Gayle.

Some of the older breeders would just put everything on the main register, because that's the way they've always done it. There used to only be one register.

http://www.riverlandskennels.com/holisticfood.htm The price varies depending on who's selling it, I think, and whether delivery is involved. I am paying $75 for 20 kgs whch I think is extremely reasonable.

[quote name='koalathebear' date='4th Oct 2010 - 10:11 PM' post='4857121' I keep meaning to post and say that your doggies are so beautiful - their colouring and expressions. Such beautiful, beautiful dogs! Awww, thank you for taking the time to say so. Black tri's are probably the plain Janes of the breed...the merles are very colourful and splashy, the reds are pretty....but I love the black tri's the best.

Sardines in oil, mixed with the kibble. Also chicken wings, they are very high in fat.

I'm waiting on delivery of 40kgs, as I'm changing my dogs over to it. They loved the sample I was sent, it was a very generous size and I used it for a couple of meals and training treats. I'll let you know how we go.

It is a recognised breed, it's just not recognied by the ANKC. The difference to a BYB...well, breeders or working dogs put lots of thought into their breeding programs. They generally keep excellent records and often have a wide network of other breeders who they share with. They don't need a judge or a standard to tell them their dogs look like they can do what they were bred for, because each day they prove they can do it. A BYB breeds A to B and gets $. They don't keep records, they usually don't care what happens to the pups once they're sold and they certainly don't note any genetic characteristics that might prove useful for their future breeding program.

Discuss it with the breeder. Some breeders do put everything on limited register, but that doesn't mean they might not be open to one of their quality pups being shown.....you just need to ask and let them know of your interest.

Here's an accidental family portrait. I was tending chooks, the dogs were locked behind the gate because no matter how much they tell me they'll look but not touch, I simply don't believe a word of it. And for those who don't know....yep, I have four dogs. The little one is my 16yo Lhasa Apso....probably not purebred....named Kassy. Kassy has the honour of being the dumbest dog I have ever encountered and it's not old age that's doing it, she was the dumbest puppy I ever owned and she didn't improve with age. However, I don't say she's dumb to be insulting, just honest. She's a character and bosses the bigger dogs around relentlessly. She was the only one barking at the chooks, the others know better. But if I tell her to shut up, she just looks at me blankly and keeps barking.

Jeeze, no wonder Isaak keeps getting mistaken for a Bernese Mountain Dog puppy. He has a very different head to my other two, much stronger around the muzzle and with deeper "jowls" and a stronger lower jaw. He looks just like one, except that he'd be decidedly smaller than a Berner of the same age. When people ask if he's a BMD though, I just point to the other end.....lack of tail is a dead giveaway. Your dogs are gorgeous.....absolutely stunning, and I fully agree with you.....love definitely only comes in three colours. Black, tan and white.

I realise your point and agree with you, but the fact is that pigs, intelligent as they are, are farmed for slaughter, to provide meat for humans. It doesn't excuse poor animal husbandry, all animals that provide for humans should be treated with kindness and respect and their welfare should be the utmost priority for the farmer. But pigs aren't bred to live in society with humans and no matter what their temperament, most of them are going to live short lives. That is the big difference between intensively farmed pigs, cows, sheep, chooks and puppies. Free range is what my chooks do......they have a spacious, grassy, shady run with an awesome coop and house, and they all have names. And they are so cute. Mine are adorable. I just spent the best part of a week shuffling chooks and arranging play dates so I could re-introduce one who'd been ousted by the flock and missing for 10 days.

People do care about the chooks. Plenty of people have lobbied to have egg layers given better conditions etc. One result of that is the large variety of "free range" eggs you now see in the supermarket...not sure that the free range chooks have a fabulous life either but at least they can move around a bit. The fact is, dogs are bred to be companions for humans. Chooks, sheep, cows etc are not. Dogs have to fit in the social sphere a human creates, and to do that properly, they need a good start to life.

It's only illegal if you ride on public roads. Stick to bike paths and trails and you'll be right. To be honest, I doubt most police would even know there's a law.

My dogs LOVE going for a run with the bikes. If the little one can keep up and enjoys it, then why not, it's great fun, good exercise and a good bonding experience. Get a basket for the front of the bike ad plonk her in that if she gets tired.

Unless you're looking to feed all raw, I doubt that you're going to find a really top quality puppy food for under $100 per 15 kg that doesn't contain some kind of wheat or corn flour. It's used as a binding agent in better quality food, not as a filler, and the percentages used are quite low.

I love my boys to the moon and back but Dusty makes my heart sing.

Hahaha, so Nessie isn't a cheeky monkey in a blue bucket. It's not this either......

I wonder why the puppy formula has it but the adult one doesn't. My puppy, aged 6 months, will be fed the adult one....it seems to be a better quality product than a lot of the puppy kibbles available.

Try PMing collies02 for a sample of Black Hawk Holistic. She sent me a very generous free sample and my dogs loved it so I'm currently arranging to have 40 kgs delivered. It does not contain corn, wheat or soy and it appears to be a top quality product.

Try sourcing this one: http://www.riverlandskennels.com/holisticfood.htm A 20 kg bag would last one dog for ages so should easily come under budget. I was sent a very generous free sample and my dogs loved it. I am now in the process of trying to get 40 kg delivered.

They are vermin. Canberra and it's suburbs have a lot of native wildlife, these little bastards are predators that would prey on the smaller native mammals, as well as backyard poultry etc.

Here are my guys. The only way I could get Isaak to stay there was to tie him to the bench and he doesn't look too happy about it. This was the first attempt but you could clearly see the lead. At least he looks a bit happier here.

Hahaha yeah, it doesn't carry quite the same weight as a vet who's not a breeder saying " oh wow, look how all these registered breeders are working to reduce heart problems in purebreds!"

Yep, that'll be Dusty. She dobs on the boys all the time.....she'll come and poke me with her nose til I get up to see what they're doing...usually one of them has gotten in the bin and scored a prize.

Normal businesses generally don't send staff around to check out peoples living arrangements either. But if they do send staff out, they are covered by public liablity insurance. This is a genuine question.......are rescue organisation employees covered by the same? If they are carrying out their business on private property, I would think they'd have to be. My dogs definitely get more than one hours attention a day, in fact I'd go so far as to say they get a lot more attention than some dogs where the owner is home all day. They come inside when we're home, they sleep in our room, we bought a property because it was more suited to the dogs than our previous place. Dogs need more than exercise, and mine definitely that and more.

I don't have any problems with screening processes, however, I do have problems with people who don't keep their word, or who go over the top in screeing would-be owners. Work fulltime? Yep, but that doesn't mean never home. Got dogs next door? Yep, but they aren't a problem at all. Got cats? Yep, grown up with dogs and more than able to take care of themselves. I wouldn't have a problem with anyone wanting to do a home check, however I have got three dogs from ANKC breeders who never wanted to, so I don't see why anyone else would need to either. For a rescue organisation wanting to send someone around to do a home check, I would need a police check done on that person first. Too often I see on here "Home check needed in Whoop-Whoop" and any old person could put their hand up and go do a home check. They are not necessarily reliable or responsible.