Sarahstaff

Going against the tide, I'm going to say she probably does have Dobe in her. An uncropped/undocked Dobe looks a [i]lot[/i] like a Black & Tan, but narrower in the face. The real test is, does she bay? If she bays, she's coonhound. If she doesn't bay, then she isn't. I do agree that you should have her spayed, though. It's important for her health.

I have two dogs, both Staffordshire Bull Terriers, but I voted in the poll for my 2nd dog, as I would consider her a poster pup for "inbreeding is not such a bad thing" ;) Tully is bred pretty tight... her parents were half-siblings, and [i]their[/i] parents were too, so she has just one grandfather (Ch Judael Both Barrels at Nozac, a Crufts winner) and one great-grandfather (Ch Rellim Black Ace, another big winning UK show dog) I didn't actually know this when I got her, and it wasn't hugely important to me. I got her because the breeder offered her to me. I hadn't really been intending to add a dog at that point, but the breeder decided not to sell the pup to the owner she had lined up for her, and emailed me to ask if I wanted her. Turning down a puppy is hard. I took the pup. I did know the breeder to be a responsible breeder who health tests, etc. and I liked the look of her dogs. I knew her through email lists devoted to the breed is why she thought of me for the pup. Does this girl look like inbreeding is slowing her down? [img]http://www.brisbeethewhite.com/492644800.jpg[/img] No temperament problems here: [img]http://www.brisbeethewhite.com/490c2f5d0.jpg[/img] (she is: UKC-Ch UAGII UWPCH UCD Daydream London Calling CD OA OAJ CGC) She is the 2nd of my two dogs. My older dog, Elmo, I adopted through a private SBT rescuer. When I started buying my house, a friend started sending me emails about every SBT that came into rescue, and I dutifully inquired on all of them. Elmo's photos caught my attention immediately due to his (deceptively) sad expression, and his cute, mismatched ears. The rescuer thought he would do well for me as an obedience/agility dog, so I adopted him, though I'd never laid eyes on the actual dog. (he was in Michigan, I was in Oregon) Some time after adopting him, his breeder actually contacted me and gave me his registration, so I do know his actual breeding. He is a line bred dog. Line breeding doesn't seem to slow him down much, either: [img]http://www.brisbeethewhite.com/4912ae3a0.jpg[/img] No temperament problems here, either: [img]http://elmothesbt.homestead.com/cartinbuddy3.jpg[/img] (he is: UAGII UWPCH UCDX Yankeestaff Lickle Me Elmo CDX MX AXJ NAC NJC NJ CGC TT. Pictured at 8 yrs old)

Sorry for your loss. :(

Well, I doubt you'll have any SBTs come into shelters there, but.... The SBT and APBT are related breeds, but different. They were developed from the same root stock, but diverged sometime in the 19th century, after the ancestors of the APBT were imported to the US. Dogs in England continued to develop separately from the dogs in the US. This is a history of the SBT, from the breed clubs of the UK: [url=http://www.staffords.co.uk/breedcouncil/breedlit/history.html]Brief history of the breed[/url] This is similar info, but from a UK dog breed info site: [url=http://www.thedogscene.co.uk/breedinfo/s-y/staffordshire/]Staffordshire Bull Terrier[/url] This is a history of the APBT, with mention of the SBT: [url=http://www.realpitbull.com/history.html]APBT history[/url] And this is an anti-BSL article from a dog trainer, with mention of the SBT & APBT as separate breeds: [url=http://www.westwinddogtraining.com/Articles_Etc/Breed_Specific_Legislation/Pit_Bulls/pit_bulls.html]Westwinds dog training[/url]

The dog is a problem, and you've received good advice about that, but [i]you[/i] need to see a doctor. Dog bites infect easily. You do [i]not[/i] want to lose a finger over something like this! Go see a doctor and get put on antibiotics.

I think it's impossible to tell what the dog is from the picture in that article, though odds are that it is [i]not[/i] a wolf hybrid... many dogs are rangy, it's not an exclusive wolf trait. The dog does look mostly like a white GSD to me, but it's awfully hard to tell. I tend to think that the dog was treating the baby as prey, though it's not the dog's fault really, it should never have been in that situation. Dogs don't always kill their prey quickly, particularly if they don't know how. My Elmo caught a squirrel once (I think it was trying to come in through the dog door), and I found him by the back door, squeezing it carefully to make it squeak like his toys do. Just as I was mentally cursing, thinking I was going to have to kill it myself to end it's suffering, he got the skull in his mouth, and I heard it crunch. He was very confused as to why his toy wouldn't squeak any more.

I think it's kind of sweet: [url]http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/3536974.stm[/url]

I don't have a very high opinion of your vet. Entropion is not hard to diagnose.

I was competing in weight pull this weekend with Elmo & Tully. The pull was held in a Wal-Mart parking lot. My dogs were crated in the bed of my pickup truck while we were there, which was a fair while since I tend to hang around after I'm done, socializing and helping with the pull. Anyway, yesterday afternoon, I went over to take the dogs for a potty break. As I approached my truck, a guy was parking his car behind it. I let Tully out of her crate, and as the guy got out of his car, I scooped Tully up in my left arm, and deposited her on the ground. The guy looked down at her. "Oh, a Rottweiler!" :confused1: Here's a picture I took this evening of my... "Rottweiler": [img]http://elmothesbt.homestead.com/files/mylittlerottweiler.jpg[/img] I was completely at a loss for words, and just smiled a bit and walked away to potty my dog... er... my "Rottweiler". (My... uh... "Rottweiler" finished her weight pull championship yesterday, BTW.)

Elmo has been rather naughty. Yesterday, while I was out for a few hours, he got the lid off his kibble container (hopefully, because I didn't screw it on tight enough. If he's figured it out, I have a big problem) He had a bit of a feast. :eating: When I got home, I thought he looked a bit wide. Funny, because just that morning I'd been thinking he looked a bit too thin, and was planning to up his kibble a bit. [img]http://elmothesbt.homestead.com/fatelmo.jpg[/img] Then I entered the kitchen, and learned about the feast. :roll: When I checked, I discovered that his belly was tight, and he yiped when I felt it. Oh, Elmo. :shake: [img]http://elmothesbt.homestead.com/fatelmo2.jpg[/img] "Mama, my tummy hurts." He does feel better today, bouncy and playful, and while still huge, his belly is no longer painful. In fact, he thinks he is starving. :niewiem: I'm afraid he'll have to put up with light meals for a while, though. :lol: (excuse the big mess of my house in those photos... I don't wanna hear about it, okay? ;) )

The laws dealing with rabies are pretty archaic, hence the mandatory quarantine even in cases like this where the reason for the bite is fairly obvious. (at the vet hospital I worked for, we once quarantined a dog who bit a tech while under anaethesia at another vets... what I never understood is why they reported it.) It does bother me that, given the 2 incidents in such a short span of time, the dog is left quarantined at home. I'm concerned for the safety of your son. I think you should see if the dog can be quarantined at the vet's.

If you're already using metal bowls, try switching to ceramic. She could be allergic to the metal. Probably not, but it [i]is[/i] a possibility.

I can't believe you're all forgetting [url=http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/MTFTBshep.html]Old Shep[/url]

Book of plans for making agility equipment: [url]http://www.cleanrun.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=1070[/url]

[quote name='Shenanigans']Shenanigans alone has definitely illustrated to me, why this breed's reputation for being excellent with children is well deserved. And since we plan on having kids in the near future, I think the Newfoundland is a perfect choice.[/quote] The author of "Peter Pan" based the dog Nana on his own Newfoundland. (why he didn't make her a Newf I don't know). Taurus & Jada, I too thought that I would be trying several different breeds before settling on "the one". Staffybulls were just the first on my list, and as soon as I had Elmo, I could see that the rest of the list wouldn't be needed.

I agree that with your son's involvement, it's just not worth trying to work through this. Sorry you're going through this, and I hope you can find your girl an appropriate home.

hehe, one of my favorite topics. I grew up exposed to all the same anti-"pit bull" hogwash that everyone hears. I didn't really believe that any breed of dog could be that bad, but some of it did sink in. Then, I was working for a vet, and I met my first real pit bull. A local rescue group brought him in to be neutered, and boarded him with us for a while. I was smitten! All the traits I'd wanted in a dog (bold, confident, affectionate, outgoing, independent, a bit stubborn, smart, smooth coated, maybe a few more I can't remember right now), and had assumed I couldn't possibly find in one dog... right there, in the "devil dog"! I couldn't adopt that sweet white & tan boy though (no dogs apartment), and I knew I really wanted an AKC registered dog so I could compete in obedience, a childhood dream of mine. (I wasn't aware of the other options in obedience back then, not sure I'd even heard of the UKC) So, I went to a local dog show to meet the AKC bull-and-terrier breeds. (I'd read up on "pit bulls", and thought another bull-and-terrier would probably suit me fine). The show was a bench show... this type of show isn't common any more, but there is one here every year and it's a great place to meet the different breeds. Each breed is benched together, and have to stay all day. I really thought I'd wind up with an Amstaff, as they were the closest to a "pit bull". But when I went by the Amstaff bench, the cropped ears were a big turn-off to me. I didn't like the look. I met a Bull Terrier, who was sweet, but still wasn't sure. Then I reached the Staffordshire Bull Terrier bench. Most of the SBT people were sitting together in chairs, with their dogs in their laps. So cozy looking! Then when I went by the bench, one man was there with his brindle Staffy and teenage daughter. "You can pet him, he's friendly!" the guy said eagerly (a bit of breed outreach, I guess), and not at all adverse I went to pet the brindle cutie. Who climbed across the teenage daughter in order to climb up on me and lick my face. Sold! It was some years after that before I could get my own Staffy, but I'd made my choice, and all my research on the breed confirmed it. As did my sweet Elmo, of course, when he first came out of his crate at the airport and said, "I'm yours!"

Awww! Very cute, but not as cute as Staffybull puppies. :wink:

I don't feed Nutro, but my preference in a kibble is that it not contain corn. Mainly, this is because corn gives Elmo gas, but in fact, corn is difficult for a lot of dogs to digest. Pet food companies use it because it's cheap, not because it's good pet nutrition.

I agree with Majiesmom there. I like to see some rib on my dogs... particularly when you have a smooth coated, muscular breed. If you can't see rib on a dog of that type, it is definitely overweight.

I definitely think that your pup should be on adult food, but I agree with Carol that she shouldn't be on light food. Just changing her to an adult kibble rather than the puppy variety should cut her back enough.

The amounts on the bags are just suggestions, the amount your dog needs can vary. Though it's more common for a dog to need [i]less[/i] than the suggested amount. I believe the suggestions on the Canidae bag are for an adult dog, though, so Jada may need more just because she's a puppy. I feed my 2 Canidae also, BTW, but truthfully, I've never even read the feeding amount suggestions.

No dog has a 100% reliable recall. There is always some potential situation in which a dog might not come when it's called. I would consider a recall "reliable" if the dog will come under all but the most extreme circumstances. It's a good idea to know what circumstances will overload your dog. I was lucky enough in Elmo, though he was an adult when I got him, he already had a very reliable recall. The one situation in which I do [i]not[/i] trust him is near a large body of water. I one time tried to let him off leash to swim in the river, and he tried to swim across the river, despite my frantic calling. Now, there may be extenuating circumstances. I'm not sure he could hear me properly. When some fisherman took me out in a boat to get my dog :oops: , and I called Elmo from several feet away, he turned around and swam to the boat. Since that time, I've unknowingly dropped his leash when at an obedience trial next to the river, and when someone said "hey, there goes your dog,", and I looked up and saw him bolting for the river, I was able to get him back by calling him. So, he [i]might[/i] be reliable near water now, but "might" isn't worth risking my dog's life. He stays on lead when swimming. This is my definition of an "extreme circumstance" for Elmo, and it's easily manageable. Tully, since I got her as a puppy, I was able to train a recall from the getgo, and her recall is very reliable. She is a predatory little monster, and if she has a hold of prey, she won't release it to come. Also, the one time she got in a fight, she wouldn't break out of it when I called her (Elmo will). Again, it's just a matter of knowing where she is, and calling her back before she catches what she's chasing. It's not too hard, as she's usually nowhere near it. (Staffies are inefficient hunters as they don't really know how to stalk) She [i]will[/i] recall if she's chasing. I think the most important factor in training a reliable recall is to [i]always[/i] back it up. So, don't have a dog off-lead in a large area until the dog is reliable in other situations. Introduce distractions in a smaller area, where you can back the command up. (an example would be to have a friend try to lure your dog to them with treats after you have called the dog.) And finally, [i]always[/i] make coming to you rewarding! When Tully was a pup, I never called her if I didn't have a dog treat in my pocket. As she matured, she had to make do with praise sometimes, but my dogs are [i]always[/i] praised for coming, and they still often get a little something. I don't always stop the fun if they come, often I just call them to check in, offer a treat, and release them to play again. And if I'm planning something unpleasant, like a bath, I go and get the dog rather than calling them. (my dogs very nobly disdain to go out in the backyard and hide when they know I'm after them for a bath... they just skulk about the living room, looking miserable, but easy to catch)

[quote name='Shannon_C'][color=darkred]Does everyone realise that this guest might be trying to wind you up by saying things about the Pitbull etc. Some people who don't want to be a member only go into forums to stir things up, maybe if her posts were ignored she might go away :D [/color][/quote] But we're having fun! :drinking: :popcorn: :drink1: :beerchug: :drinka: why no "passed out" smilie?

Very sorry to hear this.