espinay2

Original purpose and instinct is very important to me for my breed. In many ways I have changed the way I live to support that and to allow my dogs to express it. I have done a lot of research into working ability and the traits that support it as well as how the breeds structure supports its purpose. There are no dog sports that test the purpose or ability of a livestock guardian. In actual fact, most sports require traits that work against that natural ability. Mainly because they require the focus on and use of prey drive and an ability to work on command where's the breed is required to think and act independently and to have an almost non existent prey drive. For this reason I have done some work with my dogs, but no dog sports and have not aimed for or even tried to develop those skills in my dogs. A dog that is too prey or drive focussed is not something I want to see and can be a problem (chasing and injuring or killing stock or other animals they are required to protect for example). And it is not a direction I ever want to move my breed in. As an example of this, my breed is required to be able to produce bursts of speed, and if you saw them racing down a paddock in response to a threat it looks pretty impressive. I love lure coursing and have had a lot of fun helping out at trials. But I would never train or run my dogs in lure coursing as those drives are so against the drives that are necessary for my dogs breed to do its job and not something I want to see develop in them.

Reason for surgical is that till recently (and still to a large extent) it is the most successful way of ensuring success with frozen semen. Frozen semen only lasts for a very short time once thawed (around 5 to 7 hours absolute maximum and generally less - in comparison, fresh semen can last up to seven days or more in the bitch with fresh chilled lasting several days on average ). The window of opportunity for fertilisation is very narrow - once a bitch ovulates and releases eggs, it is still around another 62 to 68 hours before they are ready for fertilisation (they are still immature at ovulation) and you then have only a few hours window in which the eggs can be fertilised. Sperm that got there ahead of time just has to hang around waiting for the eggs to be ready. This means timing has to be perfect for frozen semen in particular to get the sperm in position at exactly the right moment. Surgical insemination allows for positioning of the semen virtually on top of the eggs - so they don't have to swim very far to be where they need to be (with TCI, the eggs are placed just inside the cervix and still have to swim the length of the uterus all the way to the top of both uterine horns). Surgical also allows the vet to examine the uterus for issues, which is particularly useful with an older bitch. They can check the uterus for cysts etc which may inhibit a successful pregnancy (and can even pop endometrial cysts to make them less of an issue). TCI is becoming more popular and in some situations it is a good option, particularly as there is virtually nil recovery time and no surgery required. But surgical still has its place, particularly with older bitches where you want to check uterine health and in cases where the quality of the semen is low and you want to give it the very best chance of being where it needs to be. Yes, a bitch releases multiple eggs per season. The eggs are all ready and fertilised at the same time (pups that are smaller are not the result of different matings but of placental placement and attachment - some are in a better position than others/are better attached so get better nutrients, so simply grow better). if she is mated several times (and potentially by several dogs), it just depends which little swimmer is there, ready and waiting and strong enough to penetrate the egg first at the right moment. Thus there is potential for different eggs to be fertilised by the semen of different dogs. Eggs btw, float around freely for about a week after fertilisation, before spacing themselves along the uterine horns and attaching to the uterine wall.

I have several dogs on 'breeders terms' (currently 5 in total). Some bred by another breeder that live with me and some bred by me that live with others. Purchase prices vary on them from nil to part to full. Each dog and situation is different and each arrangement is different. Each has different responsibilities and gains for each of the parties. There is not one size fits all even with the same people involved. What doesn't vary though is the need for a working relationship between the parties. And like any partnership or marriage they require people willing to maintain that relationship. i.e. talk to each other and discuss things openly and clearly. There are always going to be things that pop up that were not thought of when the arrangement was first made. Just like there are things that come up after someone has said their marriage vows that they did not envisage when they signed that contract. While you can try and think of everything, you never do. What is important is how you handle them together when they do come up. And also sticking to your word and the intent of the original agreement (unless and until it is mutually agreed otherwise if the situation changes - and by that I don't just mean 'changing your mind'). I am very grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me through breeders terms arrangements as it has brought me dogs I would not have access to otherwise, allowed me to maintain access to dogs I would not be able to have otherwise and allowed those dogs to all live a life as a spoiled member of the family (by allowing me to keep numbers manageable so all my dogs live a quality life and by placing dogs in loving homes where they too get a quality life while still being able to contribute to the future of the breed). It has also brought me good friends and that friendship is invaluable.

Bitches come in early, bitches ovulate quicker than expected, breeders want to give owners some trust and space and don't expect to live in their pocket to oversee the dog. Could be any number of reasons for things. It seems like at the moment you are trying to latch onto anything you can to justify your feelings. As has already been suggested, these are things you need to talk through, like an adult, with the breeder.

If you feel you can not live up to the terms of the agreement you made with them when you bought the dog, then handing the dog back may indeed be the best option for everyone.

Which is a big pity as it means potentially that many pet owners will miss out on owning good dogs. And breeders breeding programs will be affected as they breed less often - or have to keep more dogs themselves which is becoming harder and harder to do in this day and age. Partnerships in breeding where dogs are placed in loving homes but still may be accessed by a breeder are a win win for the dogs themselves and for our precious breeds that we work so hard to maintain. Makes me very sad.

It used to be that no one used contracts and a persons word was their bond. It is fairly common practice to place a male in a loving pet home but still request access to the dog to be used at stud without paying a stud fee. Many people have done it, still do it, and have no problem with it. Nowdays of course written contracts are more common, but bottom line is you entered into an agreement with the owner when you bought the dog that they could use the dog in return for you purchasing the dog at a reduced fee. Everything else you talk about to me just sounds like the things I do for friends and friends do for me. Really your beef sounds a personal one and has not much to do with the dog being used at stud in accordance with the terms you originally agreed to. I suggest you sit down and talk it through with the breeder like adults and come to some agreement that you are both happy with.

Just like other joints, it is considered to have both genetic and environmental influences. As far as screening goes, you can x-Ray and score through OFA (www.offa.org).

Yes I am a member of the Pyrenean Mountain Dog Club of Victoria. It is the pseudo national club for our breed as our breed is not numeric enough to support more clubs. Because of my distance from their main activities I don't participate much beyond sending stuff for the newsletter (which I try to do regularly) and having the club brochures on hand when we do breed info stalls up here (which I arrange for events such as Dogs on Show with the help of some other owners up here). I am a past Secretary of the Dalmatian Club of the ACT (when I owned a Dalmatian) but am no longer a member. We were very active in promotion the breed and educating on the down sides of ownership at the time which was during the release of several 101 Dalmatian movies - we did movie theatre appearances, department store and shopping centre appearances, parades, info days and stalls and ran fun days as well as a show and even had our dogs appear in an opera. I am also currently a member of the Great Pyrenees Club of America. They are a lot stricter on membership/joining and required sponsorship from two members and a specific approval process to ensure 'good standing'. It is a lot bigger organisation than here in Australia so a lot more going on. More relevant to me as a breeder with their health programs etc. I get over there about every two years to the National and attend the general meeting held at that event.

Actually something similar to this clip is what I generally recommend and have done from time to time on customer dogs as well as my own older dogs. There was also a Border Collie in the class I taught last night who had had this done this week at a groomer too. I have always referred to it as a 'Belly Buzz'. Basically you clip the chest and belly of the dog and between the back legs. This allows the dog to cool off quicker (and the belly can have contact with cool surfaces) but keeps the rest of the coat intact. As for shorter haired dogs supposedly not suffering as much, I always remember the time I was down the coast with my dogs (several Pyreneans and a Dalmatian) when we had a sudden heat wave. It was my Dalmatian we had the heat stroke scare with. The Pyrs remained quite comfortable and had no issues with the heat. All dogs were being kept quiet and in the shade together. No difference in the activity level, care or environment they were in.

Google 'post clipping alopecia'. Is a pretty common problem with dogs that are clipped. May not happen the first few times they are clipped, but common enough in double coated breeds in particular that it has a name. Here is a good article on hair length and temperature tolerance that provides a scientific explanation of that aspect: http://www.lgd.org/l.../hairlength.htm Some useful posters that show things such as the difference in temperature measurements:

Take a look at the beds and canvas covers at GreatRugs Very strong. The best I have found.

I think if I charged expenses plus lets say a 10% profit for a pup I would likely be charging way way more than I actually do now. IMO it is a good thing I am not adding everything up! I wish I could make a profit! Breaking even or even having a few dollars left in the hand may be possible after the occasional litter, but if we are talking profit (in the manner of running a business) then everything spent to get to that point needs to be taken into consideration (from 'set up costs' to 'running expenses' etc). Remember that what is incoming from puppy sales is Gross profit not net. If you are talking net profit you have to take out expenses first. Expenses means everything from purchase price of the bitch, to what it costs to raise her from a pup, to research and resources and ongoing training (books, magazines, internet for networking, seminar attendance, attendance at events and meetings etc) to titling, health testing, effort put into training, facilities required (fencing, containment, whelping room and supplies and even property purchase costs if you buy a property with breeding dogs in mind), grooming costs (electricity, products, time, equipment), advertising (including website construction and maintenance, website ads such as a DOL listing, magazine advertising etc), membership fees, regular health care and maintenance, food and supplements, stud fees, travel to the stud dog (or if it is your own dog, his purchase cost, care, health tests, titling, feeding etc etc), importing frozen semen, semen storage, progesterone testing, artificial insemination, travel to and from everything, ultrasound, any veterinary care required for whelping (minimum post whelping check of bitch and pups for me, which is a house call), feeding extra to an in whelp/lactating bitch, washing (not a small expense! at least one load per day minimum with costs for electricity and laundry powder - and last litter I killed my washing machine and needed to purchase a new one!), extra heating or cooling expenses for the litter, worming, vaccination, microchipping and registration for the litter plus travel for vet visits - I also do a full well check at the vets for each puppy before they go home, and DNA tests or other health testing you are doing on the puppies, taking time of work to raise the litter (8 weeks for me usually), cost of feeding the litter till at least 8 weeks of age and time and money spent on litter raising such as equipment for the puppy yard (see www.puppyculture.com for what can go into raising a litter well), money spent on printing of information material for new puppy owners (so computer and printer costs and ink/paper costs), cost of items provided in the puppy pack, time spent interviewing prospective owners and emailing (many hours), time spent with prospective owners including visits to your home, any additional transport you may provide such a to airports if pups are flying to their new home, post purchase assistance which can include many hours on the phone and email as well as home visits (and in my case a twice yearly newsletter as well). Add to that that it is as mentioned against the code of ethics to breed every season and there are strict rules to be followed about how often a bitch can be bred. While some costs can be averaged out over more than one litter, a lot of costs are ones that will be repeated for each litter a breeder has. IMO I think puppy buyers are lucky that most breeders who pour their heart, soul and money into breeding are not charging what their 'product' really costs in monetary terms. I think if we were forced to do that, the purchase price of many pups would go up significantly.

I have always stayed with them and think I always will. But I will not judge anyone as some may simply not cope and who are we to say how they deal with death. Most of the ones I have had to give their wings have gone peacefully. One didn't. It was her time and that was more than clear but she was a stubborn pig headed dog whose brain did not agree even when she was in so much pain and physically could not go on. She fought to stay with me. I was a wreck. It was traumatic and still haunts me to a certain extent. Even though nothing I could have done would have made it any different. I will still stay, but I can understand why some don't.

What happened to November?

Then perhaps any trainer will do .... Though I know Albie's owner has found it useful to work through things in a structured way such as being sure he was used to wheel chairs, crutches, jerky movements and grabs, crowding, loud noises, being rushed by people, lifts, things being thrown around him and so on. So the guidance was helpful.

The points to take away IMO are the following: They claimed their dogs were healthy and free of genetic disease but did not hip score their dogs. They also claimed despite evidence to the contrary that HD is purely environmental. It was these claims which were proven as false and misleading in court that primarily had them in trouble. And why part of the court decision included them making clear statements in any future advertising. If they had hip scored, took account of the scores in their breeding program, advised owners of the scores, and had told them that HD was polygenetic and also influenced by environment, a pup developing HD would likely not have been an issue for them legally (as it sometimes happens at the best of times). Info from the fair trading site: https://www.qld.gov.au/law/laws-regulated-industries-and-accountability/queensland-laws-and-regulations/fair-trading-services-programs-and-resources/fair-trading-latest-news/media-statements/gympie-breeder-gone-to-the-dogs/

My understanding is the dog was to be a therapy dog, not an assistance dog. No she doesn't do training, but can provide guidance on the type of things he should be doing with the dog to prepare it for its role.

Dogs VIC have a therapy dog program and coordinator. She has provided excellent help and guidance to one of my puppy owners who has recently been tested and certified through their program. She has worked with her through the whole process from before she got the puppy to certification at age 2.

Things that I have learnt to live with and even appreciate, but which many find a 'challenge': The barking - Pyrs bark to warn predators they are on duty. They are crepuscal so this can be worse at dawn and dusk. This can be a big challenge for owners with neighbours in earshot and needs careful management. Even then it can be an issue (prevented from barking they can stress as they are prevented from doing their job). This is generally a 'make or break' trait for most homes. The escape artist tendencies - They are an independent breed bred to think for themselves and patrol large areas. If they can push out the boundaries of their territory to keep predators further away they will (by several miles). And they are not very good at listening to owners when 'on a mission'. There is a saying that an offlead Pyr is a disapyr. They are shape shifters who can go over, under or through. And once they know they can get out, they will keep trying to. A LOT of people underestimate their fencing needs. The shedding - hair on and in everything. All. The. Time. Their independence - now this is something I personally love as dogs that are constantly asking for things to do and jump to your every command drive me batty. But many can't handle the 'primitive' free thinking of a Pyr. Some call it stubbornness. It is more a case that they don't feel what you ask has any importance to them at that point in time. They have better things to do and can't see the point. Owning a Pyr is very much a partnership built on mutual respect and trust. They don't suffer fools.

I have the oztrail compact 2.4 x 2.4. It is about 7 or 8 years old and still going strong (and I don't go easy on it LOL! - the roof is left on and just stuffed in the bag with it. only thing getting a bit 'old' is the bag! and agree the bag is the worst thing about it). Easy for me to put up by myself and can fit two large pens underneath it (one c crate SP8 and a no name of similar size but just slightly narrower) plus grooming table etc. All walls and silver walls can be purchased in the appropriate size. I honestly wouldn't use anything else.

Let her run and play :) Don't let her 'play rough' with other dogs, and I agree on keeping her out of competitive sports at this point, particularly the lure coursing in case she takes a tumble at high speed (we will see that monkey magic again soon enough :p ) but keeping her fit is good, as mentioned, for a hopefully easy whelping. She should self limit as she gets bigger - generally in the last couple of weeks.

White knight syndrome (google it ;) ). You also see it a lot with rescues. I personally hate the word runt as it s so misapplied. There are pups that are small because of some health issue that fail to thrive, then there are pups that are small in the beginning due to less than ideal placement in the uterus (they just didn't get 'fed' as much as their littermates prior to being born or were in a crowded spot) who grow up to be completely normal and normal size (and occasionally bigger than littermates).

As Rebanne says, with only one prog test you have no way of knowing when she ovulated, so can not pinpoint timing. Agree that if you nee accurate timing you will likely need to prog test leading up to her due date to catch the drop.

Yep, around 10K is an average budget. Starting from the time it is born to implement all requirements from the earliest possible day, the earliest the pup will be here will be around 10 months of age on average. So, costs can vary depending on the size of the breed as a large breed pup will cost more to fly due to the size/weight of the dog at that age.