Amdak German Shepherds

03/02/2024

31/01/2022

⚠ SERIOUS NEW DOG DISEASE IN QUEENSLAND ⚠

The tick-borne dog disease ehrlichiosis (err-lick-ee-o-sis) has been recently confirmed in a Queensland dog. It is reported that this dog had not travelled outside of Queensland, meaning the disease has likely found its way into our local tick population.

Erlichiosis can make dogs very sick – and without treatment can kill them.

Dogs that are sick with this disease get a fever, look very tired, do not want to eat and lose weight. Their eyes can also go blue and mucky, and they can get nose bleeds. It is important you use anti tick products on your dogs to stop the ticks from biting them and spreading the disease.

If your dog is sick, make sure you take it to a vet.

Dog owners should have their dogs on regular tick products, always check their dogs for ticks, and look for signs of the disease. Talk to your vet about the best tick products to use.

If you think your dog has ehrlichiosis – speak to your vet, community Animal Management or Environmental Health Worker straight away.

You can also call us on 13 25 23 or get more info from our partners at AMRRIC - Animal Management in Rural & Remote Indigenous Communities

23/01/2022

Many of you would not be aware that the NSW parliament has drawn up a new draft animal welfare bill. While the bulk of the bill is a good thing there has been a single line snuck in, The line is in Div 3 section 22 subsection (e) no surgical AI for dogs. This may not seem an issue for most but for dog owners it is. Even if you don't think it will affect you because you don't breed dogs. The flow on effect will catch up to you if you want a good quality pedigree dog. I will now include my submission and I urge all to consider putting in a submission even if you don't live in NSW because once it gets a foot hold in one state the others will follow. I will include a link at the bottom of the post.

"My background is policing. I was a Queensland police officer for over 22 years, with over 17 years as a dog handler. In which I not only raised and trained Police dogs to the highest standard but also trained handlers. I have since age retired from the police and have successfully been breeding working line German Shepherds for the services, sports and families.

Where I do not object to the laws overall I do object when I see laws being made that have the ability to destroy not only livelihoods but the improvement of breeds. I have a concern with this new act that I would like to voice. My concern is division 3 section 22 prohibited procedures subsection (e) surgical artificial insemination on a dog.

If this is proposing that surgical AIs are no longer possible, how are we in NSW going to have access to the best quality sires from across the country and around the world. Frozen semen is the only way and as the cost of these highly sort after sires are expensive it will push the cost out of reach of most breeders as any other procedure requires twice the amount of semen. In some cases that semen is not available in the amounts required (past generational sires).
Loss of income for people and the state. There are whole industries that supply this practice. From semen transport and storage to specialist clinics providing expert procedures. If breeders cannot access surgical AIs in this state they will be forced to access the procedure interstate, meaning a loss of revenue all round for NSW but a gain for states like QLD.
Discrimination towards responsible dog breeders. What is the justification of making this cruelty towards dogs and not other animals. It appears that dog breeders have been singled out. Why not any other species breeders? You can surgically AI a cow, horse or even a cat but not a dog, that sounds very discriminative to me. Is there a hidden purpose?
Promote inferior breeding. The preposed law does not go any where near stopping the real issue of cruelty towards dogs, the backyard breeder. This plays into their hands as many ethical breeders will not be able to supply quality dogs. We might as well go back to backyard breeding. As a breeder of working line dogs I am attempting to produce a dog with strong nerve and good temperament and if I am limited to only natural mating or Transcervical (TCI) AIs, it will severely hamper this aim. I am sure my chosen breed would not be the only working lines effected. In the long term the lack of access to good proven sires will effect the reliable working dogs available not only for the government Services themselves but for farmers, assistant dogs and many other working and sport dogs. The States Police force will also be unable to use their own frozen semen banks.

While (TCI) can be performed it is my understanding more viable semen is required and in the case of frozen semen this can be hard to come by and more cost inhibiting. As well as less successful as a surgical AI. While the surgery can be considered invasive there is very little risk to the dog and any ethical breeder and veterinarian would never do more than one or two procedures on a breeding bitch as it is not fair to the dog and scaring can cause less productivity in the production of a litter. If the concern is that more than a couple of surgeries would be performed on a bitch surely measures could be put in place to monitor such things eg. registers kept by vets. Instead of banning such a beneficial practice not only for society but for the breed itself why not just regulate it.

I believe that the majority of responsible breeders and trainers have sat silent for too long which has allowed this situation to develop. I don’t know a responsible breeder or trainer who would allow cruelty to occur to their beloved animals. "

https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/committees/inquiries/Pages/inquiry-details.aspx?pk=2853&fbclid=IwAR1mnBdYNWexaqlh9jBqaQWMqE1TJZmdeTKDhYF07Kk4mRYXK_tDzv3-oqY -submissions

Also worth contacting MP Mark Banasiak at email address; [email protected] Mark is going into bat against this and other questionable sections of this proposed legislation. It is also firing up an email to you local member. As well as contacting your local states Dogs Australia council.

We have until the 13/2/2022 to lodge an objection.

19/01/2022

“They aren’t dangerous if you raise them right.”

Not exactly true. Modoc is 7 years old and has been raised around kids and to not be food or toy aggressive. Harrison is being raised to be respectful to animals.

BUT Modoc is a dog and Harrison is a baby.

Babies need to be at all times around dogs, and not just watched. People need to understand a dog’s stress signals.

Modoc is a great dog but Harrison also isn’t allowed to on or the dogs, he’s not allowed to play with their or , he is not allowed near their ever and not allowed around them when they are .

My dogs are not expected to tolerate being annoyed. I can tell you from experience that EVERY DOG HAS A BREAKING POINT, and every dog WILL bite.

It is up to to to be safe and and to educate themselves on dog behaviour and body language and prevent what is usually 100% preventable." - Olivia Paige

11/12/2021

Responsible pet owners do their research and make sure they're ready for the type of breed they've chosen.

Responsible breeders are happy to give pet buyers all of the important information they need to make an informed, responsible decision.

Remember, breeders don't put dogs in shelters, irresponsible owners do.

26/11/2021

“These two boys are from the same parents, boy on the left was paediatric neutered and the other has stayed intact. As you can see, the development the right pup has compared to the left is undeniable, from his skull width, to his chest and shoulders.
This is the development pups will lose out on when desexing before full maturity.”
Credit - Bunny French.
You can view the full article here https://www.facebook.com/100000652508503/posts/4829274297104273/?d=n

04/11/2021

If you haven’t got your dog covered with some form of tick prevention now is certainly the time to consider your options

What prevention do you all use ?

31/10/2021

In the course of doing research, this popped up on our visit to the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) website.

"Better late than never" comes to mind, but we also noted a hashtag that we've been using on Twitter for ages, and we're delighted to see on the FCI site.

We hope that any time you post something related to your dogs on any social media platform, you incorporate that hashtag at the end of your post. The fact that some of our breeds are in trouble coupled with the vilification of the heritage breeders who are essentially conservators of their respective breeds needs to work its way into the public consciousness.

21/10/2021

23/09/2021

| Tick Paralysis |

Firstly, we cannot stress enough, the utmost importance of ensuring your pet is on tick prevention! In the past few weeks, we have seen an alarming amount of patients with tick paralysis.

There are multiple and affordable products we offer that will ensure your pet is covered against these nasty little critters.

The most common tick that causes our pets problems is the paralysis ticks. They are small grey ticks that attach on injecting a neurotoxin that causes progressive paralysis leading to respiratory depression and ultimately death.

Signs to look out for:

Wobbly back legs
Reluctance to jump or walk
Weakness climbing stairs
Coughing or grunting
Retching, regurgitating or vomiting
Change in bark or meow
Difficult or fast breathing
Complete paralysis or collapse

If you find a tick on your pet, please give us a call, IMMEDIATELY! If we are closed, take your pet without delay to AES or AEC.

19/08/2021

Learn the Signs

20/07/2021

If you’re a dog owner, I’m sure you’ve heard this refrain. Conventional wisdom says that young puppies come to us as blank slates. Full of promise and limitless potential, ready to be molded into …

16/07/2021

‼️WARNING! HEALTH ALERT FOR DOGS IN CLONCURRY AND SURROUNDING DISTRICTS! ‼️

The disease Ehrlichiosis (E.canis) has recently been found at Lake Nash. It is a tick borne disease spread by the brown dog tick. Symptoms include Lethargy, inappetence and weight loss.

To protect your dog against E.canis we recommend Bravecto or Nexguard Spectra, and a Seresto collar. All of which we keep in stock.

Please read the below poster for further details or call our clinic on 07 4742 1254.

Please call us if you would like some posted ☺️

16/07/2021

12/06/2021

Vets are calling for pet owners to take care using rat bait inside and outside their homes, after announcing an Australian-wide shortage of Vitamin K.

Due to the mouse plague and extra bait used to eradicate the problem, an extreme number of dogs have been poisoned after ingesting the bait. In turn, this has caused the shortage of Vitamin K, which is used to treat these sick pets.

Please don’t use rat bait during this time. Instead, help keep your pets safe by finding alternate means for rodent control.

Signs of rat bait poisoning to be aware of are:
🐾 Lethargy
🐾 Collapse
🐾 Pale or white gums
🐾 Bleeding from nose, mouth, or around the teeth
🐾 Bruising on the skin
🐾 Panting and coughing
🐾 Distended stomach
🐾 Swollen joints
🐾 Limping

If you suspect your pet has ingested rat bait, see your vet immediately as without treatment the consequences can be deadly.

19/05/2021

02/05/2021

What kind of dog breed should you get? Use our Dog Breed Selector to determine which breed is the best fit for you and your lifestyle.

02/05/2021

Have a new puppy? Are they suddenly afraid? There's a lot to get used to and prepare for, but one thing that often gets overlooked is puppy fear periods.

26/04/2021

Does your uncooperative dog keep spitting out his pill? These tricks will have your dog happily swallowing his pill!

06/04/2021

About Puppy Scams.....

Last week I was invited to do a segment on TODAY show about the rise in Puppy Scams where people are paying for puppies that simply don’t exist.

While researching this segment, I was horrified to learn just how common Puppy Scamming has become and just how elaborate some of the scams are. Some of the scammers have very realistic fake digital profiles that use stolen images of adorable puppies. Some sites will also say that a pet is “free to a good home" and that you just have to pay for travel costs – they ask you to transfer money for the travel fees and you never see the animal.

Most commonly, people have seen a really cute photo of a puppy advertised online and fallen in love with it. Emotions take over and they then correspond with the “breeder" via email only. They are asked to transfer money to secure the puppy without ever seeing the puppy.

I know there is a serious demand for puppies at the moment, especially "Oodles" but PLEASE do your research.

My advice is always this – if you are prepared to commit to bringing a pet into your family for the next 15 or so years, then you should be prepared to take the time to go to the place that your puppy was bred and be happy with the level of care shown to your puppy and other animals by the breeder. A good breeder should welcome you and be happy to answer all your questions.

Some tips to avoid being scammed

- Make sure you can meet the puppy – this really is the most important thing! Ask to go to their place so you are comfortable with how the animals are kept.
- Ask to talk to the breeder on the phone, not via email. If they don’t agree, it is likely a scam.
- Ask for more photos of the puppy with its litter mates.
- Do a “reverse image search” on any images shown – if the images have been used anywhere before, it is likely a scam.
- Ask for any breeder Identification details and check them against licensing bodies. If they say they are a ‘registered breeder’ you can check this against breeder lists in your state.
-- if you have your heart set on a particular breed, go through the governing body in your State ( EG DOGS NSW for NSW) to find ANKC registered breeders and puppy listings. Many breed clubs will also have a rescue group for their breed, so adoption may be possible.
- Puppies in most states must be microchipped before they are sold – ask for the microchip details and check that is is a registered microchip.
- If anything feels like it is not quite right, it probably isn't right! Please walk away and report if you think it is a scam.

-please don't forget adoption as an option - be sure to go to reputable rescue group that temperament tests the animals in their care and will help to match the right pet for your lifestyle. That way you are helping give an animal in need a home and not supporting puppy factories or dodgy breeding.
option.

During my research, I discovered a wonderful Aussie website called Puppy Scam Awareness Australia - it full of useful information about what to do if you are scammed, spot a scam or want to make sure you don’t get scammed when buying a pup. This is a great place to start if you are looking to get a puppy.
They also have a Facebook group that I am told is very helpful Puppy SCAM awareness AUST

** PS this is an important awareness post. Abusive comments towards anyone will be deleted and profiles immediately blocked. Please be supportive - share your stories and tips. We need to work together to educating people about the safest way to find a pet, whether by adoption or by purchasing a puppy.

07/10/2020

I saw this without credit to the creator but the statement came from Chad Mackin of Pack to Basics

26/08/2020

The Golden Retriever is an affectionate, people-oriented breed, so it’s no wonder that these dogs make the best cuddle buddies on the planet. This lovable breed has so many great attributes that it’s hard to narrow down the worst. But let's try.

16/08/2020

14/08/2020

Project Jake studied flea and tick medication usage and adverse events.