Boronia

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/05/experience-my-dog-rescues-cats We needed a quick learner; one small enough to fit into the nooks and crannies cats hide in. Mostly, we needed a dog with no desire whatsoever to chase cats Colin Butcher 23.00 AEST 09.10 AEST Molly is the world’s first trained cat detection dog. Her job is to rescue missing moggies. We had been looking for a dog with a particular temperament and intelligence to join our team of pet detectives for 18 months. We had scouts out and had spoken to the country’s top breeders. We needed a quick learner; one small enough to fit into the nooks and crannies cats hide in. Mostly, we needed a dog with no desire whatsoever to chase cats. I came up with the idea in 2014. I had been doing the job for 20 years and my business, Pet Detectives, was getting around 30 calls a week about missing cats. When cats go to ground, they go into a comatose-like state and if they are not found quickly, within a fortnight, they often don’t survive after being rescued. One particular couple who called me had bought their cat after struggling to have children. We found it in a neighbour’s garden shed, but it later died. Seeing them so bereft was a tipping point for me. I worked in the police as a detective inspector for many years, and had seen dogs search for drugs and bombs and help with murder investigations. I figured, if a dog can be trained to find amphetamines, then it can be trained to find cats. We found Molly, an 18-month-old black-haired cocker spaniel, on Gumtree. She was a giveaway. The ad said: “Needs a good home, cannot cope.” If cocker spaniels are not stimulated they become uncontrollable. She had been passed from pillar to post and had three owners in under two years. I first met her in February 2016, at the home of Medical Detection Dogs, the charity that would help train her. We had already rejected 12 dogs without seeing them. Three others didn’t make it through initial training: one was too timid, one got car sick and the other was too inclined to chase. At first, Molly was anxious. But she had intelligent eyes and was a problem-solver. She was also hyper and fixated on catching tennis balls. She had the right temperament: a bright working dog from a breed with a natural disposition to search for game. We just had to channel that instinct into finding cats. She had to be “cat-tested”, so we took her to a farm with a dozen cats to see if she would chase them. She didn’t even bark. Her focus was on interacting with her handler.Her training took nine months with experts, including two doctors of canine behaviour. This had never been done before. She was a quick learner. The first phase was lab training, where we taught her to isolate scents. She then worked with a behavioural specialist who taught her to understand signals and commands. The final stage was teaching us to work together. On assignments, Molly is trained to pick up cats’ scents from their bedding. When she finds the missing cat, she lies down to signal success, so as not to scare them, but you can see her trembling with excitement. She gets rewarded with her super-treat: black pudding. Her first success was in February this year. A tri-coloured moggy had been sighted six miles from home on the roof of a garden shed. Molly quickly picked up her scent on the grass. I sent her across the back of 30 gardens until she started clawing at a fence. She charged across the lawn to a summer house and lay down. The cat was inside. The owners were over the moon and quite amazed by her. Molly has helped to rescue 11 cats so far, and our search success has increased by a third. She wears a fluorescent harness and has her own abseiling kit, which we once used to lower her over a 10ft wall. We’re getting special boots made to protect her feet in outbuildings where there may be nails or glass. Many people said that training a dog to rescue cats was crazy; that all dogs chased cats and it couldn’t be done. Nothing has felt quite so rewarding as seeing it work. People are fascinated when they watch Molly at work, but she’s not fussed. She still doesn’t know that those things with four legs that she searches for are called cats. To her, it is just her favourite game. • As told to Deborah Linton

Hahaha LG, that is so true DDD just doesn't realise it yet... she has always been a little slow on the realisation of the inevitable

For the first month or so the house smelt like a vinegar factory but Henry and I got there in the end. I had to explain to my neighbour what I was doing, she was looking at me strangely when I was down the yard saying 'good boy, clever dog' so often.

Oi Oi; stop the talk and just post those Pebbles-photos right now Phil!

Henry was entire when I got him, he marked on everything in the house. I made the effort to take him outside/downstairs every 1/2 hour or so. I also got him desexed a couple of months after buying him (he was terribly overweight and I was concerned with the anesthetic on a fat-porkie dog so he went on a diet until he shed 1.8kg) Henry grasped the concept of weeing outside though it took a couple of months, I think the desexing helped, I would have rather left him entire but he was 10 so I decided that he had tempted the testicular/prostate cancer nasties for enough years so we said bye bye to his boy-bits. Overall he would have taken 3-4 months for his brain to say 'hang on, it's outside I go' Poo wasn't much of a problem as he would do that on his walks. I gave him heaps of praise when we went downstairs and did his wee; treat them as you would a pup, takes a while but does work. When it comes down to it the only thing they want to do is make you happy with them.

That made me laugh Sars...they would soon find out what the ribbon meant when they went round the back

My vet suggested I give some fish oil capsules to Henry, she said one capsule daily. Henry weighs 8.5kg. I also give him a smidgen of vitamin E powder (old Dogz topic below is informative)

The video won't embed (I don't quite know what happened) so here is the link http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-23/irish-terriers,-the-little-red-dogs-that-went-to-war/8442204 Irish terriers, the little red dogs that went to war By Simon Royal Posted Sun at 10:32am Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek. Video: Irish terriers' tenacity and energy put to work in WWI (ABC News) Map: Adelaide 5000 The Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca had his elephants, and a war with Rome. Alexander the Great had his horse, Bucephalus, and a vast empire. Simpson had his donkey at Gallipoli, and the admiration of a nation. And in the muddy, gore-filled trenches of WWI, if a humble soldier was lucky, he may have shared digs with a ginger-haired Irish terrier. Long-time Irish terrier owner Shylie Davidson said such a soldier would have counted themselves fortunate. "They are wonderful company," Ms Davidson said. "I would have thought to have an Irish around on the front line would have just been their saviour. "They are tough, but they also have just so much empathy." Both sides used dogs throughout WWI, particularly in the trenches of France and Belgium. Photo: War dogs take a break with soldier. (Supplied) The breeds selected, unsurprisingly, reflected a certain nationalism: the Germans used German shepherds and pinschers, while the English (and their allies) sought collies, Airedales, Irish terriers and Welsh terriers. And even in class-conscious Britain, being less than purebred wasn't an impediment, at least if you were a dog. Mutts that showed promise were routinely recruited from stray dog homes. Terriers 'easily taught' duties Britain's dog training program was overseen by Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Richardson, who along with his wife Blanche Bannon had recognised the military value of dogs early on. The dogs were trained as sentries and guard dogs. Photo: Irish terriers Pat, Fergus and Connor play with a toy in Adelaide. (ABC News: Simon Royal) One of the most critical roles though, in an age before widespread electronic communication, was to carry messages between the trenches and back to command headquarters. After the war in 1920, Richardson wrote about his methods and observations in a book, British War Dogs. He wasn't a fan of retrievers, unless they had a "strong cross of collie or sheep dog in them". Airedales were considered excellent all-rounders. And the Lieutenant Colonel spoke glowingly of the Airedale's smaller terrier relatives. "It must be admitted, however, many of our best dogs were Irish terriers and Welsh terriers," he wrote. "These little fellows were remarkably easily taught, and were tremendously keen on their work." Irish terriers also proved to be excellent rat catchers. The rodents found the trenches much to their liking, breeding in huge numbers, adding to the miserable conditions for soldiers. Photo: Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Richardson wrote a book about training the dogs. (ABC News: Simon Royal) The Irish did have one drawback: the friendliness that made them such good company. Richardson wrote it was a characteristic that made them less than diligent messenger dogs. "They are fond of greeting friends … old, new and imaginary!" None of this comes as a surprise to Ms Davdison, who describes her Irish terrier Finn as having a richer social life than she does. "Finn definitely has more friends than I do, both two-legged and four-legged," Ms Davidson said. "They are the most outgoing sociable dogs … they are just lovely engaging dogs." The soldiers thought so too.

better edit your post and rename that dog a poodle x or a Maltese x Phil, there is no such dog called a moodle...you will get hammered here for that faux pas

Yes, I wonder so often where my brain is/what was I thinking as I always get much older dogs; they speedily oldie-wriggle right to the centre of your heart

here ya go http://www.victoriandogrescue.org.au/dogs-for-adoption/oriel-maltese.html

there is Ziggy featured on the Chinese Crested FB page https://www.facebook.com/nohairsark/ and Lincoln http://www.victoriandogrescue.org.au/dogs-for-adoption/lincoln-maltese.html edited to mention there are two Borzoi's for adoption...WTF, how did they ever get there!

maybe it's worth contacting these Tibbie breeders https://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/mature/tibetan-spaniel.asp or this sweetie https://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/mature/dachshund-miniature-long-haired.asp and two really neat little dogs here https://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/mature/pekingese.asp Pekingese are neat dogs; they are much smarter than you

Well that is just not up to scratch SM, I would be disappointed as well. there are some lovely ones here though https://www.etsy.com/au/c/pet-supplies/urns-and-memorials/pet-urns I like this one except it's large https://www.etsy.com/au/listing/469404406/large-remembrance-wooden-pet-urn?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=&ref=sr_gallery_9

Yes K, it's like that isn't it

O My...look at his tail go! I found it therapeutic to post and put up photos about Penny, Mac and Daisy, it doesn't matter where you put them and the Rainbow Bridge is one way of saying goodbye. I find it hard to go there though, but still do as, at least I can write something that may help a DOLer know that their grief is understood and shared You really were the loveliest dog Scottie. Goodbye little fella ❤ You really were the lovliest dog

Feed one type of meat only to start off with is a good plan, perhaps minced turkey necks; you can often buy them in bulk and mince them yourself though you need a pretty robust mincer for the job, if you do buy turkey necks from a pet food supplier perhaps ask them to mince them for you. Ditch the canned food pronto...Westies don't do at all well on processed food so it's back to plain meat, vegie slops, add a dollop of plain skim milk yoghurt (instead of the puppy milk...she is not a puppy) to the food as well, also add mustard and powdered ginger to the slops, both are cleansers and are very beneficial. No sugars either so that means not smackos at all, also no treats that have caramel or are made in China. If you want to give a treat perhaps a small piece of cheese or an apple or carrot...wipe some cream cheese on the apple and carrot until she gets used to eating them. Give a 1/2 or 1/4 chicken frame regularly for her enjoyment and teeth health. Malaseb medicated wash is a fairly good shampoo, rinse after with a little ACV (the one with the 'mother') diluted with water. Don't use a conditioner, you want to avoid subjecting her to more skin-stress. http://www.ovedshorseandpetstore.com.au/horse/greasy-heel/malaseb-medicated-wash-1l-dermcare As Showdog said; change your vet, contact Danielle-Westie-rescue as she may point you in the right direction Vet-wise. This is the ink to McDowell's skin medicine https://www.mcdowellsherbal.com/prescriptions-for-you/product/806-blood-cleanser-skin-problems

Contact Amanda at Qld Westie rescue https://www.facebook.com/Westie-Rescue-Queensland-539198722902427/ or Danielle at https://www.facebook.com/All-Westie-Rescue-Australia-210408315642997/ They both have excellent knowledge on Westie skin problems as some of their rescues are in terrible condition, proper diet and vet care is a must. Just don't feed cereal at all; look at the ingredients in the dry food (if you are feeding dry that is) and if cereal or rice is listed just don't buy it. They seem to do much better on a raw diet. You could also contact Kate at McDowell Herbals, you will find she is of great help https://www.mcdowellsherbal.com/treatments/for-dogs My Westie, Saffy, had a black tummy when I bought her and she has a lovely pink tum now, she gets raw meat, vegie slops (with ACV) and a little Blackhawk salmon grain free There are some links to vegie slops here that will put you on the right track

You may be able to retrieve the Gumtree ad, here is a link that may help http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1989599 and Wayback Machine; this will find old stuff if you have enough detail from the original ad https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayback_Machine You could also contact Gumtree as they would probably have the digital copy of the ad.

Maybe check if your accountant is a Charted or CPA accountant...it does make a difference, I would rather a CPA or Chartered accountant than an accountant who has a diploma in accounting http://www.trakaccountants.com.au/chartered-accountants-cpas/

Whew.

He will have a good time where he is going Scottsmum; Penny, Mac and Daisy will show him the best places to lie in the sun and the best places to explore, all the old crocks that have passed over get special dispensation to do exactly what they want...that is a fact and is well known. Hugs to you at this awful time, B

I love the ABC Dingo 2.15 minutes in

The chap (Duncan) up the road from us has two Canaan's, he bought them from rescue in Dubai (I think it was Dubai) Both has to be desexed before coming to Australia. Cost him a fortune to bring over. They are very pretty dogs but seem to be fear/dog aggressive and gave me the heebeejeebies to tell the truth. They would really 'go off' if they were on-lead, with their owner and saw us with the Westies on the next road over. They appeared to be untrustworthy. Duncan's dogs looked much like this one I have looked at Google Images and not many of the Canaan's are happy-relaxed-seeming dogs, most look extra-alert, it seems to be a breed characteristic

Yes it is tough Gretel, Penny had other stuff wrong with her but then she got kidney failure so we had to say goodbye. I will miss her forever, as you will with Ingrid. Thinking of you