Revised 2012 INTRODUCTION I am frequently approached by people who have bought “the love of their lives” or a show- or working-prospect puppy, only to find out it does not have what most responsible fanciers would call “breedable” hips. I am asked what should or could be done about it. Nearly half of the inquiries …
I was asked to write this article to try and clear up some confusion regarding how to interpret cardiac testing results. Many of you were sent a brochure in May, 1997 from the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) entitled: “OFA Congenital Heart Disease Registry: General Procedures”. That reference, as well as others cited at the …
Revised December 2011. There is a disorder (it may actually be two or three) in the canine similar to the “wobbles” in thoroughbred horses. Much has been written on this, with various descriptions such as cervical vertebral instability (CVI), cervical spondylopathy, stenosis of the cervical vertebral canal, caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy, and even the mouthful, caudal …
Biting and mouthing behavior in puppies can be a very frustrating time during puppy development. It is important to keep in mind this is a phase and will not last indefinitely. Our goal during this difficult time is to understand why the behavior exists and how to deal with it in an effective and positive …
There is no question that if this were a human disease penicillin prophylaxis would be near universal. Imagine sending a healthy child to school in the morning, being called because of collapse and high fever around noon, and having the child die on the way to the emergency room or shortly after arrival. As this …
When jumping over obstacles, dogs land with significant force applied to their forelimbs. If this is an infrequent event, then the impact is usually of little concern, but repetitive jumping over many years may have significant consequences. Repeated impact loading has been documented to cause some overuse injuries in human athletes. The effects of jumping …
Our most frequent discussions about Herpes in dogs occur because of neonatal puppy death. Herpes causes puppies to die in the first two to three weeks of life, when puppies cannot regulate their body temperature. After three weeks of age the puppies acquire the ability to regulate their body temperature, and to mount a fever …
COMPANION DOG AND BEHAVIOR/TEMPERAMENT TEST, TRAFFIC SURENESS AND OTHER SPECIAL EXPERIENCE (Begleithund & Verhaltens Test, BH/VT) All examinations and qualification events are subject to principles of sportsmanship regarding the performance and behavior of those involved. The execution, demonstration, and evaluation are more thoroughly described below. These regulations are binding for all involved, and all participants …
A few weeks ago I got into a bit of a debate with another trainer over the fact that I did bitesuit work with a dog who is destined to be a competitive Schutzhund dog. The accusation was that suit work leads to sloppy gripping technique as well as “dirty” cheap shot behavior in Schutzhund …
Building Drive in Obedience Discussions over the last few years regarding the protection phase center around active and reactive aggression. In these discussions the importance of having a dog initiate the work is generally agreed to by most. The concept of having the dog initiate the work is seldom discussed regarding the obedience phase even …