dancinbcs

I prefer the green backed for whelping and the rubber backed one for use on the dog beds. The rubber back one takes twice as long to dry as the green back one but sits flatter on the dog beds.

If he is not registered then no one on here would ever be interested in using him as it is against our Code of Ethics. Desex your lovely new pet and and if you want to get another seek out a good registered breeder on here.

From the way this is worded it sounds like you do not want to breed a litter but just want someone else to use your dog. This is not the way the dog world works and bitch owners seek out a dog, not the other way round. Bitch owners carefully check pedigrees and look for the very best dog that is compatible with their bitch to get the best puppies. Breeding is not a matter of just getting a male and female and putting them together. It is a lot more complicated than that. Most males are never used at stud unless they are successful show dogs or have specific lines that someone wants. The breeder of your dog should be able to advise firstly, if your dog is good enough to breed from (and is main registered) and then they will advise other breeders that this dog exists and is available, if he isn't shown. One day someone may want to use him but unless he is being shown it is unlikely. Provided he is on main register and has had his patellas checked as sound, you can also list him here on DOL in the breed profiles so people know he exists.

They may still come down but are less likely to at this age. I would never sell a show/breeding prospect if both testicles had not fully descended by 8 weeks.

Better to wait 12 months and get a dog at least has been hip and elbow scored first. Considering the cost it would be devastating to find your $10,000 import had bad hips or elbows after it gets here. Easier still is to import semen but even then there are no guarantees with what you will get.

The K locus just determines if tri and sable from the A series, actually show on the dog. All dogs have the genes for sable or tri except for a few exceptions like bi Shelties who have a recessive black gene there. For most dogs the sable or tri genes are there but a dog that is KK will not show those markings. For tri and sable to show properly the dog needs to kk. Those that are Kk should not show any pattern but a few show "ghost markings" for some reason and this is now believed to be what seal colour is.

Correct. The K gene has nothing to do with merle. The first link I put up, part way down the page, states- "A test for merle is available through IDEXX. The test must be ordered through a licensed veterinarian who has an account with IDEXX Laboratories. The test requires either 2mL of blood in an edta (purple-top) tube or 1-2 cheek swabs. I recommend submitting blood. The test code is 3341 (MER). Results usually take 5-7 working days. If your veterinarian has questions about the test, he/she should call IDEXX at 1-888-433-9987. They will only speak to a veterinarian with an IDEXX account." There is an IDEXX lab in Australia but I think this merle test is only done in Canada.

Any solid appearing progeny of a merle can be a cryptic merle and for breeding purposes should be tested if possible unless they will always be bred into all solid lines. The problem is finding somewhere to test for merle. Also reds with a merle parent can be merles but it won't show they definitely need to be tested before breeding.

Try this link for testing Merle testing. or possibly this one Healthgene

The first rule is always let the breeder know if there is a problem and if the puppy becomes ill in the first few days, return it if possible. That isn't possible here but the breeder has agreed to a refund or vet bills but do not expect them to pay more in vet bills that they would have for a refund. So where do you draw the line - at the purchase price of the puppy. If treatment and testing is going to cost more than that the outcome is not likely to be a good one. I have known of new buyers to spend $6000+ on a puppy worth less than $1000 and then have to have it pts anyway. This puppy could have anything from parvo to worms, if the wormer the breeder used was not effective. It could also have congenital liver problems or immune system problems. If she does have to be pts please confirm with the breeder if they are prepared to pay for an autopsy as finding out what went wrong is vital to breeders. Hopefully it won't come to that and he will recover but be prepared for all outcomes.

They don't have merle listed anywhere in their available tests.

If it is the same sort of risk as dogs with megaesophagus, they are usually fed in a bailey chair and the food needs to be very moist as they do not give them water.

I would be worried. Maybe a call to the vet or possibly a veterinary opthalmologist would be in order.

While many adult Border Collies could live happily and quietly in an apartment, I would never sell a puppy to live in one. Puppies need lots of room to run, every waking minute and would destroy an apartment. If a Border puppy is awake it is doing "something", never just lying around. Some Japanese Spitz are happy living in apartments but my particular one would go mental confined like that. He needs access to a yard where he can run mad zoomies, several times most days and he is nearly two years old now. Also keep in mind that Japanese Spitz are actually not very common in apartment living Japan because they are a very noisy breed who act as an alarm to any unusual sound or sight.

The dogs usually cope well with the travel and quarantine if they have easy going temperaments. The cost is the biggest factor for most people to consider. Some friends with a pet bitch I bred, took her to Newfoundland in Canada for a year when she was 7 years old. The dog coped fine and they took the opportunity to do some travelling while she was in quarantine, only returning to Aust just before she was released.

The cat I had when I got my first BC puppy used to bop him on the head to make him behave but she never had her claws out. The puppy naturally wanted her to play because she was black and white and fluffy just like him and about the same size to start with. She taught him and all that came after him to respect cats very well. When I had litters she would make a point of walking through the puppy yard and standing still, head up, tail up, just to let them know who was in charge. She never ever scratched one of the dogs and they never chased her. She was a fussy eater who liked to eat one mouthful at a time many times a day. Her and the first dog had a system worked out were she would ask for food, have the tiniest bit and let the dog eat the rest. Sometimes she didn't even have one bite after asking for it but the dog loved the arrangement.

I love the fact that most Border Collies whelp with no assistance at all. If all is going well you can just watch, note down times/descriptions and move puppies to the side of the box as the next one arrives but other than that leave them to it. Interfering at all can result in bad mothering and all my girls have hated having their babies moved anywhere out of their reach. I give them at least a minute or two to break the sack but most bitches remove it immediately. If they are a bit slow I break the sack and tap the puppy on the nose to get it to take a breath, then let the bitch take over from there. I do not weigh puppies until the bitch is finished and then do it with the scales in the whelping box. I use an oxy shot when the bitch is finished because I have rarely ever seen a placenta. the bitches grab and eat them as they come out so counting them is impossible. Within the first 24 hours we do a vet visit to check all is well and that is the only time that the puppies are taken out of reach of the bitch. Of course if things go wrong you need to step in. I have only twice had to re-position a stuck puppy and pull it out and only once had a cord that needed to be tied off to stop it bleeding. If the bitch is not getting anywhere after an hour of contractions or she stops for more than 2 hours between puppies, it is off to the vet.

For the truly fussy the pill poppers are great. They even work on cats and if you have ever tried to give a cat a tablet you will know how difficult they can be. If the dogs were bigger no one would put up with the nonsense and just because they are smaller it is no excuse to let them get away with bad behaviour. Teaching dogs to take medication is just as important as any other training you do with them. If the problem is heartworm tasty chews then change to something that comes as a tablet. Mine detest the chews so we use Milbemycin small tablets. Much easier to conceal in a little food or shove down their throat if need be. Putting a little butter on the tablet will let it slip down easily or they could try what I do with puppies and cover it in Nutripet first. I do not use puppy worming syrups after having it spat all over me and they don't really work anyway. We use tablets from 10 days of age.

Gates should always be locked.

Border Collies are often great with birds and I know of many cases where the dog and bird are good friends (even with wild birds) but I wouldn't be risking any hunting type breed with a bird and I sure as hell would not allow any birds that bite anywhere near dogs.

DNA tests are definitely accurate for the specific diseases they test for. Of course human error in recording the results can occur, just as it can in any other field that involves someone writing something down. Errors like that have occurred but are rare and can be found by re-checking of the results. Much more common is that the sire of the litter is not who the breeder thought it was or that someone has lied about test results. Never rely on someone telling you results. You need a copy of them yourself. Also clinical eye exams can miss dogs affected with some conditions. The clinical signs can be so small as to not be detectable but when the dog is DNA tested it is found to be genetically affected.

Just fly it.

Read the ingredients. Dentastix contain sugar, hardly something you would use for dental health and I fail to see how something that is chewed and swallowed in a couple of seconds is of any use to the teeth. I still wouldn't trust Greenies after the deaths from them. Raw bones are the best to keep teeth clean.

The dogs involved in this attack were not Amstaffs but SBTs and they looked purebred, not the typical mongrel pound Staffie.

Another serious dog attack in Melbourne today. 9 news