huski

I haven't started trialling Daisy yet but there is no way I'd enter her if I knew she wasn't ready.

I didn't say a trainer would fix it in 15 minutes, I said they would have the dog walking on a loose leash in fifteen minutes. Fixing the problem (i.e. getting him to walk on a loose leash with you, all the time) would take a little bit longer. I would be dubious of any trainer who failed to teach a client to get their dog to walk on a loose leash, it would have to be one of the most common and basic problems they would encounter with clients. There is no such thing as a dog who cannot be taught to walk on a loose leash (unless the client failed to follow through with the training program they gave them). Are you in Vic? There are plenty of reputable trainers on DOL who service that area, who I am sure would be able to get your dog walking on a loose leash in no time :D

I use a variety too. I love the Happy Paws treats for general training, although when I have Daisy out for for drive work/obedience I have to stick to soft and smelly treats (chicken, cooked sausages, kabana, cheese, steak etc) because she won't chew before she swallows and if I use anything dried, she'll cough it back up

I agree, reputable trainer will have a dog walking on a loose leash in 15 minutes.

I was concerned with your comment so I asked Sue to reply...to quote her.. I've never said I 'won't' train Sibes or Mallies, but from the few dogs I've seen here they don't seem easy dogs to train, when they do work well they're wonderful! I know in NZ they cross Sibes with BCs to breed excellent obedience dogs. End of quote. Hope that clears a few things Oh, sorry if I caused any concern it was just a passing comment I heard that piqued my curiousity (for obvious reasons) - I would love to attend one of Sue's seminars ;) Thanks for clearing that up for me Although I must admit I've heard about the BC/sibe crossed and find the concept absolutely terrifying

I will definitely have to try and get to a Sue Hogben seminar one of these days, she's supposed to be great! Although I've heard that she says she won't train Siberians or Mallies, which is funny as my Siberian is highly trainable. Next time she comes to Brissy, I will definitely have to ask her about it!

Oh yes, my doggies love their raw trotters!! I have four in the freezer actually. I get a bag of six for $3. My favourite thing is how long it takes them to get through them

LOL FTPO, you know something must taste really really bad if the Evil Beagle won't eat it

Hell no but the bad breath was mainly caused by the sardines I mashed in there ;)

Great progress! But Kingy, just be very careful about the amount of exercise you give him. The general rule is five minutes per month of age of the dog (so at three months, no more than 15 minutes, four months twenty minutes etc) - my beagle was well and truly six months before we worked her up to going on 30 minute walks. That much exercise is far too much for little pups who are still growing ;)

Foul isn't it??? The things we do for the bloody dogs

I found a way to get the dogs to eat lots of liver tonight It's disgusting - but I bought about 440g of chicken livers tonight, chopped them and then barmixed them into a puree :p I divided them into the dog's bowls (Mish got a bit more than Daisy obviously) and mixed in sardines and yoghurt. They ate it all Hopefully if I do a couple of meals of offal like this a week they will continue to eat it.

Good advice Kallistar - solid stays is definitely something I will be proofing for a lot when we get to that stage.

Totally agree Erny, although for me there isn't anything nicer than a well made leather leash. I prefer the look to the leashes that have bright colours/patterns, I think a nice leather leash looks smart and stylish

Hi Bluestaff I have three of K9 Force's leather leashes and they are the best! The leather is so nice to hold and the clasps are made out of brass and will definitely not break or snap like the leashes that have the die cast chrome snaps can do. I think I'm really spoilt after having the leather leashes, because whenever I hold a leash that is cotton or nylon I realise how nice mine are to hold :p http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=leashes.html

It's all individual, except for the group stays :p

Glad to hear you have made some progress, Kingy Did you end up taking him to puppy school?

Raw liver is essential if you feed a raw diet (offal will be one of the ingredients in any of the bought BARF mixes you can get like canine country or Dr B's). It's really good for them and has a lot of nutritional value. Heart is really good for them too It's ok to feed kibble if that's your preference, but my dogs have thrived on raw so I will always feed it now.

Skuzy... if it's been an ongoing problem, have you considered consulting a trainer/behaviourist?

I also feed a raw diet, but if I had to feed dried I would first look at Artemis grain free or Eagle Pack Holistic. I feed a variety of food, from raw meaty bones to muscle meat (i.e. heart) to offal to raw pureed vegies/fruit and sardines, yoghurt etc. For treats I always use something soft and smelly, like cooked sausage, steak, left over roast meat, boiled or roast chicken etc. I don't feed any processed treats and the only dried treats I feed are 100% dried natural meat/offal. I use Advocate at the moment. My dogs number one favourite are the cuz balls, they also like orbee balls and anything that squeaks/bounces. They also love this platypus soft toy I got that has little squeaky "egg" balls inside. Oh - and empty plastic bottles! Any game I play is generally training related. The dogs like playing tug, chasing their toys, learning tricks and doing obedience training Well, especially with beagle owners, training training training! Start from day one and make sure you are consistent with your rules and boundaries Love the pics!!

I agree with Silverhaze. Sibes will take advantage if you let them. They are opportunistic and know when they can get away with something. Consistency is the key, you want to be a consistent leader so the dog knows and understands what the boundaries and rules are. I raise all my dogs with the NILIF principle, that is they learn that nothing in life is free. This article may be a good starting point for you http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

The first fear stage doesn't occur until 12-16 weeks... When we bought Daisy the breeder met us in a town park. It wasn't because she was dodgy, but because she was several hours drive away and had two puppy buyers from Brissy so she offered to met us half way (about 3-4 hours drive one way for us). She bought a couple of her adult dogs with her. In this instance, it wasn't dodgy, but the OP's example would definitely have alarm bells ringing for me I hope she finds a pup from a reputable breeder soon

Sorry to hear this Bub, hope he makes a fast recovery

Love the pics HH!! So glad to hear it went well and recovery is going well to

Staranais - can't remember if you've mentioned this before, but what dried do you feed? Whenever I next get a pup I will want to feed them raw but will probably start off doing half kibble half raw, before gradually moving the pup to 100% raw like I feed the adult dogs now.