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Back in the good old days of Melbourne Show, Thomas Cook always had a really good store under the grandstand near Pavilion 1. They still had a store there last year but it was more of a clearance outlet than anything. Might be worth a look if you happen to go to the show, I wouldn't bother otherwise. Try their stockists otherwise, I know there is definitely a few around the suburbs of Melbourne. It might be something that they are no longer making but you might find a few kicking around in their stockists stores still.

Exactly - now they actually have a white marker on the ground ( Argh the old land mines - has anybody had a dog that refuses to sit or stand on them???? and no your dog doesn't have to - just some think they will self explode and refuse to go near them No.... but Darcy picks them up and tries to "return" them to me. And if I don't take it then she attempts to give it to the judge. Apparently retreiving little white flat things is more fun than heel patterns.

Depends on what you use - something like a low fat frankfurt might be better on the pockets? I use on-special cuts of low fat meat - mostly beef or chicken breast lately, but also roo if it's on special. It all goes straight into my pockets with no worries. I don't wear my good jeans for working my dogs though either I don't use fatty treats, I hate it on my hands and Darcy is a potential fatty. I used to use glad sandwich bags as I found they were easy to get into, but they make a noise and found if I hit my pocket accidentally Darcy thought she was getting a treat when she wasn't.

Got my stuff Friday. Not real clear for those who haven't been before. I was quite happy to go to the usual car park at the race course and walk up the hill with a soft crate, back pack and my dog. Now it sounds like I have no choice but to go to Gate 7 to get a pass in to be able to do that. Having never been around that side before, and not having a co-pilot (Darcy, while quite smart, can't read roap maps!) I'd prefer to just stick with my original plan. At least then I know where I'm going, and won't be leaving my gear unattended. Can anyone tell me if I can avoid going via Gate 7 - or is that totally non-negotiable??? Thanks

Darcy has a 42" soft crate for trialling which gives her plenty of room to completely stretch out in (she's 22 kg - Lab x). She fits in Zee's new 36" soft crate and while she can still lay flat in it, it's a bit more snug. Fine for short term like training, but I'd prefer to have her in the bigger crate if it was warm just to give her a bit more airflow.

I wish we did something similar, particularly the top 6 scores. Our equivalent is only for Masters dogs, with submission of 15 Masters passes to qualify for our Top Dog. 1st place is 10 points, all the way to 10th place with 1 point. You really need to be submitting over 100 points to make it, but it's hard to tell as the points are never announced or published. It's tough on those who don't trial as much - I much prefer the NSW way!

Thanks

When did they go out? I haven't received anything yet other than the original email confirmation, but maybe will get it in the next few days. I'm only competing on the one day in agility/jumping anyway, doing an agility demo on another two days but they are organised separately anyway.

I'm battling with this dilemna with my 3.5 month pup at the moment. She thinks that a walk down the street is just the perfect opportunity to throw herself at people for a pat. Kind of good she's such a sociable little squirt but on the flip side it also means many can't resist roughing her up and getting her way overexcited and then they reinforce her naughty puppy behaviour. :D Fine line between socialising her and creating a monster at the moment.

Try Vebo (they advertise on here - go to the advertisers page). They have the best price I've found so far on the 36" I'm looking at in terms of metal crates. For a soft crate, I reckon the K9 softcrates are brilliant and the service excellent, very friendly and helpful. They are on their own website but on ebay as well, I got one just recently for Zee and scored a free carry bag as well.

Well done H and Cash!

Well done SW - and great to see Kira back in the ring again!

Thanks Mawson Unfortunately already entered trials for both those weekends but maybe it might be worth waiting until early next year - Sept to Dec is crazy trial wise! Then maybe Zee will be well behaved enough to try getting her assessed as well I won't hold my breath. I know Darcy won't be a worry, it's just a matter of getting it done. Thanks again Jess

Definitely cute like Darcy but more feral, but I wouldn't have it any other way! Thankfully with Darcy being so well behaved she's not learning any bad habits, but we've already started on the self-control work otherwise she'd end up a complete nutter. Will see you in November if we don't cross paths in the meantime!

Try different butchers with your bags of bones - I've found one here locally that if I buy 2 bags at $2 each I normally end up with 3/4 of them being usable. Keeping in mind I pitch anything fatty or sharp/likely to cause issues. Compared to $1.50 to $3.00 for a roo tail (which I chop in half) I found it a good way of diluting the costs. I can get the roo tail cheaper in big frozen blocks but it's a huge job to separate them and chop them up into smaller pieces. Our little IGA is good if you get it on bone day - normally get a massive bag for $2 of good bones, the Safeway ends up being $4 to $5 a tray for a very ordinary selection - mostly fat and junk! Very occasionally they have lamb flaps which I grab for the pup but they are way too fatty for Darcy. I've got some bones from Queen Vic on the occasional visit but found they didn't really have a great selection at all - but I was there on the weekend. Maybe a weekday would be different?

Nah no more growing thankfully otherwise she'd be jumping 600 She's 3.5 now - all grown up and has now got herself a little sister to play with We've been to Melbourne today, we're doing some agility demos with some others at Melbourne Show so had to work all of that out - I'm stuffed, but they've had the luxury of a good sleep on the way home and are now roughhousing with a squeaky toy!! Hope all is well with you! Will probably see you in November, not that long to go - can't believe how fast this year has gone already.

Hi Mawson Long time no see! Hey can I get some more info on Delta? I would be interested in getting Darcy assessed, particularly if you manage to get something at Warrnambool. Will I see you at all at the November trial? I'm only doing the Saturday this year, but would love to catch up. :p

Zee goes to bed when I do (about 10.30 - 11) and she gets up when I'm dressed sufficiently to take her out for toilet around 7-ish. She's 12.5 weeks now, she's done this since she was about 9.5 weeks - I love crate training!!

I love Lodge Ropes. Got a few things off them when I had the horses and then had a lead made for Darcy, and have just ordered a long line for my young pup. Awesome service and very reasonable prices

Thanks Staff'n'Toller, if I get her 2nd vacc late next week she'll be a day or so under 14 weeks and will give her just over a week until the trial. 83ARZ - you're preaching to the converted. I need to get Zee vacc'd first, but she will be titre tested just like my older dog already is. Oakway, KCC is open to general dog owning public as well as triallers and showies. I'd just rather be sure.

Hi all, Just wondering what the vaccination timing is for young pups these days? My young pup was had her first vacc on the 29th July at 9 weeks and is due for her second "end August" according to her vaccination schedule. I have an agility trial on the 5th at KCC that I would like to take her to as part of her socialisation. Question is - what is the correct gap between the 1st and 2nd vacc? Is it 4 weeks or 6 weeks? Local vet doesn't give a 3rd. What is the recommended gap between 2nd vacc and being ok to be out in such a high traffic area? She's been out and about for socialisation anyway but KCC is obviously a bit different.

http://www.basset.net/kay6.html Try this site. I would recommend getting some instruction from someone who is good at it and work on it constantly until it becomes natural - without your dog! One of my former occasional instructors used to practise his footwork while walking around his office. Pity he didn't instruct more, maybe my footwork would be a damn site better than it is now.

It can take a while for the odour to go away from the previous diet. My 10 week old pup was a bit whiffy for about a week or so after she came home and went onto a better quality diet. I'm also feeding Eagle Pack puppy, but she also gets bones of a morning before I go to work and if she's sitting in her crate for any period of time while I'm working my older dog. She has no trouble with a chicken wing and can finish one off in about 10 mins. My 3.5 yo dog was raised with a bone every morning before I went to work as well and her teeth are immaculate. My vet always comments on how good her teeth are. I wouldn't do it any other way. I switched Darcy to full raw when she was about 15 months old - her black coat was brown and faded and she always had a bad dog odour. Now her coat is pitch black, shiny and she doesn't stink at all! Worth doing your research on though before switching a pup over. I do incorporate a little raw into my pup's diet but only because it encourages her to eat her meals rather than picking at it!

Me too. I like maintaining the connection with the dog. I do flip finishes too, for the same reason. And it is a matter of good hind-end awareness as Cosmolo says. I'm doing the same thing Tassie, forgot about flip finishes. Amazing to see them get so good that they can walk their bum end around their front like that. Darcy also does it in the doorway of her crate though for some reason. ;)

I was taught originally with around the back for left about turns and did that for Darcy's CCD but will be switching to u-turns if I ever do Novice. The handling system I use for agility doesn't allow the dog to cross behind you (blind cross) and I'd rather not run the risk of creating a conflict if I can help it. ;)