Akayla

This actually exists (or did exist in the ACT). It did diddly for pet owners. Real estates simply had the tick if you have pets box on all applications. Guess which people would always be unsuccessful. They didn't even ask the owners I don't think, you just had the application binned if you ticked pet owner. They also made out that they could say "no pets" when the legislation was the home owner had to apply (actually give reasons) why they would not allow pets in the home. This meant that home owners also came out worse for wear when they fronted the tribunal because the renter had pets and they were asked to produce their permit or face penalty. It was crazy! I didn't know about it either until I was taken to the tribunal by my landlord (I had written permission but he changed his mind). Did he get a rude shock. Mind you he had breached several things and was chasing extra money to cover the renovation he did in order to sell. So the tribunal was not very sympathetic and after she was sick of listening to his complaints she simply asked, and where is your permit?

My beautiful girl Lakota saved someone I loved. They tried to hang themselves in a shed and she grabbed their clothes and then finally the cord and pulled till it broke. She didn't even like them She would often put herself in-between me and anyone she felt was threatening. Funnily one day I was at obedience classes and there was an instructor who was always in everyones faces. "Your dog is too fat", "your dog is too skinny" etc. Right up within inches of your face and very loud and aggressive. You learned to ignore it if you were there long enough (many left soon after joining as they were put off). Well one day she came charging at me and Lakota just inserted herself between us an bared her teeth for a split second (I never did see her do this again). Lakota has been gone a few years now and this instructor still gives me plenty of space My girl Akayla was always "rescuing" people. If a kid splashed too much, climbed a tree, whatever, she would oh so carefully pick them up by the shirt and remove them from the threat. Parents were not always impressed! She also chased off a burglar at my mums once. They had got in through the back door and shut it (she was fine with someone entering the yard, very friendly but you were not allowed to touch certain things). She of course knew exactly how to turn handles and let herself in after them. The police thought it was hysterical! They didn't steal anything after that fright. She chased off a friend once who let themselves into my backyard. They said they hadn't even noticed her sleeping under a bush until they picked up my mums dog. She would also round up my mums little dogs if they got away. My mum can't walk well and without any training Akayla would just know when she needed her and how. My current dogs are squishy in comparison but they help in other ways! I know when I have been up too late painting because Jerry Lee will leave or if something scary is about to happen on tv. His soft nature has won over several kids that were terrified of dogs. He just knows and relaxes so they can run their hands over him. Such a good boof. Kyhri makes me laugh. Whenever I make toast she cries like a giant baby. Just when I am losing my cool with her she presses her face up against the nearest surface. The crate, the pantry, my leg LOL. Quite an interesting look with her teeth and lips smooshed up. She will also play bow and bark if I raise my voice. Or howl if I yell. Here is to say I am becoming a more patient person Blaez when I lost my Lakota mourned terribly. Kept me busy trying to help him. Sometimes we just sit together at her grave. He just knows. He has also won my eldest over with his gentle persuasion. Aka lean lovingly against you and then roll as soon as you move for a belly rub. She isn't a big animal person so its a big deal she feels comfortable with him. Oh and my youngest child thinks she is a dog so there is always that help She will talk to Kyhri for hours (or an ant for that matter). Like HOURS. That could be me she was talking to I honestly wouldn't know what to do without one of them in my life. I mean it would be a whole lot less complicated but you know...

Bernese are gorgeous dogs but if you want a dog that walks slowly I think Newf would be the one for you. Slowest walking dogs Ive ever known

This article had more details than earlier. So sad on so many levels. http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/dog-that-killed-canberra-woman-was-her-best-friend-but-known-to-be-dangerous-20171025-gz7v5q.html

PC I hope this doesn't come across as offensive either (please let me know if you find it so) but thought the info below is relevant for anyone interested. Canine PTSD does only effect a small number of animals. I think it was the US military that quoted 5-10% of their dogs being effected by it. Personally Im glad they have come up with an official diagnosis for these dogs (think it was around 2010, its recent anyway) because the flip side is how many were previously euthanised and considered unmanageable. Now they have a plan which can be followed starting almost immediately. Although as a leading expert on it pointed out the dog never forgets, never fully recovers. Interestingly dogs with PTSD have been found to be a huge help to retired handlers (and others) with PTSD. The handler feels a deep connection with the canine and understands (or feels they do) where the dog is coming from. It can give them great insight into their own condition. The dog in return finds a home with someone who excepts their sometimes odd behaviour.

Dogs suffering from psychological trauma has been known about for ages. You just need to look at dogs that suffered after 911 or dogs coming back from war zones. Not all but it definitely exists. If the military has been aware of it for such a long time I think we can safely assume that dogs suffer from it and not all recover either. Whether or not this dog suffered from such a thing I have no idea but when I worked in a shelter some dogs would deteriorate after time. Their mental health just wouldn't cope even with regular walks and yard time. Depending on the dog, being stuck in an enclosure outside could be crippling, especially after being hurt in such a way.

I know you said smaller but I thought at one stage the guide dog people would sometimes have dogs that had failed as guide dogs but made suitable therapy dogs? That way you would be sure to get the right dog for the job. Just a thought anyway

me either!

Anyone wanting a Tamaskan, there's a litter planned soon!

I have been after some of these for ages. Not sure if its still true but I found this a while ago while searching. "Please note: This product is currently unavailable in Australia due to import regulations, but we endeavour to have it available to you as soon as we can".

Yeah I've looked into that. The dog that I thought to be a northern Inuit seems to be closer to a mutt 'lykoswolfdogs', so I started looking towards tamaskans, and whilst there are 4 dogs in Australia they are all male and someone will need to in port a bitch. I have joined all the tamaskans groups on Facebook in case of any action taking place. There will be :) I think you should jump on the Australian Tamaskan page and maybe the Booma Tamaskan page if you are interested.

I don't think you can get Northern Inuits either but you can look at a Tamaskan. I think a GSD would fit. Maybe have a look at the GSD thread. As long as they come from a ethical breeder with good lines there's no reason to expect issues. Although any breed can have unexpected issues. Sometimes life just happens.

I haven't read all the replies, sorry if it's been mentioned already but one of the things I'd be looking at is honesty. Look to see if they have other dogs listed as being dog aggressive etc. If they are up front about the troubled ones you will know which ones to avoid. I can think of a couple of rescues like this. In fact they are very careful in their placement and will refuse to send a dog to the wrong home. It's harder to get a dog off them but if you're patient it will be worth it.

Yes I was surprised by this study as I thought the evidence suggested much earlier domestication. That if anything we have evolved pretty much together, the dog coming from a common ancestor of the grey wolf (not actually the grey wolf). http://www.livescience.com/50928-wolf-genome-dog-ancient-ancestor.html and this one sums it up pretty nicely suggesting even earlier dates. http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203554104577001843790269560

Wow your friend is brave! Not many people would have even tried with that kind of dog. I hope she and her pet recover quickly! A fire extinguisher would be awesome if you had one on hand. They use those on big cats effectively. Slamming a folded chair or door between two dogs. I am not sure how this would go with too big a size difference but I used this when one of my GSD bitches tried to kill my other bitch. I tried a bucket of water over the head, lifting up by the back legs and a broom handle to no avail so I dragged the attacker (and she dragged my other bitch by the throat) to a doorway and slammed the metal door on her muzzle as hard as humanly possible. I have used my hands before by getting in around the gap between teeth and pulling the muzzle slightly apart or poking the soft tissue at the top of the mouth. It only works to open the mouth slightly but sometimes you can slip the other dog free. However I have a good sized scar on my hand from a tooth going through for interfering so you do so at your own risk. When there's a choice stay away from the cranky parts. My mum had laceration to her hands from doing this once. She was out walking her Chin x Peke when two greyhounds grabbed her. She couldn't think of/see anything to use at the time so tried to pry the jaws apart with her own hands. When that failed she called my Czech Shepherd who she had also been walking and she sorted the greyhounds out (she didn't harm them, just rushed up and scared the daylights out of them). The Greys owner couldn't help as he had three more that hadn't escaped their leads. As others have said cutting off the airways can work. You need something to use though. so I guess in summary it depends on what you have on hand. Thank you Rebanne, it was one of the first things I saw on my newsfeed this morning and was horrifying. There was a person stabbing this dog with a knife and it didn't even appear to notice. I really, really doubt that if it was a Cattle dog or GSD that it would be able to ignore that. And if I'm going to be attacked by anything, give me a Westie or Jack Russel over a Pitbull any day. Actually think about police/war dogs. Being stabbed does not slow them down at all (well not at first). Some dogs are very focused. Once they decide to do something there is little to dissuade them. Luckily when it comes to service dogs they are very well trained but the focus is the same. I was attacked by what I would describe as a Dalmatian x as a kid. That dog terrorized the neighbourhood and was known to savage huge men. So you cant say only one kind of dog is an issue. Heck if I listed all the dogs that I have seen that have serious aggression issues we would be here a while. I have seen a Chi put a grown woman in hospital.