Little Gifts

Wow! He has really grown so much in such a short period of time! Just amazing to see the difference! Feelin' good......

I felt it was time to pts my boy and went in a wednesday only to be seen by my long term vet and her vet nurse who decided they weren't ready to do it! So I was sent home with some pain killers and spent 2 and a half days with my boy just lying around, talking to him and hugging him and taking photos. I took him back in for the last appoint on the saturday. I got one of the other vets and vet nurses but it didn't matter. He was ready and I was ready. I stayed with him while it happened just talking and hugging him. They left me alone with him as long as I wanted and I took his collar off (seemed important for him to not still be wearing it 'forver') and gave them a bright beach towel I wanted him wrapped in. They also put his name tag in with him (stupid but if in a hundred years someone digs into the spot I want them to know who is there). They sewed him into a canvas bag and sealed him into a plastic bag and carried him to the car for me. I took him home and buried him. I expected a bill later but they said there was no charge for either the wed or sat visit. Monday when I got home from work there was a flower display with a hand written card on my front verandah from the vet hospital. All the staff there that I knew (and who knew my boy) had written messages in it. It makes me emotional almost 3 years later thinking about it. And I don't think it is because I was a regular customer. The staff there knew I loved my boy and had done a lot of work to keep him well over a lot of years. Same for his mother - both came to live with me seperately after not being adequately cared for by their original owners. The staff care about me because I care about my pets. I've seen other people in their getting their pets pts and the same care and respect is shown to them. Makes a difference because yes to some people it is just a dog but to me they are family members.

First time I took my girl to the beach she drank so much salt water that she had the runs big time and we had to stay longer at the beach than planned until the runny bum stopped! I had to encourage her into the water and we went in where there were sand ruts so the water was still and she could get used to it. I would never make any of my dogs go into the water unless they were comfortable with it as there is loads to do at the beach besides swimming. We also have this half tent thing we take now so if anyone gets too hot running around they can lie in the shade for a bit. And lots of fresh water and towels. I tend to keep my leashes with me when we are walking and call my dogs back and attach them if things seem unsafe because there are some stupid people who take their dogs into off leash areas who are not so social. I remember a couple of dogs attack chasing my pup that first time and their owners telling me off for it. I was shocked but not suprised.

We have a dog that just seems to know who to trust and who not to. Don't want to be a worry wart but if she doesn't like this person then I wouldn't push to make her like him. Maybe he yelled at her or kicked her some time that you don't know about so she has developed a 'concern' in his presence? I always think the dog we have here is a much better judge of character than me so I take her warnings seriously.

He is just such a happy boy! great work tigerlily!

This actually makes me sad. His needs are obviously so freaking simple - to just be part of a family. He is obviously a responsive dog but they wanted a puppy instead? For an older dog he still makes the effort so why couldn't they? I hope he wants for nothing in his retirement years.

Oh it gets worse! I bought a bigger booted car because we have one young dog, one mature dog and one very old dog and they all need different stuff now! Drives me crazy! I've got to shove all my wordly goods into a little shoulder bag because of how much stuff I need to cart around for the dogs - we now have seperate snack bags (they have different diets), a dog pram for the old girl in case she gets too tired to walk, extra water because they each want to drink at the same time but don't like the same kind of drink bowls, and a half tent thing if we are going to the beach so the old girl can sit out of the wind (or hot sun). Oh the joys of pet ownership!

If he looks like that after 24 hours in your care tigerlily then he will be in ectasy in his ne forever home! He already looks like he's won lotto! Thanks for being part of this great save!

I just wanted to add that even without receipts from these people a clear business transaction has occured with them - they had the dog, they took part in the transportation of the dog, you will hopefully have some evidence of payment and since the dog ended up in your possession it is clear the business transaction was finalised. Sorry to put it like that but for Consumer Affairs or for a court case it is evidence, even if the 'breeders' pretend they can't find any paperwork. And as Jed said all goods have an implied warranty meaning that you bought the item in good faith that it would perform its basic function for a reasonable period of time (regardless of the warranty being provided). I don't know of many goods that we would spend $2000 on knowing we were only getting 8 days of the item operating. So you have established 2 things fairly easily - a business transaction did occur and your implied warranty was breached. Very, very sorry you had to go through this experience with your much wanted puppy.

I've seen pics of Wolf with his foster carer, who picked him up Friday night. He is smiling with happiness! He goes to his new forever home tomorrow - I think with tigerlily73 so hopefully she will send some pics our way. But from the ones I saw on Facebook he is over the moon to be back in a family environment. Great save for a boy who didn't deserve to be discarded like this!

I am sitting at my desk at work feeling your pain like it all just happened today. Some dogs just have the affect on us don't they. I have a boy gone for almost 3 years now and I still call for him when I call all the other dogs. I still see collars and coats that would look good on him and if a storm is coming I have to remind myself not to worry - he no longer needs human help to get through it. He was a needy boy that the whole family took under their wing so we've all ahd to make adjustments to him not being around, but that doesn't mean we have to forget. I had my boy for a long time though and can't imagine what it would be like to lose one when they still seem so young. It's good that you still remember him and how special he was to you. Hopefully how he left you will not always be such a strong memory. It was obviously his time. Big hugs to you Rachel xxx

Twice the article made comment of the thieves leaving a male puppy of 'lesser value' behind. Before I even saw all your comments I was thinking so does she care about the money lost or the poor 4 week old pups who should still be with their mothers? Maybe the theft was payback for a shady deal they did with some other poor puppy buyer? What goes around comes around. I just hope the missing puppies are all being suitably cared for, that the 'valueless' pup left behind does not get treated poorly by the 'breeders' and that the 'breeders' get appropriate medical care for the bitches who will still have milk.

Can I ask you guys why you like Susan? I have a great vet at Beenleigh who does homeopathic work with my dogs as well as traditional vet treatment and medicine. She also goes out of her way to look for other options and is very minimal with charging for her long term clients like me who ae also into prevention and close management of long term illnesses. As it is a hospital they also do their own testing, which I like. I suspect she will be looking at retiring in the coming years though and as she is the only vet I choose to use there that means I'll be looking around. She owns the hospital and has been my vet for probably 20+ years and for most of that time the same head vet nurse was there as well (she left a year ago - boo hoo). She's kind of gruff to the humans if she thinks they haven't been doing the right thing (I've personally been in trouble a couple of times) but calls all the animals "dahlink" (she's German) and has a genuine love of animals you can see on her face. She also has her own very large collection of dogs that have needed homes over the years. So it is good to know of other options, just in case....

Can I ask this then - do breeders make their income (as opposed to profit) wholey and soley from breeding puppies? That's how I see puppy farmers - the farm and 'making' puppies is their income. With breeders I had the impression (could be wrong) that selling puppies they have bred is only part of their overall income, which might also include stud fees, show wins, behavioural work or kenneling of dogs they have previously bred and selling older dogs no longer suitable for their breeding program.

Thank you for the info about crossing breeds for allergy reasons I didn't know they weren't actually successful And in all honesty I don't know much about low allergy breeds either but thought it might be a 'community' issue so was just raising it as a matter I was unsure about. I don't have a breeding background - mainly focussed on rescue but find DOL such an amazing source of information and knowledge. That's why I am more focussed on reduction of the numbers overall from the less desirable sources but am definately supportive of registered breeders and healthy, family suited animals.

Can you provide an example? I was thinking of the whole crossing with poodles thing to make a dog for people with allergies. Practical crosses - not just to make them look cuter. And that is the only example I was thinking of but there could be more?

There were 96 litters of staffy puppies listed on DOL last month or maybe the month before. That is just one breed of dog and only here on DOL. Surely that is plenty when you add it to the total of dogs needlessly pts each year as well? If people have to plan and wait for a dog rather than impulse buy then that is a good thing in my book given how many years that dog will be needing care for. My question then is why is it that the registered breeders need to take a hit and not produce puppies but that BYBs and puppyfarmers are given a free pass? Yes, there are bad eggs in registered breeders, particularly those who export to MacDougall, but an ethical puppyfarmer is an oxymoron. I was going to expand on what I said but felt I was already going OT and didn't want to lose the overal theme of the thread. In my perfect little world you would only be able to buy puppies from registered breeders or desexed puppies and desexed adult dogs from shelters or desexed adult dogs from private citizens needing to legitimaly rehome them. Losing puppy farms and BYB's and minimising the number of unexpected litters happening in general through desexing would open up more opportunities for registered breeders to do what they do well. It would make dogs a little harder to get and hopefully more planned and valued and certainly healthier. How new owners care for and treat their pets might also improve if registered breeders are able to assess who they sell to as well. The area I am greyer on is cross breeds that are bred for a specific purpose. Do we police the issue to the point that only pure bred dogs can be bred because that then restricts people's freedom of choice. I'm unsure on this but I am clear that I think overall numbers need to reduce and the best number to reduce is the ones who are most at risk - puppy farm and BYB bred ones.

There were 96 litters of staffy puppies listed on DOL last month or maybe the month before. That is just one breed of dog and only here on DOL. Surely that is plenty when you add it to the total of dogs needlessly pts each year as well? If people have to plan and wait for a dog rather than impulse buy then that is a good thing in my book given how many years that dog will be needing care for.

There are no national laws applying to animal welfare, but all states and territories regulate animal welfare in their jurisdiction. The legislation in each State and Territory is in a table through the following link and when I get time I will have a look. It certainly makes things a lot harder when the legislation is state based. My sister works on constitutional law issues so I might ask her if there is anything about animals in it as constitutional law gazumps state and local laws. http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-the-Austral...elfare_264.html

OK so is this more about getting back to the basics of defining what a companion animal is - that would then determine what purpose it can be used for (which may not include it's sole purpose in their possession as making money for the owner). Then we could identify what the basic needs of a companion animal are (vaccinations, exercise, socialisation) which gives you a basic rights position to work from. This could also link back to legislation (is the Act the RSCPA work under the same across each state?). If a puppy farmer does not breach those basic rights then they could be considered within the law. I know this might get me slapped but when I saw 96 litters of staffy puppies for sale on DOL a while back I started to think that registered breeder or not when is the market already saturated with enough dogs however they are bred? How do you identify and establish manageable breeding numbers given a percentage will always be abandoned or removed for mistreatment? If we woke up tomorrow what would our perfect world look like? How do we work backwards and attain that? I have always felt that if it was legal to breed and sell children in this country then there would be loads of pregnant woman out there with loads of other people making a buck from them, in a very similar keep the overheads down fashion. Difference is dogs don't get to decide whether to participate or when to stop. Not good enough.

A puppy farmer is someone who increases the number of companion animals available nationally, with a focus on making an income, but without consideration for: 1. the overall health and wellbeing of animals currently in their care 2. the future health and wellbeing of the animals they produce and on sell 3. the establishment of of a 'code of practice' to maintain a level of industry standards 4. the impact of their current business practices on the abandonment and neglect of companion animals nationwide 5. the financial cost of abandonment and neglect on society and local governments 6. the physical and emotional cost of abandonment and neglect on rescue organisations and the companion animals themselves. PS Julie - I am still working on that grants stuff - haven't forgotten!

My sister has used maremmas on her farm near Cowra for the sheep and boar goats they farm for around 8 years now, as well as protection for her when hubby is away as they bond very closely with their flock (human or animal). She also gave her daughter one to watch over her young children as they live on a very remote property outside of Walgett and there are water bores and things on the property. So if the children wander the dog follows and remains on guard.

I know a lot of people use those kids clam shells for water or sand for their doggies and they are in the current KMart catalogue for $20. Starts Thurs 1 July.

Had to add that travelling with dogs will limit your entry to national parks so you will also need to factor in where you leave the dogs in the summer heat if you all go to an event together that wont allow entry for the dogs. I desperately wanted to take my dog with us and threw many tanties before and on the first quarter of the trip about it but for the places we went it wouldn't have been suitable for any of us. And the idea of carrying some tents for the kids to sleep out some nights is a great idea (suggested above) as everyone needs some space from each other at times.

My ex partner and I spent 2 years travelling around Australia back in the 1980's. We travelled in an old torana to every nook and cranny imaginable, catching our own food (fish) a lot, sometimes camping wild and every couple of days staying in a proper camping ground to do washing (body and clothes!). We had a small tent for overnight stays and a larger one for week long stays. Obviously this kind of roughing it is not for everyone but hey I can start a fire without matches and still erect a tent when the ground is too hard to get pegs into it! Seriously though - it depends on where you want to take your vehicle. On some roads with gullies the 4wd's with trailers/caravans really struggled and we often saw trailers/caravans left on the side of the road to be picked up on the return trip. Chemical toilets were always a shock to see. Even back in those days sorting out toileting wasn't that big a problem and today it would be even easier so why not leave that at home? Likewise, anyone we met who brought a tv with them wished they hadn't wasted the space. You are doing the trip to live, not to watch tv. Other pieces of advice are that in hot climates it can get very hot inside your camper or caravan for sleeping so don't assume you will always have somewhere to plug yourself in and turn the air on. And mozzies and sand flies will drive you crazy if you leave doors and windows open. If you break down in a camper I know a family who were able to stay inside their camper inside the RACQ repair yard. But try not to plan for everything that might happen on your trip - you can buy things on your trip as you determine what works or doesn't work for you. If you have to stay in a cabin while your vehicle is repaired then that is also part of the experience. Oh and if you plan to go to remote areas then remember that a more well known vehicle make might be easier to get parts for. And things in those communities cost more because they have to be transported in - food, equipment, petrol, etc, so try to accept that and not compare to home prices. And be flexible about where you go as some of my best memories are of the detours we took. We had a map and an RACQ caravan and camping guide and at the start of every day would check out towns that were x number of miles away then look up the guide to see what fishing or camping options were in the area and what was there to see and base our travels for the day around that. And even after all these years I still have a very precious sea shell collection from that trip. It was the start of many for me. I hope it is the same for you!