DogsAndTheMob

Please post some here. I'd love to see her.

I usually capture stills from a video.

Here's my girl:

I have a three-month-old Brittany. She's my first Brittany, but I've owned and trained quite a few dogs - mostly Border Collies and GSDs - and competed successfully in dog sports. Of all the puppies I've trained, she's the easiest. However, I wouldn't leave her unattended where she could destroy anything. She has an outdoor run as well as a crate indoors, and if I'm likely to be distracted when she's with me, I put her on lead - even indoors. When I had a highly energetic border Collie, I used retrieving games to occupy all that intelligence and drive. I'd hide a ball in the back yard, then send him to find it. I also trained him for and competed in advanced obedience; exercises such as scent discrimination, directed jumping and directed retrieve challenge the dog's intelligence and the handler's communication skills. (Frankly, unless taught skillfully, basic classes in sit, stand, down and heel can be a bit of a yawn for a dog.) If advanced dog obedience is not your thing, there is a wide range of alternative activities... including agility, noseworks and tracking, to name just a few. By the way, dog sports are a great way to meet people and make friends.

I agree. We wouldn't have dogs if we didn't believe we could give them a good life. It's not always obvious when that's no longer the case, but everybody seems eager to voice an opinion. I've sent dogs over the rainbow bridge earlier than others would have done - my heart-dog most painfully; her degenerative myelopathy was not advanced, but she was terrified of falling. I've also kept dogs alive, knowing that they had a quality of life that other people didn't recognise. My heart-dog's grand-daughter lived happily with more advanced DM; she learnt to prop her hindquarters against the clothes hoist while she showed a puppy how to dig. My oodle rescue lived a vibrant life in the world of smell, still able to track me through the paddock long after he lost both sight and hearing. Too often, I've prolonged my pets' lives against my better judgement, at the urging of vets. I've seen them die harder because of it, when their circulation has become too poor for rapid administration of the final anaesthetic. Most recently, my elderly Birman developed unexpected kidney failure. The vets sent her home, knowing that they'd been unable to get her to eat or drink. After a day of forcibly administering food and water, I returned to the vets. They talked about dialysis, and made me feel cruel when I opted for euthenasia. Her blood pressure was so low that they had to inject the anaesthetic directly into the heart. People are too ready to judge others for their decisions.

It is lovely to see her coming out of her shell. I wondered if it was an oestrogen affect. I've just read some articles on its affects on women but I think any possible risks are outweighed by the benefits for my GSD.

Thanks Persephone. It is a delight to see our funny old girl behaving more like herself.

Over the past year, my 13 year old GSD has become increasingly "paranoid", retreating to the bedroom when we want to pat or groom her, or take her outside. (At other times - and particularly meal times - she seems very happy, and she'll follow us outside while we're gardening or feeding the paddock-pets.) I attributed her odd behaviour to dementia, having seen paranoia in a human with early dementia. She also has creeping hindquarters paralysis - possibly due to degenerative myelopathy, and a few weeks ago she developed slight urinary incontinence during night-time sleeps, for which the vet prescribed stilboesterol on a decreasing dose. Her behaviour improved dramatically: no more retreating to the bedroom, and she even started asking for attention. When the dose dropped back from daily to twice weekly, her behaviour regressed, although she's still better than she was. Any suggestion on what's going on? We do need to collect a urine sample for testing (not easy with a paranoid dog) and I know UTIs can cause dementia-like symptoms, but I would not expect stilboesterol to treat a UTI, and certainly not as quickly as this happened.

My father made concrete water dishes for our dogs, using two containers as moulds - a large container as the outer mould, and a smaller container as the mould for the inside of the dish. The best I saw had the outer surface sloping in, with the thickness of the concrete at the base being about three inches, and at the top being about an inch. This version lasted for decades. A little extra lime in the concrete helps to water-proof it, but it would be adviseable to "age" the concrete before use, by filling it with water and letting it sit for a while, then repeating until the pH is neutral.

My boss has two and while they are stunning to look at, they are the most skittish dogs I've ever met. They were socialised and treated like normal dogs, but nobody except my boss can get near them. And if they are at the park and get a fright, they just take off. One sighthound breed that I have definitely crossed off my list! Here is my Borzoi with one of my boss' s Ibizans: That's a shame. I don't think they have to be skittish. The "perfect Sphinx" I saw was competing in Open class obedience, which means that it was reasonably trainable, and not too flighty to stay still for off-lead stand-for-examination. I'd love to see a picture of your Borzoi running.

Have you looked in Masters? A couple of weeks ago, our local Masters store had black plastic fish ponds of various shapes and sizes - all with 30% off. They may have sold out by now, though.

I wish it was that simple, Willem. Every time this subject comes up for discussion, I use Google Scholar to browse through the literature, but the evidence on both sides seems to be weak and inconsistent. There is a hierarchy of evidence for medical and veterinary research. Meta-analyses and reviews based on multiple, well-designed randomised controlled trials are best, followed by well-designed randomised controlled trials. I have seen very few randomised controlled trials of desexing -- not surprisingly, as I doubt if many owners would be willing to leave their dog at the vets, unsure whether they would be collecting an entire pet or a neutered one at the end of the day. Most research on desexing uses epidemiological or retrospective cohort methodologies, which are generally regarded as providing fair to poor evidence. In addition, you need to consider bias, confounding and causality. As an example of confounding, my urban colleagues' pets are usually desexed, my rural neighbours' working dogs are usually entire, and I'm not sure about the hunting dogs I see on Friday nights, heading up the highway in cages on the backs of utilities. I'm sure the owners of these three groups manage their dogs' health and behaviour quite differently, and studies that fail to account for such demographic differences (i.e. many studies) are likely to produce spurious results. The studies you linked to are interesting, but here are just a couple of comments: There are questions about causality in the Golden Retriever study; were dogs lame because they were desexed, or desexed because they were showing signs of lameness? The study also had an interesting way of allocating months of health to entire vs neutered status - see point 4 in Dr Barker's comments. Despite the statistically significant link between some cancers and desexing found in the Visla study, the study was unable to demonstrate any affect of neutering on longevity. This would suggest either that the cancers were insignificant in their affects on the population (perhaps due to low incidence) or that other risks flowed in the opposite direction. It's worth noting, also, that this study does not advise against desexing, it merely suggests that veterinarians should discuss possible risks with their clients. Overall, I have not found anything in the literature on which I would base a decision, either way. My next female dog will probably be desexed, because neither seclusion during oestrus nor false-pregnancy after oestrus seems to be a happy experience. In addition, I adopted an aged dog with pyometrium, whose health ruled out desexing, and I don't want to see another bitch endure that. My feelings about desexing my male dogs are more ambivalent; I've owned entire dogs that have lived to extreme old age without problems, and those that I've had desexed have seemed to have been in pain for a week or more afterwards -- more so than the bitches, actually. I'll probably opt for late-life desexing to avoid prostate cancer; I don't see the logic in desexing at six months to avoid a problem that might occur many years later. Edited to add: My observations as a one-time dog training instructor suggest that dog-to-dog aggression can be a problem in some entire male dogs. I would opt for de-sexing (and have done so in the past) if I had any concerns that my teenage male pup was inclined to be be sharp or bossy towards other dogs. I'd do so sooner rather than later; you can't put the genie back into the bottle.

I've loved Ibizan Hounds, ever since I saw one, 30 or more years ago, in perfect Sphinx posture during the Down Stay in obedience competition. Unfortunately, commonsense says "No" -- I don't have time or resources to cope with a sight-hound (plus) that can soar over 5 foot fences. Speaking of soaring over fences, google "Ibizan Hound jumping" for some pictures of sheer beauty.

The potential impact of this law worries me. I'm no economist, but I think simple economic theory states that supply always increases to meet demand. If the law makes it difficult for responsible breeders to supply would-be pet owners, will suppliers from less regulated countries try to make a profit from the market? If so, will Australia's quarantine protections withstand attack in the international courts? Or will free-trade agreements trump quarantine law? Read this link: http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/01/06/avoiding-buying-illegally-imported-pet-dogs.aspx "A much-needed crackdown on U.S. businesses like puppy mills that breed pets purely for profit and without regard for the health and well-being of the animals, is having an unintended consequence. Another often unscrupulous business, the importation of puppies from countries with fewer breeding restrictions, is stepping in to answer U.S. consumer demand for purebred and cross-bred puppies." And from this link: https://globalhealthvet.com/2014/10/31/dog-imports-into-the-united-states/ The sale of puppies is a big market in countries like the US, and that has driven some people to establish intensive puppy breeding operations (puppy mills) to quickly supply the increasing demand in specific dog breeds. Doing this in countries with limited regulation regarding small animals allows this industry to escape some of the oversight that exists in the US in regards to pet health and welfare. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regulates importations of dogs and cats and these animals should not be imported from rabies-endemic countries until one month after they receive their rabies vaccination (given at 3 months of age). This puts the animals at a minimum of 4 months of age until they can be shipped to the US. Unfortunately, puppies younger than 3 months can be sold at a much higher price (sometimes thousands of dollars per dog) and some importers have falsified the dogs’ documents to state that they are 4 month old in order to comply with import requirements, when in fact they are much younger.

Not a dog story, but... A visitor looked at my parents' Jersey house cow and a group of Fresian calves, and asked, "Is she their mother?" Umm... They're different breeds, and cows don't have litters.

Could it be caused by a toy? My hyper-allergic cat developed bald spots at both corners of her mouth after I bought her a slinky-type toy made from fleece. She looked like The Joker. The toy went into the bin, and she has had no recurrences of bald spots on her face.

I owned a Siberian Husky for 13 wonderful and fraught years. She was everything I wanted: very people-friendly and dog-friendly, albeit quite dominant, and fascinating to own - her behaviour and even her facial expressions were very different from my other dogs. An obedience judge asked me why I got a "feral" husky, but I found her generally easy to train and she did well in Novice obedience competition - I just had to find the right motivator. Despite this, I decided not to get another husky; her prey drive needed careful management and she totally lacked the instinct to stay with the pack that my border collies and german shepherds display. This meant that I rarely let her run free in the paddock and I couldn't take my eye off her when I did. I felt that this impacted on her quality of life - and so, no more huskies for me.

I was delighted to discover that the Animal Referral and Emergency Centre now has an after-hours emergency clinic in East Maitland NSW. This means that I'm now looking for a good vet in Maitland or East Maitland, where I can take my dogs for routine care. Any recommendations?

This is from the catalogue of Sydney All Breeds DTC's 1963 4th annual obedience trial: 23 breeds - 115 dogs competing. German shepherds 45, cocker spaniels 7, labradors 12, poodles 9, Pekingese 1, dobermanns 7, Maltese 2, bullmastiff1, Norwegian buhund 1, miniature schnauzer 1, corgi 5, Airedale1, golden retriever 4, Australian cattle dog 2, Samoyed 2, kelpie 4, boxer2, Bassett hound 1, Australian terrier 2, scotch collie 3, Dalmatian 2, pug 1, border collie 1. The Catalogue is annotated. The winners in the two novice rings were a Pekingese and a labrador retriever. The winners in the two open rings were a Pembroke corgi and a dobermann. The winner in the UD ring was a german shepherd.The first four place getters in each ring received sashes. In addition, each first place winner received a trophy to the value of £5/5d. There were also 34 donated special trophies, including highest Airedale score, best lady handler score, highest member score, highest non-member score, highest toy score and best puppy under 12 months.

As well as the interesting discussion, this blog shows some images of pugs in art and history. Queen Victoria's pug looks less extreme in head shape than the pugs in18th and 19th century paintings, so I wonder if there's an element of artistic licence in the paintings - which anticipated the pugs of today. I think the comments below the blog are worth reading, too. Pugs in history and interature

Steve, I agree that we need to address health issues related to breed type, but recessives are important too. I can (and do) choose not to purchase a dog of a breed with extreme conformation, or to look for less extreme examples of the breed. Being blind-sided by recessives - in my case, two German Shepherds with degenerative myelopathy - would be enough to turn me away from purebred dogs if I did not believe that the risks with crossbreeds were as bad or worse. I like the idea of fitness tests for brachycephalic dogs, and I think breeders and breed judges need to be trained to evaluate breed standards in the context of the dogs that were in the show ring at the time each standard was developed. There are plenty of old photos of champions in breed books and on the Internet. I applaud the efforts of the MDBA but we need to mainstream these efforts, in order to assure an adequate gene pool of healthy dogs for breed survival.

Once a dog does escape, it becomes very difficult to keep him in. I have areas with rural fencing, a verandah with 1.5 metre pool fencing, and runs with 2 metre mesh fencing - and a border collie who has scaled or jumped every fence. Most of the time, he doesn't bother to do so, being quite happy to watch the livestock through even the rural fencing, but we need to crate or tether him, on the few occasions when we are unable to have him inside or supervise him outside. I spent one Christmas raising a relative's 2 metre plus fence by another 40 cm because her German Shepherd had learned to scale it. When we lived in suburbia, we were forced to put cement footings beneath our fence after our Siberian Husky shifted boulders as big as her torso to get under the fence.

We've been talking about the future of purebred dogs in another thread, and public relations has been identified as an issue. I'm not very savvy about PR and social media, but here are some of my musings: I've been looking at breeders' websites recently, and I love those that showcase photos of their dogs in everyday activities. I like to see dogs running or resting amicably with other dogs. I like to see herding dogs herding and gundogs retrieving. Quite frankly, photos of dogs in show poses, swathed in ribbons, leave me cold. I hate statements that a breeder's puppies are suitable for every possible activity - even, on a website I looked at recently, for show, pet, obedience, tracking, agility, herding and shutzhund. Umm, I've competed successfully in herding, and the traits of a good herding dog are quite different from those that make a dog suitable for shutzhund. How can a breeder state that their puppies are suitable for a sport if they have never competed in that sport? It's like a breeder of agility dogs who never enters the show ring selling her puppies as show prospects. I like breeder websites that publish the actual health scores of their dogs. Not only does that help with breeder selection , it also helps convey a sense of the health status of the breed. Given the public (and veterinary) perception of purebred dogs as in-bred, I would like to see inbreeding co-efficients published with litter notifications. I've been impressed by: The Facebook page of the Swiss White Shepherd Dog Club of Australia - lovely dogs, lovely photos and information about breed fun days. The Website of Bluegrace Portuguese Water Dogs - lots of useful information and some great photos. Starkehre's thread on her puppies, which shows the time and effort a good breeder devotes to a litter. The Skyhaven Flat Coated Retriever website photo of Bushman Wind Me Up Watch Me Go with her Best Baby Puppy in Group ribbon in her mouth - it's absolutely gorgeous! Who do you think is "getting it right" and how else can we improve the profile af purebred dogs?

I believe that many ANKC breeders are doing a lot to address the problem of hereditary disease in purebred dogs, I've been looking through breeder websites because I'm planning to get another dog in the next few years, although I haven't yet decided on the breed. Most of the websites state that their dogs are health screened, and many include their dogs' hip and elbow scores as well as genetic profiles. (As feedback for breeders, I find "motherhood" statements about health-testing annoying; if the results are acceptable, publish them. If they are not, state that you have withdrawn the dog from your breeding program. If there is a good reason to breed from a dog despite a poor health report, outline the reason and the steps you are taking to manage the risk.) I think we need to consider: What incentives can be used to induce all ANKC breeeders to screen their dogs? How do we publicise the efforts that breeders are making? I agree with Llok that health testing needs to be linked in some way with Championship awards. Is a dog with a disabling or debilitating genetic disease truly worthy of the title of Champion? The methods decided upon need to be flexible enough to adapt rapidly to changes in each breed's health profile, but also have enough impact to influence breeders' decisions. There will always be those who defy pressure for improvement, so publicity is essential, not only to sway public opinion on purebred dogs and their breeders, but also to persuade purchasers that it is worth spending the extra dollars and effort required to get their puppies from breeders who health screen their dogs.

It's great to have input from a breeder, alpha bet. Maintaining genetic diversity is essential, and I have wondered how breeders cope with the reduced pool of dogs available for breeding. Even in the past when, I think, many breeders seemed to keep more dogs and were less constrained by limitations imposed on the number of litters bred from a bitch, breeders had trouble maintaining genetic diversity. I knew of breeders who recovered from unexpected set-backs such as the early death of a dog or its elimination from their breeding program for other reasons, by breeding to dogs they had sold as pets. Now, when most pet dogs are de-sexed early, how do breeders recover from such set-backs, particularly in breeds which have small numbers and smaller gene-pools? I agree with both comments, Redsonic and LisaCC. I should like to add, however, that breeding good quality dogs is challenging, and I can understand why breeders may not have the passion to spare for PR.