imported_Kat

Nope shes not being manipulative in the slightest. Paw raising, laying down and adopting a stationary position are all signs of submission showing that she respects you and knows that as you are in charge of the food, she is willing to submit to get share. Lower ranking wolves commonly raise a paw (our equivalent of teaching a dog how to give a paw...ever wonder where that came from since so many dogs do it?) to their alpha. It is thought that it shows a submissive posture as the dog is then on 3 legs and not in a position to start a dispute.

Life really is too short for sensitivity. If you are happy with your dogs then what else matters.... Seriousness can be a liability. Forums are for opinions and expressions and true opinions should be respected, not frowned upon and slandered, with a response like walking away.

Border Collies without a doubt. Meg is my heart dog and what we have achieved together and the bond we have is something that no other dog I will own will ever replace. [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/Megtrophiesresize2.jpg[/img] [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/Meg%20crufts%20obed.jpg[/img]

awww hope he doesn't get flat! :P

Poor Gooey, but a broken tooth is easier removed than crowning it. Dogs are much more aggressive with their teeth when chewing than humans are, so a cap or crown isn't a long term solution. She will be in and out before you know it, but don't leave it as if it is now exposed she faces risk of infection, which could be a lot more serious.

If you have the space then a mastiff. They are amazing animals. I had a Bull mastiff in my class once for Obedience, and he was so willing to learn! Boxers are also great but extremely energetic so only if you can really dedicate the time for training and plenty of runs. English mastiffs are fab too, but stronger than Bulls. My friends parents have a boarding kennels in Fife in Scotland and last year I was there helping them for a bit. We had this big English called Homer in, and wow what a dog, and such a character! He had this wee tufty bit of fur on his head (just like Homer simpson!), and was totally adorable and a big sop, but so strong!

Dew claws are nothing more than a nuisance. They don't serve any extra purpose and with regards to the arthritic dog, they wouldn't have assisted this dog as dew claws don't touch the ground. Front dew claws are ok to keep, providing the dog is wearing them down or having them clipped. Back dewclaws is a big no no. We see so many dogs in work coming in with ripped dew claws, and the dew claw will end up being removed anyway, so why not just have them removed at birth. My Border Collie bitch Meg has front dew claws and they are just as short as her other claws as she is wearing them down continuously on agility equipment, and has never had to have her nails clipped in her life. Thankfully now with selective breeding, dynamics are changing and dew claws on hind paws are becoming less and less on a large majority of breeds. Also its not uncommon especialy with Boxers to only have 1 de claw on a hind paw. There is no rule saying a dog has to be born with a dew claw on both hind paws.

Goldens have really become so diverse in both colour and morphology. In the UK here, judges don't encourage red dogs, as the breed name suggests, the colour should be golden. I have seen so many colours of Goldies ranging from pale almost white to mahogany colour, but I have to say the nicest ones in my opinion are the mid Goldens, that have a deeper ear colour but can still be called a Golden. This is my Zoe, who is 12 years old past in June, and is still mad as a hatter. Reckon she looks her age? [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/zoe%20bonio.bmp[/img] [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/zoe%20on%20lead.bmp[/img]

I will probably be slandered for the comments I will make, but however I am used to it working at a Veterinary practice that deals with court cases with the dog warden and USPCA. I have every sympathy for this person, and even more so for the dogs affected, but it proves a point that dogs are pack animals and like humans they do not have to like every dog they meet. Perhaps this girl didn't notice a behavioural distance within the ranks before but even so leaving 4 dogs alone in the same room is asking for trouble, especially with no mediator as their owner perhaps is. Dogs have been domesticated for roughly 15,000 years but they are still wild animals and unpredictable. Until this is realised, more dogs left in packs will continue to be injured. Terriers in particular prefer to be solitary or duo animals. They are certainly not a pack animal. On a different note if the vet was any type of vet that ran a veterinary practice for the sake of the animals, like our practice is, then money wouldn't be an issue. Several years ago 2 kids brought in a young terrier pup hit by a train. These were kids of 9/10 maybe. They were in such a state and just wanted the wee dog to be "fixed", but explained that they didn't have any money. Money wasn't an issue and my boss pined the puppies leg and rewired his jaw as well as treating him for 2 weeks at the practice. The kids came back 2 weeks later and proudly gave me a money bag of silver coins and explained they had asked all their friends would it be enough to pay for the wee dog. That touched me, and one of the kids Adam now has that little dog and I see him in the park all the time playing with his best friend. Money shouldn't be an issue. Most vet practices charge a consultation fee and all this carry on, so they can damn well afford it. Kat

Ah right interesting. Dogs here have to have a kc name that doesn't involve just the dogs own pet name. Also it can't be a name that another dog already has. Interesting to know how the different kcs operate :fadein:

Don't mixed dogs competing in Agility and Obedience etc have to have a kennel name? They do here in UK!! Meg my BC is Megan Pride of Plandail O.W (O.W means obedience warrant not ow as some idiots presenting rosettes have read out! :o ) Zoe my Golden Retriever is Lislone Golden dream of Pal-Wes

Whoa great topic :D Meg: Meggie, Meggie moos, Baby puppy dog, Puppy bear, Meggles [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/Meg%20head%20shot.JPG[/img] Zoe: Zoe puppy dog, zo the po, curly bum [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/zoe%20bonio.bmp[/img] Abby: Abs, Kitten Pie, Sweetnie n light, Kitten pie factory on the wind sweetnie n light (dont ask :p). [img]http://sander.servehttp.com/kat/abby.bmp[/img] Vincent: Vinnie, the boy, Bin Laaden Mandela (Iguana) : Ig, Mandi boy, little Ig, del boy

Mini breeds of standard larger size breeds seem to be increasingly more popular. Mini Aussie shepherds are another breed. These are not actual kennel club registered breeds and hopefully never wil be because so many problems occur when these breeds are interbred with another breed to produce a downscaled size of dog. Bone density is often heavier than what the size of the dog can support therefore hip dysplasia is often a very common trait.

Frontline can be used on pups from the age of 2 weeks of age as in a spot on the skin on the nape of the neck. I swear by it and its the fastest selling product at our practice. A tip for anyone that uses it: Unscrew the top of the bottle and use a syringe to draw out the liquid, which should be placed on the skin, not the fur. it is useless if its sprayed as the fleas don't bite fur; they bite skin. Thats why its much more economical and effective to use a syringe and directly spot it onto the skin.

The best thing for itching is saline. Put a handful of salt in a bucket of luke warm water and use a sponge to go over her whole coat. If the scratching intensifies then a trip to your vet may be called for to rule out a hormonal problem.

erf yeah its scary. Last year I was working at the practice, and a couple came in with a Newfie pup of about 4 mths old with no lead. I tell them to keep a hold on the dog and give them a lead. I go back into the surgery and hear commotion and yelling. I dashed outside just in time to see Yogi hit by car, and he was killed outright. It really saddened me and its a day that I keep in my mind and probably always will stay in my mind. People that don't have a lead for their dog when coming into the surgery really annoy me and if they don't have a lead now, I physically put a lead around the dogs neck. A vivid image that I never want to see relived.

In 11 years of working at a veterinary practice, I too have never witnessed this condition but have heard of it. Listen to your vets advice and keep us up to date on the outcome. *hugs*

Hi folks, I'm doing my final year honours project on Border Collie behaviour. One section of the test is Playfulness, and each little section and test requires the finest of details to be organised and thought of concisely. Question: does your dog prefer a familiar toy (favourite toy) or does your dog respond more enthusiastically to a new toy never played with before? Thanks in advance, Kat

Aww hon, I am so so sorry that this had to happen. Take good care and get on with things as best you can. *hugs*

Thinking of you. Its never easy but she will be dandy :wink:

This is a tricky one and impossible to even try and help with. I would suggest a trip to your vets and let him/her take a look at Willy. Good luck and keep us posted.

Has your vet checked for a transient dislocating patella? Shelties are notorious for slipping patellas and this on xray isn't always obvious. Usually the joint can be manipulated and the vet can tell but if the muscle and ligaments are tight around the patella then it isn't always easy to diagnose. An MRI scan will give a definite diagnosis if this is the case as the scan evidently will show the place of the patella in realtion to the ligaments. Good luck and hope you get it sorted soon :fadein:

Hi there Poochster, Keeshonds are a nice breed, but can be very lively. They are also relatively intelligent, so if your dog is in an apartment situation you need to ensure plenty of walks and stimulation toys when the dog is left on his own. As far as "working out how many games per week", forget it. Each dog is different, so just enjoy your dog without having to work out precise mathematics! You will learn with each other as your bond develops. Good luck, Kat

I just got back to Northern Ireland on Thursday from spending 3 months in the Netherlands without my dog but yesterday we had a Crufts qualifier and heres how it went! Well yesterday we went for the Crufts Biathlon qualifier. On the back of my ticket it said that judging of Obedience would commence at 2pm so as agility is always after Obedience in the Biathlon, I went to another show this morning, and got some nice placed agility rounds. I headed to the qualifier only to be told that agility had already been judged in the morning so naturally went oh sh**, argued a bit but the other competitors were whining that it wouldn't be fair. Anyway the organiser came over and said I could enter the Triathlon which encompasses Obedience, Agility and Show handling. Now this is me that hasn't been near a show ring in my life! Anyway after a majorly quick brush and 3 minute crash course by a girl that does show handling, we were flung into the ring. All these fancy flipping triangles and turn abouts just frazzled my head but remembered what I had seen the people do at Crufts and done the whole flaunty showy thing. For a laugh Meg won it! After that she went on to win the Agility and Obedience classes so we are qualified for Crufts Triathlon and we have to now find a handling class before we come up against all these experienced handling people next March! Oh dear Geeze I really do get us in some real messes! Meg the show dog. There really isn't anything left in doggy sports that this dog hasn't yet done!

Certainly a disabled person wouldn't pay for a dog. Also you need to think about residential facilities for the person to learn with the dog. It isn't just the dog that receives the training, its also the handler. All in all over here in Northern Ireland a service dog costs in the region of