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Australian Cattle Dog

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Home:Fairbanks/Salcha, AK

Age: 10 Years Sex: Male Weight: 11-25 lbs

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Dogster stats for Fitz


Stars:

Leave a bone for Fitz

Nicknames:
spaz, fitzy

Quick Bio:

-purebred

Likes:
fetching anything that is thrown!

Pet-Peeves:
being left alone, not getting attention

Favorite Toy:
any rubber kong toy

Favorite Food:
not a very picky eater, so just about anything

Favorite Walk:
anywhere the rest of us are going

Best Tricks:
running laps on the grader circle, and running alongside the dog sled, and letting me pick him up

Arrival Story:
When I was renting a little cabin, during my military activation, my landlord had a litter of these pups. I couldn't stand her adult dogs. They'd attack my pickup tires when I drove over there to pay the rent, and do nothing but slink around and bark. When she had to leave at short notice for medical treatment, and mentioned that she had to unload this litter of pups ASAP, I offered to take care of any she couldn't sell. In preparation for this offer, I did a bit of research on the "blue heeler" breed. It was then that I discovered this is the dog also known as "Australian Cattle Dog", about which I'd actually heard a lot of good things. I gave it some thought, and wound up actually buying a pup from her, despite the fact that I couldn't stand the little guy's relatives. Since I only had northern breed dogs, mostly from working lines, I was quite interested in seeing the differences between these breeds. Besides, how can you not like a puppy???!

Bio:
Apparently, environment and raising has a lot to do with how a dog turns out as an adult. Fitz is nothing like his obnoxious relatives. He's very intense, which I guess is the breed characteristic, but he doesn't try to bite the huskies, people's heels, car tires, or anything else inappropriate. If he gets worked into a total frenzy, he will nip at other dog's heels, but that doesn't happen very often, and only when he gets inordinately overstimulated! He's learned to run alongside the dog sled and let me reach down and scoop him up. He's definitely different, but he's learned tolerance. He's learned to sit in order to be petted, and I can actually call him off when he gets too hyper with other dogs. He'll drop just about anything and come when called. Although, I may have to call more than once, and in a rather loud, menacing voice when things get too intense! He's good on car rides, and even does well riding in the grader. He's an obsessive chewer, though, and will totally destroy the so-called "indestructible" kong toys! He doesn't chew up any of my stuff, though! :-) Tennis balls don't stand a chance, and rawhide is gone in a flash! Fitz got his name by his puppy antics. He was so hyper, he seemed to be throwing a fit over just about anything! As a puppy, he was totally mothered by Shaman, a male alaskan husky/greyhound. He let little Fitz crawl and stomp all over him! Once, when we first moved to our current cabin, Fitz was snuffling around in some boxes and managed to snort up a fishing lure. It was one of those nice little MEPPS lures, with the trebble hook. The lure went up his nose hook first, and lodged just inside his nostril. The rest of the lure was dangling from his nose like jewelry. It was barely in there, but it wasn't coming out without anesthetic! (*it wasn't for lack of trying*) He had to wait a couple days for a vet appointment. I cut off the majority of the exposed lure, and he was fine, as long as nobody messed with the lodged portion. As luck would have it, the morning he was scheduled to go to the vet, was the same morning I was scheduled to pick up the old grader I'd bought, a few blocks away from the vet's office. So, a friend dropped me off to pick up the grader, and then dropped the dog off at the vet. I then picked up the poor little guy in the grader and drove the 45 minutes home. What a way to wake up from anesthesia!! The little guy wouldn't let me trim his nails for a couple months without going into an absolute panic! It took a lot of desensitization, but he's totally over the incident now! He even likes to go fishing. Since I spend a lot of time working, it's really hard for me to leave dogs indoors when I'm gone. So, even Fitz has learned to stay outside with the huskies in temperatures as cold as -40! Fitz stays loose in the yard that surrounds the cabin with 6 other dogs. To warm up, they crawl under the cabin, where they've excavated themselves a nice little depression, and curl up together. There are also a couple straw filled dog houses available that they can share or use individually, but lying together under the cabin seems to be their favorite spot. Fitz hasn't had any problems with frostbite. His hair grows in extra thick in the winter, just like the huskies.

I've Been On Dogster Since:

January 16th 2005