Cosmolo

I have had significant success with vets prescribing trazadone to administer 1-2 hours prior to veterinary treatment (injections/ blood tests). Not only did it make the vet visit stress free, this particular dog improved on the second visit with the same dosage of trazadone- I believe because the prior experience wasn’t traumatic. Speak with your vet about it. My dog would fight like a bear if muzzled (to the point we were concerned about needle stick injuries) so we put a large Elizabethan collar on her to make it safer for the person administering the injection- that and the trazadone means we can continue veterinary interventions when I was starting to believe we were out of options.

We fell in love after having a long term client who had three within her family. We did training with all of them but there was a blue belton boy we did a lot with and he was the one that definitely made us start talking to breeders. We met our breeder just before covid hit and went on their waitlist. Had only met one of their dogs at a show and then we were in lockdown when the litter arrived so we let the breeder choose for us and hadn’t met the parents- made us very apprehensive, but Oakley was perfect for us from the moment he arrived. We have him properly hand stripped at the groomer and have an awesome comb that we run though him in between. Aside from throat/ hygiene areas etc I’d die if anyone clipped him

Just had to say English Setters are the most wonderful breed. They are so under rated- the perfect companion! Our boy basically loved everything we gave him as a puppy so no real recommendations for anything specific to buy- he went through a destructive stage around 6 months old but some toys on rotation and management and he transitioned out of that easily. He’s now 18 months and is one of the easiest dogs we’ve ever lived with!

As a professional trainer who no longer offers board and train, when I have clients who would benefit from it I’d only refer them to Homestead for such services. Good luck! ETA- apologies, didn’t realise Sid had moved to Canberra, thought you were sending the dog to Vic.

I have had a number of cattle dogs of my own as well as training clients ACD’s. I would never recommend a cattle dog for a novice owner unless they are exceptional in terms of not only their willingness to train BUT their natural handling ability as well. They really aren’t that forgiving of mistakes compared to many other breeds.

My cattle dog had a double elbow arthroscopy at around 7-8 months of age as well as stem cells at the same time. Recovery was tough but straightforward- though I had dealt with orthopaedic surgery recoveries before which helped. We crated, used a towel under her belly as well as a lead to take her out to toilet. Lots of calm enrichment in the crate. She is now 8 years old and on three different types of medications to manage the pain/ discomfort in her elbows. She has had acute pain flare ups at least twice a year since the surgery. For us it’s been a condition of lifelong management despite surgery but we had a previous dog with elbow dysplasia who wasn’t as bad. Good luck- it’s a tough road

An umbrella is a good deterrent and temporary barrier. Sorry for what happened to your dog- such a distressing experience for everyone.

I would definitely not describe them as ‘easy to socialise’. Personally I would not recommend them for an owner who wanted to frequent the dog park- it’s not a context they easily enjoy or cope with.

I just don’t understand why the breed is not more popular. They would suit many homes I would think. Oakley is settling in extremely well- such a lovely puppy already!

Thanks to everyone who contributed to my thread a number of months ago asking about English Setters. Thanks to a lovely registered breeder, we have welcomed little Orwin Oakley into our home today. There were some real challenges as we weren’t able to visit the pups beforehand due to lockdown but our breeder had great communication with us throughout which really helped. Meet Oakley!

My experience with the colours has been different, even when dealing with them as newly adopted pups. However, I of course don’t know the lineage so it could just be the individuals I’ve seen. I’m sure breeders have seen many many more than myself! I completely agree that they’re supposed to be smart and sharp!

Some may find this bizarre bit if you get a mini schnauzer, I’d look for a salt and pepper rather than a black. I have consistently found temperament differences between the colours with the blacks being much sharper and more reactive. Just my experience as a trainer!

I’d strongly recommend consulting with a professional trainer aiming for a face to face consultation as soon as restrictions ease. However, I think you would benefit from gaining some knowledge now, to help you once you can get face to face help. Have a look at members.underdogtraining.com.au I too would recommend the trainer mentioned above- Amanda is great- so you should make contact now and see how she can help you.

As someone who deals with lots of new puppy owners I think under supply of pedigree dogs is absolutely an issue. It’s hard to convince people who are genuinely ready for a puppy that they will need to wait 6-12 months for a pedigree puppy to become available. Many clients I have would be willing to wait 1-3 months but the wait times are often longer than that even when they’re flexible with location of the breeder etc. Also when was the last time the pedigree dog world did anything to promote pedigree dogs to the GENERAL public? They aren’t advertised in the many places people look for advice. In my 15 years as a dog trainer I have never received any information, positive promotion etc regarding pedigree dogs. That’s fine for me because I’ve done my own research. But plenty of industry professionals wouldn’t have and they’re being asked for advice regularly!

As a trainer, I love Havanese.