casowner

The vile crap that I have seen on facebpook pages from others heavily involved in rescue is absolutely disgusting and slanderous, accusations that a few others involved in rescue "caused the raid" is just plain BS. Making these statements and spreading vicious rumours shows me what many rescues in SA have become. I am absolutely appalled at the language and behaviour of these so called adults - they have been seen to be more feral than many of their animal counterparts Make sure your own backyards and ethics are beyond reproach before you have the audacity to criticise others who actually do the right thing.

I know whose these dogs are and yes they would be that property, she has admitted it. Edited to add there has been a "rumour" in the Pet Industry about this woman for a long time but no one knew the absolute fact that it was happening. There were a lot of dogs there and RSPCA etc have been told and the dogs were removed, the guy that owns the set up has owned 3 pet shops, the woman has owned several also.

Pictures I thought I linked the photo's, I so need sleep sorry :laugh: Again I absolutely do not agree with tresspassing

I would too and they took photos at night when people were home and I absolutely think that is wrong but I am also disgusted at the conditions of these dogs were living in or are they acceptable to people? I don't care if it is a give away kelpie cross pup or in this case pups worth several thousands of dollars these are filthy. What about disease control these dogs are on dirt

Edited title, this is one of the first exposed puppy farms in SA for a while and hopefully it will be pressured to close

The most disgusting part of this I believe is the woman managing it is a registered breeder SA Puppy Farm ANIMAL activists are demanding tough new laws to ensure better breeding conditions for puppies. THE stench hits us as we step out of the car. The smell of dog faeces hangs in the hot, still air. That’s the first assault on the senses. The second is the cacophony of barking. We’ve arrived at a cluster of buildings barely visible from the road, at the end of a long, dirt track through a paddock. There’s a rundown homestead with a fenced yard, enclosing an open-sided shelter over fenced pens. Several dogs of varying breeds and sizes are barking at the gate. Most of the noise, however, is coming from the pens across a clearing from the house, a haphazard collection of enclosures and corrugated iron shelters that tumbles off into the distance, disappearing into a clump of trees. Various breeds of mostly small dogs, having announced our presence, lose interest and snuffle about in their bare, dirt floored pens. We’ve arrived unannounced at a property set in the hard-scrabble farming country of the South Australian Mallee district, acting on a claim from the animal activist group Oscar’s Law. Its founder, Victorian nurse Debra Tranter, has been on a 20-year crusade to end what she describes as the “factory farming” of puppies for the pet shop trade and internet sales. Along with other animal welfare groups like Animals Australia, Tranter has helped to make the term “puppy farm” synonymous with ill treatment of animals; of bitches treated as breeding machines, housed in squalid, confined spaces with little or no interaction with humans, producing poorly socialised pups with congenital and behavioural problems to feed our apparently insatiable appetite for cute, fluffy, “designer” dogs. The Oscar’s Law website contains harrowing photographs and footage captured from Victorian breeding kennels, of dogs cowering in filthy pens; of litters of pups with their mothers, confined in cages that line the walls of a huge, windowless shed. These images, we are told, are of legal businesses. Equally affecting is the story of the dog for whom the campaign is named. Oscar is a tiny, curly-haired creature that Tranter rescued from a breeding kennel in rural Victoria. He was seriously underweight, with severe ear and mouth infections. His fur was so matted he had to be anaesthetised so that a vet could shave him. Tranter also had him desexed, in the belief that that would end his life as a puppy farm stud dog. After the surgery, while Oscar recovered, police raided Tranter’s home, arrested her and returned the dog to his owner. She was eventually able to buy him from the breeder, and he now lives with her. PUPPY FARMS When she first raised the issue, 20 years ago, people were incredulous. “When I mentioned puppy farms, factory farming dogs, everyone believed it was a hoax,” she says. “It wasn’t true, we couldn’t possibly do that to dogs. We do it to chickens and pigs, we wouldn’t do it to dogs.” Late last year, Oscar’s Law staged the latest in a series of protests − in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney − to demand reforms to the legal regime under which commercial dog breeders are permitted to operate. Politicians, it seems, are listening. In South Australia, State Parliament has convened a Select Committee Inquiry into Cats and Dogs as Companion Animals, which is currently hearing submissions from the pet industry, animal welfare organisations and other interested parties, as well as members of the public, and will present its recommendations in the middle of the year. In Victoria, the legislation has been tightened and public comment is currently being sought on a revised and strengthened code of practice for the operation of breeding and rearing establishments. “State governments are actually starting to put puppy farming on the agenda and saying well, we’d better have a look at this,” says Tranter. “Because they are getting lots of emails and letters. It’s the first time in 20 years that I’ve known the issue to be on the political agenda. So at least people are talking about it and people are starting to listen.” The Animal Welfare Act of SA governs the treatment of all animals, from privately owned pets to commercial breeding and rearing establishments such as poultry farms and beef cattle producers. Most commercial enterprises are governed by codes of practice which are attached to the act. There is no code, however, that governs the commercial breeding of companion animals. Such establishments operate under licences issued by local councils which fall under the Dog and Cat Management Board. Shatha Hamade, who was the RSPCA’s legal counsel in SA until she left late last year to join Animals Australia, based in Victoria, said that while the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act are commendable, and penalties for breaches are appropriate, without a specific code of practice it’s difficult to get convictions against licensed commercial dog breeders. “It’s like prosecuting a farmer,” says Hamade. “If a magistrate is of the opinion that this person has their livelihood out of this, this is their job, they would be hesitant to shut them down completely. "So the RSPCA can hold them to account in terms of welfare but ultimately it’s the council who makes the decision about whether or not to revoke their licence.” According to Tranter, there are up to 100 dogs being kept at the property SA Weekend visited in the SA Mallee, about 2½-hours drive from Adelaide. When we call en route to check the location, she tells us activists had made a covert visit the night before, and had photographed the animals in pens at the back of the house. NOT FOR SALE When a young man emerges from the house and comes to the gate, we give him the name of the woman who, according to Tranter, is running the kennels, breeding dogs for the pet shop trade in partnership with a former pet shop owner, Robert Stone. Ten minutes later the woman appears, hair damp from the shower, and regards us balefully from the doorstep. After a short exchange, we are admitted to the house and offered coffee. Although she talks to us at length about her experiences in the pet business - she too was a former pet shop owner, and is a registered breeder of pedigree dogs - she is adamant that she does not want to be named in this story. While we talk, her French bulldogs curl up beside us on the sofa and at our feet. They are calm, affectionate animals, obviously loved and indulged. There are four breeding bitches, three desexed females and a breeding male. One of the females has just had pups. But what of the dogs out the back? They are not hers, she tells us. She is merely caring for them for their owner. They are not being used to breed puppies for the pet shop trade, she says. Her offsider has already told us there are “around 50” dogs. Why are they there, I ask? “The owner would explain that to you,” she says. “He’s got dogs here that he did breed from, but they’re all slowly being re-homed or whatever ... ” The dogs were not for sale. “They’re given away,” she says, and it was “definitely not” a business. Over the course of the next 40 minutes, she tells us her story - of a pet shop franchise gone bad, of litigation against the franchisor, of financial hardship, creditors, mental illness. As she talks, she chain smokes with shaking hands. “I’m unemployed, we get to live here for free to take care of the house and make sure the animals are fed,” she says. She won’t allow us to see for ourselves the condition of the pens at the back. The owner - not Robert Stone, she says - would be horrified. “Look, he will…honestly, we’re going to get kicked out,” she says. “That’s the issue. We are now going to have to find somewhere else to live. He is going to go off his dial.” The photographs sent by Tranter show dogs of various - mostly small - breeds, among them what appear to be poodles, silky terriers and at least one pug. But is it a “puppy farm”? We can’t tell. Apart from the great drifts of dog droppings underfoot, it’s difficult to discern much about the condition of the animals. ANIMAL WELFARE In the past year, the RSPCA (SA) has completed 34 prosecutions for cruelty to animals. In 2011-12, there were 55. Most were for cruelty to companion animals, and most of those were dogs. Simon Richards, chief inspector of the RSPCA (SA) said that although “we had a few reports”, none of the prosecutions involved commercial breeders of companion animals. “There were three of backyard people who were breeding dogs in their houses, potentially for profit,” he says. “I’ve been out to an establishment that was described as a puppy farm, but wasn’t. "And we get a number of reports like that, where puppy farms are reported but they’re actually not. "They were breeding there, but it didn’t fit within the RSPCA’s definition of what a puppy farm is, and it met all the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act.” The fact that there were no prosecutions suggests not that there is not an issue with inappropriate breeding establishments, says Richards, simply that, of the reports received, only those three small scale breeders, presumably operating without a licence, were in breach of the Act. “I’m not going to say that there aren’t puppy farms in SA,” he says. “All I can say is we haven’t received a report that we’ve attended to that is a puppy farm.” Based on the reports received by the RSPCA, Richards believes that backyard breeders - those operating without a commercial licence - are a significant part of the problem of inappropriate care and management of breeding dogs. “You’ve only got to look online, (or at) the amount of calls that we get, to members of the public who go to buy a puppy from a backyard breeder and report problems in terms of the living conditions or conditions of the dogs themselves to indicate that it’s as significant a problem as puppy farms are,” he said. Apart from the care and condition of the animals, the RSPCA is also concerned about the oversupply of dogs to the market: the breeding of puppies to suit consumer taste - for example the so-called “designer dogs” - what Richards calls “the commodification of animals”. While some of the more than 14,000 dogs euthanased by the RSPCA in 2011-12 would have been killed for medical or behavioural reasons, it is still a shocking figure. Add those taken in by Animal Welfare League shelters, local government pounds and privately run shelters and the numbers are much higher. One estimate, from the Pet Industry Association (PIAA) of Australia, is that more than 44,000 dogs are euthanased because no homes can be found for them. According to the PIAA, 450,000 dogs are sold nationally each year. Of these, only 15 per cent - or 67,500 - are bought in pet shops. Late last year, the PIAA launched a new policy of accreditation for breeders and retailers in response to community concerns - and campaigns by the RSPCA and organisations like Oscar’s Law - about puppy farms and unwanted pets. Its “dogs lifetime guarantee on traceability and re-homing” includes a scheme for approved breeders to comply with prescribed codes of ethical operation, subject to an independent annual audit by a vet. They would be required to microchip animals with their breeder details before sale to accredited pet shops. If the dog were to be abandoned or sent to a shelter or pound, the theory is that it would be traced back to both pet shop and breeder for rehoming, at the PIAA’s expense. The policy was rolled out in NSW late last year, and will be launched in South Australia in the next two to three months. DESIGNER PETS At a prominently located pet shop in the city - one of eight SA pet shops listed on the PIAA’s database - a “Frenchie x pugalier” male puppy is displayed in a glass cabinet with a price tag of $1195. Advertised as wormed and vaccinated and 12 weeks old, it’s the offspring of a French bulldog sire and a pugalier bitch (ie a pug crossed with a cavalier king charles spaniel). The owner of the shop, a 30-year veteran of the retail pet business, declines to speak to us on the record, but outlines her strict policies on the management and care of live pets. There are cooling off periods for buyers, free vet checks and a returns policy for pets found to be unsuitable or defective. There is no profit to be made from the sale of pets, she says. The money is in the food, toys and pet paraphernalia that retailers hope will be bought by new owners on regular return visits. The frenchie cross pup had been sourced from a broker in Victoria, she said, as were almost all of the pups she sold in the shop. She didn’t buy from the woman in the Mallee we had visited, and only vaguely recalled hearing her name, or Robert Stone’s. Stone had called SA Weekend the day after our visit to the Mallee property to lodge a complaint with the editor. As predicted, he had “gone off his dial”, accusing us of trespassing and loudly protesting that he was running a lawful business. He declined to allow us to visit the kennels, but eventually agreed to an interview. The property was owned by his father, and he had been running it as a breeding establishment for about 3½ years, under the licence which came with the property, and which was renewed annually with the local council. He had around 55 dogs: “I’ll take a guess. Normally, it’s about one male to every three bitches,” he said. His females were rested for a season between litters and all his pups were sold in SA pet shops, which he declined to name, but added that we had already visited one of them. When I tell him that the owner of the shop denied sourcing pups from his kennels, and knew him only vaguely, he said: “Well, that’s news to me.” He knew we had visited the shop, he said, because the owner had called the property to tell the caretaker that SA Weekend had been in, asking questions. The reason for all the subterfuge, he said, was misunderstandings by the general public and the actions of animal activists. “Basically anyone at all that breeds, they don’t like,” he says. “For us, for any breeder, whether they’re legitimate, whether they’re licensed, whether they’re a pedigree breeder, it’s like yelling shark to people in the water. It invokes fear.” The terrible smell at his kennels was only to be expected. “When you’ve got dogs you’re going to have smell,” he says. And, yes, of course the runs were cleaned of faeces. “It’s picked up daily, it’s hosed out daily, we rest runs, we use chemicals. If I don’t clean properly I have ill animals,” he adds. “If I have ill animals I have vet bills. That can ruin me. If I over-breed my animals, I get sick animals, I get smaller litter sizes. "If you (are) a businessman that wants to make the maximum amount of money, you do the right thing by the animals. It’s common sense and it’s decency. "And that’s why I got upset the other day and flew off the handle. Because we’re so used to being accused. "Whether you’re a good operator or a poor operator there’s a blanket thrown over the whole industry.” He gives me the contact details for his vet, and before we part, makes the following observation: “Look, I owned a hotel. I sold cigarettes to people who could die from cancer, I sold chicken schnitzels to fat people, I sold alcohol to alcoholics and I took money off problem gamblers, and I never copped any grief. Sell a cute little puppy dog to somebody and you’re evil.” Stone’s vet, Trevor Baker, who’s a partner in a practice based at Blake’s Crossing in the northern suburbs, confirms that he sees Stone’s animals regularly - up to twice weekly - and had visited the property several times, most recently a few days before we spoke, to do multiple vaccinations of breeding bitches. “I’ve got no issue with it,” says Baker when asked about the conditions. “They’ve got big pens out there, most are bigger than most people’s backyards. "When I’ve been there, they’ve always been clean, (the dogs) are all chewing on bones. "They all seem quite happy ... as a breeding establishment, it’s fine as far as the animals’ welfare is concerned.” Most of the females had only a litter a year, which was the breed standard, he said, and when they reached the end of their breeding life, at about four or five, they were desexed. “We desex quite a few of their mature dogs,” he says. “They don’t bring in four-year-old dogs to have them euthanased so they obviously re-home them somewhere.” He only occasionally saw genetic abnormalities from inappropriate crosses. “Most so-called designer dogs are maltese crosses, which suit the majority of people because they’re small, fluffy and low-maintenance, good-temperament puppies. We don’t see a whole heap of genetic defects,” he says. The pet shop owner believes that people should have a choice about acquiring a pet, rather than being “bullied” into adopting an unwanted dog. At the time of writing, the frenchie cross pup’s price had been reduced to $850. Shortly after SA Weekend’s visit to his property, Stone removed his dogs, according to local police. Stone declined to comment.

Azure is the name given by her breeder, her mother’s name is Dragon (Takas Hidden Dragon) and we like it so it stayed plus we couldn’t agree on a call name. My son calls her Zuzu, she doesn’t listen to him but he calls her that anyway. Her name suits her temperament description which is flying shark, hidden dragon

Oh Perse I am so sorry

now stay on topic jo or you will get your hand slapped as apparently the only valid opinions are the ones rammed down your throat.

My life literally revolves around my animals and my kids but if I saw one of my animals putting a child in danger or if ANY child was in danger I would not hesitate to help them.

We were approached today by a producer of Australias Got Talent 2013 looking for people with talented animals to audition for the new AGT season. Auditions will be held soon so if you have or know of someone with a talented animal then click on the link to enrol. Auditions We all know how talented our furred, feathered, finned and scaled friends are so please share so we can all get to see them strut their stuff

Can you imagine the test they would use on those owners to prevent their mandatory desexing? ..Sir or Madam can you please explain to me what enviromental enrichment is? ...Isn't that when I get paid once a fortnight

LGD breeds would more than likely not pass any standard temp test so hopefully breed considerations will be given. I second Jo's comment about Ben he is a registered breeder so I doubt he would not have considered the affect to the show community

I was going to quetion if this was the study that SA is getting them to do, not one I am overly keen about especially having LGD breeds who I don't believe can be lumped in with many other breeds as their guarding behaviour is a big part of their temperament

Yes, wolves have yellow / amber eyes, so do a lot of Anatolians. I actually like the look of the black mask with yellow eyes. So I'm biased. But I do know that most breeds prefer medium to dark brown eyes. Lovely photo, lovely dog. Do most guardian breeds have lighter eyes? I'd think, again in terms of dog jobs, they'd want to be seen so lighter eyes would be an advantage, whereas in earth dogs, lighter eyes would be a disadvantage. Mine (one of Lilli's) has the same type of coat colour as Raven (Lilli's pictured) but has dark eyes

Koalas can inflict nasty wounds to dogs but they also succumb to stress very easily, in this heat they will be more vulnerable as they are going to ground to get water it is a good idea to place a few bowls around for them. Even though it is hard keeping the dogs away if you know they are around is a good idea not only for the koala but also for the dogs as not only are they at risk of injury they can get too worked up and overheat themselves

I love fawns or reds with dark masks and my fave colour atm is the colour of my pup wolf grey I really don't like brindle

We support a rescue group and through our customers have rehomed dozens of animals, I think the adoption angle works because of the emotive pull it has - these are unwanted, abandoned animals looking for their last hope, well that is the message I get from the "adopt don't shop" message. Adopting a rescue animal makes people feel happy that they have helped save a life and have given their pet a second chance and I think that is admirable. I fully support ethical registered breeders and I will only ever own pedigree dogs not because of status or the desire to have one of "those" dogs but because of the time invested in lineage, back up support and dogs specifically chosen for their breed traits. In my life I need to have a reliance on reasonable predictability when it comes to my dogs, my other animals are too important to have unknown factors at play. I lost my little cross over a year ago and she was my heart but after owning my CAO I have realised that I desire specific traits in any dog in my home. I will do whatever I can to help support the rescue group that is ethical but I will also always support people making informed, educated choices and that includes pointing them in the direction of registered breeders also

No they won't and I ended up getting another breed a few weeks ago to fill the void and will wait for my chosen breed, I got another out of necessity as it is primarily a working dog as well as a family pet. If people choose quantity over quality though we will damage breeds maybe permanently but as you said the majority of consumers want their pup now or will maybe wait a few months but that is all. The other thing is that in this economy people will be more price conscious and will price shop as they do with other products. Being in the pet industry I have noticed in the last 18 months people have deserted the idea of brand (pet food) loyalty and will shop for whatever is on special and I have no doubt that will spread to livestock too.

I have waited over 2 1/2 years for a pup and will wait another 2 1/2 if it means getting tthe right one

I also requested videos Sure thing. This is Gabe, he does agility Agility Bulldog Also an agility Bulldog My link And another one (this dog has a heap of titles) My link You can't paint and entire breed by a few bad examples. I know some Bulldogs down here who are quiet energetic. They have no issues keeping up with my Samoyeds in the generals ring. But wouldnt it be great if those examples were the norm? Wouldn't it be great if someone can come to a forum and say my dog cant walk very far without being in distress and have the normal response be thats not typical instead of it being typical? To me they are normal. As I pointed out, the Bulldogs I'm use to seeing can move very happily. What Bulldog person came on here saying their dog couldn't move? I've seen people who don't own Bulldogs making comments about a breed they don't own. I'm not saying that the whole breed is fine but I am saying that seeing one or two bad examples isn't a good enough reason to blanket an entire breed as unhealthy. Well thats true but its been every bull dog I have seen and I love them they are awesome temperament wise and I hope that maybe the bad breeders will get run out of the breeding business and let the professionals do it. And every Bulldog you met was a pedigree was it? How many dogs are we talking about here? I hope bad breeders vanish too. It would be wonderful. yes they were pedigreed prob talking maybe 100+ in the 10 years in my vet tech days. I love the breed and am not knocking or trying to good bulldog breeders What you are saying now is very different to what you said above, do you really wonder why BB people are defensive when this sort of thing gets trotted out? yes everyone I have seen, I havent seen all the bulldogs in the world so I am sure there are healthy ones. I see people on this forum with healthy ones now. Anyway this is just us chasing our tails so I will just leave it at that. Not if you are a bulldog :laugh: I have worked with animals for 20 years and would be lucky to have met over 10, I love them but I do have a soft spot for braccy breeds not that I have ever owned one - yet

Does this one count?

I think the aim will be to get as much exposure on what has happened and it looks as though many charges will be getting laid against key players and it will get messy for those involved.