minxy

I cannot praise crate training enough! I had not heard about it really until the last couple of years. I will NEVER have a pup/dog again without crate training it. Brilliant for so many reasons, such as: toilet training, keeping them safe if you need to go out/preventing them from hurting themselves, as well as preventing them from damaging your furniture etc, feeding them in, traveling, if they ever need to stay somewhere else for the night etc etc. The uses are endless really. Kyojin's crate was already so useless to us as it meant he had somewhere safe to sleep at night and he was contained so that he couldn't get up to mischief/hurt himself somehow, and probably our biggest concern was him hurting the cats. He absolutely loves my cat, and Oscar adores him back, but I would never leave them unsupervised together for a long period of time. This means that I can have all my babies asleep in the bedroom with me and know that they are all safe. There is nothing I love more than the sound of my little man snoring peacefully next to me, knowing that he is completely content. He always takes himself to his crate without being asked and will sleep in there even when he is not required to do so. Another reason why crate training has been so important for us is that Kyojin has had surgery on one of his knees and will need the other one done soon. We were told he would have to be kept extremely quiet and confined to his crate or a small room for at least the first 4 weeks after surgery. Fortunately I have been able to be at home with him during this time. But of course, I occasionally need to pop out to the shops/run errands, and so I can pop Kyojin into his crate during this time and know that he is happy to be there and cannot hurt himself while I am out. His recovery time would have been far more stressful for all of us had we not crate trained him from the day we brought him home. He has learned to realise that his crate is his own safe den and I get the peace of mind of knowing that my boy is safe in it.

Excellent news!!!! So glad he is home safe and sound now.

Fingers crossed you find him soon. I keep checking this thread hoping for good news.

Wow she's so grown up!!

I hope this was a joke and not serious... I think this was said as in the other people think - Who cares about lines temperment and suitability. Why should K & C Bother with them ( the other people) Hopefully! It can be read either way but I hope you're right. Yes, that was definitely sarcasm.

That's a really cool photo Misteri

I am literally speechless. I feel so terrible for that poor dog. The first dog I ever had was an OES named Churchill. I barely remember him, but I know how much my parents loved him. No dog deserves this cruelty.

Awesome, thank you so much.

This what you were after? http://www.vetsallnatural.com.au/CMsheet.pdf Possibly, I'll check it out on the comp when I get home. Thanks

If anyone has a bag of VAN at home, would you please be able to tell me what amount it says to feed for a 50kg dog? Just seeing if it's worth considering.

Some awful testimonials down the bottom of that site! Perhaps K&C's friend needs to hear a few stories like that.

I give Kyojin a raw egg once a week, shell and all. I just smash it up for him and mix it with his other food.

Agreed. Sometimes you need to try a few different brands/types before you find the food that your dog does best on.

Agreed with other comments. I'd probably see if I could find a puppy school that was held by an actual dog training club, rather than at a vets. The vet nurses won't necessarily have proper training on how to teach the classes or understand canine behaviour/body language. I don't think that the dogs necessarily need to play with each other either. At our club the pups didn't particularly have anything to do with each other, but it was still good socialisation and training for them, learning to respond to commands etc in a stimulating environment, with tons of other distractions around.

What is the 1st picture of SecretKei??! I want one whatever it is! ETA: Tibetan Mastiff? Yea, that's a TM

You beat me to it benshiva. Except for the Whippet. Border Collie Papillon Golden Retriever Border Terrier Japanese Spitz, 6 m/o puppy has grown on me. Originally wouldn't have thought of because of colour. First person with taste who includes Papillon :D Papillons and Border Collies are a special combo!! For me: Swedish Deerhound Maremma Golden Retriever Wire-haired Jack Russell Borzoi or Greyhound ETA: Oh, West Highland Terrier, Aussie Terror, Pomeranian, oh and rough collie Paps nearly made my list! It was a tough decision.

I haven't heard of anything like that before sorry. I've had very good experiences so far with Medibank. They've paid me over $2000 so far, waiting on $4000ish to come back soon, with another $4000 to be sent to them in about a month.

I currently have a wheaten terrier and had an Irish setter as a kid neither are what I would consider particularly onerous in the grooming stakes. Five to 10 minutes every other day is all it takes to keep the coat in good condition. Though I do pay to have my wheaten groomed 4 times a year. Can't speak for all Akitas, but honestly, I've never had an easier dog to train and live with than my Akita. I don't trust him off leash, as I wouldn't as a general rule with any Akita/Husky etc as to me it's not worth it, but other than that, he picks up on everything super quickly and is very easy to teach new commands/skills to.

Agreed, vet just to be on the safe side. Poor thing!

Akita, Samoyed, Husky, Shiba, Lappy. Guess there's a bit of a pattern there

He looks about ten times smaller after being clipped, and like a completely different dog. Sorry, but I loved his fluffiness pre-clip.

Oh good idea Sway! I will have a look through what is in the throw away pile to see what is worth saving. Yea, I've been meaning to see if the local RSPCA shelter here will want all my old dog/cat stuff. I have tons of stuff to give away. I think the thing I hoard the most (other than toys) would be brushes. I have about 10 dog brushes Your smaller All Breeds and Breed Specific shelters would be grateful, they don't recieve the funding the RSPCA do. Thanks, I didn't have a clue where to look. I'll see who I can find online.

Yea, I just had a look at the Brown Trout Akita calendar and the dogs used look pretty awful.

I love Pink. That was such a wonderful thing to do

Oh good idea Sway! I will have a look through what is in the throw away pile to see what is worth saving. Yea, I've been meaning to see if the local RSPCA shelter here will want all my old dog/cat stuff. I have tons of stuff to give away. I think the thing I hoard the most (other than toys) would be brushes. I have about 10 dog brushes