Aphra

Why shouldn't rescue be a community effort? I don't know what group you're talking about so can't comment there, but if, as a community, we believe that saving the lives of companion animals is a good idea, then as a community we ought all step up to help. I'm a bit over the concept of the lone rescuer as hero - if I could work out a way to save more animals, do it with less work and at least break even, I'd be all over that idea.

What are the physiological changes which happen to cause a shaved coat to not grow back properly? Hair is dead, presumably you don't shave below the skin to impact on the hair root, so how does cutting the hair shorter impact on the way the coat grows? I can see that if you shave the coat as it growns it will look different because you've cut across the hair at the thickest part, so that as the coat gets longer the ends will be thicker and not tapered. I imagine it might taken a couple of seasons for those hairs to be replaced. But how does shaving impact on the hair bulb? Is there some effect where the hair bulb is affected by heat/cold or the weight of hair?

The reasons why the dog who killed Ayen Chol have nothing to do with malice or even genetics and everything to do with an unsocialised dog who was in a state of high arousal and a great deal of pain. That tragedy can be laid squarely at the feet of its owners and their lack of care, lack of management and criminal lack of compassion. The coroner's report is publically available if you'd like to find out what did happen.

Barney came to us from Blacktown Pound. We don't normally rescue from there, but DOLer border collie employee keeps a watching eye for working breeds and offered vetwork and transport if we'd take a couple of desperate dogs from the pound. BCE is one of the behind-the-scenes people who quietly help save dogs without making any noise or fuss. Barney was a surrender, he'd been at the pound for quite a long time, and was so timid that he was release to rescue only. There had been some consideration of euthanizing him because he was so anxious. We said we'd take Barney and see how he went. This is Barney in the pound. Barney came off the transport and straight into my lap. It turned out he wasn't overly timid, but was terrified of the pound. I assume he was surrendered because, as a young mix of two intelligent, active breeds, he got a bit much for his owners. He had no manners, but did have a naturally happy, affectionate nature. He was with us for a while getting a bit of work in leash walking and some basic manners, nothing special really. Some company and exercise were really all he needed. A couple of weeks ago we had an application for him. Here's Barney at home. I think the photos speak for themselves. :-) Thanks to Blacktown Pound for giving him a chance, and border collie employee for helping him out.

You're assuming that shelter dogs are damaged dogs. That's simply not true as anyone one of the experienced rescuers in the rescue forum will be able to tell you. Shelter dogs are, for the most part, just like all the other dogs in the community. The vast majority go on to be safe, stable, happy citizens. Haredown Whippet's point that thoughtfully bred dogs are important - whether crossbreed or not.

You're not helping your argument by just making stuff up, such as your fictitious scenario. Bad breeding is not the reason for attacks. Poorly bred dogs with dedicated owners who manage them appropriately are not a public safety risk. Neglectful owners and ignorant owners with well-bred dogs are a public safety risk. The important factor is management. I find the class aspect of your argument really distasteful. I'm not entirely sure what you think of as a "bogan", but being working class or poor or a renter, doesn't make someone a bad dog owner. I'm sure we could do more and better public education around managing dogs appropriately, but not by finger wagging and calling people irresponsible. The reason cross breed dogs are more heavily represented in bite statistics is because there are more of them. Purebred dogs make up a minor percentage of the entire dog population. And having handled hundreds of dogs over the last decade of all kinds of breeds, sizes and temperament, often under highly stressful situations - the only one I was really sure was interested in biting me was a labrador. That says nothing about the population of labs at all of course. As I've said before - the plural of anecdote is not data.

Hmm. http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/6136/the_town_that_cried_dog_why_the_50_000_stray_dogs_stat_makes_no_sense#.Uhn7NqYazCQ

Having rehomed a few hundred dogs over the last few years, 99% of which were crossbreeds, I'd argue with your assumption that crossbreed dogs are ipso facto more inclined to be unstable or unsafe. The vast majority of dogs, both purebred and crossbred are safe members of the community. The more punitive, restrictive, difficult and social unacceptable we try to make dog breeding, the more we hand control over breeding into the hands of the large scale, commercial breeders and those care-for-nothing, random breeders who aren't interested in anything but a quick buck.

In the UK with the RSPCA. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2334136/SPECIAL-INVESTIGATION-Five-suicides-One-common-thread-They-fell-foul-RSPCA.html

I don't know the ins and outs of this case, although I'm willing to give benefit of the doubt to anyone who can keep multiple rough collies well groomed. I loathe, beyond my capacity to express, the trial by Facebook aspect. If someone has done something wrong and face the court and good evidence is produced, that is one thing. But the personal harassment, the defamation of character, the threats and ill-wishes are horrible. The fact that some rescue groups and people like Oscar's Law and Animals Australia think whipping their followers up into a froth of outrage and anger is acceptable behaviour concerns me greatly. The way that OL and AA characterised the content of the recent draft code for breeding and rearing establishments in Victoria shows that they are willing to use deception to push an agenda (many of the 21,000 responses received by DEPI were from people who believed, sincerely, that the draft code said that breeders were allowed to kill ex-breeding stock by hitting them over the head with a blunt object, because that's what OL and AA told them) and that they are more interested in outrage than they are in reality. Even if the collie people are found to be entirely innocent of wrong doing, their person lives, their reputations and their sense of safety and security in their own home has been destroyed, and quite deliberately.

I should have been clearer - I'm not disputing that there is evidence that commercial breeding of dogs leads to poor pets. But in Victoria there is no evidence about the numbers of puppy farms, legal or illegal; the numbers of dogs with health and behavioural issues bred by them; how many dogs are coming into pet shops and etc from the commercial breeders. So the Victorian Government has created a complex bit of legislation without evidence (and they've used very little of the international research). Where the evidence could have been used to develop meaningful guidelines (such as socialisation of puppies and kittens) they've done very little with it. There's no baseline research to be able to evaluate whether the code will improve things and the evaluation criteria they have won't be able to tell them anything.

To do the government justice, they were between a rock and a hard place with this legislation. They were under a lot of public pressure to do "something" about puppy farms, while recognising that whatever they did wasn't going to be enough. The issue for me is that they haven't defined the problem they're trying to fix and they're relying really heavily on the Oscar's Law contingent who wouldn't know an evidence base if it rose up in air and bit them on the bum. I think the RIS has changed a bit from the first one - or I might just not have found the phrase - the last one said quite clearly that the government had no idea how many commercial breeders there were in Victoria. It means that they don't know what the problem is they're trying to solve. If it's "illegal" or inhumane animal breeding there is already anti-cruelty legislation and council regulations and planning laws to deal with them. If the issue is commercial pet breeding, as far as I can see there is no real evidence about the quality of pets they produce. I'm not apologising for them, but there's no research we only have anecdote. I am really dubious about the existence of all the horrible puppy farms that Oscar's Law bases itself on. The photos used on the OL site are from the puppy farm raid Deb Tranter performed several years ago. The next lot of photos came from the raid in SA and Oscar's Law travelled to SA to be part of that process, even though it was being organised by the RSPCA. I"m not saying there are no horrible puppy farms, but I doubt there are anywhere near as many of them as OL says there are. The big commercial breeders are legal - short of making pet breeding illegal altogether the government can really only regulate them better. The draft code is so nit picky, detailed, complex and inconsistent that it will be near impossible to enforce anyway. The RIS states that the current code isn't enforced, but claims that is to do with short comings in the code. I'd suggest its lack of will and lack of resources. My biggest issue is with the evaluation section of the draft code because it's nonsense. This is what I wrote about the evaluation.

I've put in a submission on behalf of our rescue group but there was so much to comment on. I think it is very unfair that small breeders should have to fulfil the same requirements as puppy farms. I did object to the eurhanization paragraph, but I objected when the shelter code was up for review. Happy to send anyone a copy if you want it - just pm me your email. It's not terribly enlightening though. I ran out of time.

I put your appeal up on the Animal Rescues Appeal site. They'd like to know if anyone will be washing coats/bedding. I suppose that will determine the kinds of things they'll send? Anyway, they're going to see what they can do.

I had a nice email from a young photographer who is interested in volunteering with a rescue group to develop their pet photography skills and hopefully lead into a business specialisation. We're a bit far away, but if there is a Victorian group in the Frankston/south eastern suburbs way who would like some good photos, let me know and I'll send him your details. I can't tell from Pet Rescue where people are located. :-)

In Victoria anyway, their legislated responsibilities are only around investigating and prosecuting animal cruelty. Everything else they do are actions they choose to undertake as an independent body. All the jurisdictional RSPCAs run differently - so the ACT RSPCA behaves quite differently to the NSW RSPCA. If they choose not to support dogs seized under BSL legislation its because they have decided that its not politically expedient to do so - going up against Ministers who are so vocally committed to BSL might impact on their level of influence.

Whoops. Just noticed she's in Victoria. In that case try Farmdogz. If she gets desperate give us a hoy, we're a bit full but could maybe squeeze her in if things are desperate. Farmdogz are a good bet though, and they're not that far away from the area I don't think.

AWDR or SLk Cattle Dog Rescue. She looks a darling - I'm a bit smitten with the little Kelpie X types. She looks a bit like my late Rupert who was a Kelpie Whippet X.

Lat year I shook out one of my horse rugs which had been hanging over the fence and found a little bat snuggled into it. I range the wildlife people who told me to do just what you did, so I put him in a box and left him in a quiet room with the window open and at dusk he (or she) took himself off. I love bats so was thrilled to find him.

I think you need to seek some professional advice from a good trainer/behaviorist. No-one over the internet can tell you what is happening. It could be anything from a bored young dog asking for a game (given his age that seems likely) to an assertive, sexually maturing dog seeking more control over his environment, but the only way to get a good answer is to seek out someone with lots of experience who can watch the interaction. In the meantime, if you really believe that your dog is showing aggression toward you, then you should make sure that you don't allow you dog and your child to interact. Without wishing to be unkind, the act of putting your arm in the way of dog who you think might be showing aggression suggests that you don't have quite enough experience to manage this issue on your own. I'm sure if you tell people your location NSW DOLers will be able to recommend a behaviorist for you.

I've looked through all of our email and Facebook messages and can't find the invitation. So we do apologise, we'd happily have commented.

If DRAV is a closed group and not seeking new members, then a more honest approach would be to send the proposed code of conduct to the councils DRAV members work with, making it clear that the code is one that DRAV members abide by, not an agreed code for all rescues in Victoria. Councils are then free to draw their own conclusions or ask their own questions about other groups. While DRAV clearly have a great deal more experience and credibility than something like NARGA, it is still disappointing that instead of a collaborative, grass-roots approach, the several hundred rescue groups in Australia are being represented without consultation. The Department of the Environment and Primary Industries have reopened comment on the revised breeding and rearing code. It would be well worth rescues reading and responding. I strongly recommend reading the Regulatory Impact Statement to see where this proposed code has come from. Comment is open until August 14. http://www.depi.vic.gov.au/pets/domestic-animal-businesses/breeding-and-rearing-businesses/breeding-and-rearing-code-review

I'd suggest finding a good group or shelter near you and get involved. Not fostering straight off but helping with transport/administration/fundraising/whatever. You'll learn heaps and will develop good networks and relationships for when you start fostering. Congratulations on the new property and welcome to rescue. :-)

The second round of consultation for this legislation is now open and closes on August 14. I urge breeders and rescuers to respond. You should read both the Code of Practice and the the Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS). http://www.depi.vic.gov.au/pets/domestic-animal-businesses/breeding-and-rearing-businesses/breeding-and-rearing-code-review

The fact that there are some people in rescue who can't think from A to B without stopping for a rest isn't a Facebook issue. :laugh: Facebook just gives them a better forum for displaying the crazy, which is probably a good thing - better to know who they are. There's one group who make me shake my head all the time - if strategic thinking were Superman, they'd be Kryptonite. Our last blog post was about the need for more evidence-based thinking in rescue: http://www.headingfo...-animal-rescue/ There are groups who make terrific use of Facebook to engage their community of supporters. Rescued with Love and Fetching Dogs both do it differently, but really well - they're excellent examples of using the tool in way which enhances your reputation and builds your brand in a professional manner. I suspect that some of the rescues who don't do it well, tend not to think of what they do an business-like enterprise which requires a professional approach, but an extension of their private life. Edited to add: we actually have a social media policy which outlines our values and approach. http://www.headingforhome.asn.au/about-us/our-social-media-policy/