rusty&biscuit

Aw this made me smile, really is just so sweet :D

Yayy, thank you Troy! 1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc) First time owner 2. Where and why was the breed first developed? As far as I understand they were used in Belgium on the barges as both a guard dog and rat catcher, however there is much debate as to wether or not the schip was originally a herding breed. 3. How common is it in Australia? Not as rare as some breeds, but less common than most. There are a few around 4. What is the average lifespan? 10-15 years however it is not uncommon for some to reach 17 5. What is the general temperament/personality? Amazing little dogs with a great sense of humour. Always on the go, very curious with boundless energy. They are great little guard dogs and bond strongly to one person, becoming their 'shadow'. In my experience, none that I've met have been true lap dogs. Ys they will sit on your lap, or lay on your lap for a short period of time, but it's not long before they stand up and are on high alert again. Or just stand up because sitting isn't interesting. This is just my experience and what I've read in all my research, however seeing as I'm only a first time owner I am hoping someone with more experience could come in and be more specific. 6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult? I have found that they'll take as little or as much as you'll throw at them. Some days I am a very bad dog mum and I don't get a chance to walk them, and Biscuit is fine for 1 day, other days he'll run 9kms with me, or accompany me on hikes, or just walk to the beach/park and have a good game of fetch. Very versatile in exercise needs I'd say! (obviously you can't just leave them sitting in the yard though!) 7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with? I'm not sure on this one. I do know that Biscuit is very testing, so it does come in handy, I think, for a schipperke owner to be consistent with the rules, and to have a sense of humour. 8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods? I'm unsure on this one as I've had a multiple dog household since having Biscuit and don't know of an solo schipperkes either. 9. How much grooming is required? Not much at all. I barely ever brush Biscuit, and they don't have a doggy odour which is great. But boy do they shed. I've got black dog hairs all over my room, and it's even worse when going through the coat drop. Hair just falls out in clumps, and at this time of year I blow dry Biscuit once a week to get rid of the excess hair, as well as daily brushing. Doesn't stop it from going everywhere though! 10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)? I don't think so. Someone else might be able to answer this better. 11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of? They are a fairly healthy breed, however some can get epilepsy 12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be) I think just to make sure the lines are free of epilepsy, MPS-IIIB, and hypothyroidism I hope I answered the questions OK, schipperkes are such a fantastic breed, I am more than happy to share my (limited) experience with the breed :) And can't wait to read the other answers from those with more experience :)

Yay first comp of the year and 2 goals achieved! :D Just gotta nail those weaves for an agility quallie :laugh: Good job to everyone else achieveing their goals Woohoo have had an awesome year! Biscuit is just one Q away from his ADO title, after only just starting in that class this year, so proud! For next year both need a bit of working on their contacts, but otherwise they have just been so good, and a hoot to run. Unfortunately due to my work I am only ever at trials for 1 day out of the 2, but I've had so much fun and many titles were gained. Hopefully next year I can get to more! Very sad the season is over now though, what am I gonna do with my weekends! :laugh: Hope everyone else has had a fun and fantastic year! Do the trials finish at all for a few months down south, or do you just keep going? We finish for 6 months up here because it's just too hot

Beautiful photos, he really is going to be such a stunning boy!

Hehe he is just so adorable, he looks so huggable! :laugh:

Aw Hank is just adorable, and you take the most beautiful photos! Do you mind me asking what sort of lens you use? I have been following little Hank along with the others in the puppy thread, love seeing them all grow and hearing about puppy antics! :D

This is a very good idea that I'd never thought of, I'll be keeping an eye on this thread for ideas, and thanks in advance from me as well to all those contributing :D

???? Mine have been confused with: whippets, Great Danes, Dobes, deer, staffies and tigers. I am intrigued now by what breeds your dogs are :laugh: I've never really had an annoying statement, must be nice people in cairns...rusty is always guessed as a BC (looks exactly like grandmothers best friends daughter who had one) or a kelpie X, and Biscuit is guessed as a pom X, or, before they see his tail, a German shepherd puppy :laugh: but people are always so curious and willing to learn about the breeds they actually are, it's great

For people that have never seen them before they sure do stand out don't they!! We get stopped a lot! This is true, I also get stopped with rusty a lot! But 98% of the time because he is the most beautiful "border collie" they've ever seen :laugh: but they are all happy and quite interested to learn about the Aussie :) The breeds most common in my suburb are jack russells and their mixes,and lots of border collies! Kelpiecuddles, how lucky you have some schippys around :D

I got a very sweet and sensible looking visla :) I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, and in real life situations I don't, but for the survey I decided to play along :D

Hi everyone, I am down in Brisbane at the moment on holiday where biscuit and I will be attending the ekka on Friday :D So on Saturday I was hoping to do some nice, and 'touristy' with Biscuit. If anyone could recommend any nice walks, or nice cafes near nice walks that we could bring Biscuit to that'd be awesome! The area we are staying in I believe is called Milton?

I'm finding this thread a very interesting read One thing that I am still curious about, however, is how the 3 point stack came about. From the looks of things in Kaviks video, they weren't always stacked like that, and I am now very intrigued. Thank you for your post too alpha, I found it very informative. I think GSD's are such a beautiful, noble breed.

Done :)

Aw man I just wrote a whole long paragraph then accidentally deleted it, so I'll just keep this short and sweet because wuffles answered most of the questions anyway :) Firstly, welcome to the world of Aussies whipitgood! As far as performance/agility Aussies go, Keelambara and Ceubiyar breed awesome dogs. Rusty is a Keelambara from Ceubiyar lines, and he's great at agility now. There's another Keelambara girl competing up here and she's a fast one! Have watched other Ceubiyar dogs do it that are just awesome too As far as tails go, as I mentioned in an earlier post, Rusty has a full tail but still got in champion title. It was harder, but really I think getting a pup of matching temperament is most important, and if it's an NBT then that's a bonus :D Please keep us updated, and photos are mandatory in the Aussie thread at breed subforums ;) :laugh:

I considered being offended by the article but then I thought about all the nuf-nufs that might not buy my breed now and am happy. I rarely recommend my breed anyhow as I don't think that most people are good enough [\b]I wouldn't even sell my brother a puppy years ago. Hehe oops I might be a bit like that as well :laugh: :laugh: But on topic, what a bloody stupid article. We can only hope that nobody takes it too seriously

Hehe very cute, love good action shots!

Sorry I havent updated! Spoke to mum about seeing this particular vet, but she said she already took Cherry to see him when she first got the lump and he said it needs to be removed or she'd only hav 3 months to live Mums gut feeling was to go against that, so she did, and look where we are now! We were given cream from the vet recently to apply to the lump, and it has gone riiight down, so it's obviously not aggressive. Unfortunately this is a situation where we're damned if we leave the lump and we're damned if we cut half her lip off. So we've decided to go against the surgery for now. Thank you so much for both your inputs, I have really appreciated it

Wow, what a beautiful place, love the photos...and gee don't those 2 pibbles live the life! Beautiful dogs, thanks for sharing :)

Thanks for sharing, just stunning photos! I love the point you make about how often a boy and his dog are portrayed, hello, I'm a girl and my dogs were my childhood best friends! :laugh: I just want to add, the 4th photo down is absolutely brilliant...a picture paints a thousand words...I'd definitely be getting that on a canvas or in a nice frame

Oh my, Carter is soooo adorable!! I do have a soft spot for rotties :love:

I was wondering if the Aussies born with tails are able to be shown? Do they lose points for not having a natural bob? It's just that I think dogs without tails look strange and I would like to have a go at showing. Yes tailed Aussies are able to be shown :) You do get used to the wiggle bum though Rusty has a tail and still gained his Australian Champion title. I would love a bob tail, but mum is the same as you phyria, she thinks they look too sad without tails! :)

It seems you like the spitz breeds. I think a schipperke may fit well here. They are small, and will take as much or as little exercise as you can give them. For instance, yesterday I wasn't feeling too well so my poor dogs missed out on a walk (lucky for rusty we have a yard!) then just this morning went on a 9km run, with Biscuit the schip keeping up very well! They are very much 'Velcro' dogs; biscuit follows me everywhere and just always wants to be with me. However not so Velcro that they are prone to separation anxiety, which is good. However all the ones I have met are not entirely content to sit on your lap for a long time, more prefer to be at the foot of the bed or laying next to you, keeping watch. However I have been corrected before, but this is just my experience with biscuit, my research and the ones I have met. But you could most definitely find a few that would be perfect little lap dogs! I feel as though I am babbling here, so pm me if you'd like more info, but definitely a breed to consider :) One last thing, they do shed, and they are a lot of fun to clicker train!

Aww that is so adorable, such a good ad!

Thank you both do much for your replies! I am still undecided as to what to do...I wish Cherry could just understand and tell me what to do, would certainly make this a lot easier! :p as I'm trying To do what's in her best interests, I'm unsure wether life without half a lip, with the possibility of constantly salivating is a better outcome than just letting her be, and giving her her wings when the time comes before she gets too uncomfortable. Sorry, just thinking aloud here. On the grading system, the vet agrees Anne, that it is most likely a low grade as it has grown so slowly. Bindi, the vet we saw was new the practice we go to. I am not sure wether or not there's specialists around here (Cairns) but will have a look into it. There is a vet who's seen Cherry before that I do not like, however he is a very knowledgeable man, perhaps I should see him and discuss the options with him?

Thank you for your insight Anne. Yes mum suspected dry mouth because the area would be too large for the skin to close over she was talking to someone at her work whose dog had a similar operation, and ended up with the opposite to a dry mouth. Her dog just kept drooling excessively and they regretted having the operation done. I just want to gather as much advice, experiences, and opinions as possible in order to form my own opinion in this difficult situation