DogsAndTheMob

I agree that people should be allowed to keep dogs in apartments but there are some specific issues that apartment-living dog owners need to consider. High-rise apartments tend to be very low-stimulus environments in comparison to stand-alone houses, where dogs can see birds, other wildlife and neighbouring people and dogs. Toileting and off-leash exercise are potentially problematic because people usually can’t install dog doors or even take their dogs out into their own back yards. I think welfare organisations could help in a more practical way by publishing specific guidelines for people keeping dogs in apartments. The guidelines might include pros and cons for people who are considering getting a dog, suggestions for managing dogs in apartments while providing a good quality of life, and a contingency planning checklist that covers planning for unexpected delays getting home, owner illness and times when the dog has diarrhoea or is otherwise unwell etc.

Reportedly, the owner’s excuse was that the dog was sick. What sort of person leaves a sick dog outside on a hot day? Also, the air conditioning unit would very likely have been venting even hotter air onto the balcony.

Looking at comments, people are most disturbed by the inclusion of Merle as a health problem, pointing out that homozygous Merle is is problematic but heterozygous Merle usually isn’t. I wonder why the assessment focuses on Merle and ignores the problems associated with extreme white and dilute blue. I’m also not sure why it recommends visual identification of Merle, giving a description that could easily lead to confusion about roan, when a DNA test is available. From a big picture point of view, the wording implies that dogs that pass the assessment are suitable for breeding, without discussion of the need for hip, elbow, eye and cardiac testing, DNA testing or other breed-specific testing.

This is in Britain so is unlikely to Immediately impact Australian breeders. From the press release: “The IHA Tool was developed in partnership with PetProov* and is based on research from the Royal Veterinary College. The Tool is a 10-point checklist intended to assist dog breeders, licensing officers and prospective dog owners to carry out a visual check of any dog in assessing their innate health characteristics. The 10 criteria aim to capture the most common and serious extreme conformations in dogs today with an overall aim of achieving physically healthier dogs. The criteria may change over time in response to new evidence.” https://www.bsava.com/article/new-innate-health-tool-available-to-assess-dogs-suitability-to-breed/

Not necessarily. If my dogs need to toilet in the night, I put them outside for a few minutes. At 3.30 am, I would very likely leave them outside while I made myself a hot drink. And if I had brachy-breed dogs, I might start my day at 3am in summer so that they had an opportunity to explore the yard and go for a walk before it became too hot. I wouldn’t put them outside in the the front yard of an urban block, but I’m very risk averse and maybe her back yard is too steep or otherwise unsuitable for pugs.

That’s really interesting. It’s great to hear of people using them effectively.

1080 is horrible. So are livestock deaths from dog attacks. I’d love to think that guardian dogs could prevent the suffering but I’ve yet to be convinced that it is a widely applicable solution. It would be interesting to know whether or not the farmers in your region have opted against guardian dogs for well-considered reasons.

Too often, I see people on social media telling other people to get livestock guardian dogs to protect a dozen hens or half a dozen sheep on their small acreage. I bite my tongue and scroll on, but I find it intensely frustrating. I foresee sad outcomes for the guardian dogs and possibly for the livestock, particularly if people think they can buy a guardian breed puppy “off the shelf”, put it with their animals and expect it to do its job without any training or an appropriate introduction to livestock. What will they do if the puppy starts playing with the animals it should be guarding, if the neighbours complain about its barking or if they decide they no longer want to keep livestock or even live on a farm? Are those people prepared to care for a large, vociferous dog throughout its lifespan? Also, it doesn’t make sense, in financial or lifestyle terms, to take on a 15 year responsibility for a large dog to protect a few animals that might be protected with far less cost and a similar investment of time by better fencing, enclosures and management. I had always assumed that livestock guardian dogs were a more sensible choice on large acreage Australian farms but some of my recent reading has made me question that. So I have a question for people with more experience of large scale farming than me (eg @persephone) … under what circumstances do you think it would make sense to get a livestock guardian dog?

The Australian Cattle-Dog by “Sir Bedivere” (includes photographs) Out of interest, I have started searching for references to cattle dogs in papers accessible on Trove.

I’ve spent a lot of time in rural NSW over the past 50 years, including during droughts when I saw a lot of farmers and their livestock on “the long paddock”. I’ve rarely (if ever) seen ACDs working livestock; most farmers I’ve seen have used kelpies, border collies or kelpie x border collie crosses with both sheep and cattle. I did see a lot of ACDs used by tradesmen and farm workers as travelling companions and guards for their utes and equipment but that is much less common now. I believe (although I can’t be certain) that there are fewer border collie x kelpie crosses now because more farmers buy their dogs from professional breeders, whereas in the past one farmer would breed his best working bitch to a neighbour’s top working dog, irrespective of breed. This may have had the benefit of producing dogs that were better suited to the local conditions but also the downside of not accessing the best available genetics in the state or country. Edited to add: When I was competing in ANKC herding with my border collie, one of the best dogs I saw was a red cattle dog bitch. She worked sheep very gently but effectively, which was totally different from the stereotyped depictions I’d heard of cattle dogs on stock. I can’t remember seeing any other ACDs working stock, although I can remember seeing border collies and kelpies mustering, droving and working in stock yards.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has released a plan calling for reforms to the veterinary sector, to prevent pet owners being surprised by unexpected bills. i have mixed feelings about this, and the possibility of similar reforms here in Australia. Vet bills can quickly add up to thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars, which could be financially devastating… or emotionally devastating, if the alternative Is euthanasia. On the other hands, I don’t think most vet practices are making large profits, so imposing additional regulations might force some practices out of business. https://www.vettimes.com/news/business/practice-developments/cma-unveils-plan-for-major-reforms-of-veterinary-sector

I would hope that those with longtime experience could be grandfathered in, both for rescue and for the traditional boarding kennels. I know people with a lifelong interest in dogs combined with decades of experience in providing quality care, which surely outweighs a six month online course. If they drop out of the industry because of onerous new requirements, then that is likely to exacerbate the strain on over-stretched rescue and the lack of access to boarding facilities, particularly in country areas and/or during holidays.

There are substantial changes in the new ANKC Obedience rules, which will start from January 2026. Group stays have been removed from all levels, with the exception of the UD and UDX Group Stand for Examinations. Hopefully, this will bring back some of the competitors who thought that group stays were too dangerous. Also, dogs with their CDX titles can compete in UDX as well as UD. This provides a non-jumping pathway to Obedience Champion. The most substantial change to Rally competition is the introduction of a Rally Grand Champion title.

I suspect that they’d get inaccurate responses from people with unregistered dogs or more animals than allowed by council ordinances. From the POV of councils, I’d be worried that state governments might use the data to impose new Key Performance Indicators such as % of animals registered, with associated penalties. I worked in data and I saw my state’s bureaucrats develop and use KPIs in similar ways to justify withholding funding.

This is from a screenshot of the video purportedly showing Valerie’s reunion with her people. I wouldn’t expect to see toenails like that on a dog that’s been fending for itself in rocky terrain.