RubyStar

I don't bother with the KC vaccine. If they need to go to kennels I will go and get it done then, but my parents look after them for me usually and I can't remember the last time I went away with my parents

I don't like over vaccinating either, but I hardly count 3 years as over vaccinating They may not even be done again in 3 years time as they will be getting on in age and surely be covered. My maltese hasn't been vaccinated in a very long time, and she's still kicking at 17. I guess I'm lucky too that mine don't have allergies, can't imagine what it would be like to go through that

So now that some vets do give the 3 yearly vaccine, and they write on your vaccination card that they are due again in 3 years time, is that adequate for those places (like boarding kennels, dog clubs, etc) for up to date vaccination, or are these places still so behind the times that they want proof of yearly vaccination when it is clearly not needed? (yes I realise some boarding kennels take titre results, but my question is just about the adequacy of a 3 year vaccine independent of titre). Ta!!

Yep not saying it doesn't have it's place, and I can see how it would be useful for that. I won't get Millie vaccinated again for another couple of years because her levels were fine. But instead of checking it again and causing her and me grief, think I'll just vaccinate again.

Steve @ Applecross told me titre testing is an absolute waste of time This after I had it done. Ruby came in low for parvo so Steve gave her the 3 year vaccine and said not to bother with titreing again. After Millie's absolute freakout with drawing bloods, think I'd rather just get them vaccinated 3 yearly. Of course, that is just my preference now and we all have our own preferences! I just can't bear to see Millie go through the bloods again, I was almost in tears! The look of horror in her eyes as she stared at me, then to her leg, then back to me, with this expression of "why are you doing this to me?!?!?!" and the cries of pain, I won't ever forget it. I feel a little teary now thinking of it (meanwhile, Ruby just sat there like it was no big deal )

What a fantastic recall :D And what great videoing too He is doing really well, RV!!

Yep Ranga dogs are the smartest :D (Red Boxers! ;) ) There is no difference in Boxer temperament related to coat colour- but I agree that chocolate labs are "harder" in temperament judging by the ones we have had in the kennels. Also working with federal police dogs, of all the police labs we have worked with- it's funny none of them were chocolate! Mostly blacks. The yellows seem more "crazy" than the blacks. I must own the rare soft temperamented Labradors then, who are laidback yet friendly, and not dumb at all ;) Couple of crazy labs in this video, watch out!!!

You still need the dog paying attention to you (not necessarily looking up at you) for Rally-O. Judging is quite strict, it's not to be considered a poor man's obedience. You lose points for any sign of tight lead, crooked sits, etc! But the fun part about it is you can talk to your dog, there are no such things as double commands so you can give a command as many times as you need, and in the lower classes, you can give pats of encouragement. I'm looking forward to Rally-O to complement my traditional obedience

I love to watch a dog who can heel beautifully, and it's a great feeling when your dog can do it, but I could personally live without long heel routines. It shouldn't all be about heelwork, as the other exercises are so much fun

That's the nature of training, though. You have to make mistakes to know what to do better next time, and the only way for that to happen is to just get out there and give it a shot. We all start out gung-ho for our first dogs desperate to trial, not really knowing what it is we should be training but we do our best, get out there and trial, get bitten by the trialling bug, then know for our next dog what we can do better from the start to get us to a better position than we're currently in. If people want a quick taste of success and get through the lower classes in agility and obedience, so be it, it might just spur them on to do things better for the next dog if they find it so much fun and gives them the motivation to go further! I know for me, I don't aspire to do great things in the agility ring. I'm one who is happy with mediocre runs but I am out there and having a ball with my dogs and my dogs show me how much fun they're having with me! One day I might aspire to do better and handle a super fast dog in masters and do well, but for now I am happy with my average speed Labs and my crappy handling skills With obedience, I made plenty of mistakes with my first trialling dog, Ruby. As a result, we are paying the price in the ring. She can do all her exercises with her eyes closed in training, but get into the ring, it's another story..... thing is you will never know how great your dog really is until you test it out in the ring. Going into training Millie, I had a bit of a better idea of what to do differently, and she outshines Ruby in some aspects (attention for one). My next dog, I hope to do even greater things with with the knowledge my current two have taught me, and better still with all future dogs. Obedience is the thing I aspire to get better and better with

Agreed (if I understand what you're saying). I don't blame the colour, but the colours that are bred together and this is usually because a particular colour is "flavour of the month", so unethical breeders are breeding for colour and not temperament, so that colour then gets this rep. Choc Labs prime example. That's my uneducated view on things! Edit: just for the record, my choc girl has a beautiful temperament... she's just a bit of a nutcase is all But she didn't have the best start to life.

I traced them off another coat, but it's a very similar pattern to the one in your link! The raincoat looks so cute

Get better soon, Luke!!!

Here is the finished product of my weekend project :D

You should get her measured one night at training. They usually have a measuring night on, so maybe just ask when their next one is. Gotta have Rosie's registration papers with you, though. Yeah no training for me, either. Not only is it too cold, but I hate the 8pm "shift" too late And probably too slippery! Yup, I've well and truly talked myself out of going! :p Definitely need to go on Thursday night, though, as the girls seriously need some agility training as it really showed on the weekend with only a 25% success rate MS's have never done much for me, but now that it's drawing nearer, I'm actually getting a bit excited myself because playing with new dogs is fun! Clean slate to work with!!

Not sure if I should let my parents know that part I find it hard to believe coat colour makes a difference though, why is that so? Is it fact or just one of those well known rumours like when people say choc labs are crazier than the other colours? I think it's absolute nonsense in regards to the Labs as it's just a coat colour.... but maybe they are right, Millie is a loon!!!

What height category, ness? Standard says bitches 33cm. What is the 300 height cutoff for ANKC agility?

A little black girl She's less than a week old. Hoping they send mum some photos soon. If they do, I'll share them here. They are naming her Pippa. I recall reading somewhere about how tall the girls are expected to get and then checked it against the agility heights and I think I worked it out that if she doesn't go oversize she should be a 300 dog, but of course I could be totally wrong! I'm pretty excited to get to have a play with a different breed without having to own it myself Mum is going to take her to obedience classes and she would do agility with her except she works Tues nights, so I am on babysitting duty Tues nights so told her I'd do puppy classes with her and then if mum's hours changes, she can take over the agility classes with her. Might just get mum into the agility thing afterall ;) And who knows, she might get the obedience trialling bug if she progresses through the classes Of course I will be totally tempted to do a bit of obedience with her too perhaps I did try to talk mum into getting a Papillon instead, but she had her heart set on the MS!! Bugger!!

By 1 vote But yes, I suspect if more agility folk came in here then agility would probably be winning by a mile. Not sure why, though! :p I like a mix of a few sports. If I had to pick out of obedience or agility, I'd pick obedience. If I had to pick out of obedience and retrieving, I'd be begging you not to make me choose!

I won't know what the weather is like out that way til I get home. But in the city it's all doom and gloom!

Are you coming retrieving training this Sunday? I can't wait :D And so glad it's at Upper Swan again, not out in whoop whoop! No i am in the trial at Northern Suburbs I'm doubly glad I didn't enter the trial then, or I'd be in a bit of a pickle!! I'm sort of really loving this retrieving thing And Ruby is too, which makes it more enjoyable

Are you coming retrieving training this Sunday? I can't wait :D And so glad it's at Upper Swan again, not out in whoop whoop!

Awesome :D I emailed this morning to enquire about starting term 4. Bugger, we probably won't be in the same class! That is why I love living so close to K9, and it's going to take me a lovely cheap block of land to get me to move any more than 20 minutes from there (currently only 10 mins away).

Have you enquired as yet about vacancies for puppy classes? Are you starting term 4?