Finnish Lapphund

[Ker]

Who could not love THIS beautiful face???

[whiskedaway]

Snik is gorgeous in temperament too so you've got the best of both worlds.

[sparkycat]

Armahani Thanks for the explanation of submissive versus confidence. I often struggle to explain to people Jaana's personality. She is such a happy girl always with a big smile and waggy tail.

[Ker]

Jaana is definitely more confident than Snik.

WA, I think Snik's temperament is gorgeous too :rolleyes:

[lappiemum]

Jaana is definitely more confident than Snik.

WA, I think Snik's temperament is gorgeous too :rolleyes:

Give her time Ker, she is still a baby :D With some of them they get a bit more confident when they get older. And some, esp with the girls, are naturally a little more submissive than others - each of my Lappies has a different personality, but all are typical in their own way!

[Ker]

Jaana is definitely more confident than Snik.

WA, I think Snik's temperament is gorgeous too :D

Give her time Ker, she is still a baby With some of them they get a bit more confident when they get older. And some, esp with the girls, are naturally a little more submissive than others - each of my Lappies has a different personality, but all are typical in their own way!

I don't want her to change :rolleyes: I love her softness.

[sparkycat]

Jaana is definitely more confident than Snik.

WA, I think Snik's temperament is gorgeous too

Give her time Ker, she is still a baby With some of them they get a bit more confident when they get older. And some, esp with the girls, are naturally a little more submissive than others - each of my Lappies has a different personality, but all are typical in their own way!

I don't want her to change I love her softness.

Snik is lovely and very similar to Jaana at that age - Jaana is now over 2 and only started to mature in confidence and listening earlier this year.

On Sunday I was very impressed at the way Snik responded to your voice considering she has only been with you a short time.

[Ker]

On Sunday I was very impressed at the way Snik responded to your voice considering she has only been with you a short time.

I have to confess, Snik came to me trained. That is Jeff and Jill's doing. She is a brilliant dog and really wants to please. She's slotted in beautifully and never causes much angst. I was quite surprised myself that she listens so well. I rarely have to repeat myself with her. Now if she can just train that into the kids...

I fully trust her with the kids. She was in the lounge with my daughter and I today and my daughter was cuddling her (read:laying on her) saying "I love you Nik Nik" and Snik was just laying there quietly, looking at me like "um, help??"

[aussielover]

Lappies are so cute! I've never seen one in person though.

I have a few questions about coat care-

How much hair do they actually have? I've seem some photos where they look very fluffy and some where the coat looks fairly flat and medium length.

For example, do they generally have less hair than samoyeds?

Do they get hot during summer? I know a few samoyed and they seem to cope very well, but they do have a white coat.

Would you recommend a lappie for a paralysis tick area?

what is the average weight of a lappie?

[TerraNik]

Lappies are so cute! I've never seen one in person though.

I have a few questions about coat care-

How much hair do they actually have? I've seem some photos where they look very fluffy and some where the coat looks fairly flat and medium length.

For example, do they generally have less hair than samoyeds?

Do they get hot during summer? I know a few samoyed and they seem to cope very well, but they do have a white coat.

Would you recommend a lappie for a paralysis tick area?

what is the average weight of a lappie?

A lappie's coat depends on their genetics, the climate and whether they are entire or desexed. There is variation as you've noticed. Generally they do have less coat than Samoyeds, but there are some lappies that have roughly the same thickness of coat.

Lappies cope fine in summer provided they have shelter and plenty of water. Though my older girl likes to sunbake in 30 degree heat! She's a little nuts. Generally though, they tend to be less active during the day when it's hot and get active in the afternoon/evening when it's cooler. They have a double coat, so like Samoyeds they have insulation against the heat.

Having a lappie in a paralysis tick area is a tough one. That would depend on a few things, but mostly on whether you would be willing to do an approximately 1-2-hour skin/coat examination (if your lappie is in full coat) to check for ticks EVERY DAY in tick season. If you weren't prepared to do that, then no I wouldn't recommend it (I wouldn't be recommending any long coated breed).

The typical weight of a lappie - girls roughly 12-16kg, boys roughly up to 20kg (though there are some lappies that are outside these approximates).

[aussielover]

Thanks TerraNik.

Lappies are on my wish list along with a *few* (only about 10) other breeds LOL - intelligent, good looking, trainable and a good, managable size.

At the moment i'm living in a really bad tick area so probably not suitable atm.

I did have an aussie prevoiusly but she was shaved for summer

[Terryible]

Hi all, I have another question.

My wife and I were watching a vet show the other day and a dog had a paralysis tick and it got us talking about the Finnish Lapphund. Is it easy to find a tick on a Finnish Lapphund with the coat they have got. Also is the paralysis tick a problem in the Newcastle region?

Cheers

[FranVT]

I don't live in a tick area so I can't help much, but I do think it'd be a very difficult challenge finding a tick especially on a darker coloured lappie. You'd have to have a nightly/daily ritual of sitting with the dog calmly in front of you, and moving your fingers carefully and methodically all over the body including in between the foot pads, checking ears etc, and you'd want to be on the alert for any signs of tick toxicity at ALL TIMES.

To be honest I'd be loathe to recommend a lappie to someone who lives in a tick area. Luuka's breeder does and she is extremely vigilant but does get a scare every so often and it must be terrifying!

[Terryible]

I don't live in a tick area so I can't help much, but I do think it'd be a very difficult challenge finding a tick especially on a darker coloured lappie. You'd have to have a nightly/daily ritual of sitting with the dog calmly in front of you, and moving your fingers carefully and methodically all over the body including in between the foot pads, checking ears etc, and you'd want to be on the alert for any signs of tick toxicity at ALL TIMES.

To be honest I'd be loathe to recommend a lappie to someone who lives in a tick area. Luuka's breeder does and she is extremely vigilant but does get a scare every so often and it must be terrifying!

Thanks for your reply

How do you know if you area is a tick area? would it be best to ask the vets in the area?

[lappiemum]

Have a look at http://www.lovemypet.com.au/tickareasinaustralia.htm

This is quite general, though, as I know some areas - like Townsville, are considered paralysis tick free, although if you go outside of the area you are in tick territory.

In theory, though, you can get the ticks from way up north on the eastern side of Australia, down to Lakes Entrance in Vic. However, there is usually less chance of it in built up cities etc - its in the bushland, farmland and the outskirts of towns and cities that the risk is greatest.

Like anything, there is always an element of risk. When I lived in northern QLD I would check my dogs daily, and if we had been camping etc they would get a very good going over. You can also use Frontline and other products that act as a deterant, although these are not cheap I should add.

[TerraNik]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, checking for a tick on a long coated breed (if you want to do it properly) requires at least 1-2 hours (for me, I take 3 hours because I like to double check) of meticulously going through the coat with a comb and line brushing to check every-single-bit-of-skin. This is the same for getting out grass seeds. I'm sure there are people out there who just have a feel over their dog and think it's good enough, but for me I like to make sure.

Newcastle has ticks but some areas are worse than others (same as in Sydney). It's been years since I lived there, so things might've changed since then.

[Terryible]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, checking for a tick on a long coated breed (if you want to do it properly) requires at least 1-2 hours (for me, I take 3 hours because I like to double check) of meticulously going through the coat with a comb and line brushing to check every-single-bit-of-skin. This is the same for getting out grass seeds. I'm sure there are people out there who just have a feel over their dog and think it's good enough, but for me I like to make sure.

Newcastle has ticks but some areas are worse than others (same as in Sydney). It's been years since I lived there, so things might've changed since then.

Thanks Lappiemum and TerraNik.

How often do you check?

[TerraNik]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, checking for a tick on a long coated breed (if you want to do it properly) requires at least 1-2 hours (for me, I take 3 hours because I like to double check) of meticulously going through the coat with a comb and line brushing to check every-single-bit-of-skin. This is the same for getting out grass seeds. I'm sure there are people out there who just have a feel over their dog and think it's good enough, but for me I like to make sure.

Newcastle has ticks but some areas are worse than others (same as in Sydney). It's been years since I lived there, so things might've changed since then.

Thanks Lappiemum and TerraNik.

How often do you check?

If I lived in a tick area, I would check every day. (Yep, that's a minimum of 6 hours of checking if I were to do it myself with my gang!)

As it stands I don't live in a major tick area, so I only check them if it's tick season (or around tick season) and we have taken them somewhere that does have a history of having ticks. Also we always closely observe our dogs to make sure they are not showing any signs of tick poisoning.

[FranVT]

Have a look at http://www.lovemypet.com.au/tickareasinaustralia.htm

This is quite general, though, as I know some areas - like Townsville, are considered paralysis tick free, although if you go outside of the area you are in tick territory.

In theory, though, you can get the ticks from way up north on the eastern side of Australia, down to Lakes Entrance in Vic. However, there is usually less chance of it in built up cities etc - its in the bushland, farmland and the outskirts of towns and cities that the risk is greatest.

Like anything, there is always an element of risk. When I lived in northern QLD I would check my dogs daily, and if we had been camping etc they would get a very good going over. You can also use Frontline and other products that act as a deterant, although these are not cheap I should add.

Rockhampton is the same. The town is okay but the surrounding bush isn't so great so if I take her to a property or anything I do a really thorough check.

Good post TN

[lappiemum]

The Finnish Lapphund Club of Victoria will be at the VCA's Big Day Out for Dogs this Sunday, 12th December. Its to be held at KCC Park, Western Port Highway, Cranbourne VIC. The day starts at 10am and will go until 4pm, all dogs and their owners are welcome - there will be lots to see and do, and a Christmas market to buy your four legged family member something nice for Christmas.

If anyone is interested in this breed, you can stop by the FLCV tent and meet some Lappies (and their owners!) in person. We will also be having our end of year Lappie get together, so the more the merrier

(if you can't make the event that's ok - you can always contact the Club and we can put you in contact with member breeders and owners) :rolleyes:

Edited December 7, 2010 by lappiemum