HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: primeaux@carlsberg.cs.utk.edu (David Primeaux)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: Dalmations
Date: 4 Jan 1993 20:55:50 GMT
Organization: University of Tennessee, Knoxville - Department of Computer Science
Distribution: world
Reply-To: primeaux@carlsberg.cs.utk.edu (David Primeaux)
NNTP-Posting-Host: carlsberg.cs.utk.edu

In article <9301032124.AA2191@f723.n202.z1.fidonet.org>, ELAINE_GALLEGOS@f703.n202.z1.fidonet.org writes:
|>   I read through the answers you got about getting a Dalmatian. There
|> appeared to be several plusses and minuses.  One fact that our pals
|> here failed to mention to you is that there is a hight incidence of
|> genetic deafness in Dalmatians.  
|>   they are a beautiful dogs, but it would be a good idea to get the
|> dog's hearing checked before you buy it.  Often, the pup will have
|> unilateral deafness, hearing only out of one ear.  

It is my understanding that simply having a dlamatian pup pass a hearing test 
will not necessarily guarantee that the pup is free from this genetic defect
since it sometimes manifests itself later.  But I might well be wrong.

There is supposedly a high correlation in dalmatians between deafness and one
of two occasional dalmatian markings/ coloration:  1) a *complete* dark marking
(forming an unbroken ring) on the skin surrounding one or both eyes and 
2) both eyes being blue.

For what it's worth.

|>   I have no direct experience with Dals, but have had different people
|> tell me that they were the best dogs they ever had.  Others had some
|> problems.
|>   Oh, yes, lately I had heard that they can be nippy and overly
|> aggressive.
|> --- FMail 0.92
|>  * Origin: HILLCREST COMMUNITY BBS, SAN DIEGO: HST 619-291-0544 (1:202/703)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: pem@mahogany25.cray.com (Paul Martin)
Subject: Re: Boxers
Originator: pem@mahogany25
Keywords: General info on the breed
Organization: Cray Research, Inc.
Date: 8 Jan 93 15:00:19 CST


John, 

    We have had a wonderful female boxer in our house for 2 1/2 years, 
and she is everything I hoped she would be when we got her. Here's 
what I think of her and boxers in general. Most of these points are 
valid for most boxers, although training could cause some differences. 

    Advantages: 
      * Beautiful, alert, and noble appearance !  
      * Friendly to everyone, but especially to humans less than 4 feet tall.
      * Good watch dog, barks whenever she sees strange people near the house 
      * Loves to play with other dogs and people
      * Loves to run, so all she needs for exercise is some space
      * Very low maintenance, Short hair means a bath once every month or 
        two is enough and shedding is not much of a problem
      * Not a picky eater; 2 1/2 cups of dry Biljacs per day keeps her 
        happy and healthy.
      * A great size: big enough and muscular enough to be able to 
        rough-house and to look like a threat to an intruder, but not so 
        big she would be hard to control and would cost too much to feed. 
      * Easy to train to do most things, and easy to control
      * Wonderful temperment; not yippy or yappy or nervous 
      * Despite her short hair, she has no trouble with our cold northern
        climate. She is always ready for a walk, although I keep them short 
        when the temperature is down around zero or below. 
    
    Disadvantages: ( hard to think of many ) 
      * sometimes too friendly to new visitors to the house
      * occasionally the big jowls and the resultant drool is slightly 
        unpleasant, but that is really not ever a serious problem
      * not a great retriever  
      * I've heard that on average boxers have a life-span a couple years 
        lower than the average dog breed, so the amount of time you will
        be able to enjoy with your pet is likely to be somewhat lower 
        than with most other breeds. But the time you do have is very
        high-quality time, believe me!! 
      * Some/most boxer owners feel compelled to trim the ears of their 
        dogs, which I personally could not do to my dog. Boxers look so 
        nice WITH their ears ! Fortunately, there is a slow trend 
        away from this (adjective) practice. ( I do not wish to 
        start a flame war, so I will keep my adjective to myself. )  

Any comments or questions. Send me email. I don't think everyone on 
the net is interested in reading gushy prose about how great my dog is. 
Paul M. 
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: kudzu@netcom.com (Michael Sierchio)
Subject: Re: Electronic collar info needed
Organization: True Love, and Home-Grown Tomatoes
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 1993 00:19:06 GMT

In article <1993Jan8.014823.5759@unet.net.com> 
	philg@bozo.net.com (Phil Geller) writes:

>[using reward tone]
>Has that really worked for you?

Absolutely.  If your doggie has associated the tone with the shock,
you're SOL.  If I were to begin training a dog with the collar, I would
have already done extensive on-lead training.  It takes time to build
up the right response, but it is possible to associate praise with the
tone -- it works great if you give the praise tone on the send-out to
indicate the dog is going the right way, or in a search/retrieve
scenario.

I would not use the shock aspect of the collar at all until I'd established
that the tone means "good dog!".
-- 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Michael Sierchio                          1563 Solano Avenue, Suite 123 |
|  kudzu@netcom.com                                Berkeley, CA 94707-2116 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
From: smithr@teecs.UUCP (Robert Smith)
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 20:57:45 GMT
Subject: Re: Drenched Paws
Organization: Litton Systems, Toronto ONT
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs

Yes, Smokey our Australian Shepherd X English Setter has the same problem
(maybe). He licks his feet usually in the late Fall. The vet says its an
allergy. A shot usually fixes him up but occaisionally he needs pills if
hes itchy longer. Its important to stop the licking before a hot spot
is generated because they'll lick even more and make it worse. Once
it was so bad that we had to use an Elizabethan collar to stop him.

Bob.
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: hckrus01@ulkyvx.louisville.edu
Subject: ACDs galore/Puppies/Lab Standard
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 19:47:25 GMT
Organization: University of Louisville

Howdy:

Well, Tristan and I are back from our holiday travels to
Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and New York City (that was just
me - Tristan had to stay in Iowa), and we're all enthused
to begin teaching 4 classes spring semester (ugh!).  Okay,
I do all the teaching, but Tristan gives me moral support
and rearranges the throw rugs at home if I spend too 
much time on campus or at the word processor.

First of all, I have to congratulate Valaria on the birth
of her puppy!  Hope you can stand the wait!

I also received good news recently.  Eons ago I posted
a question about an Irish Setter bitch who refused to 
come into heat.  She's Tristan's half-niece (well, something
like that) and is supposed to be the mother of my future
*triple* (show, obedience, field) champion :-).  Well,
a few days before Christmas she was shipped from California
to Alabama to be bred, so if everything works out I'll have
my puppy at the end of May.  Oh joy of joys!

I have to report on my visit to Kathy Buetow's Cattle
Dog Condo, which was most delightful.  Kathy is incredibly
sweet and her dogs were really characters!  The set-up 
she has is really ingenious -- I nominate her for a 
spread in  _Better Homes and Gardens_!  If I were a breeder,
I'd sell a puppy to her in a minute.  Oh, is the dogs and
apartments debate over?  So sorry.  Just had to include
my little testimonial!  Tristan thought that we had
landed on Mars, with all those squeaky little blue
things (we call them puppies), though once the pizza
arrived he made himself right at home...He did remark
that he thought that Geiger was one spoiled cat!

My vote is also to have the Lab standard discussion take
place on r.p.d.  The Irish Setter Club of America revised
the IS standard a couple of years ago, and it was fairly
unpleasant, what with influential breeders wanting to 
change to standard to fit the NON-standard dogs that
they were producing.  I'd like to see how other folks
handle this sort of thing.


Holly Kruse
University of Louisville
hckrus01@ulkyvx.louisville.edu
and Tristan - Ch. Rendition Wind Voyager,
Irish setter and Bon Vivant

Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: jkjncs@ritvax.isc.rit.edu
Subject: Re: dog myths (was Tea-totalling dog!)
Reply-To: jkjncs@ritvax.isc.rit.edu
Organization: Rochester Institute of Technology
Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1993 20:49:46 GMT

In article <1992Dec28.001045.6997@midway.uchicago.edu> 
betsy@rainbow.uchicago.edu (Betsy Weatherhead) writes:
>> It is a myth that dogs have less germs than humans.  (I learned that while
>> working for a vet). 
> 
> I'm not so sure this is a myth.  The vet I worked for believed that dogs'
> mouths were fairly sanitary.
     ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Well, I just can't resist telling this GROSS STORY
(press 'n' if you're eating)

Last nite I returned home from obedience class and saw my husband (who's
NOT a dog lover) had a friend over (also NOT a dog lover). Murphy hopped
out of the car and zipped around the corner of the house (it was dark out).
I called him, we went inside, and Murphy immediently went over to the
friend to greet him with the traditional lab greeting - nose in the crotch.
What I hadn't noticed however, was that Murphy had zipped around the corner
of our house to chow down some cat (or dog, or *something*) poop, and he 
hadn't wiped his mouth after his snack and guess what got all over the
now-ex-friend's pants.
Murphy was *not* a popular beast last nite, and there were *no* puppy-kisses
before bedtime :+)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: michele@dgbt.doc.ca (Michele Guillet)
Subject: Re: Alarm Dogs
Organization: The Communications Research Centre
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 93 15:29:50 GMT

In article <1993Jan8.151125.16817@news.nd.edu> mike@nowaksg.chem.nd.edu (Michael George Buening) writes:
>person harm when confronted.  This is what I would call and "alarm" dog.  
>Beamer is a perfect example (to a fault I am afraid).  He will bark at any
>and all strange noises (many of which I certainly never hear; Michele calls
Tania, also a cocker spaniel, has a weird pecularities about barking
if someone or something is coming up to the house. She will bark
and alert but only if she has backup (people) with her if she is alone
in the house she won't make a sound.

My cleaning lady jokes that she can tell if I am home or not
as soon as she get closed to the house, if she hears any barking,
it means that I am home. 

>something is going on and I could investigate.  Therefore, I would recommend
>a Cocker Spaniel to alert you to strangers (and other animals and trucks and
>cars and butterflies and that damn wind, etc....) and/or keep people away
>from the house when you are away.  
I wouldn't necessarly recommend a cocker spaniel as a watch dog, I
think other breeds are far more reliable. I do love cocker spaniels
but I don't think they make great watch dogs.



-- 
Michele Guillet 			The Communications Research Centre 
3701 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA, K2H 8S2	tel:613-998-2384
Internet: michele@dgbt.doc.ca	
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: moreland@conan.jsc.nasa.gov (Linda Moreland)
Subject: Vet referral needed
Organization: NASA Johnson Space Center
Distribution: houston
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 21:03:27 GMT

I am looking for a good vet in the Clear Lake area for our new
puppy.  It would be nice if the vet have after work hours or
weekend hours.
 
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: ztac18@hou.amoco.com (Tom Chaimov WWNV x5076 9.134)
Subject: compromise btw crate & free roam?
Reply-To: ztac18@hou.amoco.com
Organization: Amoco
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1993 19:08:30 GMT

I'd like to hear some suggestions for cheap, humane ways to limit my
dogs' access when left alone for extended periods, say, in the garage
for a few hours.

One of my dogs has a thing about closed doors (i.e., he can't stand
them, so he eats them).  There are two in the garage.
I guess what I'm looking for is some sort of
a big crate/pen that will be sturdy enough for two 80-90 lb. doggies, yet
cheap enough that I can afford to build it, and not so huge that the
garage becomes a doghouse instead of my garage.  (No, they can't be left
in the yard; they'll dig their way out.)  Thanks for any ideas.

--Tom--

Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: dencisco@eos.arc.nasa.gov (David Paul Encisco)
Subject: Re: Longevity of GSD
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1993 00:52:42 GMT

steveo@mobius (Steve Olson) writes:

>I wonder what the average life span of a German Shepherd is?
>I have heard that any GSD over 6 is considered over-the-hill (from
>a vet assistant).

I had a female who made it to 13 and I have a very spry 8 year old
male.

>I plan to get a GSD puppy this spring.  Are they ok with small children?
>I have a two-year-old and a five-year-old. 

Well actually this is a good question, not that I want to discourage
you away from the breed. I've had one who was exceptional with kids
and two that weren't. If you're going to adopt an older dog make sure
it comes from a well adjusted family (for your kids' sake). Otherwise,
talk to the breeder about the socialization of the parents and the
pups.  You might be a little leery of GSDs bred for protection
(particularly breeds directly from Germany...a side note: I adopted a
very expensive German bred dog about a year ago. The reason why she
was forsaken? She tore holes in other dogs and the owner was tired of
paying Vet. bills.  I never let her off the lead; nor do I let kids
pet her. She is an incredible dog regardless of her two short comings;
bred for protection.  Believe me, we're not worried about being
hassled when she's walking with us; although we don't seem to have
many friends dropping by anymore).

>After hearing of that last incident where a GSD killed an infant on the
>couch, it makes me worry.

Jealous and neglected dogs come in all types; not just GSDs. It has
a lot to do with the dog's age. A puppy should be just fine. All my
dogs (3 GSDs and 1 Rottweiler) were given up because their owners
decided to have a child.

Dave
From: CBARNES@tamvm1.tamu.edu (Chris Barnes)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: Constant criticism of Elaine (was Re: training problem <sigh>)
Date: Tue, 05 Jan 93 15:01:46 CST
Organization: Texas A&M University
NNTP-Posting-Host: tamvm1.tamu.edu

In article <EfGQ=ra00iUxQ2EaoO@andrew.cmu.edu>
   jk13+@andrew.cmu.edu (Joanne M. Karohl) writes:
 
>I would like to second this sentiment, as I have found the surprisingly
>virulent responses to Elaine's posts far more troubling (and harder to
>skip) than her posts themselves.
>
>Joanne
 
I third this motion (or is this a 4th now?).  Enough personality
bashing.
 
      -----------------------------------------------------
Chris Barnes            |   President - Bryan/College Station
cbarnes@tamvm1.tamu.edu |         Retriever Club.
(409) 846-3273 (home)   |   "Dedicated to the betterment of
(409) 845-4437 (work)   |               the retrieving breeds"
From: mjohnson@stake.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Marget Johnson)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: puppy mills
Date: 11 Jan 93 22:52:13 GMT
Organization: Stakeholder Relations, NCR Corp in Dayton,OH

<1ii0ogINN6o8@nigel.msen.com> <C0I99s.H9w@austin.ibm.com>
<16B537440.CBARNES@tamvm1.tamu.edu>
Reply-To: mjohnson@stake.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Marget Johnson)
Followup-To: 
Distribution: 
Organization: Stakeholder Relations, NCR Corp in Dayton,OH
Keywords: 

In article <16B537440.CBARNES@tamvm1.tamu.edu> CBARNES@tamvm1.tamu.edu (Chris
Barnes) writes:
>In article <C0I99s.H9w@austin.ibm.com>
>   repass@austin.ibm.com (Jim Repass) writes:
>>As a responsible Newfoundland breeder I only guarantee puppies to be free
>>from crippling hip displaysia for 1 year. Crippling means that the dog can't
>>function. The OFA certification at 2 years is NOT part of the guarantee.
>>The dog can fail the OFA and still be a happy, functioning animal. Of
course,
>>we don't breed dogs that don't get their OFA. To my knowledge, no one
>>guarantees their puppies to be FREE from hip displaysia.
> 
Chris Barnes replies: 
>I DO.  And everyone that I associate with that breeds does.  I think
>you need to redefine what you think is a "responsible" breeder.  I
>sure wouldn't buy a puppy from you with that kind of garantee.

And Marget says:
Then don't plan to buy a Newfoundland, Chris. I don't know of any Newf breeder
that guarantees OFA certification (the only way to be assured that a dog is
free of hip dysplasia) of a Newfoundland, when it is sold as a puppy. 
Wait. I take that back. There
is one breeder that guarantees OFA certification. She charges twice the price
that the puppy is worth, and replaces it if it doesn't certify. Her
Newfoundlands don't look like Newfoundlands & she was expelled from the
Newfoundland Club of America for false advertising, but she does guarantee
OFA certification.
Of course, I'm sure Jim, like the rest of us, guarantees against crippling 
hip dysplasia. And if the puppy was purchased for breeding potential, a 
refund or replacement may be due. And of course there are the congenital heart
problems that Newfs are plagued with we must   guarantee against. 
-- 
marget.johnson@daytonOH.NCR.COM
From: dan@msen.com (Dan Sugalski)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: Goldens as protection?
Date: 8 Jan 1993 23:22:48 GMT
Organization: Msen, Inc. -- Ann Arbor, Michigan
NNTP-Posting-Host: garnet.msen.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]


: For another suggestion on a smallish protective breed, consider the Welsh
: Corgi.  They are low-slung like the much-missed Bassett but with their
: herding background are very bright and quick protectors of their "herd." 
: As a matter of fact, many Schutzhund trainers would love to work Corgis if
: it weren't for the fact that the dogs are just too short to scale 6 foot
: walls easily! 

Corgis can do Schutzhund.  There is at least one with a Schutzhund II title.
I can't think of his name, but there is a section on him in the Pembroke
Welsh Corgi book published by Howell Book House.  My first dog was a PWC
who had natural instincts in this direction, even to the point of
disarming people with toy guns.  

Someone else mentioned that corgis are noisy.  They should not be. The
only noisy corgis I've known have been the result of what I call the "cute
little doggie" syndrome.  Lots of people forget that that little dog is
intelligent and usually more than wiling to train its people if they won't
provide direction.  People also tend to not realize that the corgis were
bred to work cattle, not sheep.  Small wonder that they can be feisty and
dominant.  You try telling a bull or even a cow what to do, then think
about a small dog doing it.  They have to have some attitude. :)

Karen

Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
From: vjh21@cas.org (Vince Herried ext 2877)
Subject: Re: Brewer's Yeast?
Organization: CAS
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1993 13:03:17 GMT

Can't say about brewer's yeast making the coat shiny but I gave my mut
brewer's yeast tablets for 14 years as treats.  She suffered
no ill affects.  We gave her one tablet a day as a treat.

I'm beginning to think that brewer's yeast is one of those
folk medicines that cures everything.  I had heard that feeding
your dog the tablets would ward off flees, but again my dog
got them a treats, she loved em.
-- 
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
				 |     Vincent Herried  (614) 447-3600 x 2877
				 |     Chemical Abstracts Service
 _____________________           |     P.O. Box 3012
(_)________________   \          |     Columbus, OH 43210-0012
  ________________|\   \         |
 (_)______________\_\   \        |     Current thought: People who cannot be
   ______________________\       |     understood are geniuses, so management
  (_)____________________|       |     assigns them the toughest projects.
				 |
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
From: tittle@ics.uci.edu (Cindy Tittle Moore)
Subject: Re: Strange puppy behavior
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Reply-To: tittle@ics.uci.edu (Cindy Tittle Moore)
Organization: ICS Dept., UC Irvine
Keywords: rubbing face on floor
Date: 7 Jan 93 18:10:28 GMT

In <29335@optima.cs.arizona.edu> margaret@cs.arizona.edu (Margaret Newman) writes:

>Not that I could train him not to!  -he's got a very proud,
>dominating personality.  He gets pissed if you discipline him.  He
>barks at me (or whomever is doing the disciplining) or he will stay
>away from me, turning his head away if I try to talk to him.

You are going to have endless problems with this dog if you let him
get away with this bratty behavior.  Visualize a two-year-old human
boy doing this -- would you let him do this?

Your dog thinks he's top dog and will not do as you wish until you
tell him otherwise.  And as long as you think that will be impossible,
it will.

I strongly recommend getting him into a puppy training class and
talking at length with the instructor.  Good luck!

--Cindy
--
Cindy Tittle Moore

Terrell's Chocolate Deduction--Hershe (Labrador Retriever)

The rec.pets.dogs FAQ -- all ten parts -- is available via ftp to
pit-manager.mit.edu under pub/usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/*.  There
is a mail server, email me for details.

In loving memory of Betsy: 4-10-92 to 8-19-92...
From: ellie@slumber.sybase.com (Ellen Lewis Lief)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: Goldens as protection?
Date: 11 Jan 93 20:54:44 GMT

During the 27 years that my mother lived there, every house on our block was 
broken into at least once. Except ours. We had two dogs, one a 20 pound 
dachshound mix, named Mutt, and one an 8 pound watchamacallit (you've heard of 
those?) named Oko. Mutt had a ferocious bark far bigger than he, and Oko 
barked relentlessly. I don't know if they scared burglars away or just 
annoyed them. 

So, based on my anecdotal experience, I agree with the poster who made the
distinction between "attack" dog and "watch" dog. Also, I agree with the
poster who pointed out that dogs become more protective of their territory
as they get older. 

I'm satisfied with my dog just barking at intruders. If anyone actually came in,
I'd be more concerned about protecting my dog than about if she was 
protecting me. She's certainly the possession I value the most!

-ellie
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs