Salukifan

Time to get someone with decent canine behavioural skills and expertise to visit you and assist.

Good. Time to sheet home the responsibility for these kinds of attacks to where it rightly belongs. My sympathies are confined to the gentleman who was attacked and the dog that paid the ultimate price for its owner's failure to control it.

The chiro/bowen combination kept my oldest boy in pretty good physical condition and has my other old dogs going well.

I would rather buy Australian owned but not at the cost of my dog's enjoyment of their food or their condition.

Baby oil works well too

I'd suggest regular Bowen therapy

Swedish Valhund springs to mind.

I agree. But some breeds are definitely more easily triggered to bark than others. I'd not consider any of Perfume's potential breeds particularly quiet.

It has always been the case that a plant based diet could not provide complete proteins to a dog. Until now that is, enter quinoa. I don't get why you'd do this to an animal clearly designed to eat meat. You want a vegetarian pet, then nature provides for those.

Everything depends on the owner.

If I was going to raise a pup on predominantly dry food, I'd be feeding a better quality dry than Supercoat. My guess is she'll find a better quality dry more palatable too. I think dry and raw meaty bones like chicken wings is fine to raise a pup.

Agree with those who advise that you meet both breeds. And just to up the challenge, also consider taking a look at the German Spitz.

Play Enjoy Relax Socialise in controlled conditions Train in the basics.

You know, for all the talk of house marking on social media, I've yet to see a pic. Why is that? The last information I saw about this supposed stealing of dogs for fighting suggests that people would be far better off considering that some sick individuals just take dogs to torture them. We get the same reports here in the ACT and as far as I know the only dog abuse cases with 'taken' dogs have been plain old animal cruelty.

Dodger and I will be at the Whippet Club stand on Saturday. :)

If you are already competing in agility, you probably know what breeds are competitive. However, breed is only the start of the equation. Be honest with yourself. Do you have, or do you think you can work to acquire, the kind of reflexes and fitness it takes to handle a really high drive, hair trigger dog on a course? I've seen quite a few "dogs for the job" barking and spinning in frustration because their handlers really aren't capable of handling them at the level of expertise they need to get the most from them. If you are prepared to put the work in then I think the 'dog for the job' is one breed. Border Collie. Not just ANY BC, but one from performance lines. There are kennels out there with wait lists as long as your arm who produce Agility Champions in spades. If you want to be a top competitor, you head there. But a word of caution. Super high drive, super resilient dogs often come with attitude to match. They need boundaries and they can be reactive. If you just want a solid prospect the breeds open up. Most of the lighter framed working and gun dog breeds. Belgian Shepherds, Kelpies, Utility Gundogs (including the Brittany) are all worth a look. I'd go a Toy Poodle over the Mini's - they tend to be more drivey. Choose a dog you want to live with. If the fates conspire and your dog becomes unsound, you've got a long time to live with your choice. And good luck! How fit is your current dog? If he's shutting down after half a day, you might want to see if you can improve his fitness.

I have a miniature and toy poodles but wouldn't have a standard. I find the temperament of the standards more akin to a large gun dog (surprise surprise) and prefer the smaller poodles. I have Whippets but wouldn't have a Greyhound. Nothing wrong with Greys, they are just a bit big for me.

If it was a marrow bone, there's your answer right there. Owner needs a new vet!

No offence taken.

Not looking for an argument. You said the dog was on "enforced rest". I took that to mean "no exercise". My bad.

I agree. I'd be looking for more information on the dog's condition AND a diet sheet. I'd also want to know what the dog had been fed. I could potentially give any dog those symptoms if I fed enough fat.

A desexed dog can be walked on lead.

If people feel the need to clip a dog in summer, they should take a leaf out of horse owners' books and do a low trace clip. This takes the hair off the areas of the animal where heat is most likely to build up/dissipate but leaves coat to protect. I'm no fan of clipping dogs to "deal with" heat but if one must....

Pedigrees record antecedents. No, they don't tell you anything about a dog's health or temperament or that of its ancestors. They do, however, give you a place to start. That's one step ahead of a dog of unknown history. With them you have nowhere to start.

To me "spoilt" isn't about dogs leading a good life but leading one with no boundaries. My dogs have the run of the house, sleep on the bed (if they choose to) get monthly chiropractic and bowen therapy, go to the vets when they need to and a eat good quality diet. They have a lot of toys, get regular treats, go on holidays with me and have numerous coats and collars. To me that's just good husbandry. Do I expect and insist on certain standards of behaviour from them? Absolutely. So no I don't think they are "spoilt".