Malamum

I am actually. :wink: Everything you have raised seems perfectly valid, however in my opinion and for me I think the benefits of the BARF diet outweigh the risks. I have read the books and taken information from people whoose judgment I trust, however I haven't actually joined any BARF discussion groups because as you said I don't want to be bombarded by propaganda or one sided information. Thanks for sharing the other side - people need to know that not all dogs will thrive on this diet. I will be keeping a very close eye on Indy.

Ok, you answered my points re spay/neuter contracts and that all dogs must be returned to you. What about the one that gets HD because the parents weren't tested and what about the one that gets hit by the car because the homes weren't screened ( I know accidents can happen but I was just using this as an example to show a careless attitude that could have been picked up on at time of placement). [b]Darkmystery wrote[/b] [quote]Ok. So, What you are calling "breeders" really sounds more like a non-profit organization. Those people really aren't breeders. These are people that every so often mate there dogs! It really isn't to make dogs for people to own and enjoy. People should be able to own a certain breed and of course you try and put them in good homes. A spanish inquisition is not necessary. Like I said, people have really gone crazy throwing out these "backyard breeder" and "puppymill" labels. People that do are acting as if they are higher than thou & self-rightous. People put down others just to give themselves a feeling of being better than. Now, there are puppymills out there. You know, the ones that do not give health care to there dogs, crowd them, give them no heat or cooling, no love and they live in cages all the time nor nearly all of the time. The label backyard breeders was made up by the higher than thou's that realized not all were not puppymills but still were not as high up as what you laid out in your message. So, you had to come up with some kind of label for those not as good as you. [/quote] From your post above you pretty much told us yourself that you aren't a puppy mill but that you weren't a responsible breeder either. We pointed out what we considered a responsible breeder and you seemed to refute this as nonsense. Also, I didn't mean to imply that you didn't understand all the posts. I meant hang around read all our posts on all subjects (not just this one), get to know us and then you will see why we think the way we do.

ohh I must have missed the bit about not going to the vet till Monday. What difference does it make to your sister - why not just take her today? If it's money - I'm sure the vet will understand and let her pay on Monday.

[quote]I just realized the irony of your having a malamute who doesn't get to see snow [/quote] I know... I feel terrible about it. We do get snow in Australia but only in certain parts. I get to see snow every year when we go skiing but I can't take Indy :( If I could, I would drive him down (6 hours away) just so he could play in it. But it's only high enough for snow in the national park and dogs aren't allowed in our national parks :x (stupid irresponsible people ruining things for everyone else).

Darkmystery. I don't believe that anyone has been overly nasty they have just stated why they believe your take on breeding is wrong (myself included). In my opinion there are varying degrees of responsibility in breeders. You have your very responsible breeders who do everything right (meet all the criteria we have listed in the other threads) lets call them white. Then you have your totally abhorrent puppy millers who abuse dogs through neglect and we'll call them black. Now there is also lots of backyard breeders out there who fall somewhere in between these two categories so we'll call them shades of gray (and of course some are obviously dark gray and others are only light gray). From what I can gather from your posts I would say you fall into this gray area. You don't abuse your dogs in any shape or form but neither do you take all the necessary steps to be a responsible breeder. You may not by intent harm any dogs but as a breeder you are 100% responsible for any and every pup that you bring into the world. What about the pup that ends up with severe hip displaysia two years down the track because you thought the two dogs you bred were healthy enough and didn't require testing for HD? (this can apply to any genetic condition I just used HD as an example) What about the pup that ends up in a shelter and is PTS a few years later because the family you sold it to decide they don't really want a dog anymore, or it

I posted to your response in everything about dogs... let me copy and past and I'll put it here too.

That must be tough. :( Just hang in there, hold your head high and lead by example.

Come and live in Australia - you can have plants all year round :wink: Most of our tree's are also evergreen. So we have nice leafy trees all year round too. :D

Darkmystery, I don't believe that anyone has been overly nasty, they have just stated why they believe your take on breeding is wrong (myself included). In my opinion there are varying degrees of responsibility in breeders. You have your very responsible breeders who do everything right (meet all the criteria we have listed in the other threads) lets call them white. Then you have your totally abhorrent puppy millers who abuse dogs through neglect and we'll call them black. Now there is also lots of backyard breeders out there who fall somewhere in between these two categories so we'll call them shades of gray (and of course some are obviously dark gray and others are only light gray). From what I can gather from your posts I would say you fall into this gray area. You don't abuse your dogs in any shape or form but neither do you take all the necessary steps to be a responsible breeder. You may not by intent harm any dogs but as a breeder you are 100% responsible for any and every pup that you bring into the world. What about the pup that ends up with severe hip displaysia two years down the track because you thought the two dogs you bred were healthy enough and didn't require testing for HD? (this can apply to any genetic condition I just used HD as an example) What about the pup that ends up in a shelter and is PTS a few years later because the family you sold it to decide they don't really want a dog anymore, or it

:-? this is a case of if I can't say anything nice I'm not going to say anything at all. So no comment on your sister from me other than to say I hope some of your nature towards dogs rubs off on her.

:oops: :oops: The thought that it could get too cold for plants never even occured to me :oops:

As well as using a cleaning solutions like already suggested, how about some nice fragrent plants. You could put them in hanging baskets so the dogs can't eat them.

For those that are wary or against the BARF diet I am curious as to what you consider poses the greatest threat to your dog. A - the feeding of bones B - salmonella etc from the feeding of raw meat C - the dog getting sick from missing some major nutritional component in their diet. or something I haven't listed.

OK, I've played around with it a bit more... you need to go back to their home page (click on home in the top left corner) to see the result.

damn.... the above guest was me.....

As some of you may remember there have been a few topics posted here in the past where us Aussies have vented our frustration that a well-known Australian TV personality (Don Bourke) actively promotes the breeding of designer dogs. I am happy to say, that this week one of our current affairs programs has aired a few segments showing the abhorrent conditions of a certain puppy farm (one that Don Bourke seems to support) and also explaining why the breeding of designer dogs is unnecessary and a bad idea. Check out the story on their web site: [url]http://todaytonight.com.au/stories/778757.html[/url] and cast your vote in their designer dog poll. I know the question is poorly worded and a bit ambiguous but we want the idea that breeding designer dogs is unacceptable out there. They also have a section for feedback [url]http://todaytonight.com.au//contactus/index.html[/url] drop them a quick note congratulating them on the puppy farm story. We really want to see more stuff like this on TV.

Well done. I don't blame her for getting up on the stage... all the better for everyone to see her :wink:

Wow, that is fantastic. Make sure you keep us updated.

Wow.. that is great. I can't wait to see more pictures :D

Are you sure it's a growl? What is her body language saying? Indy makes all these weird and wonderful noises which somone may take as a growl or a threatning noise. However I know it's just his way of communicating - if he growls you really know about it. I'm probably way off base - but just a thought.

adorable :D

awwww so cute. That is great. :D

:evil: :evil: I can't even comprehend how someone could do something like that.

Great news!! Now you just have to try and keep him calm and content in his create. Sending you lots of positive thoughts for the upcoming weeks and as usual keep letting us know how he is. And no - we won't get sick of hearing about it, we are all concerned and like to know that Zebra is A-OK :D

I also have a big dog who sits with his hind legs at all weird and wonderful angles. I think this is mostly lazieness on his part - he can sit perfectly straight when he chooses to but most of the time just flops around :roll: Since you are going to the vet anyway it wouldn't hurt to ask. Let us know how you go. :D