alpha bet

Glad to hear you prefer the obedience club. As a trainer I recommend people attend puppy groups at a club or a trainers - most welcome you from 8-10 weeks. - vet clinics dont cover enough and dont have any follow on. Many often spend a great deal of your time on selling you stuff. The other problem with vets is that lots of sick dogs go to the vets and unless the vet has removed everything from the room (chairs, tables, magazines, noticeboards) and done a complete sterilising floor to ceiling including equipment- then there is a greater risk of infections there than at most other locations. Sorry vets, but stick to what your good at and let the trainers do their stuff.

It is possible to work two dogs with a clicker. They don't need to have separate clickers or different sounds. It is all about how you use to focus and direction to individual dogs. However it is not something that is easy to explain in this format. The best thing to do is go and work with someone who has experience in clicker work. Save yourself a lot of time.

The only reason it is so confusing is that many of the vets don't wish to follow the guidelines that were sent out by the AVA. The letter i saw from the AVA says for the pups to have vaccinations at 6 weeks 16 weeks and 14 months and after that then the C3 injection every three years. However the Kennel Cough if needed should be annual. In theory the titre testing can be done instead of the C3. The AVA also don't seem committed as I also received a letter to the kennels advising that it is the veterinary that should be advising the dog owners and that it is not something that non-professionals should be advising on. When I asked our local vet they said they are worried that people wont bring their dog in each year so therefore they are telling people they need the annual injection. The reason that the three yearly injection is coming in, is that, studies are showing it could be a problem for dogs to be overvaccinated. It therefore worries me that a vet would recommend yearly injections in contrast to these studies. Personally I feel that most vets are worried they wont have the annual fees from all dog owners.

Read Pat Coleby's books She has one on Natural Dog Care - she has been around for years and may have been one of the first to really advocate the Vit C. Available at many bookstores otherwise look online.

Okay Alex Truth now.... you keep asking questions of breeders operations. Yet you keep saying that you dont have dogs and dont show and dont breed..... but you love throwing out these hypotheticals. Looking at your profile all it says you are a crazy border collie lady who lives in bendigo....... What's the actual buzz here..... u conducting research for some study or just a bit of a loon.......

Why? A whole host of reasons. 1. Because its good for them..... When they know how to play watch the fun they have. 2. Because they need to develop skills to deal with OUR world...... Wild dogs would naturally be suspicious of strangers especially on their territory (humans and dogs). Learning proper social skills teaches dogs how to compromise. 3. Because its good for their health..... Im sure that future studies (once they get going) will prove that dogs who can play well are fitter and healthier both mentally and physically. Prior to any scientific studies we only have the actual case history of experienced dog handlers and trainers to go by. 4. Because its good for their owners..... Let the owners learn how to socialise their dogs properly and the dogs and humans will have a better relationship together and the owners will spend more good times with their pooches. 5. Because you can use play to develop better focus..... learn how to incorporate play into your training and your dog's focus will shift to you as the major player in his games. Like with kids in a playground they all want to hang out with the cool guy. So you learn to be the cool guy. 6. Because it releases stress..... dogs who have "emotional" issues tend to have them because humans tend to pander to them. If a dog has a bad experience he needs the chance to work thru it and come out the other side more confident. I have had many dogs (of varied ages) learn to be more relaxed by developing their play skills. I don't mean to go on. However this is my specialist subject and I am passionate about it. Most of the time you take dogs out and about (yes even to dog parks) and they have a great time. Yes, sometimes they can have a bad experience but this is something the owner needs to develop skills to deal with or even prevent. Sometimes people feel that two dogs having rough play is aggression.... and step in and panic creating more stress to what could be a normal situation for the dog. Often in fact dogs have a tendancy in a group to exhibit "social conflict" which is a normal dog behaviour of teaching each other when the boundaries have been pushed to far. The trick is that the owners need the skills to interpret when to step in and when to count to three and let it play out. More social classes needed that are geared to the owners learning.

currently going thru the process of getting a new website..... so great to have all this info. Giving me loads of help sorting out what to have and what not ... Thanks for the thread

Stop when he looks like a mexican hairless dog. :laugh:

Never heard of any research into dog dreaming.... The research money has only just started appearing and that hasnt really brought out much yet.... they are still learning what is needed for families pets..... I love watching a litter - perhaps as young as 3-6 week old pups and seeing them twitch and even start little yips. We often say they are chasing rabbits.... but really they havent even got those memories yet.... not like my older dogs. One old dude years ago told me that little pups should be twitchy otherwise be worried about them. Twitching is part of their growth pattern. Ever since I watch the little babies and it always makes me feel good to see them twitch and jerk....

Alex I would like to offer you perhaps a little more than what has currently been answered. At least from my perspective as an owner, breeder and trainer. Common sense applies in this type of scenario. As a breeder we can offer a pup tested for any known hereditary diseases/conditions. Perhaps to make things more defined the breeder will offer the new owner a contract that states as such. If there turns out to be a 'new' or 'unexpected' condition then the breeder is not obligated to do anything as far as refunding or replacing pups. For example: a dog might turn out to be diabetic, or subject to fits which 'might' be hereditory, lifestyle affected, or just by chance. It is the breeders responsibility to provide a healthy, well adjusted pup. that means that the parents are good examples of the breed physically and also mentally stable - as well as tested for any known problems. The pups should then be raised in a clean environment with the space to explore both inside and outside - breeders should also ensure that pups have interaction with different people and other dogs - Thus setting pup up for a start in life in a human's world. Personally I do not ever intend giving a lifelong guarantee on a pup I have bred. After all a pup is a pup till about 6 months or so, after that it is now a dog and a totally different prospective with different issues as far as rehoming or the health. In saying that if there are issues then I would encourage the owners to get in touch with me. I want to know if there are likely problems with any bloodlines and perhaps I can help depending upon the circumstances. Remember too that the problems might be in the stud dogs lines and not my bitches. If I've paid $1,000-1,500 for a stud fee then I might want to take issue with the stud dog owner.

Isn't it better that all the states have the same ruling..... So what if dogs have tails.... shouldn't make any difference to the showing - judges get used to how the dogs look and judge accordingly. As far as cutting ears - can't see how anyone thinks that okay.... geeeeese louise...... would you think its okay to trim your ears to look like Dr Spock....

Glad to hear soooo many breeders are prepared to take back their puppies.... Many even stating that if a 'breeder isnt prepared to take them back then they shouldn't be breeding' Lets get honest here......... Things happen.... circumstances change..... nobody can make a promise to rehome stock they have bred........ for life !...... When the statistics sate that perhaps 1 in 3 marriages end in divorce - then this alone can mean that potentially dogs may need rehomeing... neither of the divorcee's can keep the pup..... so why is the breeder now responsible. There are also plenty of breeders out there who have operated in partnerships/marriages and then had divorce/breakups. These breeders may no longer be in a position to take pups back...... As breeders we can offer to rehome and assist .... and sometimes take a puppy back.... BUT TO MAKE A PROMISE ! Sheese! get real. (now i sit back and wait for the ear bashing....)

I have a couple of puppies going to homes in the Geelong area. Hoping that there are some forum people online who can recommend trainers / clubs that are in the area that I can pass on. Would also like some info on the type of classes that are held. Thanks

Perhaps if you explain that this kennel is raising approx 400 puppies a year. In which case what sort of attention is paid to each litter.... that it sounds more like a production line..... This might make her feel that perhaps she isnt getting something quite soooo rare....

One thing that is always worth considering is some massage..... Horses are very prone to stress and they respond amazingly well to massage - the dog industry once agains is lagging seriously behind. You don't need to get to complicated or pay a 'professional' Slow rythmic circular rubs starting behind the ears and work slowly down the neck and either side of the spine. Also remember to work each side of the dog at the same time. Also a rub around the shoulders. You will often see the dog yawn and lick their lips..... their eyes soften and if you pause occasionally the dog will often have a shake and then push back into your hands. Often the dog will position his body where he wants the massage. I have often had dogs in the kennel who can appear 'depressed' - If given a bit of time to settle and then try some massage with them it amazes me how they relax and become more bouncy with us. Sometimes in training I have had dogs who get stressed and worried using massage will often calm them making them easier to focus on new situations. It costs nothing to try and can give a feeling of well being to both the dog and the handler.....

Once again I work different to many here. I don't teach tug of war.... nor do I encourage my clients to...... However, I am working with family pets (i.e. people who have access to lots of kiddies).... not people doing dog sports. A family pet should understand that they can play tug of war with another dog but not with a human. You teach a pet this game and he may start playing it with the kiddies..... then who wins..... And before you all jump down my throat and say that your dogs are great family pets anyway.... it becomes something that as Responsible Dog Owners that you have to manage..... to ensure that kids don't become involved. Same applies to other dog games, such as wrestling (play fighting) or Chase me games....

You havent mentioned the age of your dog, but does sound like a dog around the 12 month stage. As you say she used to occassionally dig out..... now (a few weeks later) its becoming more frequent. You need to beware as you could be effectively making her a smart digging dog. By patching up the holes and hoping that would work has just allowed her to start looking for more and more alternatives. Similar to a dog who jumps a low fence and you raise it 6 inches, they learn to jump higher, you raise it, they jump higher etc etc... What you need to do now is create an effective barrier to prevent her digging. Thus she doesnt profit and therefore she learns to stay in the yard. Step One - You need to have a skirt put around your yard. That means the wire (strong gauge chicken wire) needs to be attached to the fence perhaps a 30cm on the vertical and then about 90 cm along the ground, pegged firmly or buried. Any and every place you think that is possible to dig needs to be secured. An alternative is a concrete plinth but even that must have some decent depth to secure. Step Two - Give her somewhere to dig...... dump a huge load of river sand in the middle of the lawn, bury some dog bikkies if needed to build interest. If she loves to dig she will have a ball playing in the sand. Once the pile of sand has been spread all around the lawn you get more sand. Good for the lawn and cleans the dogs coat. Best of luck.

Your vet is being unfair - they should have received the information from the AVA and been more supportive to you...... My understanding that it is not a 'special' vaccination that is required. It is the normal C3 that will cover them for Parvo/distemper/Hep. (Perhaps some of the vet nurses on line could clarify this.) Certainly the instructions that came thru from the AVA was that after about 10 years then dogs who have had regular vaccination should not require further vacc. Consider changing your vet!

We have a neighbour who lives about 1 km from our place..... her dog would wander up here on average twice a week. Initially I put him in a pen and then ring them.... they collect dog and I listen to all their excuses....... This went on for about 8 months - so they got a second puppy to try and keep the first one at home..... 6 months later we now have two dogs knocking at my door a couple of times a week..... still the same excuses from the neighbours.... Frankly i get pissed off with it..... I just wish they would spend the money and build a proper backyard so the dogs have somewhere safe. If they happen to wander in the opposite direction during the lambing season they will get shot by the local farmer.

Why would anyone want to bother with dual sires for one litter.....? Next thing you know we will have poodle bitches having half spoodles and half labradoodles......

It can be harder than raising twin human babies. I never recommend it - if you dont put in a lot of work individually the problems start to surface around 9 months. Even for mature dogs they can become very stressed when seperated. In fact in my last litter a pup was sold but when I found out the people had gone and got themselves another puppy so they could have the two together I pulled the sale and wouldnt let my pup go to their home. Have since heard she got a 2nd pup elswhere and both dogs had to be rehomed (? or so she told me) because they were out hunting neighbours sheep when they were 8 and 9 months old. She was wondering if I might have a pup from this litter...... sheese some people never learn..... At least you sound like you are prepared to put in the work..... Good luck but definately glad it is you and not me...... Ideally I prefer 2-3 years between dogs.

Tend to use both - however personally i rely more on the body than the voice. In class I always teach people to start off with just the hand signals. This stops them nagging the commands. Once the dog well to the hand signals then we can introduce the words. The only voice commands we start of with straight away is the release word when using clickers etc. (and of course any voice praise always encouraged) It does seem to help people concentrate on the excercise more if they keep their mouth closed.... Often with new people if the mouth is closed the eyes are open. The other thing I like to consider is that some people get excited when they start talking and their energy doesnt control well - if they have a hyper sensitive dog it often seems easier to keep them at body commands for the long term.

Molasseslass, you can see what I mean about the confusion. ANKC of course relates to the individual states I am assuming..... Perhaps we all need to clarify when we say registered - say VCA Registered (or whatever state)

One of the things I find in classes is that people do appreciate some individual feedback of some type. When I have riding lessons I hate it when someone monopolises the class. However the experienced instuctors will always move that person on fairly quick and share the time with all. I feel as a teacher this is important to touch base with individuals as this gives them a feeling of belonging and then are more likely to raise their concerns. This also allows me to get a good feel for the person and then recognise when I need to chat quiet one to one at the end - or incorporate any difficulties as an example to the class on how to deal with this type of issue. I run classes where I can have anything from 4-12 dogs in a class and I'm the only instructor, sometimes there is more than 1 handler per dog. I use the initial social time to allow everyone to touch base and have any question time - which often becomes a group discussion. (i.e. my dog won't go outside the door and runs to hide under the couch!) I love it when some of the others are keen to express their similar concern or even offer some solutions that worked for them. Ive found that by having lots of little equipment around provides the waiting handlers the opportunity to practice some of their existing excercises. if I do get caught up with one person for more than a few minutes then the rest are able to go and work on little games on their own. No matter how many are in the class I feel it is important for each to be acknowledged even if it is to praise a new excercise achieved or perhaps set a task for them to work on during the week.

On the forum I keep hearing about registered breeders. Some say registered with council, some with associations and some with business abn. What is the actual criteria and does it differ State by State. I've had a breeders prefix registered with the VCA since 1983 - so now I'm wondering if I meet the standard.