huski

I have fed both RC and Artemis (which is what I feed currently to one dog, the other two are on a raw diet). I prefer the ingredients in Artemis and the Royal Canin I was feeding had maize as the first ingredient. The most important thing is to feed what your dog does best on, no one food works for every dog and Artemis doesn't agree with some dogs.

Just with the above example, Daisy has always been a very stubborn dogs and one of those puppies who if guided or forced into doing something she didn't want to do, would growl and carry on. She never wanted to be picked up etc and was like this from the day we bought her home. With lots of work, she is very good now, and I can pick her up, place her, physically move her around etc and she is 1000x more cuddly now too (not from forcing her to want cuddles as I don't think that's possible, but it happened as she matured). But she HATES having her nails cut. I have no problem touching her paws, or inspecting between her pads at any time except when I have clippers in my hand. I have been thinking of getting a dremel as I think filing them down might be more pleasant for her. It is the same with her ears - no problem with inspecting them or touching them unless she knows I am going to clean them (and somehow she knows the second I get up to get the bottle). She is a real squirmer! She has gotten better the more I do it, but she can still play up a bit. I feel embarrassed saying she hates having her nails clipped and her ears cleaned as I'm sure had I known more I could have desensitized her better, but some owners do make their best effort and still have a dog who hates getting those things done.

My boy pug used to get dirty smelly ears constantly untill I got him off all grains. Now ac lean out in the bath once every 7 to 10 days is all he needs whne it used to be every day. I see, so you're suggesting something like Artemis or any other grain free kibble ? I would just start by cleaning them daily with a solution like Epiotic ear cleaner and see how he goes... but yes, eliminating grains can certainly help with yeast infections, I feed a raw diet, but you can certainly do it with grain free kibble

Easy, Metro Dog Club is next to Chermside Westfield at Marchant Park. They do puppy school and further obedience training. http://www.metrodogclub.com/

Thank BD, I had no idea they were so different!

What do you clean them with? I am constantly battling with Daisy's ears, she is very prone to yeast infections. It has been better since I eliminated grains from her diet, but she still gets them - I use the epiotic ear cleaner once a day when her ears are smelly and then once a week if they are cleared up.

Hard to tell with those pics but he looks fine to me. Daisy doesn't eat any more than two cups of food a day, probably less, but she's on a diet. You should bring him along to the DOL meet this Sunday!

Yes, like the chicken/turkey/lamb bones I listed above - my dogs have nothing left in their bowls after I feed them! I generally don't feed brisket or recreational bones.

I'm not expert but isn't cartilage just connective tissue? Chicken wings/necks/frames look like they have plenty of bone in them to me!

Yep

I also thought about 10% edible bone was the recommended amount, and that RMBs should be mostly muscle meat. I guess it depends on which model you're following though AFAIK the BARF break down was 80% raw meaty bones, within that, 40% meat and 40% bone. Not sure what the prey model is but surely it's more than 10% bone too? I don't know any raw diet that would advocate only feeding 10% bone, all the RMBs I feed would have much more bone than that.

Try to feed about 80%, 10% bone, 10% offal. Only 10% bone? Or have I read that wrong I feed whatever I have in the fridge/freezer, mainly 80% RMBs, 20% extras like offal, fruit, vegies, fish, egg, yoghurt etc. Bones include: - chicken wings, necks, frames, legs etc - turkey wings and necks - lamb forequarters, necks, off cuts - various beef bones I also do a mix up of human grade beef mince, vegies, fruit, sardines, offal, yoghurt etc and feed that a few times a week. ETA: The change in Micha and Daisy's condition and overall health since being on a raw diet is amazing.

Sometimes Daisy gets a mouthful of Micha's fur, but it's not because she was being rough - he'll drop coat in a light breeze

I think we need a bit more specifics about what you are after in a dog... - How much exercise would you be willing to give the dog? - How much grooming would you be up for - would you rather a short coated breed, one that sheds, or one with a coat that doesn't drop much hair but needs regular clipping? etc etc - What kind of training would you be willing to do with the dog? - What size do you have in mind? - Do you want a rather laid back dog or one that is energetic? etc

Don't feel silly. I didn't know what it was until I joined DOL. If you want to know more about drive training this is the place to ask! :p

Hey Tiggy I am no expert as I'm only learning about drive training myself (I am training my beagle in food drive atm) but here is a thread you might find useful: http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?show...c=43795&hl= And K9 Force has a couple of articles on his website about it too http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=tid.html http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=drives.html

Wooohooo! Congrats LP, beautiful bubbies!! Any you have your eye on yet??

After reading this thread I just ordered the Rufus and Coco itch relief shampoo to try on Cherry who is prone to terrible rashes and itchiness. If you buy from their website it is free postage throughout Australia

Heeling is probably one of Daisy's strengths, the SFE is definitely our worst as stand is not her strongest command.

If I ever get to that level I think I will do a COP, we work on them a bit now and I think it will be the easier option for Daisy

I think there are some breeds that require a different approach and might take longer to get reliability. And like others said, it largely depends on the handler. My Sibe picks things up almost straight away but whether or not you can motivate him to get him doing known commands reliably can be another thing. I'm pretty lucky with him as he is both food and prey motivated. Micha and Daisy would both give you the doggy equivalent of the rude finger if you asked them to work just for praise I found Daisy harder than Micha in many ways, she is very food driven and will do anything for food, but - get her on a scent and I could shove food in her mouth and she will spit it out! So it was a matter of harnessing that drive and making it work for me.

LOL Ptolomy, all this talk of novice, open and UD I dream about just entering a CCD trial I love watching open and UD videos!! The dogs are just amazing!

I think goals are good Especially once you get to the point you are at with Jedi where he is working really well. As I said I am hoping to have Daisy closer to our goal by the end of the year too. In the early stages though I think it is important to work at the pace of your dog and see how you go. I used to get so frustrated at obedience club when I would see people enter our class, and graduate to the next level, while Daisy and I were still slugging away. Then I realised that I couldn't compare her to the other dogs and I feel much more relaxed just working at our own pace. That's just my (totally amateur) opinion though

Well said Nik, it is more about the pace you are comfortable go and the dog you are working with. Some dogs will take longer than others. I could have kept going at obedience school with Daisy, but I could tell she was not getting the 'oomph' I was after which is why I started drive training. I knew I wanted to trial with her eventually but I was constantly battling with her urge to scent. She's two years old now and if I can get everything right, I might be closer to trialling by the end of the year - but like Nik, I'll take it at 'our' pace and only trial when I know she will be the best dog she can be. ETA: I would try and not think of it as a time frame or deadline, go for it when you are both ready and comfortable

So glad to hear you are seeing some positive changes Erny!