huski

What breed. Not all breeds are capabale of living outside & regulating there body temp.Not all breeds can be lumped into the same basic especially given the different climates around australia I've found some posters here are making the same generalisations by saying dogs shouldn't sleep outside or they wouldn't sell a pup to a home where the dog would sleep outside. Obviously it can vary from dog to dog and it also depends on your set up. My Sibe sleeps outside at night time, but then our chihuahua cross and our beagle are all outside during the day or whenever we aren't home including nights we don't get home till late. I am mainly rebutting the generalisation that the dog is not part of your family if it sleeps outside at night time. As you said, how well a dog can cope sleeping outside depends on a lot of factors including breed, where you live etc.

My dog sleeps outside. He likes sleeping outside. We have a big deck area on the back of our house, that is almost two stories high, so it is well above the ground and covered etc. He is still part of our family. I don't see why a dog sleeping outside is such a big deal as long as it is comfortable All my dogs are outside when we aren't home too. I don't like dogs inside 24/7. But that's just me

Haha! She is always such a crowd pleaser. You should have seen her at my 21st

Couldn't you just kill em ;) Cherry looks relieved when we take Micha and Daisy out and leave her at home

OMG what a cute little face!

I know what you mean Ruger! Daisy doesn't have separation anxiety. she doesn't get destructive and she settles down eventually, and has no worries being by herself when I take her out on her own. However. She gets very put out when I take Micha somewhere without her. It's like she doesn't want to miss out - if I walk them one after the other (which I do regularly when I am home by myself) I have to take Daisy first so she is at least a bit tired out when I take Micha - usually she still cries/barks for a bit when we leave, unless I have distracted her with food. And we have another dog at home! I do think she gets bored without having Micha to play with as Cherry doesn't play with her. When I took Micha to the K9 Force Training weekend, I got my sister to take Daisy for a walk around the block when we were putting Micha in the car and driving away. It didn't make a difference, she still got upset and wanted to turn around and see where Micha was going. She searched for him desperately when she got home and sat at the door and barked/cried. She doesn't care when people leave, and doesn't react the same way if it's Cherry going out - just Micha. I have tried leaving with him for short periods of time etc and it doesn't make a difference - big fuss at the start and then eventually she is less noisy. She settles eventually but is still a pain in the arse.

Exactly - there is a difference between saying 'nope, that is not for me' and making your own choices, and saying 'I would never do that because using that method damages your relationship with your dog, uses fear, is not real success' etc. The former is with-holding judgment, the latter is not.

Corvus said that they had no interest in judging. Why are you hammering at this? What is the injury to you in someone talking about their own personal experience? Is there fundamentally a problem with experienced people saying they prefer to avoid correction? I don't think there is. Ultimately we are dealing in personal values with a lot of this stuff, and that goes for the pro-correction anecdata as much as anything else. Edited to fix the quoting html I'm sorry, but is she not judging by insinuating that by giving corrections, your relationship with your dog is damaged and based on fear? I have no issue with what choice she makes in regards to her training, I am just trying to understand her thinking behind it - just as Corvus has done by asking questions on training methods in this thread and others.

So do you believe that those who use corrections in their training are not actually getting any success? That their relationship with their dogs are damaged or based on fear? I use corrections in my training but they do not build or encourage fear in my dogs. Do you think everyone who uses corrections in training, are making the same mistakes that you did and are doing the same "damage"?

Corvus, I agree with what Cosmolo has said - the fact is that any type of training can be used inappropriately, or wrongly. The idea that punishment "can" cause damage means nothing when it can be used successfully, with great results if done properly. A good trainer will show you how to use corrections yourself - and should never do anything to your dog without your permission, or without telling you what they are doing first. I am sure there are some dog trainers out there who know less about wild hares than you do too

I think lamb flaps and lamb in general is often quite fatty? So maybe try some flaps?

Generally I have to mix offal in with my BARF mix for the dogs to eat it. I am overseas at the moment and just got an email from mum who couldn't find chicken livers to add into the BARF mix so had to get lamb kidneys instead. She was very detailed in how absolutely disgusting they were Apparently as she was chopping it up some dropped on the floor and little miss piggy (daisy) wouldn't have a bar of it!

Thanks guys. I put 4 tins of sardines in their BARF mix so they do get a bit of fish in their food. I might try mixing the offal with a tin of sardines once a week. Will also check the fish monger for salmon heads!

I buy a 'tray' of chicken livers from Coles and mix the whole tray into the mince BARF mix I make up.... which lasts about a week so three dogs would share a tray. I'd like to feed them more offal, but they don't really like eating it on its own for some reason - I don't want to buy an ox heart or something and give it to them only to have them leave it there ;) I would also like to feed more fish, but I worry about raw fish and fish bones... for those who feed fish what about the bones?? They are so fine and sharp. are the dogs ok to eat a whole fish or half a fish each? And what type of fish is the best to buy from the fish monger - at the moment I pretty much just feed sardines.

As she gets older you're going to need to cut that down. Adult sibes need very little. Psstt Midol... Sasha is a mallie

So sorry griffy Run free beautiful Sinna.

I recently changed all three of mine over to a BARF diet for this reason (Daisy had continual ear problems and I thought it could help). It has been easier than I first thought. I started feeding Dr Billinghurst BARF patties but after two days Daisy refused to eat them (VERY unusual for a beagle!) so I started making my own. It is so much easier than I first thought! I mix a heap of grated vegies with human grade mince meat, yoghurt, sardines and kidneys. So far the dogs are thriving and in a month I have had so many comments on their coats and general condition! Even the cat is chowing down on the BARF. I have been balancing the mince mixture with fresh bones - chicken frames, necks, wings, lamb necks, etc etc and they are loving it. Little Cherry has never been so excited about eating I am really glad I changed them over to 100% raw, they are thriving and I am a total BARF convert

Kirty I am so sorry to hear this, I am crying just after reading your post. Run free millie

If a dog has a higher food drive than prey drive I will happily use food. My male has a high prey drive but will not grab a toy from me, and his drive for food is VERY high, so whilst I could spend time developing his prey drive, food is a more affective training method for me to use with him. My beagle is also food driven, but we are training with a tug at the moment, because she is also very prey driven. Neither of my dogs would want to work just for a pat on the back! Neither have high enough pack drive for that to be affective. Why make it harder for yourself? Go with the drive that works best for your dog!

Huga on this forum also makes them. She does them in a variety of patterns and colours too Here is my bitch Daisy wearing a "daisy" collar You can get them from here: http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=142559

Hi Huski, Remember it is balance over time. Not balance in every meal. Yep! I'm getting there slowly Thanks for all the info everyone.... I can go back to this person with a clearer idea of how to approach the article

Thanks guys. Its an issue I only know a little bit about - and all I really know is that my dogs are doing well on it (so far) and that I am doing all I can to make it a balanced diet.

I was talking to someone about BARF earlier today and they linked me to this article. http://www.showdogsupersite.com/kenlclub/b...t/dogdiets.html Which refutes the benefits of a raw/BARF diet. I was just curious what every else thought about the article? I am only new to feeding raw and was unaware that vets etc were so divided on the issue.

Aww thanks Ruby. I think she is pretty special There are some great beagle breeders out there too. I am a big Spitz fan, but I really have fallen for beagles. She has the potential, and the focus is there, I just need to harness that insatiable instinct! LOL

Both my dogs are very food driven so I get great responses from them if I use boiled chicken breast and/or sausage.