poodlefan

V.A.H. My vet recommend boiling and mashing or roasting it. She says its great for helping to keep anal glands from blocking. My dogs will eat roast pumpkin for a treat. :D

Nekhbet: Thanks. Got my info from an O/S website. Bloody internet. :D

Without an injection of Vitamin K, if the pup has ingested Ratsac, it will die. The main ingredient in Ratsac is cyanide. People have been known to suffer cyanide poisoning from being in contact with an affected pet. Death throes will be prolonged and painful. Not a nice way for a dog (or rat) to die.

Norskgra: Amen to that! It keeps them healthier for longer.

That's good about your dogs' weight Norskgra. Mind you, I've failed dogs on weight that vets consider to be 'acceptable'. They might be 'acceptable' as backyard pooches who get a stroll every day but not as canine athletes. This is the best article I've found on weight for a sports dog: http://www.caninesports.com/fatdogs.html

Norskgra, we have a Norweigan Elkhound at our club who has agility titles. Every club has different requirements for starting agility. The folks at Sutherland would be the ones to talk too. However, a rock solid 'stay', a fast recall and the ability to focus on you are all important skills a dog requires. Many dogs carry too much weight to train safely for agility - our club fails about 30% of potential starters and we usually advise those who pass the physical to get more weight off the dogs. If you can't feel your dog's ribs without placing pressure on them, I'd be looking to get some weight off. Unfortunately, an acceptable weight in the conformation ring, is usually considered overweight for an agility dog.

Wow Vickie, what fantastic results! Don't let Trim have all the credit - I bet there's been some very dedicated training and precise handling happening too.

Norskgra there is a dog training club at Sutherland - I don't know anything about their training methodology but they do seem like a really nice bunch of people. Or was that the one you weren't thrilled with. I've done an agility trial there and their grounds were very nice. Hopefully there's a DOLer who's a member and can tell us more. If its aggression specific issues you want ironed, a trip to see K9Force would be my recommendation.

I bet the old "poo patrol" is more pleasant these days too Norskgra. My dogs don't bat an eyelid at the purple stuff. My breeder mates reckon pregnancy and whelping goes better on BARF too.

Norsgkra: Stand by for the colour - it will knock your socks off!

Mana, I've read that, being members of the nightshade family, tomatoes are toxic to dogs...

I'll PM you to sort it out.. a big post bag should fit them all in..

I agree with Babycake that Jan Fennell's book The Dog Listener is an excellent read - particularly for people who have "issues" about taking the lead in the dog/handler relationship. Jan is an English woman who is more akin to Monty Roberts (the real Horse Whisperer) than John Richardson - whilst the book is mostly about the philosphy behind training to be a leader, there are some wonderful ancedotes which I'm sure your Dad would relate to. ML, I OWN nearly every one of these books. How about rather than your Dad going out and spending his hard earned I package them up and send them up there.. that way he can read them, decide which ones he likes and buy his own copies? Books cost a bomb and most of these are gathering dust - I read them from time to time but not that often. Of course, if they are not returned, I will be forced to hunt you down, kidnap Duke and hold him to ransom. I can send: The Dog Listener The Dogs Mind and one other by Bruce Fogle The Other End of the Leash Purely Positive Training Bones Would Rain From the Sky (Suzanne Clothier's book which I love) Clicker Trainng for Obedience Dog Training for Dummies - the Volhards book which I also like. One by David Weston If you want a good giggle I'll chuck in Hugh Wirth's book too.

LP personally, I wouldn't bother with lettuce - its mostly water. I make it a rule (or is it more of a guideline) to feed one fruit, one root vegetable and one green vegetable per mix as a minimum. In practice, the mix always includes apples and carrots and I also feed zucchini reasonably frequently. I also use broccoli, cauliflower, boy choy and other asian greens, sweet potato, pumpkin, aspargaus (on special only), beetroot and any other thing that takes my fancy (except for onion and tomato). I've tried everything from pineapple and strawberries to parsnips and the dogs still eat it happily.

Little Pixie there are studies that link consumption of large amounts of cruciferous veggies to suppression of a dogs thyroid function. If you do some internet searching on hypothyroidism, you should find the info. I think one of Billinghurst's books talks about it too. The general advice seems to be not to overfeed them - once again as much variety as you can manage in your veggies is the key. I've been known to add green barley or alfalfa powder to the mix to increase that side but Powerblend contains it anyway. Norskra, you may need to cut back on the amount of apple cider vinegar you are adding to the mix before the dogs will accept it. I cheat and add a teaspoon full to every bowl of water I get the dogs - they drink it happily. I can vouch for the impact of you dishing up a veggie mix with beetroot in it when you have non RAW feeding visitors in the house - its bright purple! My dead avocadoes tend to be either made into guacamole (drool) or end up on Nachos but occasionally the dogs score - they get the odd chunk from the salad bowl too.

I try not to feed too many cruciferous veggies eg. only one per mix. That's your cauliflower, brocolli, boy choy etc. Other than onions and tomatoes, I have no prohibitions. Try raw beetroot for an interesting colour mix - going in and coming out. I usually have fruit in my mix - apples, pears, banana, dead avocado...

Purely Postive Training has specific exercises - I think? I'll check at home.

ML - yes it is. Its a good and at times funny read too. From memory it has some absolutely classic dog anecdotes in it.

Oh yeah, Tess, The Other End of the Leash is a great book - I've got that one too.

Understanding Dog Behaviour: The Dog's Mind by Bruce Fogle. Think Dog (can't remember author) Training: Purely Positive Training, Clicker Training for Obedience. Edited to add - is he a member of a dog training club. No book is a substitute for decent hands on instruction IMO.

Don't confuse intelligence with responsiveness to one's handler Melabrose. Its those pesky smart dogs that like to give us a run for our money - so many other things they can do... and one's handler still be there when one decides its time to respond to them.

Oh Kaiahma I'm so sorry to hear that. You must be devastated.

Breed may affect 'trainability' - the natural desire to please, the willingness to accept direction that comes with some dogs who have been selectively breed for it and boredom thresholds. Some dogs can be repeatedly asked to do the same exercises and will remain keen, others switch off. Its no great surprise that many obedience trialling dogs come from the gundog and working groups who have been selectively bred for centuries to accept guidance and direction from their handlers. That said, with more positive motivational techniques available these days, with the right trainer, almost any breed is capable of both general obedience and competion obedience work. What you have to start with is an understanding of your breed, what it was bred to do and then for your individual dogs, what motivates it - what its drives are. It quietly amuses me to see some newbie terrier owners' frustration when their dogs show more interest in their surroundings than their handlers. Some of these people have bought the dog based on its size and appearance and know little about their temperament. I ask them to contemplate what their dogs were bred to do and how much direction from handlers they needed to do it. A dog bred to hunt vermin (often below ground) needs a strong, independent mind to do its job. The challenge for the handler is to focus that mind on them - and it can be done. There is a very talented trainer at our club who has put a UD title on not one, but two Parson Jack Russells. Frankly, I have a lot more respect for her training ability than some more high profile obedience competitors who stick to the 'traditional' breeds. CKCS's are highly trainable dogs. I"d put them top of the Toy Breeds. If your Cav is ignoring you, I suspect the issues are more about leadership than her trainability. Why should she come back straight away if you don't insist on it. Cavs compete at the top levels of obedience and agility! I suspect Lulu is channelling her gundog ancestory and doing a bit of hunting. You might find this Suzanne Clothier article on 'hard to train' breeds interesting: http://www.flyingdogpress.com/difficult.html I think the book "So Your Dog's Not Lassie" is also a great read for owners of "challenging" breeds. :D

So sorry to hear about Molly - she was gorgeous.

YOUR Chi may be innocent Ciara.. others less so - let me tell you I have a healthy respect for the breed. Edited to add - they can make top little agility dogs BTW. What colour/sex is your Chi? I'll don my colour consultant hat and find you some colour suggestions. Coach make collars down to Yorkie/Chi and up to huge dogs.