Weasels

Just a warning not to attempt the survey on an ipad. All goes well until the last section, then you can't press the radio buttons and it won't let you proceed I sifted through all those bullys for nuthin.

Oh that poor thing Unfortunately despite their fierce reputation purebred dingoes have quite a light frame, and many are no match for a stocky fighting breed RIP Axle.

I use this one pretty regularly too, not just for distraction but also to send them at top speed in the other direction after a ball if I see something that might be a problem!

Lovely sweet little dogs in the clip too. I'm a bit partial to this dog song myself -

I'm going to nick that line if you dont mind, Weasel. That's super cute! please do!

I haven't seen one in person, but it doesn't look like the dog has room to lie down? Which isn't necessarily a problem depending on how long their car trips are. We bought a backseat buddy for our sedan, stupidly expensive but sturdy and easy to remove, and the dogs can go to sleep when they get bored. I've been happy with it.

Yes, this is true in WA at least (and I'm pretty sure everywhere else too). We registered our 2 rescues on the associate register so they can compete in dog sports, and we were required to send in proof that they were desexed. So no breeding from associate registered dogs, and no entry to the other registers without pedigree. (EFS)

The thing that is difficult to counter in the public mind though is that seeing a GSD competing at crufts with such a severe roach back it stumbles every few steps, or hearing about breeds that can't give birth naturally because of oversized heads has much greater impact on their thinking than seeing the friendly neighbourhood labradoodle, which may or may not develop problems later in life (which only the owners will see).

dant - it sucks that there are still people like that. But as raz said, better you found out now than after you got a pup from her, this way you'll never have to deal with her again. Alwyn is a tiny ball of densely packed adorable!

This I believe that, for my boy at least, confidence comes mostly from understanding clearly what I want from him. If he's not getting it, it's time to go back and break it down. The weasel was a very nervous 9-month old when I adopted him, and very sensitive to attitude. I HAD to keep everything very positive or he'd run off/shut down. He is doing much better now, and if I do have to give him a quick vocal correction (if he's about to get into/cause trouble) I immediately go back to very positive when he does the right thing. ETA- sorry I just re-read and realised you were talking about handler confidence rather than handlee confidence - stupid weekend brain! Still I think they are interrelated - we train as a team, and the smoother things go, the better everyone feels at the end

The first thing I would do is teach an 'OFF!' command to get your chairs and couches back! If they are into food you could lure them off while giving them the command, then reward them heavily for being on the floor/dog bed/in crate. Sharing a chair or couch is one thing, but being on the floor with them or giving them brand new chairs - By using rewards they will feel good about getting off the furniture, instead of metaphorically muttering and grumbling about it Keep in mind you aren't doing them favours by being inconsistent. They will be confused and unsure of what you really mean and what you don't, then sense you are unhappy with them and not know why. The kind thing to do is communicate clearly with them! No dog ever developed problems because they can't chew sticks inside, but many do if they don't understand how the household is run. The reactivity on walks might need professional intervention, depending on seriousness. But avoiding other dogs at this stage is not a bad idea so they don't get a chance to practice the behaviour. Best of luck

The less the better as far as my 2 are concerned. When I first got my girl she was terrified if someone approached her with anything in their hand and a sense of purpose. It took 3 weeks and lots of food before I could brush her. These days she tolerates it, but not with much enthusiasm, about the same interest level as ear cleaning. My boy used to be good until I cut his quick while nail trimming We're still building back trust for all grooming activities. Baths elicit looks of complete betrayal. They're happy for a good towelling off after the beach tho :D little Fox goes all wiggly when I towel her backside.

Yes, sorry, I just checked and 2 of the ones i've seen are imports. The other I'm not sure if she's working line or not, but she's smaller than my 17 kg girl, and just the sweetest snuggliest dog

You can get tiny little working line Aussies, I've seen some I'd guess were about 15-16 kg (under all the soft gorgeous fur :p )

I know someone that saved a dog from an unfortunate situation with a close family member. Even though it didn't come from a shelter she calls is a rescue, I think mainly so she doesn't have to go into the whole story with every random and speak ill of her family member. Seems fair enough IMO.

Why do those Americans keep naming their shepherds after other nationalities? It's very confusing

I got all excited 'cause you said 'criterion'. :D LOL I just finished a large writing project, so I get intermittently paranoid about correct English. Thanks for noticing!

Corgis are a herding breed tho, which might rule them out on the OP's last criterion

A small viszla springs to mind for me too

awww those are some beautiful dogs Vickie! I saw a short-haired B&W BC teenager out walking today, lucky it was on lead or I might have smuggled it home I love both the expressions in the first photo

I would think so too, if you walk within the zone where the water is lapping. Ground gets washed regularly, almost impossible to get parvo. Odd that people would immediately assume your pup wasn't vaccinated, unless it's extra tiny? Your reaction does seem a bit harsh as this woman didn't know you'd already been asked a bunch of times.

It's also worth remembering it's not just the dog, it's the combination of dog and handler. My OH handles our girl at herding and does better with her as he has stronger commands to get her to back off the sheep. I handle my boy and do better because I am softer and he's less likely to shut down (although I'm going to need to toughen up a bit to get him to the next level now he's getting the hang of it). When we have to handle both dogs as one of us is away we both stuggle with the swap. So some 'defincencies' in the dogs can be compensated for with the right human

I guess it's just that my boy is a little clumsy then He's the better herding dog though. The focus and obsession I mentioned above for my girl are the same characteristics that cause her trouble in herding, as she wants to sprint everywhere and look at the handler too much. They both do fine at each sport tho (altough i don't compete in agility, we just do it for fun). But I do both sports with both dogs because they enjoy it and it's good excercise & training. I've never met a sheep dog that wouldn't be keen for the 'job' of dog sports.

I can speak to this from the reverse perspective - I got 2 rescue kelpies, one turned out to be an great little agility dog, the other is just ok. The characteristics that makes my girl (the good dog) so easy to train are her natural intense focus on me, disinterest in other dogs and toy obsession. The focus and toy obsession were apparent when we first saw her at the rescue. These traits let me skip through a lot of the preliminary focus work as she didn't want to run off and play with the other dogs, and will work like crazy to get some fetch or tug at the end. Being able to play at the end keeps up the excitement and interest. My boy on the other hand will only take food rewards and just doesn't have the same intensity. She also has a better body shape (small, skinny), whereas my boy is a classic black & tan working kelpie, very long and more suited to stalking along the ground in front of sheep than tight turns. But if they never set foot in another dog sports arena, I would still love them like crazy,and as everyone said this is a vital first consideration. And if you already have a great relationship with your dog as a companion it should make communication in the agility ring so much easier.

Maybe he was terrorised by a pigeon? or savaged by a chicken?