Willem

would you have bought him if the breeder would have told you that there are some issues with this pup as he was born without balls?...or do you think this would be a defect compromising the value of the dog? Do you also consider to crop his ears and dock his tail because there are 'some pros and cons' in it? Why do you think de-sexing would improve the value of your dog?...if you want a de-sexed dog, why not getting one from the pounds? Pros & cons as in health issues this is a good start for reading: http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf and here the result of a recent study http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0102241

Leonardo Baa Vinci

why?...because I call a spade a spade? No not all Willem. But it's important to understand that it is more helpful to guide, encourage, educate and support rather than forcing a one size fits all approach (which you accuse others of doing). Not everyone has the patience and commitment that I do to training and competition. But if I can squeeze an extra 5-10% out of everyone I work with or meet then the welfare outcomes for the dog are exponential. And that person comes back to me seeking more education because they saw great results by making small changes. People need positive reinforcement too. If you come in too hard all you do is turn people away or they become defensive. true - but I also see the merits in using aversives when I think they are appropriate :D

your frustration seems to be fueled by your ambitions - pretty hard to train a dog if frustration and associated impatience dictate the handlers attitude and body language. Your dog doesn't know on which agility level you want to be with him in the near future, and he doesn't care - he just want to enjoy the time (whether it is training or something else), and he definitely won't be motivated to work for you if he senses your frustration. So instead of thinking about manipulating the dog's hormone system it might be interesting to find out where a total change in your attitude in training would get you.

why?...because I call a spade a spade?

the question is why you are getting frustrated?...and why is frustration an excuse for surrendering a dog?...maybe there is nothing wrong with the dog, maybe it is your trainings measures that result in the lack for of focus?...and what if de-sexing doesn't achieve the outcome you expect?...what is if the dog becomes actually aggressive after de-sexing (which we know is actually a real possibility)? when we make the decision for a dog, and/or a breed, there is no guarantee that this dog will be an agility champion, an obedience monster or a whatsoever. So what?...is the dog than wastage because he is a slower learner or lacks trainability?...how can we point the finger at the Greyhound industry if we classify our own dogs as wastage if they don't comply with our ambitious expectations?...agility might not be the sport for your dog, maybe he would be good in herding, maybe you have to spend the time that you want to spend on agility just in teaching basics, so what?

WOW! do you think the Greyhounds care if they are doped or not? Eta: ...or do dogs care if they are docked?...do they care if they are euthanized?...

but you intend to do this by manipulating his hormone system by surgical modification - that's what it is!...you could also inject him hormones (or other drugs) to calm him down. It is what elsewhere is called an athletic enhancing performance measure. The problem is not that your dog has this temperament, the problem is that you want to be successful in your sport - the root of all evil that leads to all the rubbish in the Greyhound industry - and we talking here about agility where no money (or only little money) is involved. If we already use surgical modifications in agility to gain an advantage over competitors, why is anyone surprised about the dodgy measures used in Greyhound racing?

not the same?...you envisage to manipulate your dogs hormone system with the intention to get some advantage in a sporting competition - others do this by giving injections. I fail to see how one of these measures is justified and the other not.

does this mean you would also dock a dog's tail if this would make him more successful in a sporting competition?...or using steroids to increase muscle grow for a better jumping ability? ...why does this reminds me of the so heavily criticised Greyhound trainings culture ...????

wrt bats: it seems that they (the dead ones) are only around North Wollongong and Figtree - there have been a lot of complaints about a colony close to a school and a Hungry Jacks (or Kentucky...?), so they might have been poisoned. wrt roadkill: nothing suitable on the roads for a while, but this morning I was lucky. First I a saw a killed kangaroo (must have been less than 24 hours dead), but it wasn't in the best shape (no need to go into details), so I gave it a miss. On my way back I saw a wallaby (also less than 24 hours dead - likely killed in the early morning hours by a car hitting his rear legs, rigor mortis was just setting in). A healthy male with quite some meat on him - all in the freezer now :) .

I don't blame the OP - but I criticise the culture reflected by the way this topic is approached. If we only want dogs, and buy dogs, because they are soooo cute etc., but ignore that they can come with a lot of work associated with education and training, IMO such an approach is borderline animal cruelty. If de-sexing is used as an easy way out to minimize time required for training, or as a ticket to let the dog stray, than something is wrong. The focus should always be on training and education, and measures like de-sexing should never be the first choice. And if an owner puts enough effort wrt training and education into a dog, and doesn't let the dog stray, in most cases there is no need to de-sex a dog. There can be good reasons for de-sexing a dog, no doubt, but the matter of course we display when thinking about getting a new puppy de-sexed can be disturbing. @the OP: if you really come to the conclusion, that de-sexing is the best option, then do it as late as possible. Even 12 month can be too early (our dog is a smaller dog / BC, and she got here first heat after 12 month - so a small dog is not automatically matured when it is 12 month old. Early de-sexing is linked to a lot of serious diseases (cancer and ligament / joint problems), and also to behaviour issues, so there is no guarantee that it will be beneficial for you respectively your dog. The topic is discussed here on this forum in many threads with many links to studies - best you spend some time and go through it. Edited to correct some spelling...

yes, it is normal, even bitches can hump other dogs; de-sexed bitches are actually more attractive than entire bitches so it is even more likely that they get humped and respond with aggression. Humping is not always - actually in most cases - a sexual driven behaviour, but more a game or dominance behavior. To believe that de-sexing a male dog will achieve that this dog will stop humping other dogs is a myth. It might work occasionally, but it is definitely not predictable.

someone who isn't willing to put careful training into a dog shouldn't embark on a dog ownership at all, especially not on a puppy ownership!...that is where all the dilemmas come from. Using surgical modifications or drugs as a convenient substitute for time consuming training is a pretty pathetic approach that heavily contradicts animal welfare.

would you have bought him if the breeder would have told you that there are some issues with this pup as he was born without balls?...or do you think this would be a defect compromising the value of the dog? Do you also consider to crop his ears and dock his tail because there are 'some pros and cons' in it? Why do you think de-sexing would improve the value of your dog?...if you want a de-sexed dog, why not getting one from the pounds?

Princess Highway from North Wollongong to the south ...if they start looking North Wollongong they should find enough on the first 10 kms. Eta: if it is a virus it might be also spread if foxes feed on these carcasses.

Lyssavirus affects approximately 4% of the total Australian bat population... and most of those cases have been found up in far north Queensland. It is very rare for Lyssavirus to be this far south, but I'd still not be handling any bat you found - they harbour other zoonotic diseases that won't kill you, but you don't want to catch anyways. Maybe contact your local wildlife rescue group (WIRES most likely) and ask them if they might be amenable to looking into the cause of the large number of dead bats you are seeing? ETA: Have messaged a friend of mine who does bat rescue to ask her thoughts... T. normally it is actually very rare to find a dead bat, but today on the Prince Highway I could see approx. 3 dead ones per km on the sides of the road - that's definitely not normal. Eta: a heatwave can cause something like this http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-08/hundred-thousand-dead-bats-after-qld-heatwave-rspca-says/5190644 ...but we had no heatwave here in the Illawarra?

quotes from Choice Article: Why are vets not on board ? It's been several years since the AVA recommend triennial vaccinations, but many vets continue to recommend annual vaccinations and pet owners are simply not being told about the new guidelines. There are a couple of obstacles in the way of ensuring all Australian vets operate by the new guidelines. Vaccine labelling – the Australian regulator, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, can't change vaccine labels to the new three-year recommendation without data being provided by the manufacturer to prove a longer duration of immunity (DOI). Manufacturers are only required to provide a minimum DOI. There is more on this issue below. Self-regulation – the veterinary profession is self-regulated, and vets are not required to join the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) or follow its guidelines. There is also data to suggest some vets may be reluctant to make the change as it would impact their income. A vet industry survey in 2005 found "89% of veterinarians indicated that dog and cat vaccinations were the number one contributor to practice turnover, and 91% of vets felt that a change from annual vaccination would have an adverse effect on their practice turnover". and Guidelines for vaccinating your dog or cat Maternal antibodies in a kitten or puppy are soon lost after birth. WSAVA recommends puppies and kittens are first vaccinated at 8–9 weeks of age, followed by a second vaccination 3-4 weeks later and a third given between 14 and 16 weeks, followed by a booster at one year. WSAVA says 98% of core vaccinations given between 14 and 16 weeks will actually provide immunity for many years, and probably even for the life of the animal. So if the dog is already immune to the three core diseases, re-vaccinating will not provide any extra immunity. After one year of age Bring your pet to the vet every year for an annual health check. Discuss with your vet the most suitable vaccination regime for your pet. If you're concerned that your pet may be vaccinated unnecessarily, ask to have antibody titre testing done. This will tell you if your pet is already immune. It can be done for all the core viruses for dogs and cats so ask your vet if they offer it. To reduce the risk of tumours, feline adjuvanted vaccines should not be injected into your cat's back. Don't be shy to ask questions, and get a second opinion if in doubt. Report any unsatisfactory experiences to your state's veterinary practitioners' board. If your pet has a negative reaction to any vaccination, such as a loss of appetite or a swollen face, contact your vet immediately and report the case to the APVMA on 1800 700 583 .

The recommendation for domestic freezers seems to be minus 18 or below. for sushi the recommended temperature is -20 deg C (= - 4 deg Fahrenheit); that doesn't kill every virus or bacteria, only a few; however, it will kill worm / worm larvae and other parasites. If you want to make sure that it is steril you would have to boil it, but this would also destroy the valuable enzymes - the enzymes and the fact that the dog really has to chew on a meaty bone (not just gulping it down like mince or kibble) makes the roadkill so valuable for me.

always on the lookout for fresh roadkill I noticed something strange here in the Illawarra, especially around Wollongong: there are heaps of dead bats on the roads - I don't think they got hit by cars, it looks more like they just dropped dead from the sky. I know they can carry nasty viruses so I would never use them as dog food, nevertheless I'm a little bit worried that something is going on here - the scale of this mass mortality is just too big. Eta: found this http://media.uow.edu.au/news/UOW164825.html if you see a dead one, make sure you stay away, and don't let your dog play with it. Eta: and here: http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/factsheets/Pages/Rabies-Australian-Bat-Lyssavirus-Infection.aspx

...that happens to dogs exposed to owners smoking pot :)

To be on the Sporting registry the dog doesn't have to be de-sexed but it does have to be registered with another association ie working border collie. Unless they have changed that very recently. I didn't spend much time getting an overview over all this organisations and authorities and policies, but at a first glance it seems to be pretty confusing. When I think about it: all what I want to do - and what she wants to do - I can do without any registration: we have fun in the normal club agility and obedience training, the herding workshops doesn't require that she is enrolled on a register or even de-sexed, or pedigree...so maybe I'm better off saving the money, that I would have to spend for all the memberships and fees, just for workshops.

http://dogsnsw.org.au/images/Form_18_Sporting_Register_1st_July_2016.pdf I just had a chat with a friendly lady from DogsNSW about registering her in the Sporting Register (see link). She (the lady from DogsNSW) told me that I can register her in the Sporting Register without having her de-sexed, although I don't have pedigree papers! I asked twice! She told me that the form is wrong and that they will fixing it and that I should ignore the second page. I will try to get this confirmed from some experts in our club.

na, their rules require 4 generations of known Working Border Collie blood lines.

Gorgeous photos S! Thank you Scottsmum. We are very lucky to have such a wonderful photographer. Karen Edwards available to take photos at the RCV Herding Trial. Here are a couple of piccies of Legend and Dance who both passed their Instinct Certificates and 2 x Herding Tests to gain their HT Titles last weekend :) Youngest Rottweilers in Australia to achieve this title :) Interesting - I just noticed the total different body appearance of your Rotties in the pics: tail is up!...all the BCs, Koolies, Kelpies show the typical stalking posture with the tail down when they work the sheep.