Malamum

The snake that seems to cause the most deaths in dogs is the brown snake. This is an extremely venomous and apparently a highly aggressive snake that will go after small animals. I have heard quite a few stories about this type of snakes getting into kennels and going after puppies. The puppies don’t stand a chance and the mother generally gets bitten whilst trying to protect her young. On that forum that I referred Felecia to, each summer up to 5 people post saying either they have or they know someone who has lost a dog to a brown snake. The red belly black snakes are also a worry. This past summer a lady in my parents suburb had her two Jack Russell Terriers at the vet for 2 weeks in intensive care after they were both bitten by the same red belly black snake – they only just survived. The thing is that these are highly aggressive snakes, so while the dogs may dance around rather than dive straight in, the snakes will not just lie there – they will strike out and they are bloody fast. I’ve actually been told that if you see your dog harassing a snake, leave it be. If you try to call your dog away the split second that it diverts it’s attention to look at you is enough for the snake to get a bite in.

Felica, I have heard that others in outback Australia keep injectable vitamin C in the fridge in case their dogs get bitten by a venomous snake. However I personally don’t have any experience in this nor know too much about it. If it was something you want to look into a bit further you could probably ask some questions on the forums at [url]www.dogzonline.com.au[/url]. This is an Australian based dog forum and has members from all around Australia. This is where I learnt about vitamin C being used for snake bites.

[quote name='pwrpufgirlz']Felicia...and mal for that matter.... What part of Australia are you guys from? I have an online best friend/penpal that I met off my wedding forum from Australia, I believe she's close to Brisbane.... I got a photo story from her of a boa eating a kangaroo. How big is your dog? Hopefully bigger than a kangaroo :o[/quote] I live in Sydney which is about an hours flight or a 10 hour drive from Brisbane. I work right near the city (can see the Harbour Bridge from my office window), however we live in an outer residential suburb which is close to lots of bush land. Being in a built up residential area we don’t have any kangaroos near us, though Michael did have a small wallaby jump out in front of his car when he was driving down our street one night. If you drive south from Sydney, which we do when we go skiing every year, you always see lots of kangaroos and if you are driving near sunrise or sunset you need to be very careful and keep you eyes peeled as they tend to jump across the road. You always see quite a few dead ones on the side of the road – it’s quite sad. Snakes are a problem in Australia as we have some extremely venomous ones, and every summer you always hear horror stories about dogs being bitten and killed. Although I do worry, I’m not going to keep my dogs inside because of it. I can’t rule their lives over a “what if”. I can only hope that if a venomous snake does come into our yard and the dogs decide to interfere with it (which I’m sure they will) that they are quick enough to kill it before it bites either of them.

We have a dog door so our dogs have access to the backyard 24x7 whether we are home or not. I have no problem at all with dogs being left unsupervised in a secure backyard as long as there is shade to protect them from the heat and somewhere that they can go to get protection from rain.

It's good to know all people aren't morons. :D

My dogs seem to like them – though they are not fussy and will eat pretty much anything. However I think $9.00 each for a large one is highway robbery so my two have to miss out. They get real bones too keep their teeth nice and white.

Glad to hear he is doing so well. :D

Yay, Behle is now going to have 3 big gorgeous dogs to show us pictures of. :wink:

[color=green][b]HAPPY BIRTHDAY ZOE[/b][/color][size=7][/size] :bday: :bday: :bday: :bday:

Very messily. :lol: We always have puddles around the water bowls.

Below are some pics of some long haired Mals. Like the Akita’s and Sibes they are called woolies. The long coat is considered a fault. This is due to the long hairs not being as resistant to rain and snow as short hairs. I know it doesn’t make much difference to the average pet, however if exposed to the extreme conditions that this breed was made to handle then the woolies may not survive. [img]http://wildpaw.smugmug.com/photos/2689122-M.jpg[/img] [img]http://wildpaw.smugmug.com/photos/2689166-M.jpg[/img] [img]http://wildpaw.smugmug.com/photos/2689205-M.jpg[/img] [img]http://wildpaw.smugmug.com/photos/2689337-M.jpg[/img] [img]http://wildpaw.smugmug.com/photos/2689629-M.jpg[/img]

[quote name='StarFox']Since she didn't respond to you calling her you probabaly need to start from square one with recall training, it really is the most important thing a dog should know and it isn't to hard for dogs to learn.[/quote] Starfox, I agree with you wholeheartedly in theory, however it’s often easier said than done. My dogs have a great recall in a controlled environment. We put their dinner at one end of the yard and put the dog between the food and who ever it is giving it to them. They then have to do a recall and come all the way to the person before being released to go and get their dinner. When we went away camping, we let them run around in the bush off lead and they always came back when called. However……. When a dog escapes out a door it seems to be a whole different kettle of fish for some reason. They seem to know the difference and take advantage of their new found freedom. Although my dogs have a pretty good recall I know that if they accidentally get out, they won’t come straight back – they’ll do so when they are good and ready. Again I know they won’t go far but I’m paranoid about them being hit by a car so I’m just extra vigilant and make sure they don’t get the chance to escape. Sharpeigirl – extra recall training can never go astray so I would work on that. I would also work on sitting and waiting. My dogs are so used to being told to sit and wait before going through any door that they don’t seem to get the urge to bolt through as much. I would also have a talk to your grandparents and ask them to be more careful. If they really don’t understand or don’t care then I think it’s time to move out.

I also notice that they include the Staffordshire Bull Terrier in the generic term of pit bull. I’ve always thought of Staffy’s as separate breed. Am I wrong in this line of thinking? Here in NSW, Pit Bulls are a restricted breed, however the Staffy is not.

I'm a bit late in on this one, but just wanted to say I'm glad she is ok.

I know that George Lucas had a Malamute at some stage. Apparently the character of Chewbacca is based on his Mal

There is a section in a book I was reading (the other end of the leash) about hugging or cuddling being a human thing and dogs not really liking it. This is pretty much true for Indy. He loves to be patted but is not that fussed about being enclosed in a hug or having you put your arms around him. Kira is a totally different story and goes against everything that was said in the book. She just loves to be cuddled. If you put your arm around her she actually nuzzles into your body and tries to get closer and closer. She leans into you so much that if you move away suddenly she falls over :roll: So which category does your dog fall into?

Delta is nice. :D

To start with, instead of letting him come in and have free run of the house, bring him in and tether him to a spot that is out of the way but one from which he can still see the family members. That way both sides win. Zeus gets to come inside and be close to his “people” and your grandparents can’t really complain about that too much. If he is tethered he can’t be causing a rucus and if they are worried about mess you can have him lie on a mat. You would need to do the same for Sassy though. It would be too hard on Zeus for him to be tethered but to be able to see Sassy run around doing as she pleases.

I also don’t think anyone has ever been reprimanded for asking too many questions or posting too much. Yes, we have had a few people posting total dribble that turned out to be trolls but I don’t think that is the case with Alan. Forums are all about sharing ideas and thoughts, and just because Alan likes to share a little more than others who are we to stifle that.

Does it really need to be similar to Thelma? When we got Kira her name was Connie which we didn’t like at all. We started calling her Kira straight off the bat and she had no problems at all with the change.

How about if you don't want to..... don't open that particular topic :wink:

Indy gets over excited when dancing is involved. He's really not sure what is going on and jumps around woo wooing. If I'm having a bit of a dance in the living room on my own ( :oops: :oops: yeah come on admit it - we all do that sometimes) then I think it's funny and woo woo back at him. However if we are having a party and there is lots of dancing and singing happening I keep Indy away from the action as I know he gets over excited.

I think all the new posts are good.

Mine do the paw thing when they are getting their tummy's rubbed. I've actually never thought of it as returning the favour, to me it seems to feel like they are trying to keep my arm in place so the belly rubs don't stop. :wink:

Happy Birthday :bday: :bday: :bday: