tdierikx

Queensland has some of the stupidest dog legislation in the country. Basically any tan or solidly built bull-breed mix can be "identified" by a council ranger as a "pitbull" and declared "dangerous" or "restricted", regardless if it has displayed any adverse behaviours or not. Moreton Bay Council is also one of the least dog-friendly councils in the country, so shouldn't be held in any level of comparison to elsewhere in Australia. It beggars belief that Moreton Bay council has registered 269 dogs as "dangerous" or "menacing". I'll bet that most of those have never had an incident recorded against them, but have been "identified" by council as restricted/banned breeds/mixes based only on physical appearance. Interestingly, the number of reported dog attacks in the Moreton Bay LGA has risen sharply since council started restricting where and when dogs could be away from their own properties, and running around "identifying" all manner of perfectly sociable dogs as "dangerous" based on colour/build alone. Is it any wonder that dogs are becoming less sociable when the restrictions imposed have reduced the opportunities for dogs to be out and about learning how to be social in the community? Quite frankly, articles like this only highlight that legislation isn't working to reduce issues, but in reality, it may actually be making the problems worse. What is actually required is a concerted effort to effectively educate pet owners about their responsibilities, and giving dogs more ways to learn and build their social skills in the community. Unfortunately, education that isn't simply whacking some words onto a buried council webpage that residents can't easily find just won't cut it. What is required is actual targetted face to face information sessions, and/or printed material letterbox drops to keep residents informed of their pet ownership responsibilities, and support for training and socialisation of dogs in order for them to safely be able to be part of the community. Unfortunately, it costs more money to do the right and required thing than it does to simply enact more restrictive legislation... *sigh* T.

I can attest to the fact that dogs in a truly heightened state aren't necessarily deterred by capsicum spray, and have seen police officers draw guns on dogs in that state... in my back yard... Some years ago , my own dogs Trouble and Zeddy, decided they were going to fight each other, and I was having difficulty separating them. Needless to say I was shouting and cursing at them while trying to grab and drag Trouble off Zeddy when she had her down. 3 police officers were attending a youth home across the road, heard my yelling, and had come over to see if they could help. They emptied 3.5 cans of capsicum spray at the 2 fighting dogs to no effect, Trouble and Zeddy were well into "the zone", and were determined to end each other. They finally separated when they were basically exhausted, and as I grabbed Zeddy to secure her in the bathroom (she was badly injured), the police officers actually drew their weapons on Trouble in case she might have turned on them. Luckily her intentions were only on doing Zeddy in, and once I'd removed Zeddy, she just sat there covered in blood, wagging her tail at the police officers as if to say "oh, we have visitors, have you got treats for me?". I have no doubts that if she'd approached them, they would have shot her. I'd say that a police officer is fully entitled to draw a weapon on a dog that has obviously just mauled someone to death. I'm not sure what focusing on that fact in this case warrants its own article, other than to elicit an indignant or negative response either towards police or the dogs in question... it just comes across as reporting salacious tidbits of this sort of case are the norm nowadays, and only ends up getting the response of people (keyboard warriors generally) calling for banning dogs of certain types/breeds, which is NOT helpful at all. T.

This is why we all need effective recall if we are going to exercise our dogs in an off-leash area... reactivity from other dogs or people who don't want to be rushed at during their use of the area. I am in no way defending the use of a knife to resolve whatever issue actually occurred - if the other owner's dog suffered bite wounds, then there is definitely more to this story than we are getting - but the fact remains that the owner of the 2 dogs that were stabbed was not close enough to his own dogs to control them, and had poor recall when they chose to go "greet" the other dog. His dogs have paid the price of that lack of recall pure and simple. T.

Well... the latest twist in this tale is a shocker, isn't it? T.

Update to the story... https://www.facebook.com/share/p/175BckBg4q/ T.

Without CCTV, I doubt we'll know exactly what happened... but if the article is correct about what is thought to have happened to the poor dog, I hope the perpetrator(s) suffer a similar fate. Many years ago, my now ex decided to take my Rotti Woosie for a walk up to the bakery to get some cinnamon donuts to have for breakfast. The silly fellow hooked her lead to an A-frame sign outside the shop as he went in to get the donuts, and she moved and the A-frame made a scraping noise which scared her. She decided to hightail it home in fright, A-frame sign still attached, with the ex tearing off after her trying to get her to stop... no chance, she was heading home to mummy to save her, and arrived home with the sign still attached. Guess who got all the donuts that morning, as the ex had to take the sign back to the shop and apologise... I'm hoping that maybe the dog in the article wasn't actually set upon by anyone, but instead possibly got spooked and maybe hurt itself trying to get away. It's not beyond the realms of possibility. T.

Losing a loved companion can be one of the hardest things you will go through short of losing a human family member. It needs to be acknowledged and grieved in whatever way helps you deal with the intense emotions that linger after they have gone. My father passed earlier this year at the ripe old age of 89. He had suffered with Parkinson's for the past 10 years, and in all reality, his passing was a blessing and a relief knowing that he wasn't suffering or losing any more dignity. I have actually dealt with his passing much better than when my heart dog passed in 2004. I actually still feel the intense loss of that dog in a way that many people cannot understand, and still cry about her not being here to this day. I'm actually crying about her as I type this. All that said, we also need to remember that we aren't the only people affected by the passing of our furry mates. For many of us, our pets haven't just passed peacefully in their sleep, they have been helped by an amazing team of caring people at the vet clinic. While we may be going through one of our own most traumatic events, they may have had to help a number of ailing pets go for their final sleep that very same day. Think of the toll that is taking on those caring and compassionate people who have been so supportive of you through your experience, regardless how hard it hits them each time they have to do it. When I did my Cert IV in Vet Nursing, we actually had to do an assignment on grief at losing a pet, but it was solely focused on owner grief, and did not even recognise staff grief or compassion overload when dealing with such emotive procedures multiple times in any given day. Our teacher for that subject actually did try to address that aspect in class, but she broke down and had to leave the room to recompose herself for about 30 minutes... just think if this is how someone who hasn't practised in a clinic setting for years still feels about that, what effect do you think it's having on those still in the field? Luckily, in the clinic I was at, the staff were VERY supportive of each other in these matters, which made it less stressful at the time, but the truth is that I'm still scarred by my experiences. I've had massive tattooed biker dudes collapse sobbing into my arms after their furry mates have passed, and various other levels of emotional collapse from many other owners. In some ways, the owner grief is actually harder to deal with then the peaceful passing of a pet, as we understand why that pet has to pass, but still death is not an easy thing to deal with for most people no matter how far "removed" from the core feelings one thinks a person may be. All I can say is hug your vet and the nurses that look after your pets. Let them know that you truly appreciate everything they are trying to do for your pet and you. It may literally be the one thing that stops them walking away from the profession... or worse. T.

Back in the days I was with NSWAR, we had a litter come to us with massive worm burden... roundworm AND hookworm. We had to worm them, there was no question about that, but they all died as the hookworms literally dug their way out through their stomachs. It was probably the most horrific thing I'd ever seen at the time. Ever since, I've been VERY stringent with the 2,4,6,8 worming schedule for any litter that comes into my care - and mums that come to me with babies also get done monthly until the pups have left her. Not long ago, we had a mum and 2 bubs come to us from RSPCA - the pups had been born in their care, and were a month old when we got them. Mum dog had a roundworm burden, which had actually been noted by RSPCA 2 weeks prior in a vet checkup there, but there were no notes on it ever being treated. I dosed her and the pups immediately and that fixed the problem. Don't know why they weren't treated at RSPCA, as they'd C5 vaccinated mum AND the 4 week old pups before giving them to us, so why not worming as well? Who vaccinates 4 week old pups by the way? T.

I'd probably get the x-ray done, but make it clear that depending on the result, you are wanting to take a conservative approach with any treatment, as you have noticed an improvement with rest. Have they given you any pain relief for her in the meantime? If so, that may be working to mask some symptoms. Better to know what you may be dealing with if her cruciate has become unstable, or she's got arthritis. An unstable cruciate can be managed with rest and pain relief whenever it flares up, just like arthritis - surgery should only be considered if the cruciate is fully ruptured and unlikely to heal on it's own. T.

In my experience after raising literally hundreds of rescue puppies over the years, I've only had one puppy die on me after being treated for worms. That most likely happened because he was already quite sick from the massive worm burden he had, and his little body just couldn't cope with the treatment, but if left untreated, the worm burden would have killed him anyways. It was worth trying to treat him in any case, and his 2 siblings who also had heavy worm burdens both survived the same treatment and lived long happy lives. I'm with @_PL_in recommending the Drontal puppy liquid for small puppies, as it is gentler on the stomach than the tablet form. For older puppies (12 weeks to 6 months), I prefer Fenpral or Popantel branded allwormer tablets, as they are gentler on the stomach than Drontal tablets. Dogs over 6 months old seem to handle Drontal tablets much better than small puppies. I wouldn't treat pups under 12 weeks for heartworm, and it's not really required until they are at least 6 months old anyways. Some vets will want to start heartworm treatment at 12 weeks, but my advice is to do the monthly treatment for heartworm until your dog is at least 12 months old, and then investigate whether the annual heartworm vaccination is better for your lifestyle, OK? Another thing to be mindful of is vaccinations and worming should not really be done on the same day in pups under 12 weeks old. I usually worm them the day before or after they get their vaccination. Vets will usually tell you it makes no difference, but my experience has proven that my foster pups are less likely to have adverse effects from either treatment if done separately, and if there are side effects, you will know which treatment caused it. As for vaccinations, I usually only give small pups (under 12 weeks) a C3 vaccine, and over 12 weeks are usually fine to get the C5 that vets prefer to give. As you really shouldn't be taking your pup out and about much before their vaccine schedule has been completed, the chances of them contracting Kennel Cough (C5 vaccine adds 2 strains of KC resistance on top of the C3 component) is low. Puppies MUST have at least 3 doses of the C3 vaccine within their first 16 weeks to ensure immunity from the most deadly 3 diseases dogs can get, OK? T.

The brindle/white one was definitely targetting the smaller child, and was trying to drag her off. The tan one seemed to just be caught up in the excitement of the squealing, but seemed happy to go look to other people for attention. I agree that they should not have been roaming off lead... especially if that easily aroused to action of this type. T.

Unfortunately, with all the legislation that keeps being introduced, dogs are being allowed in less and less public spaces - often the dog park is the only space where they can get a good long run. Unfortunately the restrictions on where dogs can go mean that opportunities to socialise them properly with other animals and people are becoming scarce, so is it no wonder we are seeing a rise in incidents of adverse behaviours? T.

I wonder what the survival rate for pups is? Although 6 pups looks about the average litter size for a Husky... Those pups looked well fed and strong. Those conditions would make the animal rights mobs go nuts... tethered adults, neonate pups in a divot in the elements... nature doing nature's best and surviving and thriving to boot. T.

In NSW, Victoria, and now WA, the AJP have sitting members in the legislative council... and trust me, they are plenty busy trying to slip in cray cray amendments to animal welfare legislation. You can thank Emma Hurst (and to a lesser extent Abigail Boyd from the Greens) for pounds now offloading as many animals as they can onto private rescues in NSW, with their stupid Rehoming Bill in 2022 - effectively outsourcing government responsibility to the rescue sector for no payment. It passed because it didn't cost the government any money, not because it was sound legislation. I've just spent the last 2 days going through Victorian council websites to compare their cat/dog registration fees and excess animal keeping permits... and let's just say I'm never moving to Victoria and owning any pets there... legislation changes have made owning pets there fekking convoluted to say the least... and it's about to get even worse! As for nutty old women... definitely not! Without us, the whole system would go to heck... T.

For an area of some 183,000km squared, and only 742 residents, one wonders how they managed to let the stray dog situation get so out of hand... T.