Smaller dogs naturally seem to have longer lifespans than larger dogs... we have two dogs at the moment, a 16 year old female australian terrier x and a male 14 year old maltese x louchen, whilst my grandparents have a german shepherd x female that is about 11 years old, and she is showing signs of her age far more rapidly than our two. Our 16 year old female is totally deaf, but besides that she still plays, eats well, and is healthy, and Shadow, the 14 year old male still has intact vision, hearing, plays, is active and everything. Im not saying that all small dogs outlive older dogs, but that usually seems to be the case.
I really dont like the designer dog breeds, and the names for them are also rediculous. it seems to be a craze, i wonder how long it will last.
Signed that petition too
"I am currently an 18 year old veterinary science student who has a genuine passion for animals and am strongly focused on the proper care and well being of all animals, both those kept domestically and of wildlife. I am sick and tired of people making impulse buys at petstores, where they later discover the animal is no longer a cute little puppy/kitten, or no longer fits into their lifestyle, or the novelty of having a pet just wears off. I urgently want the sales of mammals to be ceased in petstores, and there should be more regulations governing the sale of such animals. In addition, another method I believe would be appropriate is the cumpolsary desexing and microchipping of all dogs and cats sold for pet purposes, to prevent breeding where the offspring are not wanted and are dumped or killed. Serious action needs to be taken to save the lives of these animals; To many they are our lifelong friends and companions, but to others they are simply an object to be bought, sold or disposed of when wanted."
haha.. I sometimes get worked up about things like this, and that was me in a controlled rant...
I knew about the white sheps too; not being able to be registered as a GSD because white is not an acceptable colour; rather unfortunate i think... cant wait until they can be registered as a different breed, like they are in many other countries.