honestjoe69

Do you think Green and Benz is value for money (even though expensive) or overpriced and paying for the name??

thank you for this.

A guy at work is looking to spend around £3500 on an engagement ring for his missus. Where is the best place in Sheffield to get a decent engagement ring? He's heard there is a place called Green and Bends (I may have spelt the name wrong) but he can't seem to find it on the internet - plus anybody know if its any good?

Every book I read says that you should walk a dog on a left. Would it make a difference if you walked a dog on the right?

fantastic, cheers!

At the end of the Apprentice last night Mylene Class was playing to the winning team a piece of classical music - does anybody know what its called??

I've heard shampoo for dogs needs to be PH balanced, can anyone recommend a good make??

can you have pet insurance for a Mongrel or pedigrees only?

There are 2 levels to this situation that need to be dealt with. Level 1 – This is the actual event. There is no doubt the young lad would probably have no interest in keeping pink poodles. He was looking for a dog(s) that fit a certain stereotype (even if this was an unconscious decision). Of course these breeds can make very good companions but obviously this lad was certainly not capable of looking after this kind of dog. I am not saying he encouraged to the dogs to violence (I do not know the lad so I can’t comment) but he took on these dogs with very little skill and they have committed grievous bodily harm to another human being (in this case a postman doing his job). The lad had a duty of care to raise these dogs responsibly which he failed to do and he needs the full weight of law to prosecute him. As other posters have pointed out, this could have been a child / elderly person etc and quite easily somebody could have been killed. Also, please do not forget that a poor man has suffered an horrific experience and he will probably carry the scars for life Level 2 – This is obviously the sociological debate about how these dogs are so readily available for inappropriate owners. If it wasn’t for these breeders then these dogs would not fall into the wrong hands and horrific instances like this would not happen. However, I would argue that even though long term dealing with the bigger issue of breeders is obviously the way to move forward, short term the owners of such breeds that have no interest in genuinely raising / training them need to be seriously dealt with. A poor postman has been ripped to shreds and I’m sure that he and his family don’t really care about the breeders but feel that personal responsibility should count for something and this little sh*t should be locked up for a long time.

I've read that when a dog poops indoors you shouldn't let the dog see you clean it up. However, when you are dog walking you are told to pick up your dog waste but this is obviously in front of your pet.....so doesn't it make a difference if a dog sees you clean up its poop?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7354547.stm

Has anybody had any experience in using electric fences to contain their dog on a back garden?

He doesn't train dogs, he rehabilitates them!

Cesar Millan suggests a claw like strike to the neck of the dog everytime he is about to bark to stop them from getting into the whole barking frenzy! Excersise, Discipline and affection in that order, works every time.

I have obviously read lots of negative things about Pinch collars and choke chains but I read an article in a magizine (I'm trying to find which one it was) saying that even though these tools are very easy to abuse, when used properly they are very effective. The idea is that they should only be used to distract the dog, not to inflict pain. It was a long article but something it later said which was very interesting was that people are now relying too heavily on purley positive methods of training (specifically using treats). Usually the results are quicker when people use treats (making the owners falsely believe the dog respects this training) when it fact the dog isn't responding to you because he respects you, its because he expects a reward, and it is the fact its because the dog 'expects' the reward when more problems start to develop. what are other peoples thoughts on this?

I am contacting you on behalf of a friend. Basically mid june he wants to propose to his girlfriend. He wants to suprise his girlfriend when she gets home from work with a string quartet playing some soppy music etc. To be honest he is not going to need them for long but appreciates there will probably be a minimum charge etc. Any details that are posted will be passed on. thank you

Does anybody know of any puppy classes (socialisation or Obedience) that will be starting at the end of July? (ideally in or around S8 area of sheffield) How far in advance do these sort of classes fill up?

If money was no object, which Dyson Animal hoover would you buy as there seem to be 4 different models??

I am against bad breeders in every possible sense and I thank you for all your information. Something I would like to clarify is why are some people against designer dogs. Don't get me wrong, I detest the title and at the end of the day they are not a breed but a cross, but I have read on this forum before how cross breeds are usually more healthy since they don't have the defects of a pedigree. I actually remember watching crufts last year and a vet was saying that a labradoodle that is bred from two healthy parents is an excetionally healthy dog. so if somebody takes very health pedigree to create an even healthier dog (which is a cross) is a good thing...isn't it. (by the way, loving the debate!!)

I've just called one of my friends who has told me that his Puggle (which he got from Foxilse) isn't KC registered because it is obviously a cross. He did re-assure me that the people who run foxilse spent over 1 hour asking him questions about his experience of dogs, where he lives etc. Apparently they do take back any dogs that are unwanted and provide puppy packs etc. Also, they other a free basic advice line regarding training tips and general problems you may encounter with a new pup etc. When my friend went up to collect his pup there was a family kicking off because their 13 year old son wanted a 'mans dog'. The guy at foxilse actually turned the family away suggesting they were not serious about dog ownership. Maybe they do breed dogs as a business but maybe they are simply a business that is well run?

I understand that Puppy farms are bad but that doesn't necessarily mean people who breed dogs who live on a farm are bad? I've looked on their website and even though they do breed 7 difference breeds of dogs, they don't seem to breed them all at once. Any concrete evidence on these being bad breeders would be really useful as I have a friend is going to by a labradoodle from them and it would break his heart to know he has encouraged irresponsible breeding.

Please can you let me know (on this thread or PM) if this is a bad breeder. I have only based my opinions on my friends who have actually bought dogs from them (and they have all been smashing dogs). However the last thing I would want to do is promote bad breeding. Thank you.

You are absolutely right. I am in total agreement with what you have just stated. What I should have said is that I know many people who have got Puggels from this breeder and they have all got excellent, relaxed, friendly attitudes. I've never dealt with them myself but I've been led to believe that they excell at breeding dogs with good temprements. All mothers dogs can be seen etc. I have heard many stories of bad breeders but I've heard nothing but good stuff about Foxile gundogs!

This is a good place to check out. They also do Puggles which have excellent temperaments. Give them a call as they always know of somebody who has puppies. http://www.foxislegundogs.co.uk/

Say you have a young dog (not puppy) and you have given him one hours worth of excercise (walking / running / palying etc) what is the longest you should leave him in a crate for? (I appreciate this is a "how long is a piece of string" type of question but any good guestimates would be appreciated.