sandgrubber

This depends on the dog. There are dogs who readily progress from a growl to an attack. Such dogs may need early restraint. None of my present dogs are in that category. I often end out telling my dogs to shut up cause they make so much noise play growling that I can't hear the radio/phone/TV.

The article says it was a 14 yr old boy. I doubt he had any idea what he was doing. If there's blame, I'd lay it on the parents for lack of supervision. I'd say a few years public service working with dog rescue might be punishment enough. As someone who has done a few years of research on fire ignition and spread, I find the whole story baffling. There is almost no fuel in those kennels. I don't see how a fire could have spread. Nor can I imagine a 14 year old being systematic and calculating about putting ignition points around to make sure of good spread. With a facility that large, there should have been someone on premises at all times. How did things get so out of hand?

I don't know for sure that they are not in Australia, but I sure didn't see any when I lived there . . . that's the American hounds, various breeds . . . Treeing Walker Coon Hound, redbone, blue tic. I like this group. Often stubborn, but sociable, hearty, agile, and easy going. Would do well in the heat.

I doubt that the breeder can downgrade a pup that has been sold to someone else without that person's consent. To do so would open up a legal can of worms. If I pay for a first class ticket, the airline can't downgrade me to economy!

The 2012 contest link is also interesting. My fav. was Honorable Mention Dana Ellis, practice manager Neartown Animal Clinic Houston, Texas A 46-pound English bulldog swallowed a 9-inch screwdriver. Dog did very well after cranial laparotomy and gastrotomy. However, after he woke up, he promptly ate his intravenous injection port.

If you were in the US or Canada, you'd want this site. http://www.petinsurancereview.com/dog.asp perhaps they could be coerced to do Oz as well.

PUddleDuck posted this link in off topic. Really deserves to be In the News 2014 X-Ray Contest Winners Animals will eat just about anything. The proof is in the radiographs. BY VETERINARY PRACTICE NEWS EDITORS Published: 2014.08.27 11:55 AM Updated: September 5, 2014, 10:15 a.m. PDT Animal hospitals in Texas, Florida and Oregon won Veterinary Practice News’ ninth annual radiograph contest, “They Ate WHAT?” Pet insurer Trupanion of Seattle, Wash., sponsored the contest and will provide cash awards to support the uncompensated care these hospitals provide pets. The first-place winner, Paws & Claws Animal Hospital of Plano, Texas, received $1,500, Gulf Breeze Animal Hospital in Gulf Breeze, Fla., won the $1,000 second prize, and DoveLewis Animal Hospital in Portland, Ore., will receive the $500 third prize. The Veterinary Practice News editorial team and several advisory board members judged the entries. There follows a collection of amazing radiographs of animals, mostly dogs, who have eaten and not passed various things http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/2014-X-Ray-Contest-Winners/

I turn my head. There are dogs all over my neighborhood. A large fraction of them are neglected. The guy across the street recently reported that his pit bull died . . .she had been having seizures. He figured something between flea infestation and the seizures killed her. Didn't take her to the vet. I doubt I'll get anywhere talking with someone with that kind of attitude. I'm the only person in the neighborhood who walks their dogs.

A tubal ligation during C-section is nothing. Hysterectomy, much more risky.

I'm sure people judge. That's their problem. I couldn't care less.

Thanks, Steve. Good to have those references . . . I passed them on.

I know I've seen posts by Steve and others saying that repro biology tells us it's better for a bitch to start her breeding at a relatively early age and that the uterus stays healthier if there are no multi-year lapses between litters. I was trying to tell this to someone who is breeding a 7 year old virgin and can't find the references. Have tried "search" using various phrases, but it isn't getting me anywhere. Can someone pls point me in the right direction. Thanks.

yep I know a nurse who was in her middle 70's who was on the ward until recently I went in for a haircut recently. The beautician was seventy-something. The other girls say she's been working in the place for 30 years and has a lot of regular clients . . . also that she almost never misses work and takes no extra breaks.

I'm not following you. Yep, there are old politicians and the Pope is old and there are lots of elderly people around. What's that got to do with elderly folk taking on dogs in there late 70's or 80's? Edited to add: I also know an 84yo lady still driving quite capably. To balance the scale, for all the elderly people we know who are fit and healthy there are others who are battling pain and ill health. However that has nothing to do with them owning dogs. I didn't think we were fighting. I thought we were sharing our opinions albeit they are from different view points. I'm about done with posting in this thread now. It gets a bit boring when, in their defence, someone continually states their opinion and my opinion won't change so best I quit now. Your point of view doesn't agree with actuarial facts. IF an individual is healthy into their seventies, they are very likely to live into their nineties. Sure, there are a lot of fragile old people who spend their days watching TV or streaming video, there are diabetics, heavy smokers, and people with conditions that mean they'll be lucky to reach 75. That doesn't mean that the other people, who are eating well, taking care of themselves, and getting a lot of exercise and free from major health complaints should abstain from getting a dog. The lifespan of an older person is predictable, given their condition and medical history. If your doctor tells you it looks like you're on course to live a few more decades, I see no reason not to get a dog. Ok, maybe choose your breed and/or the age of the dog you get to match probable decline in strength and energy. My 79 year old neighbors just got a mini-daschund pup: She's a well-controlled diabetic and walks a couple miles five days a week and is a healthy diet nazi. He is always out in the yard tinkering with old cars and taking care of their lovely 2 acre property . . . but he just recovered from a surgery in which a kidney had to be removed. They . There's a good chance the dog will outlast one of or both of them . . . but their kids are nearby and see a lot of their folks. They all love the pup and will probably fight about who gets the dog when their parents pass. I see NO problem with this situation. Having a dog probably adds a few years to their life expectancies, and that little pup will be loved and cared for like few dogs around. I don't hear anyone saying the frail elderly should be getting puppies.

Nothing new about that. When I was growing up, dogs with irresponsible owners usually got run over rather than impounded and destroyed. Where I live now, dogs with irresponsible owners tend to die of heart worm.

There's a lot of difference between individuals. Much of that difference is predictable. I can't remember where I saw the numbers, but I'm pretty certain that those who make it to, say, 70 and are in good health, have a better chance of living another 25 years than those who make it to 50 and have a few chronic conditions/risk factors (heart, obesity, smoking, family dying young, etc.). There are many detailed life expectancy calculators available that take account of your risk factors. I think these are a useful guideline, not only for figuring out whether or not to take on a puppy, but also for figuring out how long your life savings is going to have to last. I played around with one of these tests https://www.livingto100.com/ and was surprised to realize I can expect to live to be 95 (I'm 65 now). But if I had high blood pressure and smoked, or had a sister who died of breast cancer at 45, or had diabetes, the numbers would be a lot different.

If you're anything like me, when you're 65 you'll decide the last pup should be at 75 :)

Wrong question. The concern is 'in what condition', not 'what age'. A well preserved 65 has a lot more life left than a wasted 50. Lots of people are still active into their 80s. I'm 65 and in excellent health. For my next dog, I will probably switch to a smaller breed, and I'll eventually transition from three to two. When it seems likely that the end is within a dog's lifespan, I won't replace my dog unless I have a friend or family lined up to care for a dog after my demise. Oldies can also deal with the finite lifetime problem by adopting older dogs . . . there's never a shortage of good old dogs in need of a home.

Ditto Sheena. I have fed them. I would much prefer frames. But if the supplier has only drumsticks, I'll take them. This hasn't happened very often. Never had a problem with drumsticks, but they seem riskier than frames. I'd avoid feeding them to a small dog or puppy. I don't much like wings either.

Maybe I didn't read carefully, but I didn't notice anyone suggesting that you shave or clip the hair short around the hot spot. My experience with hot spots is that almost everything works . . . vinegar, peroxide, betadine, rubbing alcohol, Camamile tea, antibiotic goo or powder . . . so long as you work to keep the spot dried out and unfriendly to the infection. If you leave the hair long around the hot spot, the infection spreads to the surrounding coat. The damn things can grow very fast. If you don't clip, your thumbprint sized spot can triple or quadruple in size overnight. Some of them are less aggressive. I think there are multiple microorganisms that can cause the problem . . . both bacteria and fungi . . . so different things work differently in different cases. But moisture is necessary for the infections to get going, and trimming hair gets rid of trapped moisture.

3 is great IF they like each other. I have mother/daughter/granddaughter. They love eachother. Granny dog doesn't play so much any more. She's 10. But mother and daughter play a lot, and they all groom one another.

Small contradiction between the alleged pit bull that got hit by a car and killed and two pit bulls returned to their owner. The math involved is 2 - 1 = 2. Or was one of the dogs returned dead?

A decade back there were a few deaf Labs showing up in WA -- including one pup I bred. This appeared to be late onset, though. No one noticed a problem until the pups were more than a year old. They do need to contact the breeder. Because Labs are so common, just about every disease a dog can get has been reported in a Labrador, but deafness is uncommon. Any decent Lab breeder would be very concerned. And you folks in Darwin need to recruit a decent vet!

Problem with articles like this is that everyone assumes they mean someone else. For example, I buy lots of meds online, and they are a lot cheaper . . . in fact, my vet has stopped carrying some meds and suggests that customers get them online from a reputable company. I'm sure people who practice the other four listed sins have their own excuses.

It's amazing to me that Australia (I mean the government, not all Australians) is SO, SO down on pit bulls and SBT's are either #1 or #2 in number of puppy registrations, not to mention common as mixes and bred off-pedigree register. I'm in pit bull land now . . . they're all over Florida, #1 in shelters, #1 in our equivalent of Gumtree, and when you walk around the neighborhood, #1 for the dog left out in the front yard. Pitties are a lot like staffies. Tthere are some nasty ones. More DA than HA, but you find both occasionally. Most of em are ok, and some are right sweet dogs. Hard to beat them for wiggly bums and snuggly affection. . . . when they are good.