bluedeer

I don't have an issue with random inspections carried out by a government body, but to allow other groups with their own agendas is inviting disaster. Could you imagine how many false claims of cruelty there would be if inspectors from pretend welfare groups/activist groups were allowed to be a part of this? Would they see the low hanging teats on a bitch with a large litter as a result of "back to back " breeding as they do on their websites along with tales of "uterus's falling out of dogs everywhere" garbage. I agree that these people breeding dogs in substandard conditions needs to be stopped but $500 won't fix it. We as experienced breeders need to lead the way in being open with government bodies in allowing them to see how ethical breeders work as a way of setting the guidelines regarding dog breeding. This would probably mean that ALL breeders must be able to be inspected regardless of whether they belong to the ANKC or not. Having a code of ethics that are poorly policed compared to actually being inspected against written requirements does not sit well with any government body or even the public. We would have a lot more influence on what the written requirements are if our state kennel bodies stopped trying to gain exemptions from dog legislation and instead focused on enlightening ministers etc with the science facts about dog breeding to counter the animal rights fiction they get bombarded with.

I agree with both of you in that ALL breeders, regardless of what their stated motivation is, have the same duty of care to their dogs. This is why we need to have a set minimum standards for all dogs kept whether they are bred from or not. Having one set of rules for commercial breeders and another for hobby breeders allows dodgy breeders to slip though the net by claiming to be in the group with the most relaxed rules. Even we should adopt some of the rules that apply to commercial breeders such as physical inspection of our dogs and facilities. I have no problem with the ranger taking a look at the way my dogs are kept as it may cause the ranger to expect more from others. I think different rules for different groups leads to the mindset of judges like this one where they may think that the motivation for breeding has a bearing on whether neglect is cruel or not. I'd prefer to see ALL breeders better educated in the care of their dogs. Judging breeders on their level of care of their dogs based on their "stated" intent (whether it be commercial, show, betterment of the breed, etc) is ridiculous as stated intent has little to do with the level of care provided for the dogs. Having a go at any breeder who admits to making any profit through breeding is just as invalid as defending any show breeder who does a substandard job of looking after their dogs. Neglect is neglect in my book.

In many slaughterhouses it was common to use a goat called a "Judas Goat" that the sheep that were being readied for slaughter would be placed with before being directed into the kill room. The Judas Goat's job was to lead the sheep quickly and quietly up the ramp to where the killing took place. The sheep eagerly followed the goat because as another herbivore they think it has the same interests as them. At the top of the ramp the Judas Goat was let out to repeat the process and lived to an old age while the sheep met their end. I think we as small ethical breeders are the sheep and the Judas Goat is the Animal Libs/Oscars flaw eager to get us to think that our interests are the same. I will not be led by these fanatics who view ALL Breeders as one and the same.

Thanks for the list

:rolleyes: :)

:laugh:

You get accustomed to hearing this sort of stuff coming out of the US but not here

97% kill rate says it all. How can only 3% be adoptable????

It's happened during the day so the police officer might have seen young kids around on properties close by did what he thought was his only option with a "vicious" dog?

Lots of shocking stuff in the USA. State and local govenments are financially gutted. California is seriously considering a major cut to Animal Shelter funding among many drastic cuts being made to reduce the state deficit. Subsidized spey/neuter programs, however, are more generous in California than any place I know of . . . I paid $US40 to get my old girl speyed, and that included an overnight stay at the vet. http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_19949827 If you think Animal Planet is associated with PETA, I'd suggest taking a look at animalplanet.com. The whole outfit exploits the widespread human fascination with animals. Something like these Mardi Gras dogs would put a PETA person's knickers in a knot http://blogs.discovery.com/daily_treat/2012/02/7-mutts-going-nuts-for-mardi-gras.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DailyTreatAnimalPlanet+%28The+Daily+Treat%3A+Animal+Planet%29 $40 spay/neuter would be great her in OZ! :)

Great service and no issues

Goes nuts for strawberries and I thought the birds were taking them from our garden! :laugh:

Here's the link http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8293026

The snakes are out already but they will probably still be a bit sluggish.

So sad

Was it really an áttack', the lady was 77 and able to fend of two GSD with 1 bite and scratches. It might just be more media hysteria. I think you are right Chevorne.

Thanks, Tempus Fugit. Is this IT? No increased penalties for owners where a dog does harm? No additional regulation of wandering dogs. The breed identification issue shunted off into a "a standard that has been approved by the Minister and published in the Government Gazette." And cutting off the opportunity to register as a restricted breed dog closed at the end of September. What a can of worms! Presumably the approved standard won't be published for a bit of time and information on it will be poorly distributed. So X-breed owners aren't going to know whether or not they need to register until AFTER it's too late to register. The standard is going to be a mess for reasons that have been discussed many times. So publication of the standard will leave things clear as mud. The lawyers are going to have fun with this one! This is what usually happens bills are rushed through to gain political points.

I've occasionally had people in the street walk up to me and ask me if my Pug is a Pitbull! A few weeks ago, while we were at the beach, a group of kids ran up to him, screaming and shouting Pitbull! Pitbull! What chance have the poor Pitbulls got, when most people don't even know what one looks like? If they can't tell the difference between pug and pitbull, what chance do staffies have?

Very true. I'll admit I stopped reading at that analogy because frankly, I think it's pretty disgusting to compare the two. Yeah I did the same.

God help anyone with a large cross breed dog & nasty neighbours : I agree

Same here

Mr Lawrence said any animals handed in under the amnesty would be euthanased. What would be the point of an amnesty then?