Maddy

Labs should have muscle definition a definite tuck and a waist. She's a dog, not a beef cow. Your average member of the public doesn't seem to realise that. ;)

Bahaha that's so true! Most of the Labs I see are pretty darn hefty and overweight. I'm no expert, but from that pic i'd say you Lab is fine

They look even worse when you're used to looking at skinny, tall dogs :p

My ex's father had a lab- arthritis at 18 months old and she looked like a barrel on legs. They'd kept her overweight since she was a young pup and were honestly baffled as to why their dog was so unwell.

Too many people are used to fat labs and anything that isn't tripping over its third chin looks starved to them.

Oh, and Zombies - don't forget the Zombies!

Fast zombies or slow zombies?

If it's fast zombies, I'm screwed. And going to need someone to look after my dogs..

I'm just so surprised that people don't think twice about buying a puppy from an online source? So, people are willing to hand over hundreds of dollars, for a puppy they never see in the flesh with little (or no) communication with the person selling?

It all just screams madness to me!

Even the wording of the emails should be a complete giveaway.

I'd have to dig through my inbox to find one but a lot of them show very clearly no knowledge of dogs.

Things like "with papers" (with registeries totally inappropriate to the breed of dog- like a chorkie or some silly sh*t that's registered on the working kelpies register) or how a puppy located in Australia has been vaccinated for rabies and a bunch of other things (usually American things- I suppose it's American pages they get most of their info from) that dogs here aren't not vacc'd for unless they're leaving the country.

That and they tend to refer to the puppy more as a product- they're more interested in giving you shipping information than telling you anything about the dog's temperament, pedigree or known health issues in the breed- presumably because fake shipping info is easier to write than details about the dog/breed that could be more easily checked.

WHEN Judgment Day comes - which some US Christian fundamentalists insist will happen on Saturday -

That sucks, I had a heap of stuff planned for Saturday. It'd be nice if someone could tell the rest of us poor, slovenly heathens that the world is ending and we shouldn't make plans. Hopefully Bunnings employs enough sinners that their stores will be open on the Saturday.

Seriously though.. as much as I appreciate poking fun at the extremist god bothers, actually tricking money out of them doesn't quite sit right with me.

Even if it was entirely fake, it would still bother me.

I don't know if it can be classed as tricking them though, if God or Jesus or whoever does happen to come on Saturday the athiests may have every intention of doing as they promised, they just don't believe it will happen. If the Christians all go to heaven and the athiests don't look after their pets then yes they would have been tricking them but if it doesn't happen anyway we have no way of knowing whether they would have or not. It's Schrodinger's cat all over again

It's taking advantage of people who are (in my opinion) vulnerable. Whether that vulnerability stems from something most of us would consider really scrazy is beside the point- these people are shelling out money to people who know they aren't going to be saddled with a bunch of dogs on Saturday. They are knowingly taking money from people who are scared and incapable of making sound decisions. If it wasn't christians, I'm sure people would be horrified.

Things like this make me a little embarassed to be an atheist, I'd never want to be associated with the sort of people who'd happily rip off unwitting christians and feel no guilt about it because the victims are just nutty god botherers. No one deserves to be taken advantage of.

You'd think people would know better by now.

I used to get those emails all the time, asking me to adopt a yorkie puppy (or some other small, fluffy breed). It got very tempting to write back and say I'd take one as my high prey drive greyhound gets bored with just chicken, lamb and roo- just to see what sort of response I'd get (or if it'd even deviate from their standard reply when I'd indicated said puppy was going to be mulched up and fed to other dogs).

While I feel a little sorry for people who fall for this one.. I just can't feel that sorry for them. If you buy a puppy, unseen, without doing any research on where the puppy is coming from.. you're setting yourself up for all sorts of trouble, even if it's just a BYB puppy, rather than a scam.

WHEN Judgment Day comes - which some US Christian fundamentalists insist will happen on Saturday -

That sucks, I had a heap of stuff planned for Saturday. It'd be nice if someone could tell the rest of us poor, slovenly heathens that the world is ending and we shouldn't make plans. Hopefully Bunnings employs enough sinners that their stores will be open on the Saturday.

Seriously though.. as much as I appreciate poking fun at the extremist god bothers, actually tricking money out of them doesn't quite sit right with me.

Even if it was entirely fake, it would still bother me.

Ok so here is another question.

Max and Jenna are inside from around 10pm - 6.30am... we have tried feeding them really early (around 5.30pm), but she still poos inside... we have also tried around 8.30pm and she still poos inside... what is the best time to feed her so it is less likely she goes to the toil;et inside...

its really weird because normally she's very good... but just this past week she hasn't been able to (or wanted to!) hold it.

Do you let her out after dinner to go to the toilet?

From what I can recall, most animals have something called the peristaltic reflex which is why they often defecate very soon after eating.

We let our guys toilet immediately after eating and we've never had problems with indoor toileting. Could be worth trying.

I actually just throw them out once they get grotty

It probably sounds very lazy but.. washing so many dog coats and blankets has mangled our washing machine and on more than a few occasions, the laundry has flooded when dog hair has clogged something up. The blankets we buy for our guys cost only about $20 each (for a queen-size, coral fleece blanket- very warm and soft, I actually have one for the couch) so it just seemed easier to us to toss the dirty ones, rather than risk breaking the washing machine again (which costs a lot more than $20 to repair).

The dogs' pajamas and coats still have to be washed because they're more expensive/difficult to replace so the aim was to at least cut down on the amount of dog stuff that goes in the wash every week. We stopped buying actual dog beds entirely as they're just awful to keep clean enough, you can only fit one greyhound-sized bed in a load (which is a massive waste of water) and then they take days to dry, assuming you get decent weather.

Ideally, it'd be a cheap washing machine just for dog stuff but there's just zero room in our laundry for anything else (and having it in the garage would require having the plumbing put in) so for the moment, buying new ones is the best option.

I throw mine out too.I get all my greyhounds blankets from the local Op Shops.Really nice pure wool blankets at a bargain price(and your making a donation as well)As my two have turned my backyard into a muddy racetrack I would be washing every five minutes!I do have a problem with static electricity in their polar fleece pj's.Does anyone know how to stop this as the poor things are getting zapped.

I get that problem too. I accidentally zapped Kiff right on the end of his nose after pulling his pajamas off, the poor thing avoided me for a few days after that

I think (don't quote me on this one) fabric softener can help cut the static. And obviously air drying them, rather than just tossing them in the dryer helps too.

If I threw them out, I'd be spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars each year on blankets given how often I wash them.

We spend about $60 a month replacing blankets, the greyhounds tend to keep their bedding quite clean, provided there's no way they can drag it around (I cut a notch in one corner and tie it in place to stop them taking their blankets out for walks). It's not ideal but after the last laundry flooding (that took more than 15 towels to soak up), the idea of washing them is not appealing :p

During winter I don't wash the hounds much (mostly because of how cold it gets here, even inside with the heat pump on) but in summer, they usually get washed a fair bit.

If it weren't for the flies, I'd be able to stretch out washes to maybe a couple over summer but because of the fly repellents we use on the dogs, they pick up heaps more dirt and they look filthy within a week.

I usually use either Aloveen or Malaseb. Malaseb usually for the first wash after winter and the last wash of summer to get the fungal levels down before a winter of wearing the polar fleece jammies for extended periods of time (the jammies are great but they don't breathe as well as natural fibres).

Yep, sadly all I can remember of the day was oodle after oodle after oodle.

The last MPW I attended actually had people representing the local oodle farm there, promoting their "products" :rolleyes:

It made no sense to me that the RSPCA would allow that.

I actually just throw them out once they get grotty

It probably sounds very lazy but.. washing so many dog coats and blankets has mangled our washing machine and on more than a few occasions, the laundry has flooded when dog hair has clogged something up. The blankets we buy for our guys cost only about $20 each (for a queen-size, coral fleece blanket- very warm and soft, I actually have one for the couch) so it just seemed easier to us to toss the dirty ones, rather than risk breaking the washing machine again (which costs a lot more than $20 to repair).

The dogs' pajamas and coats still have to be washed because they're more expensive/difficult to replace so the aim was to at least cut down on the amount of dog stuff that goes in the wash every week. We stopped buying actual dog beds entirely as they're just awful to keep clean enough, you can only fit one greyhound-sized bed in a load (which is a massive waste of water) and then they take days to dry, assuming you get decent weather.

Ideally, it'd be a cheap washing machine just for dog stuff but there's just zero room in our laundry for anything else (and having it in the garage would require having the plumbing put in) so for the moment, buying new ones is the best option.

You can have my feral 3yr old if you want. She has been running around like a mad thing all day long and the boys keep joining in in bursts too. Not good when you are trying to study

The evil Raz sent me a link to video of a stampede of excessively adorable baby corgis -

That kind of cuteness should be illegal

The more I see Pembrokes, the more I want one. Total opposite of the sort of thing I usually prefer (sighthounds) but so appealing for some reason.

Boot polish on nose = brushing up a poodle coat???? Strange comparision.

Erm, I can only assume you missed my point. Brushing up a poodle- preparing it for a show. Boot polish on nose- preparing it for a show.

Humour is clearly lost on some people.

LOL I think they are more than willing to pay the prices. So that is there choice and we do not need to blame them for doing it. The breeder is breeding a coat colour that is listed in the standard. LOL Only thing I have a problem with is dilute dogs often have dilution alopecia, that I hope the breeders has warned them about.

I think when looking at the situation you can't do anything except start at the beginning. That is we need to start with a breed standard that reflects reality. Either blue is excepted or it is not. If there is any possible reason that only black noses are allowed on this breed other then that was what was written down at the time, then they need take blue out of the colour list, or if not then change the black nose statement. Ether way it needs to be fixed.

Now if people are just ticked off the breeder can sell her dog for these high prices, that is a totally different problem. You can not use 'not meeting the standard' or 'breeding blue dogs' as the reason, or buyers can't show the dog' as these are directly related to the standard, it is the standard is messed up and needs to be fixed.

Time is well spent cleaning up our own houses, instead of spending time looking around the web for someone breeding dogs in a way we may disapprove of. I have always been told that standards are so important, so our standards should reflect genetic truths. Pretty hard to go after someone else when it is the standard that is messed up.

A willingness to shell out money is never going to reflect the amount of research or thought people put into buying a dog though. You only have to look at the prices of the various oddles to see that people will willingly pay out the nose for something that is (generally speaking) an inferior animal. I certainly wouldn't begrudge a breeder a good price for their pups, my issue is when buyer ignorance is being exploited to get more money than the dog is realistcally worth (based on prices of good examples of the breed). This is expecially true when the breeding is being done poorly and aimed entirely at getting a particular colour, rather than correct conformation or temperament.

Basically, in my opinion, exploitation of ignorance is always wrong. A fool and his money are soon parted and all that but there's no reason any ethical breeder should be helping a fool part with his money.

The standard is what it is and until it's changed to reflect what we now know, I have to say I'd be very wary of a breeder who breeds for blue

Anyway.. this got totally off topic..

The roo should have been euthanased when he was originally injured and the park should have the book thrown at them for releaseing him full stop as they failed in their duty of care, but to release him to a moron who parades him around like a freak show is even more reprehensible.

Exactly.

What kind of wildlife park releases animals to the public like that anyway? Male roos can be dangerous enough as wild animals, never mind allowing them to get used to people and losing the natural fear that serves to protect both us and them.

Destroying the animal might seem harsh to some but the reality is (especially in this case), it would be kinder to the animal than a prolonged existence in a totally inappropriate environment.

Edit, typo

At any rate, I am sure this breeder's buyers understand the colour genetics of dilutes and do not expect to get a black nose on their blue dog.

If they're willing to pay $2200 for a dog based on a colour that essentially prevents the dog from being shown successfully, I have my doubts that they'd be aware of a minor detail like incorrectly coloured nose leather.

Expecting the average person to be aware of the differences in dilutes is being a little too hopeful, not everyone else is dog people and they just can't be expected to know these sorts of things. In my breed (where adopters tend to educate themselves pretty well before approaching us for a dog) we still have base colours incorrectly named on a very regular basis, never mind the average person actually having even a basic understanding of the dilutes.

I know someone who owns a lab that gets very snarky and sometimes even a little bit predatory around kids (especially smaller kids) but I've never had this problem with the vicious, "baby-eating" greyhounds. Even Sally (our DA, nervous, difficult-to-manage greyhound) is very accepting of kids in her space and although I'd obviously never just leave her alone with a child, she's never given me any reason to worry about her behaviour with kids.

Breed itself just doesn't seem to matter a whole lot- good socialisation with kids and proper supervision and management and you'll have no problems. Buying a particular breed under the assumption it's "good with kids", however, is just inviting tragedy.

and no doubt for a bit extra you'll get the sure fire 'show' puppy too...... :rolleyes:

You just have to paint its nose leather black with some shoe polish before shows. Easy done, it's not any different to brushing up a poodle, right?

Edit, typo

Their new ad got changed to "Arobian" I think, can't quite remember, but I was pretty still WTF from the first one. They are a funny bunch up this way aren't they

Glad I'm not the only one that thinks so.

Maybe they're trying to spell "Arabian"? Like.. an Arabian mastiff, it's a cross between an Arabian horse and a mastiff.

Just Googled it and perhaps it's related to bull arabs? Not a pure breed obviously, just another name for a big mutt.

Edited to add..

http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/103838-arabian-mastiff/

Despite promising myself I'd stick with just a couple of greys, my list is already looking like this..

(In order of what I'd be looking at getting first)

Moar greys.

Belgian Shepherd (Tervueren)

Pembroke corgi

Pointer

Irish wolfhound

Borzoi

However, wildlife experts said dressing a paralysed animal and treating it like a human was "totally inappropriate".

That about sums up how I feel about it.

Quite a while back, the kangaroos at Launceston's City Park were returned to the wild when the council became aware of how much damage was being done to the animals by visitors feeding them bread. And that was just bread, I can't think of any justification for feeding a wild animal on human junk food.

To me, really caring the animal would entail trying to as closely replicate its natural existance as possible (provided it was healthy enough to have a decent quality of life and actually returning it to the wild was not an option), not turning it into some kind of huge, wrong, furry, obese baby.

What a nutter.

Back on topic..

I just nod and smile now. There's only so many times you can patiently explain that the muzzle isn't because the greyhounds like to feast on fresh human brainz before you start getting a little snide with people- "It's actually a splint, he broke his nose and now he has to wear this special nose splint "

Yes, of course greyhounds MUST be baby killers otherwise they wouldn't have to wear muzzles. And dont forget that because they are racing dogs they need SOOOOOOOOOO much exercise!

I've found them to be more like most people when it comes to exercise- they like the idea of exercise (get a leash out and you're suddenly everyone's best friend) but actually getting the exercise.. meeeh, maybe tomorrow.

I have ugly dogs who have been chasing parked cars and who have eyes that will pop out.

Actually, that's mainly just Lola. Most people don't know what Sid is and he has been referred to as the following: pitbull, pig dog, boxer, staffy x, jrt x and Easter Bunny

For hunting guinea pigs, of course. Or those little mini pigs. It makes total sense that you'd bred a little dog to hunt little pigs that live in hutches, silly Huga.

Back on topic..

I just nod and smile now. There's only so many times you can patiently explain that the muzzle isn't because the greyhounds like to feast on fresh human brainz before you start getting a little snide with people- "It's actually a splint, he broke his nose and now he has to wear this special nose splint "

Just greyhound rescue and greyhound owner/washerwoman*

*The peed on pajamas don't wash themselves, after all.

Hi guys

When we were still in Victoria, we used to take our dogs to a greyhound muscle man (I don't know what to call him - he wasn't really a chiropractor as much as an overall muscle manipulator man - we just called him our greyhound man ) who was just magical at picking up any strains, sprains, pinched nerves, etc and fixing them.

I'm wondering if anyone knows of anyone similar in Tasmania?

Totally in late on this one (I'd been meaning to find the business card and then forgot ) but if you're still looking for someone, there's Charisse Hardy.

Her details-

Charisse Hardy

Physiotherapist MSc (Animal physio), BSc (Physio), BSc (Sport).

Phone number is 0439 309 455 and she's up in Devonport.

Her father is actually a grey breeder, the dog in my signature on the right came from him (which was how I got her details).