dancinbcs

If you are confident about raising a puppy, go with the puppy. I always recommend that you never have two dogs the same age. The risk of losing them very close together in old age is very real and very traumatic. 2-3 years between dogs is a much better option. A really old dog can be as much work as a puppy and having two really old together would be very stressful. If you know how to raise a puppy then it can be raised to suit your rules and expectations. A rescue usually comes complete with behaviours you don't want and need to re-train, which is harder than doing it the right way with a puppy. Most dogs end up as rescues because they haven't been trained properly. If it isn't really a "rescue" but is just being re-homed direct from the other owner due to a change in circumstances, then it may be a well adjusted, well trained dog that could fit in easily but the age problem would still be there. If the rescue is the same sex as your dog there is likely to be a clash, depending on the breed.

Any breed that had two attacks reported could be declared a "dangerous dog". That was why I was wondering what the breed was. The father that gave them the dog should have to pay any fines but the mother should have been firm when the dog arrived and said it had to live at dad's place. Hsrd to be the baddy in the kids eyes at the time but it would have been so much better than this outcome. Even better would have been a dad that wasn't a moron. I feel sorry for the kids but have no sympathy at all for the parents or the dog. If it had attacked my dogs I would want it put down. I believe there is no place in modern society for any dog that will launch an unprovoked attack on dogs walking past minding their own business. I'm not talking about the many dogs that object to another dog running up and getting in their face but the ones that see another dog and instantly launch into attack mode.

Add granulated garlic to her food. The staining is from an irritation that is causing her to lick and the stains will not wash out with anything, they have to grow out. A friend with a produce store put me onto the garlic. He sells it to prevent Queensland Itch in horses and discovered that it works on dogs with irritated feet. I used it successfully on one of my dogs many years ago. I don't know why or how it works but it does.

The original post was far too many questions to expect anyone to reply to by email. A long time breeder would need to write a novel to answer all that. When talking to breeders they will tell you most of those points while just discussing their dogs. My suggested shortened list of questions is: Breeder questions: How many litters do you breed per year on average? How many years have you had * breed for? Do you successfully show or compete in dog sports? What clubs are you a member of? Parents of the pup questions: What health results do the parents have for inherited conditions in the breed? When asking this question you should already know what tests are required in the breed. Puppy questions: How are the puppies raised (outside, inside, combination?) What health checks do the puppies have before leaving? Only relevant for breeds that require specific health testing as babies, like luxating patella in toys and spinal x-rays in Bulldogs. Most breeds just have a basic vet examination at the first vaccination. Is there any type of health guarantee or recourse if future genetic problems are found? How much is a puppy? Are the puppies on ANKC limited or main registration? Is there a deposit required? How much? At what age? Under what circumstances is the money refunded if the sale doesn’t go ahead?

Out of curiosity, what breed is the dog causing the trouble? The number of fathers that give inappropriate dogs to their kids just to cause trouble for the ex-wife, is quite alarming.

Just put on here what breed you are after and where you are and ask for people to pm you with personal recommendations for breeders.

Grooming is about the same as an Aussie. A good brush through once a week and a bath about once a month for pets. Temperaments in the same litter usually range from lounge lizards to hyper, high drive dogs. You just need a a middle of the road one for your situation and any experienced breeder can pick the temperament by 5-6 weeks. The love to wrestle with other dogs they are friends with but don't often get on well with some breeds like terriers because they have a completely different play style. Borders love to be with their people, are great brought up with kids. They love doing whatever the owners are doing, chilling out or going for long walks. Perfect to train for obedience, agility, doggy dancing or whatever you want. The males tend to think they are lap dogs and the females are generally a bit more independant and share themselves around more.

You have described a perfect home for an ANKC registered Border Collie. I rarely recommend my own breed but would be more than happy to sell a puppy into this situation.

I would be calling an after hours vet now.

Another vote for indestructable Oldfield dryers. Mine is over 25 years old and still going strong.

Did they clip that area for the surgery? It looks like clipper rash to me. The neocort should work or if the skin seems damp, try some curash baby powder.

Crib Stop from the produce store will stop most dogs chewing on wood it is painted on. It is made to stop horses from chewing.

If the breeder had him on grass he will be looking for the closest surface to grass to toilet on. Carpet is pretty close to grass as far as a puppy is concerned. Can you make him a small turfed area in the garden among the mulch that can gradually be decreased in size until he goes on the mulch. Dogs generally prefer not to toilet on concrete or gravel so you are facing an uphill battle to toilet train a puppy on those surfaces.

Just having a quick look through the 86 litters on here, there is one show breeder with 30 years experience that has a couple of blues in a litter of mixed colours. They could be a better bet than the multitude of "all blue" breeders on there. There could be more but I only looked through the first 10-15 ads.

A few points to mention. No reputable breeder would ever sell their puppies through a pet shop. They need to meet the new owner, ask lots of questions and make sure the puppy is going to the right home. They are also available to provide help and advice for the life of the dog. He should meet at least the mother of the litter and see where the puppy was raised. With the current laws in Vic, the dog will not be safe unless it has ANKC registration with a matching microchip. Finally, blues are a dime a dozen and I'm sure he would find any number in the DOL listings from breeders who can provide all of the above for less than $2000. They may not be the best show breeders but many can still provide good pets from health tested parents with good temperaments. If you really want to help, try ringing some of the blue breeders yourself and see if you can weed out one who sounds ok, then pass the details on to him.

Some good suggestions on here about mental stimulation and how to get her to know her place in the family. I know nothing about Gordons but have had 3 very destructive Border Collies among a whole line of non-destructive dogs so wouldn't be blaming the breeding. I find some dogs just need to chew and destroy things, no matter what else they do in their life. The first one I had nearly drove me insane, chewing everything she came in contact with. She chewed her bedding every noght for three years and even at 12 would still chew up a pencil if she found one. I kept a sons and daughter from her two litters and neither were destructive at all. By the time the destructive grandson came along, I had learnt a lot and found the key was not to try to stop them chewing and destoying stuff but providing things they could destroy and teaching them what was their's to do with what they wanted and what was not their's was not to be touched. With a friend we bought in a bitch and she still chews her bedding among, other things, at 12 but the 3 daughters we have from her are all non-destructive angels. I have a toy basket that they can go to and Ialways praise when they select something. The things in there are not all toys but an assortment of stuff that can be chewed or torn apart. The basket inself is pretty well chewed as well. If they touch anything else they are reprimanded immediately. Now I have a new JS puppy and he leaves the BCs for dead in the chewing stakes but he is learning to go to the toy basket, is being reprimanded every time he puts a tooth on anything else (including people) and is confined to his pen if not being directly supervised. If you cannot watch them they need to be restricted in where they can go and what they can access. Electric fencing is useful if you need to keep them away from part of the yard that cannot have a proper fence. Crib Stop from the produce store will stop dogs chewing on outside furniture. So provide lots to chew and destroy and remember to praise. Restrict access to everything else unless you can supervise and reprimand wrong behaviour every time. Good luck!

They definitely work but you can try a small kids t-shirt first which will work just as well before investing in a thundershirt. Just gather up the the shirt at the back to make sure it is snug against her chest. With a sudden phobia with no obvious cause (like having been outside in a severe storm), her general health should be investigated. My girl, I lost to cancer in June developed a sudden fireworks phobia last year at nine. She was still fine with storms but became very frightened of fireworks. I used a t-shirt on her last New Years Eve with success but the cause of a the phobia turned out to be a brain tumour, secondary to her cancer in the chest. Sudden onset of noise phobias can have a neurological cause.

Some Border Collies could fit that description. A female is less likely to think she is a lap dog than a male but an only Border Collie does prefer to be inside with the owners when they are home at least for some of every day. To be safe around horses and livestock they really need to be trained in basic herding so you can control their natural instinct to round up everything that moves. Otherwise look for one with very little herding instinct. There is often one in a litter that is more chilled out and not really into chasing anything much. Temperaments within litters vary a lot from the lounge lizard to very hyper with high drive, so it isn't just a matter of bloodlines but getting the right puppy for your situation. A more laid back breed with a similar heritage is the Collie. Some will still herd but there are less these days with strong herding instincts than there are Border Collies. I have no idea why this loyal and beautiful breed is less popular these days than it was in the past. Both breeds should be fine if raised with cats. Another option could be a Dalmation but they don't like the cold so would need a very snug kennel if expected be an outside dog. They have a long reputation of being good with horses and don't have any herding instinct.

I have never heard of the injection but wonder why the vet would use it 6 weeks into the pregnancy if it is intended to be given in the last week. I would call the vets, find out exactly what it was, who makes it and chase up more info with that company.

Even though dogs bitten by brown snakes usually die very quickly, be aware that the venom can take a lot longer to take effect. A friend came home Saturday evening about 6.30pm to find a very dead snake in the garage with 4 of her dogs, who all seemed fine. She still has no idea where the snake got into the closed garage. The snake appeared to have been dead for some time. She rang the vet and was advised to keep them quiet and watch for any adverse signs for another 6 hours. They were all ok and were put to bed and let out again at 5am. At 6am when she went to swap dogs around one didn't come in. She was lying on a table near the back of the house, jumped down and keeled over. By the time she got to the vet 30min away the dog was completely paralysed. After 2 doses of anti-venene and being on a drip for a few days, she has thankfully improved a little but is still fighting for her life. So if you find a brown snake near your dogs watch them for at least 12-24 hours to make sure they are not affected. Why the hell did our country have to have venemous snakes, why couldn't we just have all the non-venemous ones? I am not particularly scared of snakes unless I have he dogs with me. Then I just hate them.

As much as they love her, I think the twice a year coat blow puts them off. I am so over all these people that want a dog but cannot be bothered brushing it. There are so many lovely long coated breeds that simply get overlooked because of the current fad to get a non-shedding dog. The long coats are so much better shedding wise than many of the short coats. I will never again own a Lab or anythign with a similar coat because that is just too much shedding for me but my BCs, Aussies, Collies, Shelties and many of the Spitz breeds are easy care long coats and when they shed it comes out in easy to pick up lumps, not one hair at a time that gets into everything.

I find this comment odd. I questioned the UK Border Collie breeders about why their pet puppies, that would be desexed anyway, needed to be DNA health tested before sale. Their response was that it would be rare for anyone to desex a purebred dog so they needed to know the DNA status of carrier or normal before they left. They put breeding endorsements on their dogs so the progeny cannot be registered with the KC, but even then they claim most pet dogs are not desexed. I agree with Souff as well. The current mania to desex all but one puppy in a litter is going to spell the end of pure bred dogs and eventually all dogs, sooner rather than later. The only problem I have ever had with puppy buyers is trying to get them to not desex too early or keep a dog entire in case it is needed for future breeding. Hardly anyone is prepared to keep an entire dog as a pet. All my girls have been desexed in their later years, after they finished breeding and showing to eliminate the chance of pyo but we really need more pure bred dogs left entire. Not whole litters but certainly anything of quality if dogs are going to exist in another 30 years. Shelters are not full because there are too many purebred dogs being bred, they are full because so many people buy a puppy when they have no idea how to raise one. It becomes a nuisance so they dump it them buy another puppy and the cycle continues.

If they like your Sheltie and the allergic child is fine with her then why not steer them towards a Sheltie. They would certainly get a good purebred Sheltie for less than many oodles.

I think our vets are about $700 to $1000. It varies with the size of the bitch and how many puppies there are. A small bitch with a singleton will use less anaesthetic and have a much faster surgery than a large breed with 10-12 puppies.

Definitely not a dumb question. In my breed, Border Collies, the average price from top knotch breeders is $800-$1000, depending on the state. In past years the breed clubs used to set a recommended price and most breeders now just ask around and all charge approx the same price. This is for puppies from fully health tested parents with 3 DNA results and hip and elbow scores. The only ones charging $1500-$1800 are the coloured puppy farmers who don't health test and pay no attention to quality. So in some breeds price is no indictor of quality at all and people are constantly ripped off because they didnt bother to find out what the average price was. I heard a Collie Rough breeder state last year that they were lucky to get $700 for Collies and there are still quite a few other breeds still available under the $1000 mark.