animalia

My dog does and annoys every person and dog around her with her persistent barking

I have received acknowledgment from only William Sykes and Ted Baillieu and I have also emailed A LOT of ministers.

Hi everyone, I just wanted some feed back on this picture i took of my Heeler Penny. I haven't really tried to take any pictures in a loooong time so I think I have lost some of my photography mojo. Some of the pictures were taken at sunset hence the golden glow. Thanks!

I know it pee'd me off too I changed the channel!

I had a MASSIVE flea problem at my new house, you would see them jumping every where. I got an exterminator to come out and spray every where outside and I haven't seen a flea since. The only down side is that you can't actually have any animals around the area sprayed for around two weeks as they can die (my dog had a 2 week sleep over at a relatives), but I found it was worth it.

I had a great time aswell and enjoyed meeting everyone. I reeaaaaally want a Bully like Pele, I fell in love with her!

I don't have any problems with breeders making a profit, it just needs to come secondary to doing whats right for the dog and the breed. I know the list maybe a bit over the top and not perfect, but the point of the list is to outline that irresponsible people are the problem not any particular breed such as the APBT i feel at the moment the ideaology of local/state law and various other prominant stakeholders such as the main voice for the RSPCA, think that curing the problem of "aggression" in some dog breeds is to ban and destroy them. I think that prevention is the key, so this means more regulation AND education is needed in regards to the breeding, selling and purchasing of dogs. APBT if they have a good genetic makeup, appropriate socilisation in critical period and onwards, training through out life and boundries, excersice and owner knowledge like any other breed under the same circumstances they will be a fabulous dog. Again I am NOT against breeders, only irresponsible breeders.

god I wish I could take pictures like that!

I had a really crap day the other week and had a little teary when I got home. My red heeler sat beside me and was looking up at me, she then put her front foot on mine and kept looking at me, this isn't a behaviour I have experienced from her before. It felt like she was consoling me. I also had an uncle and aunt that owned a half feral cat that they had owned for many years and it still never let them touch it. My Uncle and Auntie went to the doctors one day for some results for my uncle, it wasn't good news, my uncle had a terminal brain tumor. When they got home my uncle sat down in his usual chair and for the first time the cat jumped up onto his lap and fell asleep.

I agree that a program should be undertaken in schools and I am always saying this to my sister who is a primary school teacher and animal lover. She agrees something needs to be done as well as she can see that clearly her students really don't care about animals because they haven't been exposed to them in a positive way by their parents. I think that it's also up to anyone or any business that sells dogs/animals to provide sufficient amount of information to prospective buyers so that they walk away knowing how to look after the dog in all aspects : - socialisation, training, health etc, OR give them names of people who can help them along the way so that both dog and human live happily ever after. I think the genetics, socialisation, training, exercise and owner knowledge can minimise the incidents of dog problems in the community. I don't want less dogs being owned I want more educated/responsible people

As I am new to the world of dog training I was just wondering if any one can recommend any books or DVDs that either includes training or dog behaviour. Thank you!

Through the years I have had to PTS many dogs, cats, birds and rats and I have been there for everyone, just like they were there for me.

At first his behaviour was due to your bitch in season, now i think it has become a learned behaviour. Most likely every time he did that particular behaviour you went out there, to either try and stop the behaviour as it was in progress or did a verbal reprimand. Either way he might have now realised that every time he does this you come out. Maybe you should post this in the training thread and they could let you know how best to overcome it. I'm not sure if this is the right prognosis, just my first opinion Good luck!

Hi Guys. There has just been a scientific study on this subject. Through DNA they showed that the Grey wolf from the Middle east was a dominant source not the wolves in East Asia. QUOTE- Advances in genome technology have facilitated a new understanding of the historical and genetic processes crucial to rapid phenotypic evolution under domestication1,2. To understand the process of dog diversification better, we conducted an extensive genome-wide survey of more than 48,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms in dogs and their wild progenitor, the Grey wolf. Here we show that dog breeds share a higher proportion of multi-locus haplotypes unique to Grey wolves from the Middle East, indicating that they are a dominant source of genetic diversity for dogs rather than wolves from east Asia, as suggested by mitochondrial DNA sequence data3. Furthermore, we find a surprising correspondence between genetic and phenotypic/functional breed groupings but there are exceptions that suggest phenotypic diversification depended in part on the repeated crossing of individuals with novel phenotypes. Our results show that Middle Eastern wolves were a critical source of genome diversity, although interbreeding with local wolf populations clearly occurred elsewhere in the early history of specific lineages. More recently, the evolution of modern dog breeds seems to have been an iterative process that drew on a limited genetic toolkit to create remarkable phenotypic diversity.

thanks everyone. I have some researching to do

When I was reading a recent post that listed the breeds of dogs that have been banned in both state law and local councils to prevent (i am assuming) dog attacks/aggression and make their state/council a safer place I thought I might give them a hand and revise the current BSL, I know that mine WILL stop attacks/ aggressive behaviour from ALL breeds of dogs not just those who have been condemned. My List I might warn doesn't include ANY of the current breeds or characteristic that a dog has to have to be registered as a restricted breed, some might think that my list is a bit radical. There is only one breed covered in this list. Here it is - The Revised version- Restricted breeds of HUMANS in relation to the welfare of dogs and those in the community- 1. Those who sell dogs for profit 2. Those who sell dogs without educating the prospective buyer in regards to the breed 3. Those who sell breeds of dogs to people who don't meet that particular breeds all round requirements, e.g. exercise requirements, training 4. Those who sell dogs that are in poor condition 5. Those who sell dogs that have come from a puppy farm 6. Businesses who hire staff for their sales knowledge NOT for their knowledge of dogs 7. Breeders who ONLY breed for the all mighty dollar 8. Breeders who sell puppies without educating the prospective buyer in regards to the breed 9. Breeders who breed dogs with compromised temperaments 10. Breeders who breed dogs with health/hereditary problems 11. Breeders who don't know that much about dogs or appropriate breeding practices, but still breed 12. Breeders who breed only for "looks" and not temperament 13. Breeders who don't screen prospective buyers to see if they suit the breed 14. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs, and breed them for profit 15. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and keep them crated the whole of their life 16. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and breed female dogs every season starting with their first season 17. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and don't socialise the puppies whilst in their care 18. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and don't temperament check breeding dogs 19. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and don't health check their breeding dogs 20. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and educate prospective buyers 21. Establishments that have tens/hundreds of breeding pairs of dogs and don't screen prospective buyers 22. Dog owners that didn't do any research into what breed would suit their life style (ignorance is no excuse) 23. Dog owners who don't socialise their puppies in their critical period and on wards 24. Dog owners who want to fulfill their ego and buy a "TUFF" breed of dog 25. Dog owners who buy from irresponsible pet shops 26. Dog owners who buy from irresponsible breeders 27. Dog owners who buy from irresponsible establishments 28. Dog owners who don't train their dogs either in obedience and or manners 29. Dog owners who put other people and animals in danger through irresponsible actions E.g letting their unsocialised dog off lead in public 30. The media for spouting a whole lot of crap about dogs and individual breeds 31. CEOs of large welfare organisations (no names) condemning breeds and putting fear into the public 32. Local councils and state law focusing on condemning breeds of dogs and not condemning those who are FULLY responsible- People who fit into one or more of the above categories All of the above will help produce healthy, happy, stable dogs that are well looked after (mentally and physically) through the breeding, the selling and owning stages of its life. Remember that genes, socialisation starting when the dog is just weeks old and having owners that exercise and train the dog are extremely important. I don't know where you could go wrong if these areas are done right with any breed? What does everyone think? will the above BSL sort everything out or not? If you wish you can make additions or take something out. I do want to make it clear I support breeders, pet shops, councils, and people in general who are responsible and are in it for the dogs.

I hate irresponsible pet shops, I recently walked past one of the biggest pet shop franchises around my area and they had American bull dog pups that had bloated stomachs (probably full of worms) and you could see their ribs, they were sooo under weight, I hate that franchise What suburb in Melbourne had the kittens in that sort of condition?

Hi everyone, I was just doing some research into some courses that specialise in dogs. I was just wondering if anyone could recommend any courses, they don't need to be recognised but they need to be informative. I live in Melbourne but would be willing to do a distance learning course. I don't mind what the course is about as long as it specialises in dogs, I just want to keep learning about dogs in all areas

I've always wanted a male dog that was called "king Kong was a big gorilla", it would be sooo funny when calling for it at the dog park

Most of my dogs lived to at least 14 years and plus. The earlier dogs were fed supermarket pet food, the current dogs were fed the cheapest premium food. The one thing that I can attribute for my Wolf hound X who's about 16 years is glucosamine and fish oil, I started giving this to her at the age of 4 years and she only started to show signs of arthritis at the age of 13years, the same with my bull terrier X Grey hound she lived to 14years and had only just started to show signs of arthritis just before she passed away from a bladder tumor

I have never personally owned a mix breed or rescue dog myself, family has as a child, but never me. I never will either. You get what you pay for. I got really offended when I read this, especially "you get what you pay for" part. I work with dogs and have done so all of my working life and I have owned them all my life. I respect individual choices to whether you want a purebred as I have owned pure bred dogs and I also respect individual choices to whether you want a cross breed dog which I have also owned. There is NO way I loved my pure breed dogs over my cross breed dogs and I am so grateful that I was blessed with every single one of them and how much I loved them just for being great companions. Two nights ago I had to put down my 14 year old Maltese X Griffin X and for someone to insinuate that she was less of dog because she was a cross breed was really offensive, to me she was the dog that greeted me when I came home, she was the dog who slept on my bed every night, she was the dog who loved hugs and she was mine and my family's dog and we will miss her immensely everyday and so will her companion a 16 year old wolf hound X (one of the most loyal dogs I have had). If you don't love dogs as a whole then how can you call your self a "dog lover"? I will also take this opportunity to pay respect to all of the dogs that I have owned and have touched my life and I love every single one of them the same for just being them: - Penny - German shepherd X Kelpie Marsique - Chihuahua Tess - Bull terrier X Grey hound Heidi - Maltese X Griffin X And those that are still with me Cerridwen Irish wolf hound X and Penny (2) Red heeler Life is too short to be judgmental Bonnie parker, and I am sure if I ever owned an Australian Shepherd I would love it just as much as the dogs that I listed above!

I have seen approximately 4 dogs bloat, 3 I picked up the clinical signs and rushed them to the vet, all three had no food and not an excess of water in the stomach, the fourth unfortunately had past away overnight. Every single one of those dogs were large deep chested dogs, all preventatives like not exercising around feed time, not letting them gulp or drink excessive amounts of water, not feeding large meals ect..... (and I personally don't raise food bowls). Working with dogs bloat is ALWAYS at the back of my mind, and the relief of working with a dog that has had the bloat surgery is such a good feeling. I am personally all for the operation, technically the dogs stomach should never come off it's axis and flip ever again, but it has happened. Why wait for the dog to bloat to then do the operation, what happens if your not home when or if your dog bloats, prevention is better than the cure.

I heard that an Australian university tried to do an experiment like this and it turned out that dogs had no self awareness when looking into the mirror, (maybe Melbourne or Monash uni in Vic). They would put a dog in front of a mirror and beam a Lazar light onto the dogs chest area and see if the dog would make the connection that the light was actually on him and look on himself to find the light, but not one dog made the connection. Chimps would make the connection when the Lazar was on them they would see it on themselves in the mirror make the connection and look down on the selves to find it on them. Is this a similar experiment to what you're doing? I'm not sure if explained myself properly

I should of been more specific. oops. I would define the dog trainer I am referring to as, one that can train the dog to high standard BUT is also able to effectively train the human owner as well. So the list should have qualities for training dogs and qualities regarding working with the owners

I agree, surely you would have to wake up when your child is being mauled in the same room! The poor child he was so defenseless