mita

Dogs Qld has their own accredited breeder program up & running. I think that any registered breeder shaping up for that, should just automatically be granted a license no. With no extra application, no extra fees & with no extra external inspections. http://www.dogsqueensland.org.au/News.aspx?id=235 And there needs to be public education on the benefits of buying a puppy that comes from a source already given the thumbs up by this registering body. That source has proven it's lived up to ethical guidelines. That's what counts, not just a number.

A good pet story from Rockhampton. Mick's puss mate, that he only called 'the cat', ran away when waters came up. He returned to search, really stressed... & found his puss. Now puss is safe with him at the animal shelter at U of CQ. And has got a real name to celebrate. 'Tiger'. http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/story...-to-rescue-cat/

Agree, Crisovar. I've been looking up various USA counties' Disaster Plans about pets. Now that it's required by law in the US to take pets into consideration, they get down to brass tacks. Most important emphasis is on preparedness...what can be in place already (by pet owners, neighbourhoods & communities). Here's the summary of the San Francisco county plan & advice. Note they say it's preferable to take pets on evacuation, but accept reality it's sometimes not possible (so they say what to do then). Huge emphasis put on prior education of pet owners so everyone doesn't just run around at the crisis point, with no time to start a plan. The authorities mail blunt & easy to read material to citizens. http://www.sfgov2.org/index.aspx?page=1068 I found that the Qld Government has a brochure on Operational Planning for disaster. Even has a list of those USA Disaster Plans as reference material used. Service dogs & pets are mentioned. For service dogs (like seeing eye & hearing dogs), the rule is the same as the USA. They're considered an extension of a person's abillity to survive, so must be evacuated with that person. The big difference in Qld, is no follow-up with good public education....& certainly the position re pets is not spelled out like it is in the USA where consideration is required by law.

Just heard on ABC Radio that facilities for pets is being included in the shelter set up for humans at the University of Central Qld campus in Rockhampton. The word is going out, tho', that it'd help if people in safe areas of the city & nearby, would offer foster-care, too, because the numbers could be large. And people are determined to save their pets. They gave the example of an elderly lady, in one of the severely flooded streets, who refused point blank to be evacuated until she could be assured that there'd be safety for her 2 cats & 1 dog. Also said the Rocky airport will be closed to all air traffic, except that connected with the emergency. People representing the main emergency services & animal management and welfare, should get sent off to the US to study at first-hand the disaster plans that each county has to keep in place (& which includes pets & animals). As other posters have said, there's a huge amount that can be learned from these emergencies. And could be put in place earlier in future events. When the terrible storm hit all our surrounding suburbs a couple of years back, there was so little already in place (except for the SES & emergency services). And conditions made it hard to 'invent' stuff on the spot. Like we were happy to lend dog/cat crates or offer to foster. Phoned the vet & asked did she know of anyone in need. But she was flat out treating animals as other vet clinic in the area was wiped out. After a couple of days, a Church offered a hall as a 'meeting' place for people in need. But roads across were blocked & only access was for service vehicles. So it would have helped if there was a one-stop-approved contact point for animal care. When offers of help could eventually kick in, people were marvellous. It could all have been slotted into an existing plan, tho'.

We passed a young man walking out of KMart yesterday, carrying a clam shell. 'For the dog?', we asked. 'Yep! For the dog,' he answered. Our tibbies have a large, grassy back garden, with mango tree shade. They arrange their own exercise in summer, with early morning runs along the back fenceline with their mates the greyhounds at the back. They sit there patiently waiting for the greys to get out of bed! Around dusk, the tib next door comes over to play & they have a little burst of running around the garden. Tibs are a short-nosed breed & they need caution in summer because they're prone to heat exhaustion. Dogs don't perspire like humans do, to get rid of excess body heat. They have to pant. The short-nosed breeds have a less efficient system for doing this.

The tibbies just slept thro' the whole thing.

There's a Reader's Tip in the Dec 2010 G Magazine. Someone says every time she cracks an egg open, she places the shells in a mortar & pestle bowl to dry. When the bowl is full, she crushes the shells into a fine powder & sprinkles them around her seedlings. She says this provides calcium to the plants & keeps slugs & snails away from the young vegetable shoots. I have no idea if this works. The reader believes it does. But I have visions of some dogs licking up the powder.

This has come up on DOL before. Especially in mentioning the UK law about the breeding & sale of puppies and kittens. They put the two together. So that both consumer protection & animal welfare go together. Any puppy bred for later sale, is required to have a disk with an identifying number which can track the puppy from origin & then all along its life line (no reason that couldn't be combined with microchip). Places breeding & selling puppies must be licensed and decent conditions & treatment required. There are penalties for failing to comply.

What do you know! Trust DOLers to have been there first. There was a past thread asking about The Sentinel snake repeller. http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=178349 The Qld Gov EPA isn't wildly helpful about how to avoid snakes getting close. But does show the ground conditions that won't encourage snakes near a house. http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/wildlife-ecosys...ith_snakes.html

I was recently talking to my SIL about snakes because she has issues with them on her property on the Mornington Peninsula. She said that the snake-catcher had told her to be aware of setting up any food chain which attracts snakes. Like a pond brings the creatures that snakes prey on. Or outside lights at night attract the insects which then attract other creatures which prey on them....& snakes go after them. She also said snakes like good cool hiding places, like provided by certain kinds of plants. Then, by sheer chance, I saw info about something that claims to be a snake repeller via setting up pulsing vibration. Snakes are supposed to experience this as a 'danger zone'. The thingy is called The Sentinel & is solar powered. Claims a single unit 'protects' an area up to 600 square metres. This info was in a Grass Roots magazine, June/July 2010. Doesn't give a website, but an email & phone no. I have no idea how proven this idea is, nor how proven this thingy is. Could be just snake-oil (sorry about that! ) I was going to photocopy it & send it to SIL who's the kind of person who'd check something out down to its sock-tops!

Americans were so traumatized at pets having to be left behind to die, after Katrina, that they passed the law requiring pets be planned for. Both sides of politics supported it. Got to hand it to the Americans, they now organise these disaster plans with precision in detail & need. And have training programs & cooperation between the human & pet resource groups. One ex-New Orleans lady told the story of how her hospital's staff brought their pets with them into work when Katrina struck. But the authorities wouldn't take the pets when picking the staff up by helicopter. One doctor offered to stay behind with the pets. If nothing could be done within a few days, he'd gently put them to sleep with injections. This lady was sent to a holding place in Texas where she had to stay for a number of weeks. She accepted that there hadn't been a chance in hell of the 'hospital' pets being saved. She was sad about her beloved poodle girl, but was pleased she hadn't been left to suffer. Later, she was able to move to California to a new job & home. Then one day a couple of months after the disaster, she got a phone call from a lady in New Jersey who said, 'I think I've got your poodle in foster-care!'. She then described the unusual pink collar the poodle was wearing. And it was her poodle! Turned out that all the 'hospital' pets had made it thro'. Only one died of heart failure from age, in foster-care. After Katrina, dog rescues from the the northern states had banded together, trucked down loads of crates & set about 'sailing' around the flooded streets rescuing pets. Then taking them into foster-care, with as much info that might identify owners, as possible. And they'd come upon that hospital!

Visiting tradesman, who also volunteers for the SES, told me that their experience was that most people who own pets, just refuse point blank to leave them. He said his area leader told them that they'd have to take that into consideration. After Hurricane Katrina in the United States, their federal government now requires, by law, each county to have a disaster plan. And it's also required by law, that people's pets have to be included. The carrot is that a county will not get any federal disaster funding IF they haven't already put together a disaster plan. Talking of the Theodore evacuation, did anyone see someone's Odd Couple pets in a crate together. A lovely little Silky Terrier & a Galah. Quite at peace with each other. ADDED: I found the info about the US law requiring pets to be included in the required Disaster Plans. Scroll down. There's other references, too, for how to include pets in evacuations/emergencies. Material from the US Vet Association & even the US Red Cross. http://awic.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index...tax_subject=181 And here's the actual US law which says companion pets & service animals must be included. http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/ge...publ308.109.pdf

Some time back, police were chasing an intruder in the Kangaroo Point/East Brisbane area. He kept legging it over fences...quite an agile bloke. Police were falling behind. Then bloke vaulted over one fence...on top of a rottweiler below. Rottie was not happy with this 'attack' from above. Bit him soundly. Gave time for police to catch up & take him off to the hospital. Only nice words said about the rottie.

Dead right, Jed. Our sheltie, from a Qld registered breeder died at age 15 yrs. She had a murmur, of the kind that came with age. Wasn't cause of death. It was a stroke, too. Reduced her quality of life so kindly PTS. Until then, she'd never had a sick day in her life.

I'd bet there'd be more of yours out there, living happily under the radar, & doing extremely well health and temperament wise. The thing that annoyed me about the surge of p/b dog bashing, was that it grew out of only poor examples. And then got generalised. By the way, Buddy p/b Cavalier and long-time therapy dog at Everton Park State High in Brisbane, started 'work' at age 2 yrs & died recently at around 14 years. Still at his school job until recent months. He also was the product of a Qld registered breeder. Something worked well there re both health & temperament. Buddy's memorial plaque at the school, reads, 'Buddy, a friend to everyone.' His ashes are buried in the school garden.

In the best of all possible worlds, where those who do things well, get rewarded... I'd like to see registered breeders who come thro' the internal breeder accreditation scheme, proposed by Dogs Qld, get automatic licensing on any proposed register. Anyone complying with those ethical guidelines, is already doing the very best. No further external scrutiny or payment of additional fees necessary. http://www.dogsqueensland.org.au/News.aspx?id=235

Yes, he's got a liaison position. From Dogs Qld: Members would be aware of the appointment of former CCCQ Councillor Mark Sheppard to the recently created position of Government and Agency Liaison Officer...

Aussie, I think it may be that some owners find smaller breeds can pull their heads back thro' a collar. I have to be careful of that with my tibbies. They're capable of doing that' head to the side & pull motion' which slips a collar over their head. I don't use a harness, tho'. I just carefully figure where I'll put holes in the collar, so I can have it that bit tighter when we're out walking. It takes some fiddling & fitting, to make sure the collar is 'wriggle-out' proof without being choking. Just thought, too, that some of the smallies have flatter faces, so there's no big snout to prevent the 'wriggle out' from a collar. I see a difference that way between our tibbies & the shelties we had.

Is there a prize for someone who gets none right at all? I'm scoring well there. Oh, but...Miss, Miss, Miss! Queen Victoria owned a Pekinese, too. Oops! Got to ask a question. What was the breed of her hubbie, Prince Alfred's, favourite dog?

Big leap for your girl! But she did it. I agree with you, if she keeps doing it...it'll eventually become a habit

I thought the same! Double eek!

Mita, the cav kids thought all those flashing lights were just for them, and all those people with hoses and sirens and dog carriers had come solely to see them. And to take them for a ride in the car. If you are a cav, you believe every happening is solely for your enjoyment or benefit. Particularly if you are a well loved cav. My hair has grown, and I needed a haircut - I dyed it to celebrate that important milestone. Well bred, too! We had visitors, who aren't even dog people, who saw that bit on TV. Their reaction was, 'Gee, she must be a good one!' (Breeder, that is). There you were, fighting for your life, while your cavs are winning you more fans. Best news is that the hair's BACK!!!! The dye is even better. I'm laughing at Chi Chi hanging off a big dog's face. You realise that some of us were real pains for the foster-carers. We kept begging for more pics of her. Loved her wearing an outsize coat snuggled up, all comfy, at chilly Kingaroy.

Annabelle is a dream, so beautiful & clever taking her cart around. The 1st pic is wonderful. Should be on a Christmas card!

Jed, I still have in my mind, the pic of your cavs being popped into the rspca van. Straight after an awful, horrible event. Those little cavs just shone with beauty & lovely, lovely social natures. All your work, missy! The best...& you've always generously shared how to do it. So glad you're back & on the mend.

Makes sense. He looks like Greengrass's lurcher without being hairy. Welcome to the forums & enjoy.