Garth

Garth has little ears. You can see that foam on his leg, he does this when he is destroying a rawhide. He leaves a puddle of white foam on the floor and ends up with some on his face to. I just love his little ears on that big head of his.

One Tough Boerboel

This is one tough boerboel. He went straight for the door and to my van when I picked him up this afternoon. The good news is there was no sign of whatever took over his shoulder spreading to nearby bones or muscle. His body rejected the shoulder after almost three years of having the metal in there. Test results in 5-7 days to determine what was actually growing in that leg. Just look at that face, that is the face of one tough boerboel dog. He is up and around with no problems, I do need him to calm down and rest.

Update: I did try and let his brother in to see Mac and he was not good with that. I think he feels vulnerable with the leg gone and all the medications. Mac's way of dealing with that is to stand up for himself on all three legs and put his hair up, his brother Assero didn't appreciate that display and didn't back down so I separated them. I think things will be fine tomorrow. Mac might just be so tired he is grumpy, we will see tomorrow.

Mac

Just wanted everyone to know that Mac survived the operation. I am hoping to have him home sometime today. Everything will be better now. If I could only sleep. By the time I get that dog home I think we are both going to sleep for many hours. Pictures later today of one tough boerboel.

Garth Update

I took Garth to have a meal this evening and he was absolutely charming sitting outside with me. When we where leaving a person showed up with a dog in his truck. For some reason he took his dog out of the CAGE and Garth was not happy about this. Actually the other dog charged him just before I was putting Garth in the van and Garth met him face to face. My dog was on leash, his was not. Garth put him down pretty quick (I dropped the leash, Garth is a little guy at only 94lbs) and then I pulled him into my van and we left. I still chalk it up as a good evening because Garth was getting pets from lots of people before this other stuff happened. The other dog was in no shape to fight after this and it only lasted about 30 seconds. My only advice I can give is to drop the leash, your adult dog must not be confused with you holding on if being attacked. I went and opened my van door and then went and pulled Garth off the other dog. I had to be stern to make him let go, he had a hold on the other dogs face. Garth might be on the smaller size compared to most boerboels but.......If you saw him you would not want to challenge him. At just under 100lbs he is still a formidable force. He is still my Ambassador around here, I raised him to be easy with people and other dogs. I can't stop him from defending himself though. That would be wrong on my part. Oh he was a little Lion this evening.

Mac update

After many opinions from 4 different vets Mac is going to have his leg and shoulder amputated Wednesday. I only wish is was sooner. His shoulder is growing by the day. This is either cancer or a wild infection. Either way the leg has to come off. It has grown so large in just the last week or so he can hardly walk on his three good legs. All I want for my birthday this year is to get Mac back home on Thursday without that thing growing on him. Any prayers or good vibes you can send my way for Mac is appreciated. Wednesday is the day of the operation so that is the day to think good thoughts for Mac.

I am sorry to get so off track on this blog. This is supposed to be for Spitsvuur Garth. I will get back on track soon. I can say Garth is doing well, he has healed. Also Garth is a late bloomer. Garth is really filling out and he was already a little tank. Now he is turning into a brick house, muscles bulging all over the place. I swear he is not on steroids.

Be warned and be aware

Just for everyone who gets a puppy. Be aware that a puppy can hurt itself and show ZERO signs of anything being wrong. Boerboel puppies are very strong and they don't show pain until it gets really bad. Well, poor Lulu hurt herself and ended up getting a bone infection. By the time she showed everyone she was hurt the vets wanted to put her down. Oh No, Lulu's Mum was having none of that and with a lot of love and a lot of care and a lot of money....Lulu is getting better and will have a good life. Just look at her now. Just weeks ago she might have left us. Lesson to learn from all of this. Keep a careful eye on all of your dogs, no matter what age. Keep your mind in the right place to consider a second opinion for your dog. Keep in mind this dog Lulu as an example of what could happen if you try hard enough.

Quo-Vadis Boerboel

http://quo-vadis-boerboel.co.za/node/61

For the record the pups I am talking about and very fond of are from Quo-Vadis Boerboel in South Africa.

Check out the website. You will be pleasantly shocked at the honesty and integrity that this breeder has shown on this website.

Kissing Booth

Admit it, if I charged $5 bucks to hold and kiss a puppy for 1 minute. Yep, I could get rich. I think that is the only way to actually make money breeding dogs without being a puppy mill. My point is that breeding quality dogs is not a money making venture. These pups are from a breeder in Africa that is honest and actually loves her animals. I would consider one of these dogs if I was looking for a boerboel. This is the first time I have ever said that.

What is a boerboel?

It finally has begun. What is in a boerboel? DNA testing results show us some amusing things. This is a new science for us dog owners and it is not perfect. A more in depth look at the results to follow. I am hoping the one person who was willing to share will give me some more details. AST (pitbull), BullMastiif, Mastiff, Corgi, Boxer, Bulldog. I think we might see more as well. This is just the beginning. The test results are not 100%, but if someone is trying to pass off something as a boerboel and that particular something doesn't look like a boerboel. The current test can help sort that nonsense out. It was designed for recent cross breedings. I know this will only help the good people breeding these dogs. It is just a shame the Ridgeback has not shown up yet. It is a well accepted story that the Ridgeback and the Boerboel were very close at one point. A purposeful separation of the two was made. One for hunting and one to stay behind and protect the farm. I have to stop. To many topics to open for debate already. Number one will be next.

Update: It seems that the results of Big Dog Pete and his black boerboel show zero rottie? The rumor that the black boerboels are recent mix breeds of rotties is Not True.

Sad Day

This is Mac's shoulder. This is what a shoulder fusion looks like. Mac has developed cancer and his leg will have to be amputated. On occasion an irritant ie all that metal can cause cancer in a dog. This is not supposed to happen but it can.