bk_blue

:o I feel sick. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: This is so horrible, how can they get away with it????

Yeah, I was going to say that might be part of the reason but wasn't sure... it is stressful for both of us (me trying to stop him from escaping again is making ME lose hair! :) ). I might see how he goes for a couple of months and if there is no improvement will do something about it. It's just that it seems to happen when he is "relaxed" ie. asleep or snoozing.

I thought I would post this as a new topic mainly because I didn't want it to get lost in the other "stinky" thread. Now BK is an inside dog, I have noticed his flatulence... urrrgh... I never noticed it before because he was always outside. Apart from baking soda, charcoal tabs, buttermilk, yoghurt (from reading other thread), is there a possiblity that the actual diet is a causal factor? He is fed canned and dry dog food, always has been. Would swapping to BARF over a few months/weeks do any good? The stink is pretty noxious!!! :roll:

Hi Julie, even if you write a really brief email it might help the cause... you never know, if there is enough of a stink kicked up about it they might change the law- governments don't like to look bad do they! Does it go on at all in the UK, I know you lot are fairly civilised :wink: but I thought we were too and look what's happening to our puppies. :evil: I just wonder why it was never a crime to eat pets in the first place. :o Bensam- I have a feeling it is a criminal offence in NSW or SA, can't remember which.

Animal Planet is on cable telly here, and we get all the old repeats, we are about 20 years behind you guys :roll: Ironic that you mention Animal Planet, today my sister was watching it and the vet had 2 dogs come in with bloat... the day after poor Freddy died of it :( Tell us backward country viewers what it was like!

I have emailed Bracks, Keith Hamilton (min for agriculture) and the VCA... it will probably get pushed to the bottom of the pile due to the Bali situation but I still think it is important- humanity begins at home!

Thanks Bensam, I guess it has been an urban myth not to let your dog walk down Victoria St ("little Vietnam") otherwise it might end up in your next meal... :wink: but never really thought it would happen until the recent Staffy pup case. A report in the Age quoted the Victorian Korean Club (like a cultural association) which said that Koreans here did not practice the consumption of dogs and cats as they were in Australia where it was not done. Maybe the majority don't eat pets- but there are probably some who do, as highlighted by last week's case... Can I also just say that just because it may be a tradition doesn't make it right...and certainly not acceptable in this country where domesticated animals are just that and not livestock (and by this I also mean it is unacceptable everywhere). At least if the ban is passed in Parliament it will be an actual crime to eat the family pet, breaking the habit may take longer but IT WILL WORK. :evil: I bet that the govt has already forgotten the issue... until the next poor puppy is rescued from a soup bowl. Guess it is up to us to make sure they DON'T forget! What other countries apart from Korea (and maybe Vietnam?) practise this evil 'tradition'?

Thank you K and Roo for your kind words... I feel better knowing that Freddy is ok now and even if he had been saved this time it may well have happened again... I will tell Scott about the Rainbow Bridge, that is my favourite dog-heaven story :angel:

Pizzle on the brain... wonder what Freud would say? :D Seriously: this topic has been really informative and a wealth of information for scientifically inept people like myself... whatever floats your boat (or the dog's boat) seems to be the best thing. :wink: What were pet dogs fed on before canned food came along, and before BARF was an "official" food choice? (I am guessing a variant of BARF?) Also... I know this has been asked before but now that bk is inside his flatulence is making it hard to breathe :roll: would a gradual change of diet work or should I try something like charcoal tablets first?

Exactly, if you give a detailed question you will receive a detailed response... I fail to see how I could glean any sort of information from your first post megdog. My comment about people not researching breeding properly was a generalisation- because so many don't care about it, that's why we have so many unwanted dogs and breed-specific genetic problems- because many dogs are bred indiscriminately. If you have bred responsibly in the past then surely you know that the millions of dogs destroyed year in year out is a huge problem. :o

Thanks Mei-Mei, I feel a little better now... it is so sad because Scott (sister's friend) and his family are diligent, responsible dog owners whose previous dogs were all rescues and died of old age (Fred was also a rescue/stray). :( Why does it have to happen to these types of "good" dog people I will never know... but at least Freddy is not suffering anymore, probably destroying avaries and eating birds in doggy heaven like he did here! :wink:

Hee hee, this is probably the wrong question for me as BK is no longer interested in anything except other dogs! (oh, and cats, and possums, and flies... :wink: ) He loves his bones though, but not plastic ones, I spent twenty bucks on a Nylabone last month and he's not touched it once :-? He also gets into the recycling bin and pulls out all the tins with interesting stuff still stuck in them ie. tomato tins, dog food tins etc. When he was a puppy/young adult and teething/being destructive he would chew on just about anything. Concrete (ouch), my watch (which still has the bite marks) charcoal from the fireplace, garden hose, wood, the entire contents of the garage on one memorable occasion, the big bin a few times, oh and the axe... He would pick up the axe by its handle and start swinging it from his mouth like a Viking, and when it was hot he'd jump up on the outside table and sunbake while chewing happily on the axe handle. :roll: Needless to say we kept the axe AWAY from him after we discovered this little habit. :wink: Grandad's dachshund puppy, Tomson, is a little more "normal" and likes Kongs, rope chew toys, bones... :D

Last night my sister told me her best friend's Dobermann, a 4 yr old male called Fred, was "sick" (did not say what type of sick) and might have to take him to the vet in the morning. I've met Fred several times and he is a very healthy, active boy (and a giant sook). The first thing that popped into my head was BLOAT but it was 2am, I was almost asleep and I thought no, it'll all be fine, surely seeing a dog with bloat (I've never seen one)would be really awful and obvious...? I got a message four hours later (ie. 30 mins ago) that they'd taken Fred to the emergency vet, being increasingly worried about him, the vet diagnosed bloat and he had to be put down... I rang my sister and she told me they had just finished burying the poor boy in the backyard... I'm feeling a bit guilty now, if only I had said something then maybe Fred would be alive now? If only I had asked her what sort of sick and that it sounded like bloat, get him to the vet ASAP instead of waiting until 4am to do it, would he be alive still? I know it's a bit stupid because it's all over now but Fred must have been in so much pain... if only... :cry: :cry: :cry: (meanwhile BK is here happily farting away.... *wrinkles nose* :roll: )

:wink:

Hi Smooshie, although I'm not an advocate of tail docking I hope Loki's op goes well and he is back to his normal active self soon! :) oh and it is hard to think rationally when it's your own dog... :wink:

:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o thanks for the info... I will be sending emails and forwarding this to my friends... :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

:lol: Cos remember K, you are there to serve *them*... remember your place in the pack mate!! :lol: :lol:

:( then you do have some very good reasons to keep them in Newfie and K (yeah, I think mine is dumb enough to go off with someone but who would breed from a mutt, cute as he is)... don't have to worry about bears here, and he doesn't look much like a kangaroo (not that they are in the inner suburbs like some people think!), too old to be used in a meat pie... every second house here has a dog (there is a really nice-looking tan Staffy a few doors up). BUT I worry about him getting out and not being so lucky second time round. :o (right now he is having a dream of some sort, his front paw is doing a running motion... so cute... :wink: )

:( :evil: Absolutely no concept of suffering!!!! Is ther anything that we can do to get involved with this protest movement?

Hey Newfiemom- what is your reason for keeping your dogs inside when you're not home? Is it because you are afraid they might escape or afraid they may be stolen? I'm a little anxious to leave BK out when I'm not home now because of his escape (and return) yesterday... just wondering if you were keeping them in for the same reason or a different one. :)

My dog is a bit calmer (well, when we are here! :D ) inside, he just lounges around (right now he is snoozing at my feet). He's adapted to being an inside dog again very quickly, he already has a favourite spot in the loungeroom. He goes outside when we are not here for longer than 30 min, and at nights (now the fence is fixed). He just likes being with people, so wherever they are, he's like velcro beside them! 8)

I found this post on another board (not dog-related), and was wondering if such horrid things actually happen... :evil: so can anyone enlighten me? Doing that to crayfish is bad enough, especially when you have to pick them out (no, I don't do this), but to a DOG???? I really hope it is not true! i don't know if you guys have ever seen how they treat dogs in korea...it is horrendous! i could not believe when i saw this on television...the dogs are grabbed by the throat with some sort of leash (something sort of like what police men use)and throw them into an enormous hot boiling bowl filled with water. the poor defenseless dogs try to escape but they can't and the people were just there watching like nothing was happening. can you imagine something like this happening to anyone? of course the dogs die burned in misery. i have a little puppy and a rottweiler and i would die if anything like this ever happened to them.

I'm sorry to hear that... positive reinforcement is definitely the way to go with training dogs. :o Not to say that you shouldn't be afraid to scold your dog when he does something wrong (eg. jumping up, dominance mating (hehe I know all about that one)), but having a dog obey you because he fears you instead of wanting to please you because he gets praised for it is just wrong IMO. Good luck! :)

How sad... Droopy looks like my old Basset Nobby... I wish I could help you!! Best of luck with the surgery and let us know how it goes... :( Click on the link in my signature to see some Nobby pics if you want to, I can't seem to post photos as I must be over my limit at Village... have to find another photo storage place...:-?

well said Carol... I am with you on the breeding thing... there are so many dogs out there who don't have homes because not enough people have put any thought into breeding. It's very upsetting to go into a shelter and see all those little faces begging you to take them home with you... :(