Staff'n'Toller

I'm just not quite game to try it again. Last time we tried to crate her we left it open for a week and she would come and go, we put her toys and treats in there and she would eat them half in half out, I'd praise her for going in and sitting or dropping but as soon as I closed the door she lost her mind and panicked. I went back a few steps and after a week did it again, thought she might calm down but after ten minutes she'd ripped up her pads trying to dig out so I think we might try the mat thing. I just can't ever see myself alone being able to get her to a point where the crate would be a nice, calming place to be and don't want to do more damage. You might well be right about the food though. I will scale back on her 'doing things' time for some 'not doing things' time. That's fair enough, if she will go in, and sit, and accept a high value treat, and you can close the door and then open it immediately, that is the first section. You could spend a few weeks just doing short sessions of this before you move on. It's actually about teaching the dog the crate is extremely high value and not to exit, with the door open, no matter the distraction. :)

Debbie Calnon's business should be able to come visit you. I think you'd most likely get Gabrielle Carter. You also have the vet who owns/breeds/shows/flyballs Gordon Setters @ Keilor Obedience whose name escapes me right now. I don't know if she consults though. ETA: Linda Beer. And otherwise get the crate games dvd and go through the whole program. Enforced crate rest that lets her wind down (quiet place, covered crate) might help in the interim. She is always doing the 'up' activities, very stimulating. For her, giving her food when calm may also be stimulating so provide the rest place and enforce it by closing the door if necessary.

Susan Garrett has one. Sorry- this is more a teaching stand video, but you can extend from there.

Yup that's right. :)

Just make sure you look up where Toll freight is now at Melbourne, it's not the old AAE building, it's a bit of a drive. No need to rush out of the airport either as it takes a while for the dogs to get there now!

Virgin won't add it to itinerary as they don't know the exact weight of the dog and the crate. They will weigh at freight check in.

Toll guys are usually fairly easy going. I think I did the same as above in November. Took my itinerary/printed boarding pass to Toll and they did a manual ticket for the dog with my flight number and gave me a collection slip for the other end.

I had 3 for quite a while, then 4. Now I have 2. The three were easy as they all got along very well, were at training with me twice a week (taken into classes whilst instructing) and usually an extra day spent on SAR or running with other dogs. I won't go over 2 now, 3 at a stretch, but I'd like to spend some time living interstate in the future so they need to be good travelers and smallish. :) ETA: How many is too many is an individual question, but having had dogs on heart failure meds, liver cancer meds and arthritis meds and supplements, I am mindful of the expense of elderly dogs. I believe they all should have supps and arthritis meds if needed and my old dogs often do much more swimming as they age, in warm water so there is expense within that as well.

I noticed the Earthborn kibble itself quite shiny and oily to look at and touch. I'm guessing it's because it's so high in fish? But perhaps that will go well for your dogs dry skin? My last boy had dry skin because of medication but did quite well on Wellness (the normal one not grainfree) so I would look at them too :) Sounds promising, quite right, it could be the herring in it that's higher in omegas. I will try it and see. Plus it's cheaper than holistic! :)

Thanks for the updates LisaCC. I am not fussed on grain free but have been feeding holistic select with rice and the grain free for a few bags now and one of my dogs has very dry skin. They also don't 'love' it. I am supplementing with missing link at the moment but might look at the Earthborn next time. :)

Milbemax might work quite well. With advocate you need to treat for tapeworm via tablet still, but find somewhere that sell droncit as that is a tablet and not a chew with the chemical smell. :)

I would wonder if there is residual pain from her surgeries that has caused her behaviour change. I would have an ortho specialist give her the once-over and even consider x-rays to see if there's any arthritic change. Then I would consider a qualified canine physio to assess her movement and flexibility. Then I would go to vet behaviourist, just because it would be awful to put her on prozac for anxiety if the actual problem is pain. :) ETA: I would also look at her bedding both inside and outside the house. Add a covered crate with supportive bedding outside, sheltered from the elements and by your back door. Dogs will often display pacing behaviours when they have no where comfortable to rest, and her needs may have changed.

Thanks! have ordered the powder, being so small I would possibly have an issue with tablets. I was going to say use Steve's powder as I used to quarter a human milk thistle tab for a 15kg dog...so you're heading into frustrating territory tablet wise. :laugh:

My classes are 45 mins total and often that is too much, i.e. you can see the dogs getting tired. Pigs ears are a great way to encourage resource guarding when other pups are in close proximity. The class should be (training) exercise/break/exercise/break. I would expect for 8 pups the room should be massive. Why not do 2 classes of 4 and 4? How is anyone getting any value out of it??!! The yappy pups are not comfortable in their allocated space and sound as though they need more room. The kids also create an unacceptable risk and the trainers should hope their insurance is paid up if they are allowing the kids to approach unknown dogs- it doesn't matter that they are only pups. Your dog is learning to lunge on the lead, not settle what else is being learnt that you'll have to 'fix' later? I would give them feedback via email regardless of whether you complete the course or not. They obviously need to see it from a client's perspective.

Tollers are not low energy. Mine can swim/run, or be out doing activities all day, power nap in the car on the way home and resume his normal afternoon bird hunting like he was never taken out. They are very birdy and can be high prey drive. They require a fair amount of grooming over the warmer months too.

No!!! Send again! Tried - says you can't receive messages..?

Did you receive a PM from me this week TSD? I fear that I typed it out and forgot to press send...

Robbie at the Woofpurnay pool told me some months ago they were looking at the possibility of running it at their dam on the premises. I'm not sure who he was inferring would run it though, and I am a bit concerned about the actual depth of that dam?

I agree and still do 6/10/14-16 week vaccines and the 15mth following the WSAVA/Dodds protocol. However.. This pup has not been cleared for localised or generalised mange and is clearly going through an itchy period where an extra immune challenge may not be advised. I think the OP really needs to get those scrapes done first as a worsening of demodex can cause a world of problems at this stage.

Sounds good. My new pup is on Holistic Salmon and Anchovy and has a wonderful coat, but I too have noticed a couple of small bald patches on the head front legs very recently and wonder if it's demodex. Use a gentle shampoo and consider a small amount of yoghurt daily plus some skin booster in the form of omega 3 & 6, it's important that the supplement is balanced for dogs though, so best to ask the vet about it when you see them again.

Throw out your pet mince, keep going with the chicken and rice and get a second opinion on the skin. Staffords need very good quality food and react to dietary changes. Stick to chicken/turkey/fish protein sources and not dry foods where the protein is meat by-product meal. If you want to feed raw mince then human grade turkey or roo would be a better choice.

The thing to bear in mind is that it is more of a greeting ritual problem than a toilet training problem. It's extremely important that everyone follows the suggestions by persephone and make your arrivals/greetings ultra calm or this behaviour can continue into adulthood. You might like to add a quick march outside as you say hello to him, to aid with toilet training. :) Also visitors to the home should be welcomed inside and pre-warned that they need to calm, THEN introduce him, you'll have more of a chance that way.

I'm not sticking around to lecture people whilst their idiot dogs are bouncing off my dog, especially if my dog is not coping with it. I also have no patience. If the owner is open to a conversation, fine. But if all I'm going to get is excuses or abuse, I'm not interested. I don't enjoy the confrontation and would rather avoid it. I'm not suggesting that you do. Walk your dogs outside of the park confines and call the ranger whilst the offending owner is still there. It is the ranger's job to do the education, and give fines where appropriate for owners who are not abiding by local laws. Their title is Animal Management Officer, their job is to enforce local laws. You pay their wages, just sayin'. Mine are currently door knocking every house in the municipality to check that all animals are registered. I could think of better uses for their time quite honestly.

If you have asked the owner to call their dog and they refuse, or they call and the dog does not return, you can call the ranger to come down. You need to do it immediately whilst the person is still at the park. They can't just walk away from their dog and refuse to call it, they must be with their dog and supervising it, the ranger can educate them on this. For those that 'just leave' - there is no education of appropriate off lead dog park interactions if problem owners are not made accountable for their lack of action.

I have not used Dr Phillipa Gemmell but heard excellent reports from several people. http://www.naturaltherapypages.com.au/connect/petsandpeople/service/28771