tdierikx

Too many rescuers put way too much of themselves into the "job"... and many of our best can reach burnout way too quickly... Go with your heart... it's time to do something for YOU... ... you would still be an incredible resource to Pei rescue even if you don't take as many into your own personal care. T.

I took Pickles, my disabled dog, to training a few weeks ago - and although I was extremely impressed with how she (and I) went, the classes are at 8am on a Sunday morning about a 40 minute drive away. The closer group training is held on Saturday afternoon, which clashes with my volunteering at a dog rescue. In all honesty, 8am on Sunday morning is a bit cold for this old body - but will probably get there more often when the weather gets warmer. My older 2 dogs had enough training when they were younger to be nicely social when out in public and come back to me when called. I have a preference for training with a check chain - and it's getting extremely difficult to find a group training where they don't ban check chains as being "cruel". Training Pickles is done with a harness and a soft collar, as she is prone to tripping and falling due to her disability - the new training group at least understood this fact and were happy enough to work within her limits... Personally, I have dogs because they are dogs... not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, just trained enough not to be a menace in public really. T.

My "old" girl Zeddy will be 13 at the end of this month... but don't tell her she's old - she won't believe you... *grin* As long as your dog is happy and healthy, who cares what other people think? T.

At least I managed to get our name on the pregnant Staffy X girl - that funnily wasn't on the HP email lists after she came in on Thursday... errr! Another group had her up on their website as available for adoption as she'd already had her pups - she's about 5 weeks gone... aarrgghh! Needless the staff had it right on her kennel "Rescue Only" thank dog! I emailed yesterday arvo, but went in to HP today to make absolutely sure she had our name on her. Anyways, she and I had a big cuddle session today, and I think I'm going to name her "Blossom", as she reminds me of a sweet Rotti girl I had in the past. T.

So PR are warehousing animals in kennels too? What's the point in getting an animal out of the pound only to have it languish in kennels for an indeterminate length of time? Especially if the dogs would be far better off being given their wings due to issues that make them a danger to people and/or other animals... T.

dogmad - there is a little dog in HP listed as a Chi X that looks to me like it may have some Iggy in it - THSC21?? - it's the one that keeps getting its jumper/coat off right near where the public enters the kennel area. Sort of a salt and pepper greyish colouring. Sweet little thing... I saw it while I was there today - came up to the front of the kennel and licked my fingers and seemed to just want some cuddles. Pretty happy despite being in a pound and refusing to wear its jumpers. They do have lots of bedding in a bucket bed, so it won't freeze... T.

Just out of curiosity Jill, how much money have they offered you for taking the dog in question? And how much have they offered to the other place where there are kenneled dogs? PM would be fine... I think you have missed my point completely though... the odd gesture like they have offered to you are not regular occurrences - and this one in particular seems very much like a reaction to the current debate regarding their practices. It smacks of "shut up" money from this side of the fence... The fact that PR have the same or more access to the lists at HP that the rest of us have means that they can see exactly which dogs have saves on them. If I (who knows very little about the inner workings of HP) can find out exactly which group has put a save on which dog, then surely PR can do the same... yet they spruik many dogs already safe as being in grave danger of pts. It just seems a little odd that they have just now decided to offer one group (you) some money for one dog on the current list... what about all of the other dogs that have saves on them? T.

Marley and Me... or Red Dog... Both are written in such a way that it reminds us exactly why dogs are "man's best friend"... ... oh and any MIMS manual I can get my hands on... *grin* T.

Jill - just because they gave you some money for the dog you were already committed to taking, doesn't make them "good guys" in any sense of the word... It's in no way addressing the myriad of other issues raised in this and many other threads on the topic. PR have the same access to the pound as the rest of us - they can see which dogs are marked as safe - one phonecall or email to find out which group took them on is all it would take to then be able to forward any donations taken for the dog in question, yes? Once they have the name of the group taking the dog, then it's easy enough to find a contact number or email in order to offer the funds... but it ain't happening unless there is dissent in the ranks like this thread - and basically it looks like they are offering you money to stop being "against" them... and it also looks like it's working... One "right" deed certainly doesn't negate the many bad ones being done by this group in the name of "saving" dogs... If all they did was fundraise and provide ethical/actual help to other rescues, then they'd be a massive boon to the rescue community - let's face it, they are bloody good at that aspect of the game - but I simply cannot reconcile the occasional few dollars going where the donators think it's going with the immense harm they are doing to the rescue "brand" by their rehoming practices. T.

Yeeehaaaa! Go Rusty boy!!! Good things DO come to those who wait... *grin* T.

Until the rest of the stuff they are doing changes for the better, I wouldn't accept one red cent from them - no matter how much they offer. I would feel that it was "Judas" money. Successful rescue isn't measured by how many we can save/rehome, but by how well we do it. Getting a dog out of a Sydney pound, rehoming it irresponsibly interstate, and having it die in a different pound after it does damage to a person or other animal... just isn't rescue in any sense of the word. T.

Oh my!! Curly is certainly a stunning little chap, isn't he? They both look as cheeky as in the video... lol! T.

There are a couple of smaller rescues who have affiliated themselves with PR and are happily taking financial assistance from them Sheridan. Until their practices are amended though, no reputable and ethical rescue want to deal with them - and all criticism or questioning of said practices is met with bullying and intimidation... some on a rather frightening scale... The rescue community has worked long and hard to be recognised as a valid and viable source of a new pet for Joe Public... and PR's current tactics and practices can and will destroy that reputation for ALL rescue. Bad news travels a heck of a lot faster than good news... T.

I used to think crates were cruel... until I had occasion to need to use one... My dogs love theirs, and all my fosters are crate trained too. I wouldn't ever be without a few in different sizes now. T.

NOOOO!!!! Allowing them to "assist" you is affirming their legitimacy... I wouldn't accept anything from them until they start getting all the other things right with their practices. I know it's tempting to want to tap into their obviously huge money raising capabilities, but do we really want to climb onto that particular bandwagon? T.

... except the fact that the majority of rescues I know of can't agree on a common set of policies or procedures... *grin* T.

If PR are acting as middle man to potential adopters so they can get a dog out cheaper than normal pound sale cost - and that dog is picked up straight from the pound by said adopter without actually being handled by a PR member - who is ultimately liable if that dog then bites or attacks a person or another animal? You can bet your bottom dollar PR would be farming that sort of headache straight back to the pound... What I can't get my head around is the apparent lack of caring as to what happens to the animal once they've "saved" it from the pounds they are entrenched at - they really don't seem to understand the damage being done out there... to the people they are sending dogs to, or the actual dogs themselves who end up being dumped at other pounds or euthanaised due to their obvious issues (or acts). To our credit - the reputable rescue community are helping some of the people and animals out there who have been stung by PR's tactics... although I think PR probably see that help as proof of their own legitimacy... *sigh* In all honesty, I think that if the reputable rescues lend their assistance in the form of telling people who have been left high and dry exactly which authorities to go to about their dealings with PR, then we may see some action to stop them. If they are committing fraud in the form of taking monies with no accountability, then the Charities Dept or Dept of Racing and Gaming should be alerted (often) - if they are passing unsuitable animals on to unsuspecting adopters or foster carers and lying about said animals' temperaments, then NSW Fair Trading or CTTT would be the departments to go to, as we all must ensure that the "goods" we sell are of the quality advertised, etc... As for the intimidation tactics employed by PR and their hangers on - there are laws against some of the things I've heard them accused of... take screenshots of any online attacks, dates and times and names involved if the abuse is by phone, etc... and report the bastards to the Police. The time of circling the wagons is past... it's time to bring out the big guns and take the battle to them really... T.

Wei Nott? *grin* T.

I shouldn't have watched that.... it's a bit distressing... ... but agree that it was the quickest and most effective course of action the cop could take at the time. T.

Does HP desex before release? Or does rescue get them undesexed and the onus is on them to desex? Just wondering about the animals whisked off interstate so rapidly - are they desexed first by PR or not? T.

How do they do desexing and vaccination, worming etc for $150? I'd be theorising that maybe it isn't done at all in many cases... T.

Maybe not Nic... think PIAA and their "accredited" pet shops, kennels, etc... Policy looks great on paper only... T.

Theoretically, every time a pound releases an animal to anyone, the liability for it if it causes carnage is theirs. PR are banking on this fact - especially if they are sending new owners directly to the pound to pick up the animal they are purchasing through PR. Nice little money spinner for PR by the way - in most cases they are getting the animal from the pound for little money or nothing in some cases, then charging new owners for it and having said new owners pick up straight from the pound. As for the animals being sent interstate - where is the backup for new owners or "foster carers" when said animal is not desexed, and they can't get PR to follow through on that either? From what I can see, all PR do when contacted about issues with a rehomed (or "fostered") dog is give the contact details of some other rescue groups to ask for assistance. That - or they delete any references from their Facebook pages and pretend everything is all sweetness and light. Seriously, the only way I can see PR being slowed down at all is for one of the pounds they source dogs from to be sued by a disgruntled recipient of an unsuitable animal. That would make the pound a lot less inclined to work with PR due to possible "splash back" when the poo hits the fan. Unfortunately it may also have the effect of said pound stopping it's association with ALL rescue. Once bitten and all that... *sigh* Regulation of rescue isn't going to solve the issue either - there's virtually no policing of current laws and statutes, so adding new laws and statutes would really be pointless IMHO. T.

Spot on there Panto! T.

Hmmm... we have a couple of pups that may fit the bill... Matilda ia a Kelpie and is about 4 months old, and Ty is Kelpie/BC/Aussie/ACD and 3 months... probably a bit younger than what you are looking for, but both are crate trained and play nice with others. We also have Lola (I call her Shadow) - a black Labrador cross (possibly a smidge of Kelpie) who is 5 months old. Also crate trained and plays well with others. Then there is Pumpkin - looks like an ACD/Corgi cross and has blue eyes - very energetic and willing to please - she is about 9 months old. T.