SparkyTansy

CC that is great news, and hoping for more of the same for Boxagirl and Bondi.

Its a great idea. Admittedly we have a rare breed (only 30 in Australia) and need to be very proactive with our breed but, as I mentioned earlier, we had pamphlets about our breed with pictures of our dogs as pets and they were available to be handed out AND stuck up where we were set out and we were standing up with our dogs at all times during the day ready to talk to ANYONE who expressed any interest. The public's comments throughout the day was that it was really nice to have someone take the time to talk to them and be friendly. I'm sure many others go to effort at big shows like the Royal too but these big show are the BEST opportunity we have to publicise the sort of people we are and the benefits of pedigree dogs. Agree. Our breed club printed pamplets specifically for the royal this year and other social events where public might ask questions. They didn't break the budget at all, but a lovely, colourful printed pamplet talking about the breed as pets and what you can do with them was really beneficial...

Lyndsay I agree with you - that's very true. Ok so no "forcing" clubs to attend but give them plenty of notice and the breed clubs that are passionate about promoting their breeds I am sure will make the effort. there are also plenty of breeds out there with clubs that aren't affiliated (social clubs - there are two in perth that i know of). by giving plenty of notice to not just those who can be involved, but to people who might wish to attend, I think that it could get a good turn out. Imagine if all of the states held it on the same day - publicity would flow through plenty of radio stations and other media. by making it a national event with each of the states running it as a basic model, but how they want, it could be really successful the only thing is, I would not have a clue how something like this would get of the ground... it's all well and good to have an idea, but it needs people to make it happen.

I didn't grow up in a dog show family, but I did grow up attending dog shows. My mum and i would sit on the steps and watch the rings and pick which dogs we thought might win - we had no idea what was going on, no one ever approached us to see if we wanted any help... occasionally (very) I'd see one of my breed and ask to go and pat it - sometimes I got a rude reply and sometimes I didn't. I got into showing by accident, the breed I had wanted for years i was finally getting and the breeder said that the puppy in the colour I wanted was turning out quite nice and was I interested in showing. Having always attended dog shows i jumped at the chance. It wasn't that easy as the breeder was in another state but I did have help and encouragement. I really think we could do more to get the ANKC on the map - not just dog showing, but all the dog sports. a big open day with demos running for all the sports, all day, with breed information stands from each of the breed clubs and individual breeds (for those without breed clubs) Imagine the publicity if every state body took ONE weekend day with no shows, to hold a national ANKC open day for the public where every breed club must participate... dogsport clubs arrange demos with volunteers for flyball, agility, obedience, DWD, Rally, herding, retrieving, earth dog etc etc. of course not every dog sport could be included (lure coursing and field trialling for example) but a lot could. I am sure that there would also be possible sponsors for such a huge event. of course, people have to be on board, and there would have to be organisers... it would take so much dedication from so many people... but something like that would put us on the map.

LOL she didn't go off her nut at the decoy this time! I'm pretty sure Lulu just thinks that it's James LOL

if there is a line or a breeder you really like, and you are sure you want a puppy from that kennel, then you could consider contacting them early...

I believe Tracey's husband does the human bowen!!

train a pup time is great - the best part is that it's not a free for all puppy pile up play session and the puppies learn how to interact. it is a little bit more for the less than knowledgeable owner but I would never skip puppy school again after seeing the difference in the way Lulu and Ari interact with dogs (Ari missed puppy school). CC sorry to hear about Louis fingers crossed things get better. RS great news about Ruby and Millie's session... hopefully things are on the improve for Ruby!!

what about a smooth collie?

Separated from all the other dogs, and my entire male went on a holiday (not the sire of the pups - different breed ). She wouldn't let the desexed male that stayed behind anywhere near the puppies, but funnily enough, when James came home about 3 weeks later, she'd let him sit near the box without a worry... but then, both he and my other boy had no idea what was going on in that room, and didn't want to come down at all!

I use a snake chain on an OES which doesn't tangle the hair. I also use one on my female weim but only because she showed better on it. i find some show worse on a chain than nylon/soft slips or martingales. I'd make sure it works well on your dog (ie borrow one) before purchasing one.

Ohhhh training... bugger!!!

I once helped out a newbie and boy did she hate to lose. After a few shows she no longer sat with us as we were "competition" i guess. She also told non-showies at dog parks etc that she was winning best in shows etc. it was all very strange but she only lasted 5 or 6 shows. If she lost, she would stomp back to her area, she was awful to her dog, and she once angrily threw a chair and stormed off to the car. Some people are just not able to handle the losing aspect, and even people that are, need full understanding that they will not always win.

yes dried blood teething breath is i was so lucky i got an extra 8 weeks x 6 of puppy breath... DEvine!!!

Ari was caught this morning with her nose in the laundry trough, wolfing down a 2kg bag of chicken mince that was defrosting. needless to say she didn't get breakfast.

I think that the sheer number of people who are leaving the sport, combined with the lack of people starting out is a major contributing factor. There are many reasons why people are leaving, but perhaps we should address why there are not new people coming in. Is it public opinion, and the damage that public opinions and exposure has done to the purebred dog world in the last few years? I know that many attitudes I come across when i tell people I show and breed purebred dogs is that they think it is elitest, that purebred dogs are untouchable for the "average" person, or perhaps they do not wish to be seen as a purebred snob. Despite the benefits of purebreeds, the health testing, the care and love we put into our breeds, we are still breeding purebred dogs, and while many know that it is not as elitist as it sounds, the general public as a whole still genuinely believe that purebreds are not easy to access. Promoting our breeds on a large scale is the way forward. Remove the focus from the reducing numbers in the show ring, and focus on getting our breeds out there in a positive light to the GP. Perhaps that will increase the interest, the demand, and the understanding, and bring numbers back to our dog shows.

Spartan: Bag of minties ... with wrappers full bag of fruit and nut mix plus half a kilo tub of honey (he vomited that back up and turned me of those honey fruit and nut bars for life) Chicken (allergic) bags, freezer bags, paper and plastic containers, anything that may have once had food in it. James he dug up and chewed the retic pipes Ari too many sprinklers to count playstation controller (I found the coloured bits days later cleaning up her poo!) and part of the playstation a cord from the Wii the power box and cords from the xbox the cord from the dryer The back of a photo frame (i maintain she was jealous because it was a photo of my old weim girls) There is plenty of other stuff i choose to forget about...

for those of you that aren't on FB, i also got a renewal form today from Dogswest despite paying my membership in July. I will call them this morning and post the response.

you can get Ester C from any health food shop and I think most pharmacies now... it's a buffered (non acidic) Vit C... if you give too much it just comes out as soft poo so you just have to tailor it to suit the dog. I have read it improves joints although as I say, there is no scientific reasoning behind it or there wasn't anyway, but I'll continue to use it as a combination with the other supplements. You can get it in powdered form or tablets. I prefer the powder though as it is easier to manage the dosage.

SparkyTansy - Mother/Daughter and my 2nd and 3rd weims... got them nearly 20 years ago now! My current English Setter, now 9, was kind of named after them both... SparTan

Faytiges the dogs definitely made up for the bad weather was nice to see so many setters in one place

CC i totally missed the bit about Louis being poorly. Very sorry to hear he is sore and in pain. I hope that things start to get better.

BIS for the ES specialty was Ch Eireannmada Corpus Christie RUBIS was Ch Bridgewood Mile High

With the Weims I hold it up - shows where the tail set should sit when erect. with the OES, i tuck the tail right down... the less tail they have the better What annoys me is handlers that hold up tails of dogs that should have their tail sit level or below the level of the back, like Setters. it looks unnatural and completely incorrect, and if their tail was the correct set, i am sure it does their backs no good to have it yanked up that high.

so I've been told during one of my enlightening conversations with a 4th year vet student, when dogs bring up their food, unless there is bile in there, it's not really classed as vomit, it's just regurgitated food, which is why it's perfectly normal for them to eat it again Huski - glad that EB is ok... poor girl it must have been very stressful!