Salukifan

I'm actually just asking a question I thought was an interesting one. Just because no lure courser has ever mentioned it doesn't mean anything really... it must be nice to be able to idly speculate on this without having any worries about potentially losing something you have put years of effort into with ever harming an animal. These sorts of comments are dangerous right now. The baiting stuff is worse than a lie, if it had not been for the baiting scandal the vast majority of LC participants would have had no idea what baiting even was in the first place. It has been put out there by people who have no experience with LC to create a wedge that will eventually come after other dog sports, and just about any other dog that isn't a generic couch dog. Great Dane owners would want to be careful about that, because I can see size winding up as one of the idiotic criteria we end up having used against us (big dogs being unhealthy, and all that). LC only found itself in the Greyhound enquiry report because some bright spark decided to indulge in that sort of speculation. Even a cursory attempt at research would have revealed that he sport of lure coursing was CREATED to obviate the need for live game. What part of that is difficult to for people to grasp?? We don't use fur or fake fur. We use plastic bags. Dogs chase bags for the same reason they chase tennis balls. People may find it difficult to believe that a dog will go screaming berserk to chase a plastic bag. That's where getting out from behind the computer screen and attending an event is illustrative. I'm told that the science was that live baiting wasn't particularly effective in getting greyhounds to chase a mechanical lure. It was the sort of "dog training" that stemmed from the same timeframe that brought you rubbing dogs noses in their faeces to "toilet train" them. Dog training has moved on. I feel for the greyhound trainers who have been dragged down by the troglodytes in the industry. What's next? No check chains? No crates? Watch this space people because it now appears that idle speculation and even the potential for abuse will see babies tossed out with bathwater as the AR brigade move onto their next target. They have already proven that a good misinformation campaign and rubbery statistics will get them over the line.

That is not my take. Those who 'race' greys are caught. Lure coursing is not a simple test of speed as referred to by the legislation. The dogs aren't even timed.

How would anything other than a bag fit under a tie down or not flip a pulley? How would using animals encourage a dog to chase what it knows to be a plastic bag? The dog is looking at the plastic bag when it starts. The bag is right in front of it. Sorry but I fail to see the potential also. What's more important is that I fail to see the incentive. It's not a race and there is no betting. My most prey driven dog will not chase plastic. They either do or they don't. End of story.

It sure does.

May be a strange question...do you think that those highly competative in your sport could potentially be doing exactly the same as they do in Greyhound racing to improve performance? About as likely as flyballers doing the same to improve their dogs desire to get the ball ..... In other words, just not going to happen. Flyballers get a ball, lure coursing dogs chase a lure - it's quite different isn't it? Live baiting would work for lure coursing and not for fly ball? Ignorance. Ignorance about sighthounds and ignorance about lure coursing. The dogs KNOW its a plastic bag. Why on earth would you even consider using anything else???

Sure was!

May be a strange question...do you think that those highly competative in your sport could potentially be doing exactly the same as they do in Greyhound racing to improve performance? I'm glad people are asking this question. I get why people might think that. However, what you need to understand is that there's bugger all science to suggest that live baiting DOES improve performance anyway. It should have gone out with rubbing dogs noses in accidents. My response? Come and see for yourself. PM me for details if you like. People do seem to struggle with the idea that a dog can be SO motivated to chase plastic. Why? Movement triggered prey drive. They are looking at a plastic bag when they start. They grab the plastic bag at the finish. There is absolutely no doubt to the dog that what they will chase is plastic. Knowing that, some dogs look at you like you are an idiot. They KNOW what it is and what it is not. However, you will see my dog go screaming berserk when he hears the gear start. He has never even seen a rabbit. He got the top sighthound score in the PM run last trial. We showed a politician a 12 week old Border Terrier pup chasing bags when she visited. If the instinct is there and is strong enough, they will chase. Lure coursing is a test of that instinct. It was developed for Sighthounds. specifically so that live animals would NOT be coursed. You don't need fur to motivate a dog with movement triggered prey drive. It won't fit under the tie downs we use and it would flip pulleys anyway. The best way to improve performance in our sport is to improve fitness. The dogs do it because they love it. If you'd seen Dodger dancing around with the plastic bag in his mouth after his last run, you'd get that they love the game. Come and see. You'll meet ordinary every day pet owners getting a blast out of watching the dogs chase. Best spectator dog sport ever IMO.

Has the vet done any bloodwork? Thyroid testing seems warranted.

I have a few recommendations for family dogs, based on ease of care, temperament and affordability. Smaller in height but not in character - the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. No dog park social butterfly but if well bred and trained, generally a delight. If dog sociability is a key factor though, not one that goes to the top of the list. Medium I'd go the Whippet. Generally once past the crazy pup stage its a big star on the lead and on the bed. Happy to curl up with the kids or go for a run and fits well on the couch and in the car. Larger = the Pointer. I think an undiscovered gem of a family dog. Usually lovely natures, not too heavy and quite trainable. Also one of the cheaper pedigree dogs to buy. For all those three inside as part of the family is a must. But then for me a family dog lives with the family, not alone. If you want cute and hairy then the Finnish Lapphund IMO is a way safer bet than a Sibe or a Malamute. And if you want a small dog and are up for professional grooming, you would go a long way to find a better pet than a Toy or Mini poodle!

It's all about dogs chasing something, enhancing that drive, as I mentioned with my story about the showing and trialling unethical things are done just to satisfy egos. Can you say you know all the lure coursers in your state and how they train. I'm guessing lure coursers don't bait with animals but I suppose it could be a just in case measure. I'm with you it is stupid but unfortunately it is same the kind of sport. Yes, I can. There is only one club and one set of gear in NSW. Members don't "train". They condition. The dogs either have the drive to chase a plastic bag or they don't. They see the bags on try out or trial days. A couple of members have access to a straight drag. That's it. It is a sport for pet dogs that allows dogs to use their prey drive in a safe way that does not involve any live game. That's the whole point of it. To compare it to a greyhound racing is simply inaccurate. There are no boxes, no oval tracks and no need to race in a bunch. No betting, no syndication, no 'wastage'. Just in case my armpit. The dogs know its a plastic bag. They're looking at it when it starts and grabbing it when it finishes.

A fair bit of dog for a pet home IMO and sometimes a lot sharper than people are ready for.

Has the older dog ACTUALLY bitten the pup or just snapped? Are there holes in the pup?

Lure coursing does not involve animal cruelty. Kind of hard to be proactive when those recommendations were outside the terms of reference and there was no consultation whatsoever.

Did you read what she wrote? And did anyone read what Diva wrote upthread? I will tell you where the companion animal phase out stuff kicks in. There are two Recommendations in that report that have nothing to do with Greyhound racing, but which, if implemented, would penalise pet dog owners that the report itself acknowledges are law abiding and NOT engaging in live baiting. It's important to understand that the original policy position of the NSW RSPCA when lobbying on these Recommendations was that any coursing heritage breed - whippets, afghans, salukis etc - should be required to be registered on a special "coursing register" even if all the dog ever did was sit on the couch. This registration would have then invoked the provisions of the POCTAA which would have meant that you could not have potential bait animals in your home even if at no time in your life you ever engaged in amateur racing or lure coursing. So the NSW RSPCA wanted people to have to pick between their pet whippet and their pet cat. If that is not BSL, and a shot across the bows of pet ownership, I don't know what is. The Commission didn't go that far, but it did not speak to any representatives of lure coursing or to DogsNSW when it formulated recommendations that would require anyone engaging in the amateur sport of lure coursing to put their dogs on an additional register and give up their pet cats and chooks. Again, the report concedes they have no proof anyone in amateur dog sport is live baiting, but they think we might. If the Commission had even come out and viewed an event it would have seen that it is impossible to stick a bait animal on our lure coursing lines given the tie down pulleys that are used. It's ignorance, and while you can say "oh well, I don't have a whippet so whatever" next time it might be you and your dog that somebody who knows zip about your dogs and your sport decides to use as a policy wedge. I can tell you that being in the firing line of this stuff tends to be a wake up call. Terriers chase things, too. Any Terrier that courses is captured by the proposed legislation.

Did you read what she wrote? And did anyone read what Diva wrote upthread? I will tell you where the companion animal phase out stuff kicks in. There are two Recommendations in that report that have nothing to do with Greyhound racing, but which, if implemented, would penalise pet dog owners that the report itself acknowledges are law abiding and NOT engaging in live baiting. It's important to understand that the original policy position of the NSW RSPCA when lobbying on these Recommendations was that any coursing heritage breed - whippets, afghans, salukis etc - should be required to be registered on a special "coursing register" even if all the dog ever did was sit on the couch. This registration would have then invoked the provisions of the POCTAA which would have meant that you could not have potential bait animals in your home even if at no time in your life you ever engaged in amateur racing or lure coursing. So the NSW RSPCA wanted people to have to pick between their pet whippet and their pet cat. If that is not BSL, and a shot across the bows of pet ownership, I don't know what is. The Commission didn't go that far, but it did not speak to any representatives of lure coursing or to DogsNSW when it formulated recommendations that would require anyone engaging in the amateur sport of lure coursing to put their dogs on an additional register and give up their pet cats and chooks. Again, the report concedes they have no proof anyone in amateur dog sport is live baiting, but they think we might. If the Commission had even come out and viewed an event it would have seen that it is impossible to stick a bait animal on our lure coursing lines given the tie down pulleys that are used. It's ignorance, and while you can say "oh well, I don't have a whippet so whatever" next time it might be you and your dog that somebody who knows zip about your dogs and your sport decides to use as a policy wedge. I can tell you that being in the firing line of this stuff tends to be a wake up call. Collective punishment of pet dog owners who have SFA to do with commercial greyhound racing courtesy of that champion of pets, the RSPCA. The same RSPCA who has had lure coursing at its events and whose national policy encourages the use of substitute lures etc for hunting and associated activities. And based on absolutely no evidence whatsoever. Clearly no one involved in this debacle has known ANYTHING all along about lure coursing. Fan effing tastic. And people continue to cheer.

You really ARE buying the rhetoric aren't you. How familiar are you with the goals of organisations like PETA? "Rehomed where possible". Riiight. And the RSPCA is already saying that they won't be able to cope. Yep, we have to destroy dogs in order to save them. REALLY? Guns don't live and breathe. Today's Greyhounds do. Furthermore it is still possible to own a firearm and shoot in NSW. It won't be possible to race a dog in NSW or, if the full recommendations are implemented, lure course with one for many people.

There is a world of difference between being "pro-racing" or having to be being "anti" In the middle there's me. I can see there are issues. I know decent people in the industry and I know how they are gutted by this. Decades of breeding, selecting, investing in dogs and bloodlines, all gone forever. I also have a strong objection to the idea that such decent people are fair game for collective punishment by government based on the actions of a minority. In most other contexts, this decision would have civil libertarians in an uproar. I know I believe in a democratic process for deciding these things. That process has been given the finger by Mr Baird who has taken one recommendation of a report that should be put to parliament and made an arbitrary decision that the industry has only 12 months to cease. THAT decision is going to see a lot of dogs die unnecessarily and I'm on the side of the dogs. There are other models to look at. Models ignored and indeed denied by areas of the animal rights movement who point to the USA and tell you about the ban in most states. What they conveniently forget to mention is that while COMMERCIAL racing is banned, hobby racing by owners without betting or significant prize money is not. I'm also on the side of people listening to both sides of the issue and informing themselves before buying a very carefully organised campaign run, at least in part, by people who see any companion animal as an anachronism that should be phased out. The fact that the only reason some people can see for resistance to a virtually immediate ban on the sport would be the retention of personal benefit speaks volumes about the levels of ignorance about this issue that are currently dictating public opinion. It's a crying shame, particularly for the dogs.

I suggest you contact the Cocker Spaniel Society of NSW. I can't access their website from here but they probably have a puppy contact person. Clubs are a great way of finding out who has pups and who is expecting them. They usually also offer good breed advice. I also suggest you expand your colour preferences. Solid Cockers aren't as common as they used to be. A more common colour like blue roan will massively expand your chances of getting a pup. Pick first for temperament, then for breeder support. The only Cocker person I know personally who is exhibiting a solid gold dog is Toni Dennis of Tarrendayle Cockers. She is in the breeder listings here on DOL. ETA: Cockers actually require a fair bit of grooming to look their best. They differ from dogs like Golden Retrievers in that regard.

Looks like a buckle rub to me.

I have no issues with balanced training. I figure it puts the fence around acceptable behaviour. But you use positive reinforcement as much as possible/ The can is an interrupter. I see it as no different to yelling "OI" when a dog is doing something it shouldn't.

There is absolutely no way in hell I'd be injecting any of my dogs with an insecticide (yes, that's what it is) that cannot be reversed if there are issues. Not that I feel strongly about it or anything, :D I'd say vets might recommend it if they think owners won't regularly heartworm treat their dogs. For most dogs I suppose it's a lesser risk than contracting heartworm.

I know some breeders who use a combination of observation and Volhard Puppy Testing to 'grade' pups and then match homes accordingly.

I doubt it. Only about 50% of dogs in this country are registered, vaccinated or microchipped. What on earth makes people think that a law (which won't be resourced for enforcement) will make an ounce of difference to people who don't obey the laws now. It will penalise responsible people and their dogs and do SFA to stem the flow into pounds I'd say. Time will tell.

My guess is it's a disc issue. I'd recommend chiropracty and Bowen therapy. Once a month for both would be ideal. For my poodle with IVDD Valium works better than anti-inflammatories.

The ban affects NSW only. At this stage. The last LC day in the ACT was cancelled due to lack of numbers I thought there had only been one. it should have been last weekend.