Greytmate

You haven't got any dog yet. I am a big believer in being very particular about the type of dog behaviour and temperament that suits you. From what I know, Aussies are fairly uniform in what you can expect them to be like, they do have a unique combination of traits and are a very good choice for some people. No need to feel bad or selfish, if you bring home the wrong type of dog, you and the dog will suffer for that. Breed matching is a two way street. When it is time for you to get a dog, you just concentrate on finding the right pup from the right lines or the right dog. Possibly there will be an adult Aussie needing a new home, or possibly there won't be. Not all adult dogs needing homes are in shelters, there might be an adult with a breeder or somewhere else that needs a home. If not, you will have to get a puppy. As long as when you get your pup or dog, you get the right dog for you. I don't think it is reasonable to take just any shelter dog just because it is in a shelter. Turn the argument around on these people. Don't they know anything about differences in breed and temperaments? What makes them think they are so good that they can provide the best life for any type of dog, just because it is from a shelter? Be aware there are plenty of people that put their own need to be 'rescue angel' above the needs of the animals they acquire, I see them as selfish. And if nobody bought purebred pups, we wouldn't have purebred dogs at all.

Too bad I am in Brisbane. This is interesting. I have introduced a lot of adult dogs to mirrors for the first time...lol It is funny to watch their first reaction and then lose interest when they find it isn't real. Out of my four, Woody is the only one who I have seen watching me in the mirror. But greyhounds are lazy, so that was easier for him than turning his head. I think he knows that me in the mirror is me, and he will react to my mirrored hand signals, but he doesn't seem to notice his own reflection.

Beg to differ nothing worse than a mal that hasnt been bathed .they stink something chronic. I remember in the show ring many moons ago a few select mal exhibitors who didnt bath & the dogs where sent out & those unlucky to be set up next to them having to put up with ahorrid smell. We boarded a Mal that hadnt been bathed & smelt like undried dirty washing ,awful smell. Show mals are bathed weekly so the oils part has nothing to do with it BUT often there is alot of dog & people dont wish to dry them especially in winter so they get wet & stay damp stinkies Have to agree, the worst smelling dogs I have ever come across have been mals that are not washed enough. A different smell to just dirty dog, a rotting smell.

If you get an adult dog instead of a pup you can get one as cuddly as you want. Just have to go around cuddle testing them.

Yes, you just keep gazing into the pics in my signature. Lovely eyes. You know you can foster a greyhound for a little while. It is a really good thing to do because it is a no-obligation way to see if the breed suits. Even if it doesn't you have still helped out by fostering.

But... If you live in a home where there is nobody there all day, you should very seriously consider whether a dog whose primary requirement is to be with people is going to be happy.

GREYHOUND. Seriously why do you think we have dozens of breeds? Different breeds suit different people.

A behaviourist probably wouldn't tell you that that your GSD is 'gelous'. I wouldn't put up with dogs biting each other, it shows that they are taking control of the situation instead of you being in control. It is wrong to think there will never be a problem with any combo. Same sex fights may be rarer or usually not as serious, but they can still happen. I have seen dogs fight. I have had a lot more dog experience than just seven years with my own dogs. I have worked with dogs for years. It isn't working for you. Your GSD bitch attacks your rottie when it wants to. Advice to keep separate is quite a sound management technique, but to tell somebody with an aggressive dog that needs help and is asking for help that they don't need help is irresponsible.

If you can't have your two bitches together without one biting the other, you have a real problem there. It sounds like you are not in control at all. It is wrong to say that somebody won't have problems if they have a GSD dog and bitch combo. Sometimes fights can occur over things like food. You are suggesting that the OP doesn't get professional help, yet you haven't offered anything helpful. Dog behaviour maybe common sense to dogs, but not to most people.

It really sounds like the right retired greyhound would be perfect. You don't do enough exercise for most of the breeds on your list, you need a lazy dog. Contact GAP WA.

From baby puppies dogs play to sort out how far they can go with claiming resources and not getting hurt. As they reach physical maturity these may become more serious. Not sorting out a leader as such, but working out how far they will go in a particular circumstance to get what they want. Once a dog reaches emotional maturity at about 3 or 4 years of age a dog may even be prepared to fatally injure another dog if it thinks the fight will be worthwhile to get what it wants. By then it will be confident in its own ability and will have sussed out how far other dogs and people it lives with are prepared to go as well. Like people, dogs can have moods and some days may be more motivated than others, and some days the dog may not feel well. No. It is entirely up to the dog how much it wants to be in control of any situation or resource. You train the dog that some things are worth doing as they bring benefit, and some things are not worth repeating, as they bring an unpleasant consequence or no consequence. The problem with food in particular is that the behaviour may be self-rewarding. A verbal reprimand from you is not a deterrent if the food is desirable enough. The food is the reward for fighting. There is also the danger that the dog that wants the food mistakes your reprimand, and just interprets it as you being upset, which might even escalate the fight. So you do need to see a trainer to make sure your signals are being interpreted correctly by the dog, and be shown what to do so that they are clear to the dogs in future. And you need to physically separate the dogs while eating, now that the GD knows how easy it is to get the food off the GSD. Who knows how the GSD will react next time? No. A fight only happens when it can't be sorted out peacefully (or if the dog has a brain problem or physical problem). You would attempt to stop any fighting. You manage and train the dogs to prevent fights happening at all. Dogs communicate with us and with each other with subtle body language, and dogs living in harmony never need to give more than a polite ' eye warning' to say "This is mine, back off". Dog behaviourists are now thinking that heirachy is very fluid and not fixed. Rather than reading up on theory, especially outdated theory, get a professional in to help your specific situation. As others have said, see a behaviourist. Get both dogs checked over by a vet first for any physical problem. And keep those dogs properly separated by walls or crates when eating.

LOL. Some excellent 'dog' people are well-known for not being 'people' people. If your dogs seemed to be happier at another kennel, then that is where I would take them.

It may have been that the dogs were bathed that morning, but had been let out for exercise since and gotten dirty again. You should take it up with them about your request for sensitive shampoo and ask them what product they did use. As for the rest, sounds ok to me. What exactly did your dogs do that made you think they were stressed? It is normal for dogs to stretch, even if they have been lying down only a little while. It would suggest to me that the dog had been resting comfortably. A dog that was stressed wouldn't be as inclined to stretch out or exhibit other behaviours showing it was at ease or had been asleep. I'm not sure where you were waiting in your car, but if it was on their property I can understand why they would be a little cranky. Some kennels can lose their council licences if they are seen to be opening more than standard hours. Kennels owners also deserve a lunch break. Many of them cannot take days off at all, so need some time when they are not in the kennels to get things done.

I think in this case we need to understand that the person was working under the 'direction' of a rescue organisation. Good online advice as ignored, but how does the person know that what I or somebody else says here might be better advice than what her group was directing her to do with the dog that they own? The person getting angry and nasty at her wasn't to know how badly the person had been let down by the group she had volunteered for. It is frustrating to hear of dodgy rescue practices. In this case it was unfortunate that it took so long for us here to go from just talking online to actually doing something with the OP to discover the real extent of the problem and discovered the dog wasn't suited to being rehomed. That wasn't the OP's fault. I don't think the angry person understood just how alone the OP was with that dog, and that they weren't to know what to do to even find out if the dog was rehomeable or not. When we give advice to new people in future, those of us that know each other need to back each other up a little more I think. Because by the time people got angry, it was way too late.

Yes. I had to provide a complete waterproof fully-packaged solution when I was lobbying. It had to be designed so that council staff could implement it, without having to use much thought.

Dogs are allowed there, except for the food parts. I remember I was there with a GH once and a woman commented about how ugly the dog was. Luckily there was a mirror close by I could refer to woman to. Mostly people were great though.

My old greyhound Sam used to do this. He would grab your hand and gently try to take you to his bed for a pat. It was the most gorgeous thing ever. The only problem was, when he got very excited the grabbing was a little more grabby. I discourage Woody now from doing the same thing, as he is an easily excitable dog, and he needs to know to grab toys and not people. A dog used to grabbing adults by the hand may grab the little kiddies by the upper arm, and that isn't fun for anyone.

There is a lot to appreciate about a laid-back dog. One advantage is that if you go on a long trip, she is the sort of dog that could stay with your family and not fret for you.

Don't get your expectations too high. She may just be an independent individual, but what were you hoping for when you bought a lappie? They are known for being laid back, and terriers are known for being tenacious and intense. You can work on her obedience. If all rewards in life come from you, she will look to you to get them. If she finds it rewarding enough to do her own thing, you need to change this. You can start agility at any age, just don't allow the dog to jump before it is 18 months old. Training will improve the bond you have, but will not change your dog's personality. Maybe you are better leaving this dog with your family, and getting another dog. There is no hurry to make the decision, but do start thinking about the differences in breeds.

Only on the Gold Coast are you only allowed one dog on a small block, blocks larger than 700 metres you can have two, or up to four with a permit. Everywhere in Brisbane and all of the adjoining council areas you can have two dogs on any sized house block and up to four if a permit is obtained. In Ipswich you can have up to four dogs without having to obtain a permit if your land is over 2000 metres.

The permit will automatically lapse if the number of dogs registered to the property drops below three. Here in Ipswich the permit is called Special Permit (up to four dogs), and applies to the property. The dogs registered are named on the permit which has to be renewed annually. We had a problem here. We got our Special Permit (up to four dogs) and had three registered dogs. One of our dogs died, so unbeknown to us the permit lapsed. But around the time it lapsed I registered myself with the council as a foster carer, so was issued with a Special Permit (up to two registered dogs and up to two foster dogs) to keep up to two foster dogs as well as up to two registered dogs. This permit was free and I had this for two years. Then I decided to keep two foster dogs and register them in my name, and asked to change back to the Special Permit (up to four dogs). They wanted to charge me another huge application fee, so they could come out and inspect the property again. I told them that I had continuously had four dogs on the property since the first permit was approved and didn't want to pay another application fee. I was happy to pay the annual fee though. After a little discussion with the manager, they eventually waived the application fee.

This is a dog that the breeder claims is 'outgoing'. If it couldn't handle a book being dropped near it without being traumatised, it would prove to me that the dog had a problem and that the breeder was failing to disclose important information. You wouldn't purposely try to frighten a timid or nervy dog. But a timid, nervy dog is a faulty dog. And the object of the test is to quickly find out if the dog has any faults that might mean it isn't suited to living with very young children. I know dogs well enough to know a good strong-nerved dog won't be traumatised by a book falling near it at 8 months of age. But there are plenty of dogs around that are not so good. Better to find out before the family is attached whether the dog will suit. In my opinion it wouldn't be fair on a timid nervy dog to place it in a home with toddlers. But an outgoing one could be very happy. If you are a breeder and you think this test would traumatise all of your 8 month old dogs, you need to seriously have a look at the dogs you are breeding with.

Yeah. It might well be.

No, I mean get the law changed, not take the dogs to a cafe in Ippy. You seem to know all about food safety, what is the board we need to lobby to to get a regulation changed? I don't want to be booted from a third venue with my dog. But we can still have our picnics in off-lead parks (even if so many people think its a stupid idea) so we should have one soon.

I'm not giving any breeder credit if I don't know them. I am just giving the best advice I can to Italmum about dog temperament. If Italmum just storms in there with a big pack of loud feral kids and demands a test, and refuses to listen to the breeder, then yes, the breeder should show her the door without delay. But if Italmum sits down with her lovely quiet children, has a chat and answers questions and then talks to the breeder about what is in the test, why would any reasonable person refuse? Italmum has posted about her concerns about 'unknown' temperament of an adult dog. I was explaining some ways to find out. I didn't realise it would offend breeders so much that they would knock back a home out of spite. So maybe Italmum should do those tests at home on the quiet, if the breeder decides she should have the dog at all.