Rebanne

I would be getting a 2nd opinion. She may well have arthritis but I've never had a dog fall over from it. Were bloods done?

not all breeders advertise on DOL. Does the breed have a state club? Or even a working dog club. Try asking Dogs NSW for a list of breeders. Otherwise all you can do is keep sending emails or brief phone calls saying you are still keen.

no nearly 8 week old puppy weighs almost 80 pounds. Good try though.

I wouldn't have been offended but we are all different and if it did bother me I would have told you so during the phone call. What does bother me is your assumption that the breeder prefers to sell the pup to someone who doesn't ask questions. You don't know that at all. Most breeders have had a puppy buyer that seemed great to only turn out not so great. You could have triggered something unknowningly and they decided not to take a chance on you and used the reference thing as their excuse. Maybe they are dodgy, maybe you are. No one here knows. Best just to move on and find another breeder and build a relationship.

I think you are wrong to be wary. I think you would be more likely to get a healthy pup from a breeder who actually shows or whose dogs are shown. Find out what health problems can occur, find out what can be tested for, and find a breeder who is happy to show you all the paperwork for the parents health tests and possibly even the pups health testing. ( some breeds test puppies for deafness before selling them, for example) You also need to keep in mind that sh!t can happen no matter how careful everybody is. Go to some shows if you can, talk to some breeders, develop a relationship and be prepared to wait quite a while.

You would have to ask the sellers that question.

I don't show SBT's so don't know what would be passable. If it has taken this long to be picked up I would assume it's not severe. There is only one way to really find out and that's to enter some shows and see what happens, knowing it's a very hotly contested breed. It would also be wise to take some show handling lessons and prepare your step daughter for the losses - which there are going to be regardless. Not every one wins. It's important to be a good sport, win or lose.

I don't show Staffords but yes an undershot mouth will effect her results. They are judged against a standard which you have already quoted re the mouth. If everything else was exceptional a judge may overlook an undershot mouth depending on how bad it is. Does your breeder show? I've never heard it said that a Staffordshire Bull Terrier should have a short nose. Maybe contact your state's breed club and have a chat with an impartial person.

a pet sitter who has no idea what they are doing. If, in the future, you want a dog then go to one of the assistance dog places and get a dog from them. But stop trying dogs on like they are a piece of clothing or something. They are not. Instead of getting dogs and discarding them do some damn research, do a lot of research, and be prepared to fork out some decent money to get a dog that might, just might survive in your household. Which I doubt will happen anyway.

I have 3 greyhounds with a cat. The cat's food is up put of the dogs reach. The cat is not interested in trying the dog's food but if she was the cat would be removed from the kitchen quick smart. The dogs are allowed to eat in peace, no swapping of bowls etc so cat not allowed either.

For God's sake give up! You are not the right family for a dog. Plain and simple.

Staffordshire Bull terriers shouldn't be boofy.

no, you would be better crate training it so it is still part of the family. And as the child is school aged they can be trained as well to leave the dog be. As for being quiet then that also needs training.

well they could if they wanted but most wouldn't. Me, being a worry wart, would chainsaw them down to ground level as Thistle suggested

laughing all the way to the bank

I have reported this post so it can be moved to another forum where it will get more traffic. The older dog is not attacking out of the blue. I think you need a professional trainer to come and see the 2 in action. Desexing may work if it is the 2nd ranked one done. Therefore widening the gap between leader and follower. Problem is you need to know who is 2nd. But if the behaviour is too ingrained then desexing most likely won't fix it.

MDBA do whatever they like. They would most likely say it is a breed in development.

Calm will come soon enough! Enjoy the puppy madness while you have it. I've always said it is easier to calm down an over the top dog, then gee up the can't be bothered dog. Just as well my priorities changed when getting into the Greys

Vary your toys, only give her (name?) a few each day and rotate then around. Mine love empty milk bottles, they also love digging holes! and that's the 4 year old As I currently have 3 they do help entertain each other. Try having her out more on her own when you are at home so you can monitor her noise levels. Trying to be a good neighbour sometimes makes it hard to also be a good dog owner. I bought the coats in the 1st pic, they didn't last long, and made the ones in the 2nd pic. We get minus 0 temps here quite often in winter

about 10 weeks old here, in March 12 weeks old here in April with their Mum this was back in 2009

One of the reason's she might be fascinated with bark chip etc is her exposure has been limited to that. Of course you don't want to come home to a sick dog and maybe, as a gun dog, she may never grow out of that habit, but more time outside, with supervision, might show her that it's all too boring. I'm a nurse and work night shift and no, I am not awake in the afternoon, but if you knocked on my door and explained what you are doing I would be ok with that. I do think your pup is barking because she does not know how to be on her own. I crate my pups at night for months. I don't give them free range until they are sleeping through the night for at least 8 hrs. And yep, moving stuff out of reach is very normal LOL Get her a cheap dog coat or make one for this winter.

re the recall, as you say this is a baby puppy, and she can do other stuff but it's hit and miss, so the recall won't be any different. Set her up for success. Take your roast chook down to the park with you and start by only asking her to recall if she is already coming towards you, don't ask her while she is sniffing. Eventually you'll be able to recall off her sniffs if you work at it but it isn't going to happen yet. Most people have not "bashed" you. I crate train my dogs/pups but I also let them have free reign in the back yard. No reason she couldn't be out now if you had the kennel and dog run you want. I've had Greyhound pups out much younger then yours, in the depths of winter. In fact mine sleep outside when I am at work (nightshift) with a couple of coats and good sheltered beds.

can she do all this reliably in the dog park?

yet she is happy to get a poodle cross which will have lots of poodle traits. What will she do when her oodle turns out more poodle then golden?

obvious answer is a Standard Poodle