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Hope it all goes well, let us know how it goes! :D

Hi Anne, on another topic I posted a similar thing- the general misconception that people with small dogs don't always feel it's necessary to train them. It's the big dogs that usually get the training when they don't necessarily need it more than small dogs. I agree, if your dog is aggressive towards other dogs you have to be able to control it and letting it go off lead and harass other dogs is definitely not the answer. I do have a success story, a heeler at our local off lead place was dog-aggressive (well, pretty unfriendly) he just got used to the other dogs gradually while on-lead and now he is just one of the off-lead gang. :)

Go for it Star :D

Well done Koolie :D Sure you don't want a big, hyperactive heeler X to toughen up into a "real" farm dog??? (he comes with a free set of steak knives) :wink:

How awful for your family Goo :( And for yours EBBY :( It is different when a dog kills a child, a dog can't reason and think like we do, not that it lessens the crime of course. When a human being kills a child it's one of the worst things I can think of because a human can be rational and think and knows that a child cannot often control its emotions when very young. :( Hopefully by now we have learned never to take children and pets for granted, it's all too easy to see how tragedies like this happen and how easily they can be prevented by a few simple precautions. Even if you think your dog would never do it, it can save a lot of heartache if you don't leave your dog and a kid unsupervised in the same room.

I've never been bitten by a dog, but as someone else said I've probably cursed myself by saying that now! BK has "play" bitten me on my ankles very gently, it is his way of getting the last word in as I go in the back door if he is feeling hyper or playful. So does that count? Also one time I was bending down to greet him as he was running over to me and he decided to jump up, our heads collided and his tooth got me in the lip... but it was an accident (well I think... LOL). A friend's kelpie tried to have a go at me once when we were on the couch, I was patting him and fussing over him and I think he'd had enough and tried to nip me, I saw it coming and got out of the way (so I think that was my fault). Unfortunately he was put down a few yrs later for biting their baby daughter. :( Jamie- I guess with some rotty and pit owners like yourself, they know their dogs have bad reputations (which is stupid, but that's the way it is), so they do their best to bring their dogs up properly to set a good example. I have sometimes noticed a misconception that little dogs don't need to be trained when they need it just as much as a big dog... IMO the small dogs I know are much more inclined to bite and bark and carry on more so than bigger dogs.

[quote name='working koolie']On the subject of Don Burke I was told (dont know if its true or not) that he actually is part owner of a puppy mill which would make sense why he defends them :x[/quote] A-HA!!!! I thought there may have been some (euphemistically termed) "conflict of interest" going on there... :evil:

My grandpa has had dachshunds for the last 25 yrs, so starting before I was born and still today (he has a 12mth old standard male at the moment). All of his dogs have been good with kids. They will however only tolerate children to a degree, when they have had enough they will generally growl and give enough warning signs before they try and nip you. Kids should be taught what a dog will and won't tolerate ie. ear pulling, tail pulling, being carried the wrong way etc. which applies to all dogs but dachshunds in particular, they may look like cartoon dogs but they're flesh and blood! The other thing is because of their long backs, you've got to be careful about how the kids pick them up and put them down and what they are and aren't allowed to jump on. They DO like to play rough sometimes but most of them are big wimps if you assert yourself with them, that's my experience though and other people might refute this. Temperament testing is a [b]very [/b]good idea, of the last two my grandpa had one was a big grouch who was bossy and nasty to his brother, but submissive towards humans. His brother was absolutely the sweetest, friendliest dog in history. We used to dress them up in ties and sunnies, and I used to clean their ears, groom them, and pretend I was James Herriot when I was about 10-11 and they were pups to 5yrs, and not once did either of them show any aggression towards me. Like all dogs and children you should never leave them unsupervised until the kids are older. If you have experience as a dog owner getting a dachshund may be worthwhile, but not as a first timer with small children. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. :)

Love Rotties!!!! :D Does anyone here have Dobermanns? (I have a soft spot for them)

Thanks Cairnmom, that was very helpful :)

:( :( :( How horrible your neighbour must be. But I don't know the answer to your question. I guess it depends on the type of poison used, if any? I did a quick look on the net but for some of the more common posionings (warfarin, organo-phosphate, strychnine, ground glass :x ) they did not mention any weird behavioural symptoms... doesn't mean it's not possible though.

This is a bit of a weird question but here goes: Why is it that with dogs, a male dog is called a stud or a sire and a female dog is called a bitch or a dam, and before that, a slut (NOT MEANING TO BE RUDE BY THE WAY!)??? I guess this is the same with a man who sleeps around- he's cool and his mates think he's great- but a woman who sleeps around is easy and cops all the flak. But who came up with the names, and why? (Obviously a man... :roll: ) I'm merely curious, not seeking to change anything and definitely not of the bra-burning hairy-armpitted extreme feminist type either. :wink:

I cannot get on to animalrights.net to have a look!! It is certainly wrong to call for a ban on pit bulls or indeed any breed. Shame on PETA for that. I really don't like their preachy attitude, you might be a vegetarian and sit on the board of a charity or two but that's not good enough if you wear leather shoes...

Bensam- there is also an article in the Burke's Backyard archives that would probably make more sense now that I know who Don Burke has been arguing with: :o [url]http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/facts/1999/pets/rspcaworst_42.html[/url] "A few weeks ago we did a story on designer dogs and puppy farms. The new types of dogs being produced by some of the better puppy farms have better temperaments and make excellent pets. From the letters we received it was clear that many people misunderstood that story. They wrongly assumed we were encouraging the breeding of more dogs when in fact we were doing just the opposite. We are encouraging the breeding of dogs where good temperament and suitability as family pets are the main objectives of the breeding program. What we feel must be discouraged is the breeding of dogs for appearance as is the case with a number of pure breeds rather than with temperament as the main focus. We disagree with the RSPCA on the issue of puppy farms because we have found that well run puppy farms are producing very good family pets that are less likely to be dumped. Many breeders of purebred animals on the other hand do not place sufficient emphasis on the suitability of their animals as pets." Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Fair enough the REST of the article is about how heartbreaking being an RSPCA officer is but if this sort of crap is being bandied about on national TV with no mention of the fact that puppy farms are surely one of the worst places you can buy a dog from and they play a major part in the surplus animals we have in our shelters, you have got to wonder if there is conflict of interest somewhere???

Rowie- you must come to Victoria. When (not if!) you do, you MUST go along the Great Ocean Road- the scenery is spectacular! It's a very long and windy stretch of road running along the coast. It passes through several small beach towns. The biggest of these is Lorne- lots of cute guys, amazing surf, very holiday like atmosphere. I find Lorne much better than Surfers, just because Surfers is full of high rise apartments right next to the beach- Lorne's a lot smaller and quieter and not as pretentious. Melbourne is also definitely worth a look!!! We have trams.... and really good food.... and lots of bars though you're probably too young to go bar hopping... We have probably the best live music scene in Australia but again you're probably too young to go to pubs... Luna Park... the beach (we have nice beaches in Melbourne)... go and visit Brunswick Street if you can too, anywhere in St Kilda is worth a look, Chinatown, shopping is pretty good anywhere in the city and also Brunswick St and St Kilda too. Hire a bicycle and ride down the Yarra (the river that runs through the city), that's fun to do and it's good for you too... or hop on a boat and get someone to take you down. There are no standout landmarks in Melbourne but there are plenty of beautiful old buildings and gardens you should have a look at. The zoo is fun as well, they've recently done parts of it up. They also have jazz on Sunday nights in the summer, you bring a picnic dinner and sit there on the lawns just chilling out. You should also go check out Kakadu and Uluru in the Northern Territory- don't go swimming with the crocs though :wink: The Great Barrier Reef is pretty amazing or so I'm told, that's in Queensland but further north than Brisbane. The weather in the north is really humid in summer though, you have been warned! You probably know Australia is a fairly big country with lots of open spaces, it takes ages to get anywhere unless you fly. So the distance thing may make it hard for you to hop from one capital city to the next. Get a Lonely Planet book about Australia or check out their website for more info. We are a pretty friendly bunch, laidback and lazy, especially in summer... :D You will have a great time!!!!

CALLING HOBBIT.... Yoo-hoo..... :D

[quote name='anne3149']Most dogs will protect their home and their people as long as they are loved, fed properly, obedience trained and allowed to live with their family.[/quote] So true. My dog, who I always thought was the biggest wuss on the planet, showed his surprisingly good protective instinct the other night. My uncle came over to say hi and when I let him in he pretended to lunge at me (to see what BK would do- don't get me wrong, he loves that dog so much it's not funny!). BK went nuts because he thought he was trying to attack me, of course once he started my uncle stopped and calmed BK down. I was rather relieved to see that if I was attacked in any way, he wouldn't run off but would protect me! (which I kind of knew in the first place but had yet to witness and hope never to have to experience.) I think he would do a lot of damage to someone if he got really nasty, which I hope never to find out either. BK is just your average mutt as well, nothing fancy, just a good all rounder. So... you really don't need an "attack" dog to guard you and your family, any dog that is treated properly and who you love will return that love in many different ways, including protecting you from any nasties.

Kelpies are GREAT dogs... *almost* as good as heelers :wink: The link that I posted was part of a TV show I watched, I saw the segment on the Kelpie working the sheep and it was fantastic! They really are amazing dogs and you are so right Hobbit when you say one good dog can do the work of 5 men. I think all the Kelpies I have seen are bench Kelpies or crosses, because they've all been fairly small and lightly built (the working ones are really quite solid!?), but still really active. I guess all the proper Kelpies are out in the country doing what they're supposed to be doing and not prancing around in the park with a frisbee :D

This is maybe not of interest to anyone except Hobbit, but thought I would post it anyway.... [url]http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/facts/2002/roadtests/workkelpie_36.html[/url] I was quite surprised by the price- up to $10k for a champion working dog... Worth it I suppose, the kelpies earn their keep in the end! :D

Oh come on now K, wouldn't they like to hear a little Bach? (woof woof!) :lol: :lol:

Welcome Jessica/Cairnmom :D I can't help with any of the probs, I've never had a really young puppy myself (just a psycho blue heller- oops I mean heeler :roll: )... but just wanted to say hi and hope you enjoy Dogo. Michele, a thought: I don't think dogs like pooing where they wee? Maybe that has something to do with it?

Oh yeah, it would definitely work. I think someone did similar tests on plants to see what music *they* responded to best (ie. grew fastest, looked healthiest etc) and classical won hands down... nothing like Mahler 5 to get things moving... (ahhh, brass players love Mahler) :D

Io non parlo italiano bene, ma io spero che tu godo (?) Dogomania :D I speak French better, and English best! :wink:

Sometimes you can be pleasantly surprised! :wink:

I voted YES, of course... 8) The two main shelters in my city, as far as I am aware, have a spay/neuter policy. Not having one is just complete and utter stupidity as far as I am concerned, I can't believe people are voting against it...let *them* spend just half an hour in a shelter and see how they feel afterwards. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: