Biddy

Are you lost Mr G?

gruffbrown

Nice scenery here though, Bungee jumping, sheep, lots of sheep and dogs, chasing sheep and errrr ....bungee jumping.

livewire

....chasing hobbits....chasing the last moose....

dlmckay

Squidge

Hi Salty

We brought our dog over last December and live in the Bay of Plenty.

We can take him on some parts of the beach but not within 200m of surf clubs or major bathing areas. Most of the national parks have sheep on them that is why you cannot walk them around there. There is also a dog licence scheme here, approx $80 per year. Apparently Auckland or the cities are difficult for dog owners, but there are always around it, ie look into where you are thinking of living if there are any parks/walking areas around. I have also noticed a lot of the renting agencies do not tend to like dogs, cats yes but no dogs.

We have a JR/Springer so not a big dog and that cost £1500 to ship over and be prepared for all the admin costs when you pick them up from a NZ airport, that is about another $100.

if I can be of any other assistance let me know. Sharron

livewire

When we've got ourselves settled and the land sorted out we'd like to adopt a couple of dogs. Where is the best place to go to find them - we're thinking along the lines of SPCA but are there other organisations out there?

We'd want them mostly as pets (for our kids who are over 10 years old) but if they (the dogs that is, not the kids!) help to round up the sheep and bark at strangers that would be great too.

cottageinthesky

Have you owned dogs before? Dogs will do whatever you ask of them. But.... you have to teach them that you are pack leader and teach them what you want them to be. If you want them "mostly as pets" but for them to "help round up the sheep" and "bark at strangers", you either have to put in an enormous amount of work with them, or you're going to end up with some very confused dogs that aren't able to make you happy in any way!

The SPCA are extremely careful to home dogs appropriately - if you want a dog who's a pet for your children - choose one accordingly - take advice from your SPCA staff - if you teach them to be loyal to your children, they should defend them, i.e. bark, accordingly. Even if they don't - and I have a german shepherd who I have the feeling would look to me for protection if a mad axeman came out of the bushes - at least their presence should be a deterrent! If you want a dog to round up sheep - get a sheepdog - don't expect your children's pet to be able to do both.

My family has a Staffordshire Bull Terrier - many think she is a pitbull, unfortunately - but the Staffies were originally called "Nanny Dogs" by the Staffordshire miners in the UK in the 1800's - they knew that the Staffies were "people dogs" but would defend their "people" to the death, so the miners were happy to go to work for long hours knowing their family would be safe. But they are not "herding dogs" - for that you need something with, say, Border Collie breeding - I had a Border Collie in the UK who, in the absence of sheep to herd, would collect the ducks and was once seen collecting balls of wool from granny's knitting into a neat little arrangement!

dlmckay

You can either get working dogs or pet dogs... on a true dog whisper could hope to have both in one dog.

If you want something to alert you to strangers, get an alarm, not a dog. Dogs that rush at strangers barking get themselves put down after the stranger complains.

You need to do more research before getting a dog(s) :scared:

Biddy

Amazing how seriously people have taken livewires posting I made the asumption that it was a little tongue in cheek.

I personaly have a dog that rounds up the kids at meal/bed times and barks at the sheep.

gruffbrown

I've got a mate who's an Artist, he reckons if he paints what he wants, he'll be poor the rest of his life. If he paints Cats and Dogs, he'll have a steady income the rest of his life, people are funny sometimes

cottageinthesky

Whoops! Sorry about that, if so!

livewire

Is was a serious question but made in a light hearted way so thanks for the reply. I know it's not possible to use pets to round up sheep as they get confused as to what their role is. We too once had a border collie and it was a fantastic dog, with a lot of character - even when she was a puppy she seemed to instinctively understand what we said to her.

The interesting thing is that someone else has recommended a staffy to us, I've never had this breed of dog before but we had a bull terrier (name of Snowy) when I was a kid and it was the softest, most gentle dog I've ever known but it was very "defensive" around other dogs, which got it into trouble on one or two occassions.

We also had a doberman when we lived in central Africa and it was a bit more than an "alarm" it really did a good job of protecting both us and the house, but I wouldn't feel happy about having one with children around.

As for rounding up sheep - well, if you train them to come when you rattle a box of sheep treats they will come running anyway, bit like kids

cottageinthesky

[QUOTE=livewire

The interesting thing is that someone else has recommended a staffy to us, I've never had this breed of dog before but we had a bull terrier (name of Snowy) when I was a kid and it was the softest, most gentle dog I've ever known but it was very "defensive" around other dogs, which got it into trouble on one or two occassions.

[/QUOTE]

I think, as with most dogs, training is the key - our Staffy was bred by an animal wrangler in the film industry, so was well socialised with every animal possible, pops and bangs, etc. - I have never seen her attack another dog but, if attacked, she will turn into a bundle of teeth - however, she will also stop on command - I've had to pull other dogs off her, when she's stopped but the other dog has ignored their owners commands! I feel completely safe in the most remotest of walks, knowing that if a maniac comes out of the bushes, she will defend me at all costs. It's interesting that, for example, I came across a man walking towards me in a remote part of the bush who was dressed in bright clothes, with a walking stick covered in bells and ribbons, and I thought, "Oh my God, she's going to go berserk" my german shepherd would have gone berserk, but my Staffy didn't batt an eyelid - he was presumably harmless! I have also walked past some seemingly "normal" people who she has immediately "bristled at" and who, in return, have eyed her with suspicion - it's as if she "knows" and they "know she knows"! I came across a young Maori man with a young Staffie recently and he said " they just love people, ehh?" with that uplift to the "ehh?" - summed it up for me!

livewire

Some dogs instinctively know don't they. They respond so well with the right sort of training.

I guess my chances of finding a staffy at a rescue centre would be quite slim, where do I get information about people who breed this type of dog please? It would have to be someone in the Mid-northern half of the NI , thanks .

dlmckay

The NZKC is the first place I would look if looking for a dog breeder...

http://www.nzkc.org.nz/breedersclubs.html?dbase=280

There are hundreds of dogs destroyed in pounds across the country daily. The SPCA currently has a little of staffy cross breeds - might not be posh enough for Rodney.

A friend of mine went to Australia to get the SBT pup she wanted with the right bloodlines.

There's these on TradeMe - $900 a pup!
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living...n-54672064.htm