Jumabaar

I am sorry for your loss. I had always admired him in your sig, and he sounded lovely whenever you described him. Run free Benson

Thats kinda hard as a blanket rule. In my last litter I KNEW one boy in particular had to go to a sports home- no ifs buts or maybe's. I actually went after the people that I thought should own him- they were not looking for a pup. And it has been a perfect match. But that is because I am heavily involved in the same sport so was very confident that he had all the right characteristics. If someone approached me for a sporting pup they would possibly be given a selection of pups. Firstly based on those with the conformation to do the required task, then any that I also did not believe had the right personality would also be removed from the equation. So they might only be left with one suitable pup. If thats not the right fit then IMO none of the others in the litter would be suitable either, and I would prefer they look at a different litter because I want everyone to get the right pup for them..... And if that means its not from my litter that then I am happy to suggest other litters. After seeing poor matches I dont want my pup to be in that situation. BUT other breeders are more interested in selling their litter and in those cases I agree with what Huski is saying. Although I am also guessing that like me Huski would walk away from the litter if she didnt see what she wanted in it. Which is also not what most people looking at puppies would do.

If you look through enough health threads you will find plenty of vets who have diagnosed LP just by feeling, on a second opinion there is nothing wrong. Some vets have the knack, others just don't and a good vet knows their limitations. I am not saying that the Xrays are necessary, only that we can't actually see what the vet is seeing, thus can not make any judgement about their recommendation.

How silly. When I first got my poodle x and took her to the vet for a general check up, the vet checked her knees while she was at it, because that's how common it is in poodle x's. Then she told me Pixie has LP. You wouldn't even know from looking at her, I've seen her lift one back leg maybe 10 times in the year I've had her. If the vet hadn't told me about the LP I would have thought nothing of it. x-ray? Seriously? Money grabbing. I guess this is about giving dogs the gold standard of care. And being able to do preventative treatment rather than just dealing with the fall out at the end. You will probably notice this more with the evolving veterinary field, where the focus is slowly changing to a more active dynamic preventative industry. This will probably mean that there is more diagnostic testing done when problems begin to try and prevent the need for surgery.

Yes they do, although interacting with a stranger may squash that a little.

I would look at the Pat Hastings STRUCTURE IN ACTION book. To do obedience you want a good mouth, and good conformation. Temperament- I would be relying on the breeder for this. Ideally you have gone to someone who has already produced pups that are involved in dog sports, so they will have a good idea from previous litters what pups are likely to have the right personality and temperament to do what you want. OT sorry, but why is a good mouth neccessary and what do you mean by good mouth? Good luck in choosing you ne wlittle one Mason!!! In the higher levels of Obedience you need to do retrieves on the flat and over jumps. A dog with an overshot or undershot mouth will have more difficulty than a dog with the correct bite (this is covered in Pats book and I think in a thread discussing some of Pats ideas), so training a dog with a bad mouth is only going to make it harder for you and the dog. and lets face it Labs are retrievers so I it will most likely enjoy holding things in its mouth - so you may as well set it up for a pain free life by getting a pup with a 'good mouth'. I guess having correct bite would also impact on a dogs ability/desire to tug. I had a pup that was a reliable tugger at 6 weeks, that now will not even look at one- but she Looooooves food so I can condition the tug easily. Like others have said pups that bounce back well and will investigate new things after a short period are probably a good bet.

Agree with this!!

This is a great idea! My pup had her premed done in the quiet consult room as she had fallen asleep in my arms. They were able to use less of all the drugs because she was clam to begin with- which makes the anaesthetic a little safer Fluids is also a good suggestion with older dogs.

I would prefer people to go see a trainer to just get some one on one advice on training, so that by the time you take your dog to group training you already know how to get your dog to focus etc. Which I found makes training much more fun than trying to manage a dog and learn etc. I guess after seeing so many people get frustrated with their dog, I would prefer people to actively try and set up good habits, rather than see trainers as a last resort.

I would look at the Pat Hastings STRUCTURE IN ACTION book. To do obedience you want a good mouth, and good conformation. Temperament- I would be relying on the breeder for this. Ideally you have gone to someone who has already produced pups that are involved in dog sports, so they will have a good idea from previous litters what pups are likely to have the right personality and temperament to do what you want.

I am sorry for your loss.

I would set up a ramp or step where she normally jumps- the jumps might not do any damage, but eliminating them wont hurt either. I would do a search for a canine chiro in you area who might be able to localise the injury a little more. This will give you a better chance of treating the injury. It is difficult to advise more without a better diagnosis. Soft tissue injuries are generally treated by rest, massage and gentle exercise after recovery. The lack of improvement on anti-inflammatories may mean that further investigation is warranted.

A specialist can be as cheap as $160 for an initial consult! So dont rule it out completely just as a way of getting a second opinion, even if you just use it as a once off.

Abby LOVEs unwrapping presents! Her face at christmas is gold. She normally gets a toy that I wrap up for her.

Showing is not required to breed but I do think spending some time watching the show ring is invaluable. Having a mentor that can look at dogs and point out their strengths and weaknesses- giving names to things such as a straight stifle, weak topline etc. You need to be able to produce dogs without these faults so that the dogs you produce are free from weakness and live long happy lives. You can see it all at obedience, agility etc, but the show ring makes it clearer with multiple dogs stacked through out the day to compare so it makes learning a little faster an easier. I know many agility people though that have not watched shows, but have understood how conformation can impact how their dog works and will achieve the same result as someone who shows To be a good breeder you need to see what is out there what their quality is and be able to see if what they produce will complement your lines. So you can go visit peoples kennels, go to shows, go to other sporting competitions such as obedience or agility to find these things. The show ring puts multiple generations of different lines (ideally) on display in a manner that you can compare them. Your assessment is more important than what the judge puts up on the day, so long as you have a good understanding of your breed, which is where a mentor comes into it! So showing, going to shows is not necessary, but it is a beneficial tool in seeing a selection of dogs in one location. What you do with that is what makes you a good breeder.

Do they stop if you spray water at them? I used this initially because my dogs would not listen to me when they were barking at the fence, then they got treats for stopping. My dogs found it rewarding so regardless of anything interesting or rewarding they would do it because they were self rewarding. Perhaps this is an option http://contech-inc.com/products/scarecrow/ you can get them cheaper online, and you dont have to be there for it to work. I am looking at getting one.

PLEASE dont leave it. Can you imagine the pain you would be in with a nerve exposed!!! Dogs do amazing things to hide pain from us so even when you say she doesn't APPEAR to be in pain she is!! I saw Christine from http://www.sydneypetdentistry.com.au/ who is AMAZING just to get fractured baby teeth removed on my pup (that my regular vet said could be left). My pup was still eating and playing, but I could see after that she had been in pain and just soldiering on. Christine is more than happy for people to ring her to discuss what their dog needs- so give her a ring if your not confident. A GA is worth having your dog not spend the next few weeks with a constant headache. In reality this is NOT something you can leave.

He also only operates when it really is necessary.

This is one of our local shows. Do you have any trouser suits? Considering the forecast is for a top temp of 9, I think you'd be wise to wear thermals under a trouser suit. Or if you have some nice warm stylish clothes that works too - a lot of people here wear cute brightly coloured short coats, swing coats or trench coats with trousers or even (eep!) jeans. Usually they wait for frost to burn off the grass, but sometimes it can still be dicey. Most important thing about footwear is grip. You can change into a pair of warm boots while waiting around. If you really want to go all out, a butane camp heater and a butane stove for making hot tea is what you want! I hope the coffee lady will be there. I ended up in jeans with thermals underneath- they were thicker than my show clothes which ultimately won out!! I did take off my snow jacket though lol. I could not believe how windy it was!!

Slightly off topic- but i think its funny that you say that wasnt cheap. I had an ankle reconstruction earlier this year. My 5 titanium screws cost around $800 each, my plastic fake ligament cost over $3000!! Then there was the surgeons bill, his assistants, the anaesthetist. So all in all I was under for 4 hrs, 5 screws and one plastic thing which ended up costing well over 15,000 (thankfully under health insurance). I personally think people get a pretty good deal from vets ;) To the OP- I worked for David as a night nurse last year. He is really great with clients and in the operating theatre! All his nurses are really professional too lol.

If your not willing to change your dogs diet, and do not believe he CAN put on weight why did you come in here? You APPARENTLY already have an answer as to Horse's problem (albeit not one that is really anatomically possible, but thats not my problem) so why bother us about it? And it is wonderful he can jump a 6ft fence, must be handy for when you need assistance to climb one. I just hope that he doesn't faint from lack of calories when he is pulling you over.....

It is just a very high energy kibble that I use when my Kelpies are doing flyball and agility, I drop them back to regular kibble when they are not working as hard.

Wow I think you just about wrote out my dogs diet!!

I think a treat section that I could easily clean- so it clipped on. I use soft treats and just wash my current pouches after training. But they fling around a little too much, so perhaps an attachment point at the top and bottom of the pouch to the belt?

Foods I use to bulk my dogs up Vets all Natural- grain based product Livamol- a powder that has lots of protein and nutrients, even a small amount makes a big difference to my dogs condition Lamb necks and Chicken carcasses- high in fat (but not excessive) Puppy milk I use Artemis Osopure Power Formula as well.