Up To Date News

We do count

2011-07-15T17:05:00.000-07:00

I love the dogs and home life..But are we not all under pressure to make ends meet...Doesn't matter how much you earn extra you can spend it right. And I want to know whats going off in the World. I don't expect I on my own can make a difference but how long it can be ignored . They say thanks to the world wide web we can see everything at our finger tips and it can be mind bending . But are we learning to much, have we finally wised up and realised that we are all owned by the banks ...Have you ever sat and worked out what is actually your earned money the time you have been taxed, payed your VAT and your % what is actually left.
Take our house for instance I think we are the 3rd mortgage payers....Cant say own it as we don't for another 9 years but just this one house how much as it created for mortgage lenders to invest and pay them self big bonuses
My husbands company the CEO was paid a £2,000,000 salary where as my dear husband and colleges received 1.5% pay rise...Bloody hilarious so 4 dealerships worked to pay this guy his salary...Something wrong there wouldn't you think ...Now I'm not Activist nor am I democrat . I'm not a freedom fighter I'm just a house wife and Mother and I am asking what is the future for my son, my neighbours young children and any future grand children I may one day have...I'm asking will there be more war and plots to disguise the real reasons of going to war, more suffering, more poverty and more misery. Or do I have to accept this will always be the case and we cant change it ...Should I just be grateful for my lot and stop complaining...Well I cant and I wont...
So I am putting some links that I have found and people who are trying to make a difference

http://www.infoplease.com/biography/var/hugochavez.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcbpsYj1LXw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYsTecbO5pg

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3739500579629840148

I hope people will look and do more looking OK in light of the terrible events in Norway take a look at this
http://www.infowars.com/

Luna and Isa

2010-03-15T16:42:00.000-07:00

Got to go hunting for the rest but very proud of Luna in Norway and her and Diablo made lovely kids

Isa and Luna

In these times it might be worth a mention

2010-03-08T18:14:00.000-08:00

Have thought about what is being proposed and being pushed through government and we also have the SDU (Special Dogs Unit) in play now for these status dogs so I'm going to do the research but in the mean time this was a very good article written by David Levy and still stands as making very valid points some 8 years later.

It’s time to protect the public

The early summer months have seen a sudden upsurge in reports in the media of dog attacks, especially on children. Following the very serious attack on 5 year-old Leah Preston by two reported cross-breeds in Wolverhampton nearly every newspaper, television and radio station began reporting further incidents involving a wide variety of breeds. In virtually every case, the articles dwelt on the “breed” involved and implied that the Dangerous Dogs Act was insufficient to protect the public …………. I agree!

The problem with the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act, despite the hard won amendment in 1997, continues to be the emphasis placed on the idea that a dog is dangerous because of its breed rather than its behaviour. It may not be palatable to some people, and certainly not the politicians like Kenneth Baker who rushed to introduce his conscience salving nonsense, that the breeds that have actually killed people in the UK over the past 50 years include a West Highland White Terrier, Golden Retriever and “Jack Russell”.

The popular press might have you believe that those breeds should therefore be banned and condemn the many thousands of healthy and well-adjusted examples of each of these breeds that live contentedly with children, the elderly and the lonely bringing comfort and companionship.

The reaction to any incident where a child is badly mauled seems set in stone. Kill the dogs involved, cremate them as quickly as possible and call for a ban on the “breed” involved. What is learned from such actions? The answer is “absolutely nothing”. The benefit for the public is zero. The kudos for all the politicians and newspaper editors is substantial. After all, they are “protecting the public” ……… I do not agree!

Scientific evidence from around the world conclusively demonstrates that factors such as the criminal or social background of the owner is far more significant than the type of dog involved. Of course the newspapers will frequently cite the Pitbull, Rottweilers or other powerful dog but this is increasingly being proven, after the event, to be something else entirely. Why is this? Simply that the general public’s knowledge of “breeds” is substantially based on what they read in the newspapers. If the papers have been full of stories about German Shepherds then the public will report anything from a Rough Collie to a Briard/Dobermann cross as a “German Shepherd”.

In 1993 or so, the National Dog Wardens Association printed a list in their newsletter of what the public described and what they found when they attended to collect a stray or deal with a “dangerous” dog incident. I always loved the description of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier as “it had a head like a coal scuttle”. Perhaps more telling, given the media furore over them at the time was when the public described a “Pitbull” and the wardens on attending found “almost any breed under the sun”.

It is unfortunately true that a certain “type” of person can be attracted to the bull breeds. The cycle is obvious. The media inadvertently glorifies the worst aspects of a breed’s history. The inconsiderate or delinquent thug decides to get a dog that will enhance his image and then goes on to intentionally train the animal to be extra aggressive, perhaps cross breeding to combine the very worst examples of aggression and power. Rumour says that some dogs are even treated with hallucinogenic drugs to increase their maladjustment.

Of course not every attack can be tracked back to criminal ownership. Equally dangerous is the stupidity of selling pups produced from selectively bred working guard dogs to the general public as pets. Whilst accepting that nurture is at least as influential as nature in such cases, never the less dogs intentionally bred through several generations for their nervousness, aggression and excitability are likely to carry at least some of those characteristics into their progeny.

Other factors that are now believed to significantly affect behaviour in the adult dog include experience between 5 and 8 weeks of age and in particular, the age at which they “suffer” removal from the nest. Another factor is the life conditions of the dog, the training, type and extent of exercise and perhaps diet.

Occasionally articles are published in scientific or medical journals relating the statistics of dog bites to particular breeds or groups of dogs. The usual “culprits” are identified and the article, complete with carefully selected references and quotations from previous articles and research appears to demonstrate the point the author set out to make. Inevitably, just a little questioning will highlight inconsistencies and demonstrate the inadequacy of the research. I am grateful to Dr Archie Bryden (who also produced several early challenges to the common misconceptions relating to Toxicara) for reviewing such articles and challenging the science.

For example, a report in the British Medical Journal in the mid ‘90s listed the Staffordshire Bull Terrier as being by far the dog most likely to cause injury to children. It transpired that

1. the research was carried out solely with respect to children attending a single hospital in the West Midlands (where there is a significant prevalence of the breed and numerous crosses),

2. the identification was solely on the say so of the child or parents

3. no consideration had been given to the circumstances of the incident, the background of owners or the severity of the attack. In fact not a single other factor had been considered at all by the author other than the breed of dog involved.

When challenged on these grounds, the BMA withdrew “support” from the article and published a disclaimer.

Fortunately the scientists are beginning to research the situation properly where circumstances allow. An article published in Australia in early May 2002 included the following:

The Australian Veterinary Association, staging its annual conference in Adelaide this week, has been told that determination to enforce tough legislation was needed to address the problem of dangerous dogs and banning specific breeds was not the answer.

AVA spokesperson and animal behaviour consultant, Dr Kersti Seksel, said all breeds of dogs have the potential to be aggressive.

"What is important in addressing the problem of dangerous dogs in our society is to look at the deed and not the breed," Dr Seksel said.

"What this means is ensuring that laws are tough enough to discourage people from turning their pets into dangerous animals either deliberately or through their ignorance about dogs' behaviour.

The same enlightened attitude is being demonstrated all over the world. In Austria, Spain and the UK we have seen similar views being expressed by veterinary bodies.

In America, Dr Cornelia Wagner, one of the most respected professors in animal research and genetics in the U.S.A wrote:

Whether or not certain dog breeds are more dangerous than others has been the subject of considerable discussion among ethnologists and veterinarians, especially with regard to the usefulness of breed-specific legislation to protect a community's citizens from dog attacks/bites. Such legislation is based on the assumption that there are genetic differences among breeds with regard to their dangerousness/aggressiveness. However, most veterinarians and ethnologists oppose breed-specific legislation, arguing that the genetic make-up of an individual animal is only one of many components that may enhance its aggressiveness.

She also quoted Dr. Dorit Feddersen-Petersen of Christian Albrechts University in Kiel, Germany:

The classification of dog breeds with respect to their relative danger to humans makes no sense, as both, the complex ancedent conditions in which aggressive behaviour occurs, and its ramifying consequences in the individual dog's ecological and social environment are not considered

Here is another quote, this time from the Australian Veterinarian Association’s manual of policies:

Behaviour in adult animals may be influenced by genetic predisposition, early socialisation and owner attitudes and behaviour. Desexing, obedience training and hormonal treatment may assist in modifying aggressive behaviour.

Targeting a specific breed is not appropriate. The main problems relate to irresponsible ownership and lack of education

Yet governments, local and national, continue to act like sheep and merely follow the old, failing policy of “ban the breed”. The Kennel Club’s Domino Campaign has been prominent in making the dog owning public aware of the risks inherent in the political clamour to introduce ever more restrictions on dog ownership.

The law introduced in the UK in 1991 was quickly followed by a muzzling order affecting nearly 40 breeds in Eire. In 1992 came the critically important decision in Bavaria to also ban several breeds. With a fragmented opposition from Bull Terrier owners and only 2 Staffordshire Bull Terriers in the area there was little that could be done to prevent their inclusion. 9 years later, it was the Bavarian “model” that was taken up by the German Federal Government and no amount of opposition could make them consider the fact that there had never been a single SBT attack reported in the entire country. Other countries are now trying to follow the German lead and other breeds are gradually being introduced to the “list”.

Just in 2002 so far we have already had to deal with attempts to ban various breeds, including some perhaps unexpected examples such as Rhodesian Ridgebacks, Maremma Sheepdogs, Akitas, Dogue de Bordeaux and various Mastiffs as well as the “usual” Bull breeds in Austria, Brazil, Canada, Romania, Slovakia, Spain and Victoria (Aust). In America, several cities and states have introduced laws banning or restricting American Pitbull Terriers. They then go on to explain that by “Pitbull Terrier” they also include 3 different breeds, the Amstaff (American Staffordshire Terrier), Bull Terrier and Staffordshire Bull Terrier!

I believe that we can learn to prevent most of the severe attacks. This is also the expressed view of veterinary and animal welfare organisations across the World and including The Kennel Club, NCDL and BVA. What we desperately need is for some rules to be created for the investigation of serious dog bite incidents that will enable us to understand the causes of attacks and begin to educate the “breeders”, owners and the general public to prevent escalation in an increasingly crowded world.

In my opinion this includes containing the dogs involved rather than immediately killing them if at all possible. In most cases, the dogs are actually captured alive and can easily be caged and made safe without killing them immediately. I am not pleading for their lives – I agree that this “crime” should carry the death penalty for these dogs – but not immediately!

· Allow the animal behaviourists to test the animals involved.

· Check their system for drugs.

· Check their responses to various stimuli and check for attack training.

Surely a post-mortem is an absolute must in such cases. We need to know what really causes dogs to attack people and we cannot do that by just killing them.

As I wrote to The Daily Mail in response to the almost entirely inaccurate and ill conceived comments by Lynda Lee Potter

Clearly the greatest victim of the attack in Wolverhampton is a 5 year-old girl potentially disfigured and certainly traumatised by a vicious attack. If we are to prevent repeated recurrences of such incidents we have two choices. We can either ban ALL dogs (ignoring the many scientifically proven health, social and educational benefits of such pet ownership to the lonely, elderly and children) or we can instigate informed research to determine just how the misbehaviour of humans leads to such attacks and legislate to prevent such actions.

Leah Preston deserves to grow up knowing that her pain has at least resulted in changes that will prevent her own children from suffering similar traumas.

Luna's Kids

2010-01-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

Hector with his pig toy

And Isa with Luna

Not quite up to date pic's from NORWAY

2009-11-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

Kind fell in at the deep end on my return so could do with another break now LOL always the same isn't it but hope now things will improve once more....Some folk get to ride the roller coaster a lot it seems and we have had our fair share of scary rides but when you get past the feeling low and snap back it never seems that bad and the saying to make you feel better is " There is always someone worse off " whoopee
I came home on the Monday and the following day Ingebjorg and Ian whilst waiting to turn into the junction where they live had a car come behind and hit them. The dogs Luna and Diablo were in the back in the crate and its a plastic crate so the impact smashed it and poor Diablo shot out the back window much to the horror of Ian as he saw it in the mirror, ambulance was called and they took Ian first I think as Ingebjorg wanted to wait for her parents to arrive to collect the dogs and have them checked over and she wasn't going to go to hospital till she knew they were ok..Dogs are amazingly resilient and being smaller than us humans don't seem to suffer as much in such accidents, both Ian and Ingebjorg had whip lash and head aches and I think still suffering now but slowly on the mend and the dogs are fine
My holiday with them was fabulous and I cant wait to go again now LOL but here are a few pics

Loved the scenery and went to see the Troll wall and walked along the Troll road definitely worth googling

Luna Tag's sister had a litter of 7

2009-07-01T17:40:00.001-07:00

Proud Dad is Diablo who lives with Luna and she has done so well as she a sweet little Dot and for new borns they look wonderful so will look forward to seeing them grow

Puppy Fact Sheet (Revised)

2009-05-19T15:28:00.000-07:00

From time to time we have questions asked about rearing of puppies this fact sheet was designed by Lesley (Tusselstaff) and myself though Lesley is more pro than myself, but over a period of time you get to know what works best..
Having read what people have googled I thought I should just mention about buying two Stafford puppies from the same litter, basically its not always advisable we have always said but not always acted on ourselves that it is best is to have a gap between ages with bitches and dogs together you definitely need to know what you are doing, we bought Nell when Sall was about 9 weeks old and for the 1st 3 years it was fine and then it wasn't any more and I have wrote about it on my main page called the Dark Side and its been a hard lesson and a lot of self torture with to many guilt trips to mention.....So Yes dogs are better for the company of dogs and we maintain it is the makings for a sound dog to have a companion rather that to just rely on human inter-action and in that case we would advice a male and a female puppy but obviously at some time the choice would have to be made on which one gets the chop at the vets

YOUR NEW PUPPY

Feeding

Pup’s feeding routine has been from 7.00 am and every 4 hours after that through the day. They usually have a milky breakfast such as Rice Crispies and Goats Milk, Farley’s rusks with goat’s milk, creamy rice pudding or scrambled egg. All breakfasts that require milk adding should use goat’s milk and not cow’s milk as cow’s milk can cause diahorrea. They love the tinned Butchers superior in jelly and also James Wellbeloved plus Wainwrights sold at pets at home......Having said that we are now on Orijen and seems to be suiting our dogs they have glorious coats and its marvelous food as completes go, top brand awarded in Canada and worldwide and you feed less than average completes... Complete food should always be moistened with warm water or warmed goat’s milk. Very favourite foods at the moment are scrambled egg and also finely chopped up cooked chicken fillet which they go mad for- just make sure you do not feed the skin.
When feeding any dried complete food,remember to dampen just to be sure but your pup must ALWAYS have free access to clean water.

Routine

The current routine is usually to get out of bed at 7:00, have a wee on newspaper, feed, poo and then play in the morning -this lasts for between 1-2 hours. Sleep again and then wee/poo and playtime again with a feed about 11.00 am which is a meat dinner (see above) and then sleep again, Any where between 2.00 and 4.00pm they are fed again- scrambled egg with a bit of cheese goes down well or a little tuna mixed in with dried food and then pups are fed again between 6.00 and 8.00pm. They will dash about for most of the evening but if they sleep at 9-10.00pm wake them up and give them a burn out or they will have you up in the early hours of the morning just like a baby. It is usual for young pups to sleep a lot so do not be concerned.

Toilet training

Bowel movements and urinating are done on an old towel or newspaper- the choice is yours. You can also buy puppy pads if you want to protect your carpets. Always praise and offer a treat as a reward when pup does her ‘business’ in the right place. It is also useful if you have a command word for when you want her to go to the toilet so that she begins to associate the word with your command. This can be anything from ‘toilet’, ‘wee-wee’, and ‘be quick’- anything at all that you feel comfortable using. Be consistent and always use the same word. NEVER rub a pup’s nose in her mess as some people used to recommend in days gone by!! This is cruel and unnecessary.
Pups will usually want a wee when first waking up or after food. If you watch them over time, you can usually see when they need to go from their actions. Some pups will do a circling motion when they need to poo.

Worming

Pups have been wormed at 2 weeks and 5 weeks (and again at 8 weeks if they are still with us at that age) – with Panacur Paste. You will need to continue worming for the rest of her life- there are an abundance of worming treatments out there so please speak to your vet regarding frequency of treatment. The best and most effective wormers are those from the vet and not from shops. We use Drontal on our own adult dogs.

Crating

If you are going to use a crate (also known as a cage) I would suggest you line it around the bottom with vet bedding - sometimes a very young puppy can trap her jaw in the wire- it’s a rare occurrence but it can happen and in 3 more weeks she will be too big but it is something to be aware of. Crates are extremely useful for when you need to leave the house and therefore pup will be unsupervised. It will prevent her from causing damage in the home and will also protect her own safety – especially if there are electrical cables she could chew.
Always leave the door open when introducing a crate and let pup go in and explore of her own accord. Never force her in there and lock the door. Never leave her in there for long periods and never use the crate as a form of punishment. It should be viewed as her own little den and you can leave indestructible toys in there such as Kongs. You should also have a coop cup attached inside containing water. There are hook on or bolt on versions available. Some pups feel more comfortable if the cage is covered- you can buy special crate covers but a blanket is equally as good.
Make sure that pup’s crate or bed/basket is not in a cold and draughty area and also do not place beds/crates in conservatories due to excessive heat when the sun comes out.

General Tips

Never pull too hard when playing tug-o-war games as you don’t want to ruin the bedding for the new teeth coming through. For the next 8 weeks or so, if your pup is allowed on the sofa don’t let her jump off as she will tend to belly flop and she will hurt the breast plate or even injure or break her legs.

Walking

When training for walking on the lead, try and get a very light weight lead so you can leave her to walk around the house with it on - please don’t drag her as it can hurt the neck.
There are a vast variety of collars available but NEVER use a choke chain- they are cruel and can seriously injure a Stafford. Make sure the collar you choose is not too tight that it chokes pup and also not too loose that it can slip off over her head.
If her claws are getting a bit sharp at home then allow her to chase a brush or stick and make her turn around in your patio area and this will soon take the tips of the nails off. You can walk her when young but not too far until she is at least 6 months of age and then it should only be a couple of miles- the big walks don’t really happen until she is about 11 months of age. The usual rule of thumb is 5 minutes walking for every month of age.
Never let your pup off lead in an open space until you are positive she will return. You can practise recall in an enclosed area such as your garden- just call her from one person to another by shouting ‘come’ and her name. Every time she returns when called, always treat her and make a big fuss, telling her she is a ‘good girl’. Never scold her if she takes some time to come back. If she runs about several times before returning and you scold her when she does eventually return then she will get confused and think you are scolding her for returning. Lunge lines/training leads are a good method of teaching recall as your pup cannot escape from you. They come in various lengths from 10 foot to 40 foot or so. They allow freedom on lead but without the worry of pup running away. Never use these near roads of course. We don’t personally recommend the extending leads as they are sometimes difficult to control and can become tangled under pup if she runs about and can cause nasty burns when they do so. (I have experienced this on my own hands and it hurts!!)
Pups are required to wear an identity tag when outside the home, containing their name and the owners contact details under UK law. It is also recommended that pup be micro-chipped in the event that she becomes lost or is stolen.

Seasons

Bitches can have a 1st season from 6 months but any where between 6 months and 11 months is the norm, the new thing with the vets now is they can actually neuter a young puppy from 10 weeks old which is absolutely diabolical and should be classed along side of drilling holes in peoples heads because they have mental issues....
Your puppy has not developed and isn't likely to for a good 18 months more so to chop one in its prime of flushing hormones just doesn't seem right to me, they need some of those hormones to grow and I cannot for the life of me see the benefit of doing surgery on a tiny pup and until the Vets have proof of a 10 year old bitch or dog that has no ill health or side effects ( Incontinent just springs to mind) from being neutered so early in life I think it should be well avoided
Get your bitch some dog pants and put a human Allways with wings in the pants saves a lot of mess and is the solution for that 1st season and then if you need to spay look at 3 months after her season but if you can hang on till she is at least a year old the better it will be for her..... Same of the males whipping his testicles off isn't going to calm him down any if he is lively around the home then get off your butt and take him a bigger walk, feed his brain which makes for a more content dog...On the other hand if he is rampant then he maybe flushing a load of testosterone and this is around 7 to 10 months of age so see if he settles...
Finally don't be fooled that a female puppy of 7, 8, or 9 months old would not accept a male she would and she could possibly produce a litter of pup's so make a note of when she starts to bleed and around day 9 to day 20 you should be on your guard and not let her near any males and to even watch your neighbours dogs that may get into your garden

Toys

There are many doggy toys available in the shops but pups also enjoy home made toys too like kitchen roll tubes, plastic milk or lemonade bottles, cardboard boxes with holes in for them to run in and out of. At present the pups are fascinated by anything noisy.
Other toys to consider are tuggers, balls, nylabones and Kong’s. If using a Kong filled with treats then make sure you deduct the amount of food used in the Kong from the amount she has at dinner time to avoid obesity. I can provide some Kong recipes/treats if required.
When choosing toys make sure they are not filled with beans or have glass eyes that could be swallowed etc.

Grooming

Stafford’s are very easy to look after from a grooming point of view. They will need a brush about once a week and only an occasional bath. If you bath her all the time her coat can lose oils. Just bath when she really needs it and use a gentle shampoo like Johnson’s baby shampoo or one of the many dog shampoos on the market.
Some owners may wish to brush pup’s teeth and there are special doggy toothpastes out there in chicken or beef flavour and also special doggy tooth brushes- never use human toothpaste on a dog!

Socialisation

A properly socialized dog is well adjusted and makes a good companion. She is neither frightened by nor aggressive towards anyone or anything that she would normally meet in day to day living. An un-socialized dog is untrustworthy and an unwanted liability. They can often become fear-biters. Often they like to fight with other dogs. They are difficult to train and are generally unpleasant to be around. Unsocialised dogs cannot adapt to new situations and a simple routine visit to the vet is a nightmare not only for the dog itself, but for everyone involved. Don't let this happen to you and your dog. Start socializing your new puppy NOW! It is generally thought that the most important socialization period lasts up to about 12 weeks (3 months) of age. However, after 12 weeks, your puppy must still continue socialization to refine her social skills. Socialization most easily occurs before the puppy is 3 months old.
We recommend that pups attend a basic puppy class to teach her the basics of sit, lie down, recall etc and also for socialization purposes. The effort that you put in with your pup now, will be reaped back when she is an adult.
Socialisation Do's
Make sure that each of the following events is pleasant and non-threatening. If your puppy's first experience with something is painful and frightening, then you will be defeating your purpose. In fact, you will be creating a phobia that will often last a lifetime. It's better to go too slow and assure your puppy is not frightened or injured than to rush and force your pup to meet new things and people. Puppy classes are a great way for pup to meet different breeds and a variety of people and they can be a great support for the new or inexperienced owner. Pup will also learn basic commands at puppy classes. Classes can be found on the www.apdt.co.uk/ website.
• -Invite friends over to meet your pup. Include men, women, youngsters, oldsters, different ethnic backgrounds, men with beards, people with glasses etc.
• -Invite friendly, healthy, vaccinated dogs, puppies and even cats to your home to meet and play with your new puppy. Take your puppy to the homes of these pets if possible, preferably with dog-friendly cats and dogs.
• -Carry your pup to shopping centres, parks, school playgrounds, etc; places where there are crowds of people and plenty of activity.
• -Take your puppy for short, frequent rides in the car. Stop the car and let your puppy watch the world go by through the window. Always make sure your pup is safe in the car and not likely to either cause an accident when driving or cause injury to herself. You can use a car crate or a pet safety harness that clicks into the seatbelt.
• -Introduce your puppy to umbrellas, bags, boxes, the vacuum cleaner, etc. Encourage your puppy to explore and investigate her environment.
• -Introduce your puppy to new and various sounds .Loud noises should be introduced from a distance and gradually brought closer.
• -Accustom your puppy to being brushed, bathed, inspected, having her nails clipped, teeth and ears cleaned and all the routines of grooming and physical examination.
• - Introduce anything and everything you want your puppy to be comfortable with and around.
• We recommend positive reinforcement which basically means that you always make learning fun and treat and praise pup often as she will learn more quickly and happily this way
Socialisation Don'ts
• -Do not put your puppy on the ground where unknown animals have access. This is where your puppy can pick up diseases. Wait until your puppy's vaccinations are completed. Do not let your pup socialize with dogs that appear sick, have kennel cough or dogs that you don't know, or that may not be fully vaccinated.
• -NEVER reward fearful behaviour. In a well meaning attempt to sooth, encourage or calm the puppy when it appears frightened, we often unintentionally reward the behaviour. It's normal for the puppy to show some signs of apprehension when confronting anything new and different. If we reassure and treat them when frightened then we are instilling this fear into them and they will associate it with attention in the future.
• -Do not allow any experience to be harmful, painful or excessively frightening. This can cause lifetime phobias in your dog.
• -Do not force or rush your puppy. Let your puppy take things at her own pace. Your job is to provide the opportunity to explore and enjoy.
• -Do not expect too much at one time. Young puppies need a lot of sleep and tire quickly. It is much more productive to have frequent and very brief exposures than occasional prolonged exposures.
• -DO NOT WAIT!! Every day that goes by is an opportunity of a lifetime that is lost forever. You can never get these days back. If socialization does not happen now, it never will.
• Finally be the best you can be when out walking your dog don’t tense up when other dogs approach, keep it all matter of fact and train pup always to come back for a reward

Handling Classes/Ring craft

Some of you will be want to go along to a local handling class if you are considering showing- even if it is one not for Stafford’s alone and is a mixed breed class it is worth still going and if you can get along to a local show to have a look how its done even better. We can provide details of local shows (or further ones) for those interested. How many shows you enter is entirely up to yourselves. If you do want to have a go then you will need to practice from an early age at getting pup to stand still and to have her teeth and mouth examined as this is what a judge will do in the ring. Get her used to this by having people just gently ask to see her teeth and lifting the lips back gently. Always make sure people have clean hands when doing this. Just keep touching around the muzzle area and then lifting the lip and asking “show your teeth” and then praise and treat

The SBT head

2009-04-20T15:14:00.000-07:00

A Staffordshire Bull Terrier's head is his or her defining feature, having said that it must be remembered that the Stafford isn't a head breed, balance and agility must be maintained and both can be compromised if fancy which often results in exaggeration is allowed to over rule good judgment .

The Breed Standard doesn't ask for a dog with a large head, sure it says short, deep through, with broad skull, with pronounced cheek muscles etc, but deep and broad compared to what the" Terrier" or the "Bull" I would say deep and broad compared to the average breed of dog.

What "the Standard" is actually asking for is a hard bite and to achieve this an increase in skull and jaw size is necessary to facilitate strong jaw muscles and also a shorter muzzle to increase leverage but the need to maintain balance and agility puts a limit on any increases in head size and likewise we must not shorten muzzles to much or breathing could be restricted.

Breeds such as Pug's, Bulldogs and Pekinese etc have brachycephalic heads and can have Brachycephalic syndrome which affects various areas of the respiratory tract such as elongated soft palate.The soft tissues of a canine mouth are difficult too fit in a short fore face and as a result the soft palate that separates the nasal passage from the oral cavity can flap down into the throat creating snorting sounds, not what we want in a performance breed.Also a Brachycephalic's wind pipe may be narrow in places (tracheal stenosis) and they may have narrowed nostrils (stenotic nares) all this makes them prone to heat stress because all the respiratory obstructions makes them inefficient panters, as a hot dog needs to pass air over it's tongue quickly and efficiently to cool it's blood and so regulate body temperature.

At some shows we have witnessed such Staffordshire's struggling to cope and we never want to saddle any of our dogs with such an affliction, dogs should be able to run and play even on a warm day without keeling over after 5 min's . A proper Staffordshire Bull terrier is an active animal and should be equipped to be active.

So as we have said nearly all breed standards are based in original purpose and as the Staffordshire was developed for the purpose of fighting a Stafford's most important weapons were the power of biting hard and holding on and to achieve this a rather special head evolved.

The Stafford muzzle should be of a length that exerts maximum leverage from the jaw muscles but does not restrict breathing as discussed above and has room for a complete set of teeth with a scissor bite. It is generally accepted that a muzzle to head length ratio ranging from 3 to 5 to 1 to 2 is correct, so if your dogs head is 5 inches long (measured from stop to occupit bone at the back of the skull) a muzzle of 2 and 1/2 inches to 3 inches is about right and 2 and 1/4 inches being very short and 3 and 1/2 inches is Houndish.

The muzzle should be strong and broad but clean cut. It should appear correct in it's proportions to the skull what ever angle it is viewed from and should taper slightly without any foxiness .

A muzzle top line that slopes down from the stop is called down face and one that tilts up is dish faced and we all should be aiming for a level top line though slight down face is very reminiscent of old breeding which I quite like but dish faced is very alien.

A dogs ability to bite is very much affected by the fill in before the eyes. The maxillary bone on each side of the bridge of the nose backs up the molars and a snippy muzzle will not have molars set in a strong foundation. Terriers, Hounds and retrievers are all examples of breeds that should have a well developed Maxillary bone.

A Staffordshire's under jaw should be strong as well as what would be the point of good fill in before the eyes and possessing a weak under jaw. We need a strong under jaw to house large strong teeth and the repandus or chin should be squarish and give a bold determined impression.

The eyes should be round, of medium size and set to look straight ahead. A true Staffordshire Bull Terrier expressioncan only be achieved if the eyes are correct in colour size and position. Eyes that are close together tend to give a mean expression and eyes that are wide apart tend to give an air of intelligence.

Bulbous or protruding eyes are not wanted on a Bull terrier for they are prone to injury and they look more like a French Bulldog than a Stafford, nothing wrong with a "frenchie" but our breed was bred for the pit and should have eyes of medium size slightly in from the corners of the face looking straight ahead and give a determined expression.

The Staffordshire bull terrier's eyes preferably should be dark but may bear some relation to coat colour though I personally see no reason why they can't be brown or hazel, some people say that Stafford's with light eyes tend to be shrewd in nature rather than intelligent but we have owned dogs with a range of eye shades and have not noticed different characters related to eye colour and the light eyes can see just as well as the dark one's, having said that as long as the Standard asks for dark then we should breed for dark and personally I think a good dark eye does look better.

Ears just like eyes are very important if the correct expression is to be produced, they should be rose or half pricked and not large but nowadays only small rose ears cut the mustard, the best ears are small, thin and neatly folded exposing part of the inner burr.

The position of the ears on the head is also important, just small differences in position make a big difference to the expression, the ears should be towards the rear of the head and high enough to give an alert expression but not so high that they start to go upright.

Talking about head size is a present day bone of contention for us, we feel many exhibits at shows are very exaggerated in size and shortness. If you measure around a SBT's skull just in front of his ears a girth of about 17 to 18 inches on a 37 to 39 lb dog or 16 to 17 inches on a 34 to 37 lb bitch is about right to maintain a balance between speed, agility and strength, a 19 inch head on a 16/17 inch dog is out of proportion except on large heavy dogs.

The Staffordshire Bull Terrier Breed Standard our version

2009-04-20T15:08:00.000-07:00

I know that when I first got into dog breeding and read the breed standard it seemed a bit vague to me, ok if i had a picture of a Staffordshire Bull terrier to hand then I could fit the two together and all was well and that was about all I thought about it, didn't need to look at the standard again now I knew what a Stafford looked like.

You could do the same but what would happen if we all took this approach when dog breeding and just had a quick read of The breed Standard, well i think fancy would take over as has happened with many breeds and can be witnessed at dog shows and a few generations down the road we wouldn't have true Staffordshires any more.

A breed Standard is a touch stone it takes us back to the origin of the breed for most breed standards are based in original purpose. Obviously original purpose for our breed in the bad old days was to battle for his life in the pit, thankfully those days have long since been made illegal and the modern Staffordshire is a delightful companion who is loyal to his owners and family.

We totally condemn dog fighting and any body who gets involved in such activity today is a cruel disreputable criminal. we don't need to see a dog fight to understand the conformation and construction of our breed after all most of the breed standard is just describing a well made dog.

I watch our dogs move everyday running, jumping , play fighting and battling over a tug. As breeders we accept the KC standard as an accurate representation of the true SBT type and do our best to understand what the breed standard requires and produce such stock.

Strength and agility are fundamental characteristics of the Stafford neither of which can be achieved unless the animal possesses soundness and balance these four attributes we consider to be the four corner stones of a quality Staffordshire this should be kept in mind when reading the breed standard.

To many with terms like deep, wide and broad with no definition of the terms "The Standard" is hard to understand but it is specific in height and weight i.e. 14 to 16 inches and 28 to 38lbs 4lbs lighter for bitches, though if you go to a dog show for Staffordshire Bull Terriers you will see many out side this, some people just think bigger is better. Anyway if we construct a dog of 16 inches and 38lbs with balance strength and agility then "The Standard" is not so vague after all.

If a dog is 16 inches and 38lbs and balanced then the fact that he is balanced dictates the size of his head and body how much bone he has the width of his front the length of his back, add strength and agility and this dictates the size and type of musculature he possesses. also the standard gives descriptions of the conformation of the fore and rear quarters which also need to be balanced front and with correct hock and pastern then all he needs is a good set of feet the right ears and tail and you have a SBT.

2009-03-14T18:30:00.001-07:00

Kind of twangs

2009-03-13T15:54:00.000-07:00

I have been completely moved by this pic and it leaves you with a certain guilt trip about moaning about mundane things

test post

2009-02-26T18:16:00.000-08:00

this is a test post to make sure the blog is working. Delete later when proper posts are in :)