sheena

This is not a personal attack on you...you obviously don't mind buying animals from pet shops, & you love your dog, but I can't believe that there is a puppy farmer out there who is breeding chihuahuas with border collies I don't find that breed "interesting" in the least...I find it cruel, sick & grotesque that someone could deliberately breed such a combination. An " over the fence, once in a lifetime", encounter, by an exhuberant BC male or an "under the fence" event by a male chihauhua, could happen...but for someone to be out there breeding this to make money selling to a pet shop....well what more can I say

Is the Smithfield the same as a Stumpy Tail Cattle dog, or is it a breed of it's own? Looked up the web & some pages lumped the two together & another site said that the Stumpy Tail was bred from the Smithfield. Not sure if this is the right thread to post this in :D I did conclude tho, that it is an Aussie breed.

I have only ever seen it in produce stores in 20kilo bags....maybe one might be able to sell you just a couple of kilos....worth asking Maybe you could get some from the breeder of your pup, if that's what he has been fed on.

I feed turkey wings, necks & SMALL drumsticks to my border collie. She chews them up well & there is never anything left. I don't think they would be any harder than lamb ribs or especially beef ribs. I have gone off the beef ribs as the half eaten ones I pick up are all splintered & don't look good. I think from a dogs perspective, turkey would have more taste than chicken. Bindi loves them.

I feed my BC on VAN & have done now for over a year. I add meat, or sardines to it & she also gets a meaty bone each day.. I find she does well on it...has a nice shiny coat & good teeth etc. Her stools are probably a little loose, but if I microwave it for less than a minute, after I have added the water, her poos firm up. but not sure if maybe I am killing off something in the VAN's which would otherwise have been beneficial. I also give her supplements like Livamol, & Joint formula & fish oil. I am thinking that when this bag finishes, I might try Phuds instead, or even go to Black Hawk kibble + meat, just for a change. But, yes, I am happy with it.

I read a book last year...a true story called "A Good Dog" by Jon Katz. It was about a border collie that he got from a rescue centre & it was a real way out of control, terror (sounds a lot like your dog). The first problem he had with it was that it loved to "round up" school buses & he was always being called down to the school to rescue the kids from the bus..eventually falling foul of the law. To cut a long story short, he thought he would try sheep herding with it....but no way could he control his dog (dog had a ball). He called in several experts to help with this dog & eventually one suggested that he change the dog's name, which he did & . & the dog went on to win trials & all sorts of things. It was a lovely true story, but like all those storys it had a sad ending.

Just out of curiosity...& the rest of you will think this question is really mad..(well that's OK, just don't tell me).....but has this particular border collie got pricked ears

I agree........but we do have some choices to make life a little easier, for us & our furry friends. :D

Car sickness can be managed and usually is not a permanent issue, I don't understand what the big deal is. In my experience any dog no matter how well bred can suffer car sickness. I guess that is why people are puzzled? at your post. :D If you read my original post it wasn't about car sickness, it was a comment regarding minimising chances of getting a puppy with health problems by buying from a breeder with good healthy dogs (see my comment above). The car sickness problem my friend has with her rescue pup was not the issue, but some kind DOL's have given me some good advise on the matter. I mentioned that I havn't met the dog yet, as she hasn't been able to get it down her driveway, & for medical reasons, I havn't been able to drive since pup arrived. I never said that car sickness was hereditery, but I wouldn't be surprised, that it did run in the family, seeing that all the pups have the same problem. Maybe the parents had the problem when they were pups :D And I never said that getting a registered dog from any old breeder would garantee a problem free life. It is a known fact that if you breed together dogs that have allergies, sensitivities or joint problems, you will end up with some pups with the same problems...not necessarily car sickness, but I can't see why not.

This sound a bit like what my girl was like, & we are on a farm. We have had border collies before, but this one certainly was different & certainly knew how to push our buttons. If a cow had a go at her she would bite it on the nose...if she got hit by the electric fence, then she would turn around & bark at it....if the chook stopped running, she would poke at it till it took off again. She was continously ripping my shoulder & we had to take a supply of bandaids to agility training each week. If it's any consolation, with patient training, especially in recall & "leave it" she grew out of it, almost overnight, when she got to about the age of 18 months. A word of warning if using an E collar, make sure you use it as soon as she looks at the horse, chook, cat etc. Then praise & reward her immediately when she takes her eyes off the prey & turns to look at you. Don't distract her in any way if she is close to the horse, because she will turn to look at you & get kicked fair in the head. I wouldn't be using a recall, when she eyes the cat, I would be using a loud growl....like UGH or a "leave it" command. She could be getting confused & think that when she looks at the cat, you call her name, she chases cat...job done...arn't I a good girl. Hang in there,....you will end up with a great dog with lots of drive & a personality all her own..... It does get better :D

I would have thought (& I admit that I am no rocket scientist) that if you choose a puppy, or better still, let the breeder choose a puppy for you, which they think is suitable, from a litter where you know the parents & you know the parents are relatively free from allergies, sensitivities & joint problems etc, that you would have a far better chance of getting a healthy dog. Compared to one whose parentage is pot luck & has probably started it's poor little life in a puppy farm or someones backyard where the neighbour's entire male has jumped the fence & mated with some bitch whose owners "havn't got around to desexing ", or just wanted their dog to have pups because "it would be a wonderful experience for the kids". :D If people were more responsible with how they breed & what they breed & we could get rid of puppy farms & BYB's then we wouldn't have so many pets ending up in rescue centres, or worse still, having to be put down. This forum is full of sad cases for dogs with all sorts of health issues, which could have been minimised had the owners known the parents of the pups, & what problems the parents may have, be they pure breds or crosses. A big :D to all those DOL's who gave me some positive advice regarding my friends rescue dog with the car sickness problem. I have passed all the info on to her, & fingers crossed, we will soon have her travelling like a pro. If she can sort this out with her dog, then that will help the others from the litter too, that have the same problem. Someone mentioned that I was a little harsh in my description of the dog. I only described her as the RSPCA Rescue centre described her to my friend. But I believe she is very sweet & quiet, & I am dying to meet her. Hopefully she will be able to get her to training this week, somehow. I will let all you positive DOL's know how she gets on, if we have success

Callicoma Kelpies & Pet supplies 28.50 for 500g (15 -18) & 57.00 for a kilo (30-35) http://www.callicoma.com.au/treats1.htm#Pigs ears Lots of other good stuff too, especially the lamb puffs My dog wont eat pigs ears

It could be a sign of worms, but maybe he could be just cleaning out his anal glands, but probably a bit young for that. If you are in a tick area just check to see that he doesn't have a tick hanging there. You could always take a sample of poo to the vet to have it analysed for presence of worms. What did you worm him with?

I already have all the NSW 2011 ANKA ones marked on my calendar.....so then I can organise the rest of my life around them. I got them from the Dogs NSW web site, so I guess the QLD ones would be on Dogs Qld. Web site...that's for ANKA & the AADA ones are listed on the AADA web site. You do have to be a member of your state body to enter & sosmetimes it takes a bit of ltime for them to get all the paper work done. So sorry I missed out on the ADAA one at WAGG last weekend....was it good? What was the weather like???? I had to go in for an emergency eye op a couple of days before so had to pull out....I was so upset, but at least now I will be able to see my way around the course better

Do you keep her crated while inside or does she have the run of the house?? She has the loungeroom yes, the kitchen and bedrooms are blocked off, is that bad? should i be using a crate at night? is that ok? The best & quickest way to toilet train her is to put her in a crate when she can't be supervised, then taken out at regular intervals to toilet, otherwise she will connect the loungeroom with going to the toilet...she doesn't know any different.

I got my silver Le Pooch a couple of days ago, but havn't had a chance to use it yet. I am not allowed to lift, drag or push anything for another 3 weeks as I have had a couple of eye ops, but I think I will have to instruct OH in the art of doggie grooming. It certainly looks good

Yes I agree with you here...and most of these "purebreds" would have been the result of BYB's or Puppy Farms. Any reputable breeder, puts a lot of time & effort into insuring that they are breeding the healthiest puppies possible, & give the new owner as much support as needed & will even take the pup back if it is found to be not suitable. If you read my above post, you will see why, I thought, in this ladies circumstances, she would have been better off getting a dog from a known background. I am glad to hear that all your rescue dogs are in good health...you certainly have been much luckier than my friend, & it doesn't bother me one bit if you don't like border collies.

They are good tips Aussienot & Poodlefan. She says that she has worked on getting the dog used to the car while stationery, but maybe if someone sat in the back with her while driving, then they could raise the alarm as soon as she started to show symptoms of distress. At present she can't get out of her driveway without her chucking....she has a long driveway. I am not bagging rescue dogs, but in this ladies circumstances she would have been better off getting a pup from a known source, a purebred from a registered breeder. She already has two, now aging, dogs which have been plagued with major health issues all their life. When she got interested in agility & wanted to get another pup, she wanted it to be a certain size, sex, temperament & for once in her life, not have any health issues. That is why I thought, for her to be able to minimise the risks, she would be better off getting a pure bred & suggested a local breeder who breeds lovely kelpies, and competes in all dog sports with. She chose a lovely little kelpie pup from the rescue centre, but as badluck befalls her, it died the day before she was due to pick it up. And for those critics who say I am not being very supportive of her...then what am I doing now & have been since she got the pup.....looking for a solution. It is heartening to know that she might grow out of it, but I would have thought seeing that she is now about 7 months old (exact age unknown). We live a long way apart, as people in the country often do & usually meet up halfway at training where she comes to watch. I havn't driven to see her, as I have had two major eye operations since she got the pup & I have to rely on OH to drive me everywhere. I believe she is a very sweet little combination, hardly ever barks & just lies around most of the time. Which is nice, but I am a little concerned that for a pup of working dog mix at her age would probably be a little more active. Who knows what has happened to these pups before they ended up in the rescue centre, roughly at the age of 5 to 6 months...if only they could talk. She was thoroughly vet tested before she got her, but then again, so was the little one that died before she could take delivery of it (all it's litter mates were OK) ETA...thanks Dogbesotted, maybe she is trying to do everything a little too fast. I will certainly pass your suggestion on to her. I did suggest to her, to make the car a fun place to be, (while stationery)...put value on being in the car

This is interesting as she thinks she may be a cross between a stumpy tail, border collie, smithfield & maybe a bit of dingo mixed in. The history of where the litter came from is not known to the rescue centre...for some reason. I have been delving back into the archives or DOL for her & passing on the information. She has tried ginger tablets, different positions in the car & all the medications the vet can think of. At present she is taking a tablet which actually puts her to sleep, but of course this is no good if my friend wants to take her to training, as it zonks the dog out. I don't think she has tried a static strip on her car yet. The dog doesn't appear to get stressed, she just lies there & chucks. She only travels her on an empty stomach, but then the poor thing vomits up bile. I have suggested that just because the dog lies there quitely, doesn't mean that it is not stressed. I suggested it may be because she drives a very small car, but if all the pups are doing the same, then that theory goes out the window. I have now bought her a "calming cap" from America & will try to get it to her, to see if that helps.

I often wonder, just how many problem dogs that are on the Health Sub forum come from an unknown parentage? I have a friend who wanted to get a dog as she wants to do agility, but it also had to be a lovely companion to her as she is not a well person. Knowing her personal situation, I tried very hard to talk her into doing some research into breeds & breeders & pointed out the benefits of getting a dog with known parentage etc. ie. from a reliable registered breeder. She insisted that she wanted to get one from the rescue centre as she felt sorry for all the dogs there....don't we all I havn't been able to meet this new dog yet, because she can't drive down the street without it being sick. She has had her for at leat 5 weeks now & has spent countless amounts of money with the vets & is at her wits end as she has tried every thing to fix the problem. It turns out that all the pups in that litter have the same problem...she is about 6 months old & the whole litter was surrendered to the rescue centre.

Nah....no-one that really mattered anyway. But it was a very interesting discussion....Pity

I have been using 1/2 tablet daily of Cetirizine on my BC when necessary to stop itching from grass ticks. Cetirizine is the generic brand of Zyrtec, only a lot cheaper. I find it a lot better than what the vet gave me, Iramine twice daily...they were hopeless.

Do you keep her crated while inside or does she have the run of the house??

I have quite a few of the puppy DVD's, but I have almost been tempted to purchase this 6 DVD set. BC4Me, have you had a look at it yet, or is it still coming??? I would be interested to see what you think of it. I am gathering that many DVD's that I think they are starting to repeat themselves, especially the Clean Run ones, when I get their monthly magazine too. Maybe I might end up going into "overload" if that's at all possible.

There is a lot being talked about on this Health thread at present, with Black Hawk Holisitic. I havn't tried it myself but am waiting on a sample. I feed my girl Vets All Natural + raw & raw meaty bones + some supplements. When I have finished this bag of VAN, I am tempted to either try Phuds or the Black Hawk mixed with raw meat. I must remember to keep her well & truly away from all chihouras (spelling?).