KC legitimising crossbreeds. I would imagine over time, however, that this is a distinction that will be lost. The report finishes by stressing that the announcement will need to be handled with tact and diplomacy to prevent alienating core breeders. The move is not a complete surprise. During a chat with KC Chairman, Steve Dean, on the way back from the recent DogHealth Workshop in Germany, Professor Dean mentioned the desire of the Kennel Club to be "more inclusive". But may I be the first to offer my congratulations to the Kennel Club for this forward-thinking initiative. It's a bold move and makes sense - not something I say very often about the KC. see http://pedigreedogsexposed.blogspot.com/

The Gumtree equivalent in the US, Craigslist, does ban pet sales, though permits small rehoming fees (on the order of $100 . . . $200 or more will get you in trouble as will price on asking). I'd say the general effect is highly detrimental for small breeders, but not significant for commercial breeders whose marketing strategies are well worked and who typically ask prices on the up side of $1000. The anti-breeder AR types who patrol pet listings on Craigslist search for listings that include registry (AKC, CKC, etc) and actively flag pedigree breeders. Result: pet listings on CL are full of BYB pit bulls being sold cheap, oops litters, dogs being rehomed due to personal circumstances, and pedigree breeders have a harder time placing pups through local advertizing.