Wynnlake

Yep AI. IF I cant get a mating and the bitch is standing rearing to go, I AI to cover her for a couple of days whilst he/she gets it together and actually gets a mating or AI all the way through if need be. If the vet says there is no reason why you shouldnt get a natural mating, then I would say it's got more to do with the dog. Since you havent tried her with another dog you wont know.

Cooee in Brisbane made it. The standard one is 2 small panels wide, by 2 large panels long, but I bought extra panels to give my dogs more space. I wouldnt buy another one from them unless it was going to be full time under cover. This ones pain peeled off easy and rusted. The hinges on the door rusted and broke off, as did the joiners. But it serves its purpose and is still strong.

Musical dogs is the easiest, cheapest and land lord friendly way to go if you one have 1 bitch and 1 dog. Bring another dog or bitch into picture who do not get along (especially when in season), then you will need to think about putting up a run. I bought a portable run a couple of years ago when I decided I needed a good place to put 4 week old puppies without using puppy pens etc. And when I got my second dog. I've attached a photo. Best $800 I've spent. I later put shade cloth around the outside and a dog kennel inside. Worked a treat. Border Collies are can be hard to manage. I have had issues with running the 2 boys together, they were never aggressive, but the one would pin the young boy down and chew at his coat. Left him quite bald on the wither at one stage. I've had multiple bitches run together but sisters fight, visiting bitches fight, puppies bought in at a young age seem to get the pack order early on and dont try to fight it. I and most breeders I know run 1 dog and 1 bitch together only, unless in family packs.

Wow there are going to be lots of Border Collie babies in April. Congrats to Benshiva and Groupfive for your confirmed litters. Fingers crossed for Redrob also. Some exciting times ahead. It will probably be another 2 years before I have another litter, so until then I'll enjoy seeing other breeders babies.

Hi Janba, a young dog can reproduce good numbers of semen very quickly, so 4 days before the planned mating should be fine, in fact it's a good chance to 'clean him out' so to speak. The bitch may not even be ready tuesday, but at least you will know what his sperm are like and you will know that the sperm that are there are all fresh ones! Good luck with the matings. I'm interested in a stud agreement also, so if I can get a copy of it too that would be great. Of course it will just be a basis and will no doubt be changed somewhat.

Great post DeltaCharlie. Bundle-Come join us in the breed sub forum in general discussion. We have a border collie photo thread there and would love see your puppy when it arrives.

My oldest bitch goes mad when i scoop cat food out of the can. The metal on metal sound makes her go nutts

Never mind. I just re-read the bottle. That dilution was to purify water, my bad.

I just bought bottle of extra strength Colloidal Silver. I was told to use Colloidal Silver neat, but this stuff is extra strength and the bottle says to dilute 5mls in 250ml of water. Im a bit confused now and feel i need to dilute this stuff, but am unsure if this is the type im supposed to use neat. Anyone???

I just did a search for bitches holding fluid and came across this, so sorry if i confuse people by bringing this back up My young bitch is currently having her first season, she is retaining fluid i guess, she looks quite bloated and fat. I have never had a bitch do this before and was wondering if its normal. She is fine in every other way except she is fat, not down low, but more around the stomach area. She is eating fine, she doesnt have a temp, she isnt depressed, nothing else if wrong. I guess i just want to know if dogs like us get bloated around 'that time' of their cycle or if i should be off to the vet with her? Thanks

No worries, it might be worth waiting until she has had a season before you desex her otherwise she may have this for life. Your vet will be the best one to speak to about that though. Good luck with your girl.

Sounds perfectly normal. She may continue to get this until her first season, when it will clear up. Im assuming as you said she was 'part husky' you will be getting her desexed. If this is the case, dont desex her until after her first season, or she may continue to get this discharge for life. If it changes colour or has an offensive smell she may need a course of antibiotics. Maybe you could discuss this and desexing issues with the vet when you return for her 3rd vaccination. Good luck with you pup.

The best place to put a pup is on the floor of the front passenger side in a crate or petpack. The location is good because it doesnt get as much movement as the back does, which will reduce the chance of the pup throwing up. And of course the pet pack to contain him/her. I have always held my pups on the way home, i think its good bonding time for you and the pup. But the above recommendation is what was recommended to me by a couple of breeders.

There is a book you can get from your average book shop that lists remedies and treatments for minor problems with your pets. I cant remember the name of it, but have heard its good. you can pick it up in most book stores in the pet/dog section. Might be worth having a look at.

Josh, every dog responds differently to the different brands available. Just see which brands work best for your dogs. Rory is on Cobber working dog with a bit of puppy mix, he performs fantastically on it. Lady is on Bonnie puppy and optimum mix, she looks fantastic also. Jessie is on Bonnie working dog, this is very high energy stuff and is very easy to put weight on a border collie with this feed. Jessie now eats 1/2 the amount she used to on supercoat. So it all depends on your dogs. I would recommend Bonnie, i have seen great results with this so far, cobber i assume is fairly similar in nutrients and cost.

Tracey, would you encourage a dog to have some contact with sheep before trying out for HIC?

unfortunately there are way too many TNS carriers out there. Only a small percentage of dogs have been tested so far and quite a few have come back carriers. It only takes two untested dogs to be bred together who carry the gene to produce affected pups. And since the testing has only recently become available there is a good chance it may have happened. I dont mean to alarm you, just inform you that it is possible. By asking the dogs breeder you can find out if the parents have been tested yet and what the results are. Your breeder and vet are the best ones to help you here.

Yes it could be caused by an injury, but it could also be the first signs of TNS Has your pup got any other symptoms which may lead you to TNS? Lameness is one of the symptoms but if he starts getting sick, wont eat, has diarrhoea and high temperatures, id be looking at TNS. It might be worth discussing this with your vet.

You'd be suprised. I went to an emergency vet when my vet wasnt open and they charged $15.00 for a 3 day old pup to spend 30 mins in a cabinet with oxygen being pumped into it because they thought the pup looked a bit flat. He was breathing fine and was getting plenty of oxygen. Thats what i call a crappy vet, one that does unnesessary treatment just for a few extra bucks.

Then main thing i look for in a vet is that he/she cares for the animals more than the money. Alot of vets charge so much for a basic consult or vaccination. My vet charges $42 for a consult compared to $60+ that alot of other vets are charging. A couple of times he didnt even charge me the consult fee, just charged me for the medication. He doesnt charge more for individual treatments like alot of vets do, eg. oxygen baths, stitches, pain relief. He charges flat prices accross the board. If a dog goes in to get desexed, and requires further treatment for a complication, he doesnt charge extra. To me thats a good vet. Of course the vet also needs to be knowledgable and not force products onto you.

Hi Becks, you make an excellent point with the anti-flea treatment. Now on to more important issues... since you are in the UK and obviously devoted to the Monarchy I am wondering if you wake up an sing "God save the Queen" or if you secretly hum "Deutschland uber alles" when MI5 and MI6 are busy working to hush up the latest Lady Di scandal Documentary? ;) On a serious note, during WW1 the Brits, in effort to show how "patriotic" they were started to wantonly kill all German Breed dogs... and our beloved "Sachs-Coburg" family bebadged themselves as "Windsors" to sound English and not German. Of couse Queen Victoria, the most sacred of Monarchs, loved a mad Prussian... the plot thickens. Remember after WW2 in Australia how the GSD was "banned" until the 60's... and then had to be called the "Alsation"... another propagandist "rebadging" to allow acceptance from a ignorant public. Makes me mad thinking about how superficial people are, and how its the animals that need to suffer. As if they could help it that Churchill stuffed up at Gallipoli and sacrificed "Colonial" Aussies as his cannon-fodder... or that he started the first concentration camps in the Boer War to teach some European Farmers a lesson that he was "number one" - and yes civilians were deliberately starved and let to die in unsanitory conditions because the Dutch, French and other free-thinkers did not fear the red-coat and fought to keep their farms. And all the time fearless Winnie was carrying a German Mauser Pistol as his beloved Side-Arm. Hmmm... Can anyone spell "Hypocrite" ? Whats that got to do with Fidos anti itch flea wash? Did i miss something or did flames daddy feel the need to show us all how edumacated he really is

There are different reasons why the vet would suggest to wait for her first season before spaying her. Its probably not a maturity issue, more so a medical or comfort factor for your bitch. One of my bitches has an adolecent discharge, which was extremely irritating for her. If we had of spayed her hefore her first season, there would have been a good chance she would have continued to have this problem for the rest of her life. I dont know the reasons behind it, it was explained to me years ago, but ive forgotten now. Since her first season, the discharge has stopped. If your vet prefers you to wait until after her first season, i would take his advise. Theres no real harm in it, but you will need to keep your bitch away from entire dogs for 3-4 weeks. Good luck with it and enjoy the mess.

What mother dog grabs her pup by the scruff and shakes the crap out of it? I have never seen this ever!!! The mother dog at most growls and pins the pup to the ground. She doesnt shake them!!! This woman sounds like a nutter, no pup needs to be hurt to be trained. Positive reinforment works better in the long run. Happy trained dogs is what i like to see not submissive semi trained dogs. Dont listen to this woman, she talking crap! Next time if someone does something to your dog like that, do it back to them and see how they feel.

All that writing on the back of the bottle is quite extreme. I have just finished a bottle of it and never used gloves. It only slightly irritated my skin, but no more than human shampoo. I have the worlds most sensative skin and dermatitis to boot, and had no major issues with it. If your concerned, use some barrier cream first.

Trade them in for Border Collies, they love water. The muddier the better. Sorry steve i couldn't help myself.