Casey & BC Kiara

Hi everyone, I have a BC pup who is nearly 6 months old and I would love to get her into herding, as she has a very strong herding instinct and herds everything from flies to birds to cars. So I have heard that a dog properly trained in herding will only herd sheep or other specified things and will learn not to herd cars. So I was wondering where I start out? I live in the southside of Brisbane and would like to stay close, but if there is nothing good out this way I will obviously travel to get there. So if anyone can provide me with the basics (I have nooo idea about herding) and somewhere to go that would be fantastic! Cheers

It has been said to repel fleas. And yes, in large quantities it is bad, but in small doses (such as one clove over several kilos) it is said to be quite good. However, I think my pup just can't stand the smell of it. So I'm going to take it out and there is some odourless garlic powder sold at pet food stores which I am considering subsituting in. That said, our last dog loved the smell of garlic - so go figure its obviously up to each individual dog.

My 5 month old border collie is currently on a homemade BARF diet and the last few weeks she pretty much refuses to eat it no matter how much gravy or sardines I put on it - which I know I really shouldn't be doing but she really needs to eat. I'm a big softie and can't stand to see her not eat for 2 days. So I use about a 70:30 mix of meat to veg + a little bit of liver, olive oil, cod liver oil, the slightest bit of garlic (1 clove across 5kg) & raw eggs + shell (2 eggs across 5kg). I think she has been refusing to eat it ever since I put garlic in it. Plus ever since she has been refusing this she has been itching a lot and it looks like she has dandruff. I seriously thought this was good for her and I've seen so many dogs thrive on BARF - what am I doing wrong? It seems like she has an allergy... the only time she has eaten voluntarily is when I gave her a chicken mince one instead of beef. ______________________________________… So I am thinking of changing her to prey - she loves RMBs and fish. Its pretty much RMBs, big chunks of meat, raw green tripe, 5% liver and 5% other organ hey? Can someone please clarify this and tell how their dog has thrived on it? Plus can someone please give me a guideline on what to actually feed her in a day - 5 month old BC - just an example so I can start off and move from there. ______________________________________… So do I switch to prey or do I continue with BARF and eliminate beef and garlic? By the way if I can't figure it out by the end of the week I am booking her in with an allergy and diet specialist. Since she has been refusing barf I have been feeding her RMBs and fish which she loves and I am happy to change her to this but I am just worried about it being unbalanced... any advice? Can RMBs, chunks of meat and fish really be balanced? She HATES the taste of liver and the only way I was able to get her to eat it in the past was to mix it in with the mince, but with a prey diet I wouldn't be able to. Plus if I change her to prey - where can I source raw green tripe from in QLD, Aust? Thanks!!!

Hey I know how you feel! I have owned a dog for all of 4 months and their diet is by far the most confusing and detailed thing I have come across!!! Personally, my puppy is on a raw barf diet but I am considering changing her to a raw prey diet or 50-50. After reading the ingredients on dry pet food and feeding her raw for just one week I was convinced it was the best way to go. A lot of people are concerned about feeding raw due to bacteria etc but dogs have a much shorter digestional tract to humans which greatly reduces the chance of food poisoning plus they have different stomach acids which break down bacteria. Plus research studies comparing dry dog biscuits and raw dog food have shown that both have high levels of bacteria in them - in fact some forms of bacteria were found to be higher in dry food eaters! Anyway, I strongly recommend you do your own personal research, as I am still doing my own - there is soo much information out there. In fact, I am considering consulting a local hollistic vet who specialises in diet and allergies. A lot of vets will condemn raw feeding, simply due to a lack of knoweldge; they think you just feed your dog a lump of mince and that its, while others are actually sponsored by dog food companies. Hope this helps

I thought I would add to this post because you guys might know the answer? I will be driving from Brisbane to Albury and want to know: a) where do you reckon is about halfway b) is there any dog friendly accomodation in this area (the halfway mark not Albury)

I was actually looking at the "Life Lessons on Leash" website but because I'm not familar with the area I deemed it too far away lol. Good to hear about the Albury Kennel Club change - I'll have a look into them too. I'm not too sure what rally obedience is ... brand new to the dog thing really but I shall google it. With sports I was more keen to take her for fun, I'm not really interested in competing - unless of course she gets really into it, but I think I'll let her decide that one lol. Good to hear its a dog friendly community Shall let you know about houses - I should be good though as my partner has just transfered down for work but we will have to find a new house before I get down as he's living in an apartment and I'm bringing pup

haha my partner has just moved down there for work and I'm following him down at the end of the year once I have finished uni. He keeps calling me with reports like "oh it's -2 degrees here and the whole town is frosty and foggy" he doesn't seem to mind it but it's pretty scary when I tell him all our temperatures are in the 20's. And then he tells me the summers are like 40?

Hi all, I'm brand new to these forums so I apologise in advance if I have posted this in the wrong section or done something wrong. I am currently living in Brisbane and will be moving to Albury in Nov/Dec/Jan. I have a little border collie puppy named Kiara who is currently 18 weeks old. I have enrolled her into Urban Dog Training and will have done the following courses (hopefully) before I move: Puppy School (done) Advanced Puppy School (currently completing) Clicks and Tricks Off Leash Ultimate Recall They also have agility courses but I don't think I will have time before I move So basically, what is available in Albury in the way of training, socialisation and dog sports? Training Can anyone recommend a good trainer? I will only go to a positive reinforcement trainer. I am a psychology student so I completely agree with these methods on and will not budge on this. Especially since Kiara is often on the timid/ shy side and was a completely different dog for about a week after my old housemate hit her (!!!!) I would like to build on or develop what I will have already taught her. Socialisation In Brisbane I take Kiara to a puppy playgroup run by my trainers - is there anything like this in Albury? Even things like dog parks or cafes/restaurants that allow dogs. Dog Sports What dog sports are big in Albury. I'm not so keen on Obedience but like the idea of herding, agility or flyball. I haven't done any of these in Brisbane as she is still a pup but would like to get her involved as both her mum and dad are awesome herders. Anything else? Is there anything else you can fill me in on about "dog life" in Albury? THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH IN ADVANCE

Hi I don't know if this will help you out at the moment but I will be moving to Albury in Nov/Dec/Jan and would love to continue to socialise my border collie puppy when we get down there. She is 4 1/2 months at the moment and sounds to have a similar temperment to yours. She will be 9/10 months ish when we move down.

I train at Urban Dog Training too and couldn't recommend them enough