SparkyTansy

Sometimes i wonder if WA is a bit behind the times, though. Often, we have shows over two days which could be done in a day. We don't have the numbers anymore which makes the rule about judges judging a certain number of dogs a day valid. I know that doing shows is rediculous amounts of work for committees, especially secretaries, but i do wonder if it is necessary to split shows any more. Our shows can often be done and dusted by 12pm, split or not. in winter, that can open up AM/PM shows, in Summer, two shows in a weekend instead of 1. I wonder sometimes if our numbers would boost, if there were two or three shows in a weekend we could attend... because we are already locking ourselves out for two days "just incase" we make it through the following day if it's a split show. I miss the days where you could relax and spend time with friends for the whole day of a show, because the numbers were big enough you weren't unpacking, running into and out of the ring, and packing up within three hours of getting there, and I've only been showing for 8 years.

I counted 50 shows in WA, but some of them may be split shows (1 champ show over 2 days).

I just did a count (+- here and there to allow for Ag shows that aren't listed and run or those that are listed and don't run) NSW has 550 Championship shows scheduled for 2012 (including Specialties).

This: I feel stupid pronouncing Weimaraner as Vy-mer-ran-er so i stick with the wy-mer-ran-er version too! I've heard countless pronuciations of Weimaraner but it's very easy to believe... i'm so used to correcting people to help them out when they stumble over the word, I am taken aback when someone says it correctly. the only mistaken breed name the English Setters are called are either Dalmatian Cross/Longhaired Dalmatian OR Irish Setter.

speaking from very limited experience i agree with others. now way of knowing... My bitch was a tiny girl at 8 weeks and grew in height to top of standard, and has plenty of bone. Puppies from the litter, well i had the choice between two boys, a big boy who had been my favourite for nearly the entire time, and another who came out of no where at 8 weeks with superb movement and balance, but he was a fair bit smaller than his brother. I picked the second boy. 6 months later the big boy is still HUGE and my pick boy is smaller but with plenty of bone, and still outstanding movement and on the stack, balances better than his brother.

MG did you talk to your vet about any of the things Faolmor suggested it could be?

Awesome Tris we will have to get the Rising stars 2012 thread going soon!

Very well said Bohunt.

Mirawee - so sorry you are having such a hard time and I'm very sorry about your yearling.

how long do reimbursements usually take from insurance to come through MG?

KHM - doG forbid it will happen again but if Earl has to go under for anything else, you could consider a Gastropexy if he is eligible. it's a good preventative measure for dogs predisposed which he may be.

Not so late for mine, my dogs are usually fed morning and night, night is usually between 9pm and 11pm I am quite convinced, more than anything else, that a dog must have a genetic predisposition to bloat for GDV to occur. Once there is genetic predisposition, then instigating factors like diet, immune, and environmental conditions come into play. Very true Lilli - a recent study I believe, discovered that the risk of bloat increased by 60% if either of the parents have bloated. Of course, being that bloat happens more often in older dogs, it is much safer to know the history of the line so that you can avoid the genetic factor.

once or twice a day. it's not half as difficult as it used to be since I started feeding raw.

Great news Wazzat CC good to hear Louis is recovering well.

That is terrible Candice - poor Gibbs... You have a good relationship with your vet - would they consider an account/pay off situation?

So with a breed like mine (Basset Fauve De Bretagne) where there are currently less than 10 being shown reasonably regularly between Townsville and Melbourne our challenges shouldn't count UNTIL we compete against others of our breed? I've travelled for competition and LOVE competition (even when my girls lose) but at the moment unless I travel the only competition my girls get is each other. ETA or should they count only when they also win a class in group? Or only when they win group? There IS no perfect answer to any of these problems. No matter which way the ANKC goes people are going to be pissed off. IMO, The requirements apparently just dumped for the awarding of the GCh title were a breath of fresh air. The requirements for Ch awards should have been a modification of that. Two 25 point challenges to be gained before Qualifying for the title of Aust Ch for e.g. Your challenge points would still count but being titled would require more credibility. It is probably harder for a ''popular'' breed to be titled due to the amount of competition. The rewards are greater for sure, but much harder to come by. Consider a previous topic where it is possible for a r/u BIS to finish in front of a 1000 dogs for no reward & yet some go home with 6 points just for being there? Ridiculous. Just my opinion. 2 x 25 point challenges for a breed to become a champion? some breeds (even the ones with higher numbers) can't achieve a 25 pointer. Be realistic, the system national and needs to suit as many states as possible... imo reverting back to the old grand system makes no sense... those who gained the grand with the harder requirements now have nothing to show for it.

I disagree. Whether they are appropriate depends on the dog and its eating 'style'. I feed my 60kg+ great dane chicken wings most nights as he does not gulp and crunches them up. Agree with Danois. I feed my 6mo wei, 4yo wei and 5yo English setter these types of bones and none have issues (I'm always home and supervising when they eat though). If my oldest dog could have chicken, he wouldn't be fed wings, because he is a gulper.

wow great idea!

When I prepared for my litter I had the entire room set up in preparation. I had a grooming table set up with some containers with stuff I may need for before, during whelping, and one for after. I had the scales set up and checked the battery (and had a spare) - had two flashlights and a long lead incase it was a night time whelping. I had all the blankets, towels and sheets in a large plastic container and several set up next to the box, and I had a very large amount of newspaper laid out and easily accessible. The box itself was pre-prepared with sheets of newspaper and several sheets for quick easy changes during whelping. i had the vet bed ready to go once whelping was over. heat lamp was set up in advance. I had the exercise book and recording sheets set up on the table and several pens. i also had savoury snacks, biscuits and chocolate, a kettle, coffee and tea in a separate container. a couple of stools/chairs and a kneeling pad (as it turns out the box was big enough to sit in and I didn't need the pad) I had the hot water bottles and blankets ready in a basket ready in case I needed to transport in a hurry and when i had to move the babies from the box. The back of the car was set up for Ari with vet bed. My favourite whelping books were on hand to help me with anything I wasn't sure about... vet numbers programmed in my phone. I was very well prepared, and if there had been any kind of emergency it would have made things a hell of a lot easier. One thing i would probably recommend, make sure you have some kind of flavouring to add to water. My bitch refused normal water for two weeks and it was a constant challenge to get her to drink. I ended up using cooled stock or diluted "pet milk" most of the time. Hemostats I have 3 pairs, but i didn't need to use them. I liked the idea of being able to clamp both ends to keep tabs on the placenta but Ari was so quick to chew off cords and devour the placenta I'm glad I didn't clamp them because she may have eaten them!!

you should totally enter AP - you might win!!!

RS that was on my iphone 4S here are a couple more photos - one of Lulu with no flash, and one of Ari stretching out (after the beach!) with the flash.

the vids look great sending phone to phone... my sister sends me vids all the time of the kids and they look great, but I don't know how good they'd look if you made them larger. So for those that didn't see it on FB, Lulu had her first swim yesterday morning... She only went in once, mind, then she worked out that all she had to do was wait on the waters edge for Ari to return and then she could ambush her for the ball!

OSS your dogs definitely ROCK! : :rock: And so do you!! Well done for such a wonderful achievement all in the one weekend!! I too find the iphone camera a bit average, but such a huge step up from the iphone 3GS.

it still needs a retrieving judge so we would still need a retrieving judge to be happy to travel to another location, even if we went to another club with the proposal for the RATG.

*Affectionate *gentle *Intelligent *biddable *friendly with family & friends My two breeds have some but not all these traits. Weis are affectionate, intelligent and biddable and love people they know. English setters are affectionate, gentle, occasionally intelligent (in a different way perhaps) and friendly with everyone.