Sandra777

Garlic is great for dogs - many say it helps repel fleas.

If you know your dog has a problem with onion or garlic (previous health issue for example) then obviously avoid it, otherwise it shouldn't cause a problem

Would she be up for advertising the bitch as spayed instead of entire; for sale for the cost of the operation.

Firstly she would then get inquiries from people genuinely not interested in breeding and once she finds a suitable home the bitch can be spayed before leaving.

Even better would be just get the bitch spayed now but perhaps $$ is a problem.

Assuming the bitch is registered, get her to hunt down the breeder of the dam and/or owner/breeder of the sire.

If the breeder is experienced and ethical follow their diet advice and go to them first second and third for any or all questions. Lovely breed, will need photos :-)

I see a lot of people are using valuheart here. Does it cover intestinal worms as well?

No it doesn't but there is absolutely no need to worm an adult dog monthly so I see no point in paying for something totally unnecessary and potential my harmful. My adults are wormed only when a fecel count shows it's needed - which is hardly ever :-)

Really need to narrow it down a bit more :-)

Some breeds are virtually impossible to break in to, others are so competitive that a new comer has to be prepared to spend a long time coming 2nd.

As you already have a 'mini foxie' my first thought was a Tenterfield.

Sadly I've had to have a few dogs PTS in the last 35 years and none have had two injections, always just one.

Honestly I don't think I'd like them given two, bad enough holding it together for them long enough for the one.

Obviously everyone does what is best for them and their dog.

So sorry you have to make this decision.

Only you know your dogs well enough to make the final decision, but for me no. You will be upset, your old boy will be confused and probably pick up on your anxiety and be anxious, no reason to make it even harder for everyone by having more dogs there getting anxious and stressed out and diverting your attention from the one who needs it most.

Can you get the vet to come to your house, this is often a better option.

Whatever you decide, remember you are doing what is best for your old boy and only you really knows what that is.

You shouldn't choosing a dog based on colour so if the breeders you are putting your name down with don't tell you they will be matching you to the pup by temperament not just by the colour of it's hair - run away!

If he's used to being outside then he will be fine - but please, not in a hammock bed! His body heat can't warm up the whole atmosphere. Get him a proper kennel or just rig up roof & sides in some way - don't need to be weather proof as he's under the porch roof, but definitely draft proof.

Border Terrier. They need things to do so might get him interested in getting out and doing things with his dog.

Also, when he's a 16 year old trying to impress the girls they're not too "girly" but still small and cute.

blue staffys apparently make up 48% of all staffys registered with the Kennel Club in UK.

Try closer to 70% now. Really rare aye?

But they still sell for over $2000 ...

No accounting for idiots really. That said there are a lot of them being discounted at 10-12 weeks when they're unsold and the next litter comes along.

blue staffys apparently make up 48% of all staffys registered with the Kennel Club in UK.

Try closer to 70% now. Really rare aye?

73% higher incidence of HD where male dogs are desexed before maturity.

That's high.

Say a young large breed male dog had behavioural issues, could the dog not have had chemical castration?

What would happen there, Steve?

NB: not meaning this puppy but in general.....

Training?

Sorry no operation is ever going to replace basic training.

I don't have large breed dogs, but have Staffords which are very strong willed, stubborn, determined and some are hard wired to be very dominant with other dogs. I have no issues with entire males of any age, let alone young silly teenage ones.

Head looks too long for a WHW.

Why can't people keep their dogs confined in their vehicles (is it illegal to have a loose dog in a car in SA?)

It really isn't rocket science

We have a Britta bench top filter & cooler. Cost about $100, 3 filters (last 4-6 weeks each) cost around $25 at the supermarket. The cooler part is very unreliable so we pretty much replace it every 18 months - 2 years under warranty which is a pain but better than forking out to buy a new one LOL

Interestingly with our pups we have seen a huge upswing in the retention of baby teeth, especially canine teeth, in the last 10 or so years when we moved from rural properties to properties with town supply water. our two latest litters we used tank water (rain water) for all puppy drinking water right from the time they could investigate mum's water bowl. The oldest of the two litters are now 4.5 months old and their teeth are falling out and chipped/broken like they used to be in the 'good old days' LOL.

Co-incidence?

Maternal immunity is fixed in the first few days - what the pups are eating or not eating now is going to have virtually no influence.

Within a few days after birth the intestinal wall ceases to be able to absorb the larger molecules which introduce the immune response into the pup from the mother.

Pups should never be force weaned unless it is a matter of life and death for mum or pups.

You can vaccinate at 6 weeks if you want regardless of whether or not the pups are still feeding from mum.

Keeping the pup inside is of no special benefit unless every single person who enters that house and who has done so in the last 6-12 months has sterilised their shoes and anything else which may bring the virus into the house.

At formal training lessons, they use food rewards so not sure how to get around that. Funnily she is very food orientated at training classes.

Two issues here. If she's food motivated in class then no big deal there - use her normal food for most rewards and the junk food for a big event :-) If she refuses her normal food as a reward at class well the trainers should be clued up enough to "allow" you to do the best thing for your dog and use an alternate reward when it's for her long term benefit.

If she isn't food motivated at home to take her normal food as a reward then also no big deal because you use something else that does motivate her - not the treats though.

Mm mm definitely remember you saying the pups were going to be neutered before leaving home. Six weeks is too young to leave for a thousand reasons but especially when there's only two pups - the one left behind will have just about all the disadvantages of the one you're turfing out. Pups need to learn from mum AND their litter mates. No registered breeder worth the name would condone this so I do seriously wonder about the ethics of your advisor. Please reconsider.

I have tried swapping some training treats for normal food, but all she doe is eat the training treats and leave the rest

Then don't give her the training treats as a reward if she doesn't want the normal food as a reward. A pat, a game or a good old fashion "good girl" will be sufficient reward for a simple training situation.

She doesn't get a choice of what to eat - you control the situation.

I would prevent her scavenging from the other dogs bowl - she needs to learn that you control the food supply, not her or the other dog.

I used to just hack the 1/2 head in half again with a hatchet and a sharp knife, so certainly do-able. For the first meal I'd chip off the big chunks of skin & fat around the jowls/cheek.

I used to feed pigs heads a fair bit and never had a problem - but! if your dog has never had pork before start with something a lot smaller. If he's never had something quite fatty before then also start smaller. Yes a large fatty meal can cause pancreas problems if the dog is suspectible, but many dogs will never have this problem so you need to know he can tolerate fat and tolerate pork before trying out the pigs head. Mine would polish the lot off (1/4 heads each, 15-16 kg Staffords) and just leave the teeth - always a fun find in the morning LOL

She's a good weight, happy, active and healthy. There isn't a problem :)

Swap part of her normal food for her "junk food" training treats (for low-reward situations, keep something special for jackpot moments!)

Keep to a strict policy of ten-fifteen minutes to eat then all food in the house is removed until the next meal time. This means no training treats (except for normal food) no little tit-bits, no snacks, nothing.

Does she eat better if she's alone? If so, separate her. Sometimes dogs who aren't really very hungry in the first place are easily distracted.

I would hazard a guess it's an expression of excitement. Shouting definitely won't work - he'll think you're joining in his "shouting" :laugh:

Spray bottle may work and isn't as mean as it may sound, but first stop would be put him on a leash and get him to sit, lie down, do other things while the exciting things are happening - distract him and at the same time teaching him that doing something OTHER than barking will get him more attention.

When you cannot supervise you will need to confine him (crate inside) while the kids play, otherwise he will get so much self-rewarding from barking (weird yes, but the excitement level is a reward) that he will never learn.

Teaching him to bark on command may also work - because you are then teaching him to STOP barking on command.

Did the breeder have children? Have you discussed this with them?

Never buy a puppy as a "show dog" from someone who doesn't show themselves AND who cannot provide lots of evidence of multiple dogs of their breeding doing very well at multiple shows over a number of years.

Yes - there certainly are some breeders out there who produce great dogs but can't be bothered with the nonsense - but they sell to people who do show.

Selling one dog to one person who won one class with it at one show does not qualify!

The huge majority of people who breed but don't show do not know what is required in a "show quality" puppy.

That's the second big give-away too of course - no one who knows their onions will sell a "show quality" puppy, it's purely potential.

Weekly at Durack - Thursday nights I believe & I think it starts at 7.30 but someone else will be along shortly to correct this if it's wrong :laugh: