furballs

define General Public. what is the 'GP' - those that own a dog and dont breed, and are not members of DOL? what is it that makes the GP so incapacitated for you to deem them incapable of making a decision or less informed so as to know what is best for their pet? pound stats? ... a rockudocumentary? Like I previously stated. You don't know me. You don't know anything about me. So don't make conclusions based on YOUR assumptions. You've just surmised the collective intelligence of the General Public to equate to that of a peanut. .... I am the general public I guess, because I'm not a breeder and have only owned 5 dogs in my lifetime. According to Jackie I don't have enough knowledge to make an informed decision. I only joined Dogzonline because I was searching for information on google and by chance I saw this website. I have spent many hours/days researching the pros and cons of desexing so I could make the right choice for my dog (without any intent on breeding her). If the general public don't have enough information then maybe the focus should be on educating the general public, rather than assuming we are all too irresponsible to do the right thing.

I think you'll find that it is generally working breeds that are dumped and need rehoming. Having a responsive and obedient dog comes from putting in effort with training. Have you had a dog before?

I've read that they already use them in doctor's surgeries in the states for this.

Not everyone who keeps their dogs entire uses them for backyard breeding. Have you read all of the previous posts?

Why why why........do people have to ruin other people's threads. I don't think this thread was initiated to attack labs, so why do people have to be so defensive? All breeds have the potential to be annoying when they're not properly trained. If you are the owner of a disobediant dog then do something about it and stop bitching.....geez

What a beautiful storey

I'm feeling the same way Lhok, this documentary is shocking and disgusting but are all animals treated this way? From what I've read PETA wants to turn all humans into vegetarians and put a complete stop to eating meat. I don't see a problem with us eating meat as long as the animals are treated with respect in life and killed humanely. Surely not all food animals are treated badly? And as for the way dogs are treated, I saw the bit where the dog was thrown into the garbage truck, and I am sure that if that happened here many people would be stopping to save that dog. I'm still ashamed to be human though.

I totally agree with you Leithy

I watched Earthlings through to the end of part 1 (pets). It's absolutely disgusting how selfish human beings can be. However, desexing shouldn't be about the stupid, ignorant humans that "own" dogs, it should be about what is in the best interest of each individual dog. Unfortunately most people don't care what is in the best interest of their dog but there are those of us who do. The only consideration in the decision to desex should be health. If you are not a breeder, then you should not allow your dog to breed. It's not that hard to keep a bitch on heat inside for 3 weeks and away from males. Rather than putting our beloved dogs through an operation which will possibly cause many health issues throughout its life, we should be doing as the Earthlings documentary says and seeing animals as equals and respecting their right to life just as we respect ours. If all the selfish idiots in the world could be PTS instead of the innocent animals they have produced would this not solve the problem?

Because there is a significant increase in the risk of Osteosarcoma in Rottweiler's who are spayed or neutered. Personally I would prefer my dog to keep all of her limbs throughout her lifespan and not go through the trauma of chemo.

Exactly! and are registered breeders always breeding in benefit for the breed? For me a nest or 2 every year is more pups in the world as well, but because it's done under "registered breeding" it should all be alright! And wouldn't more people just become "Registered Breeders". The rules don't seem to be controlled very well at present so what would be stopping people from becoming registered and producing pups and charging more for them.

Bingo furballs! The thread was in question to try and reduce puppy/dog numbers and not to make cross breeds or non show dogs extinct. (Both my dogs are cross breeds never owned a pure bred in my life.) My intact female is a pedigree with papers so technically I could breed her under your proposal, but I wouldn't because I am not interested in adding more unwanted dogs to this world. She is purely a very loved family member who happens to have papers. All my other dogs have always been desexed.

If all males were desexed, females wouldn't need to be, I don't understand your argument. Males don't have seasons, mess and temperament changes in season as an entire female does. Seasonal cycles are best eliminated in the family pet IMO. I agree with you about the temperament changes and season, it's a tough time I think the post is about desexing to reduce unwanted pups though and males are equally responsible for this

Not all animals in shelters are untrained and randomly bred. Some animals owners pass away, some are given away, some are in financial ruin and can't afford a dog, some run away, some get stolen etc. I know not every non ANCK breeder is a money hungry monster. I never said that or implied it in any way, but would it be such a bad thing that dogs numbers would be sufficiently decreased. I doubt we will ever run out of cross breeds. Every day I hear of a new doodle or shitpoo... And if there was a legislation in place of course people will underground breed its inevitable. I agree with you about the shelter dogs. I foster dogs which are going to be killed so I would love to see less unwanted dogs. However, I am a responsible dog owner and I love my dogs like they were my children so if I have a dog which I believe shouldn't be desexed because it could cause serious health issues later in life, why should my dog be punished because the majority of dog owners are irresponsible? The issue here is people, not dogs. People need to forced into being responsible, either by needing a licence to own a pet, or being heavily fined for their irresponsible behaviour.

If all males were desexed, females wouldn't need to be, I don't understand your argument.

i dont agree. once the legislators get their hands on anything we have little chance of it making sense or staying true to the original intent. Exactly, it would be very difficult and expensive to prove that your dog shouldn't be desexed for medical reasons.

I'm not going to vote because I believe that all dogs which are not meant for breeding should be desexed, but only if it is the best thing for the dog. Some breeds such as Rottweilers have a high chance of developing bone cancer if they are desexed before 2 years of age. Other dogs may have health problems which make it dangerous for them to undergo an unnecessary operation. If a responsible dog owner makes the choice (for whatever reason) not to desex, then they will ensure the dog/bitch is unable to produce pups. It is also believed that dogs don't develop properly when they are desexed before they mature. In my own personal experience, I believe this is true.

Not all dogs like having a jumpy dog in their face, big or small. My BC doesn't deliberately go out of her way to fight with other dogs, but if a dog continually runs and jumps at her she will go for it. People with dogs who do this should be able to read the other dog's body language and call their dog off. Just because your dog is friendly, doesn't mean everyone elses dog is going to like it.

I carry a big thick chain, very painful for aggressive dog when being smacked over the head with it.......also kick it until it backs off Nobody is going to hurt my babies when I'm doing the right thing and walking them on lead.

My old girl started by attempting to get to the back door and doing her business near the door, but it slowly progressed until she was just doing it in her sleep on her bed. I just put a waterproof sheet or tarp over her bed and put a top sheet over it and changed it every day. It's just one of those things we have to do to make our older pets comfortable and happy until the end.

I watched right through part 1 about pets and couldn't stop crying. I have always felt ashamed to be part of the human race, this just reinforces my attitude towards people. Some are good, but the majority are power hungry, selfish oxygen thiefs. Problem is, people who couldn't care less aren't going to watch this. Very sad

I have one of these but its yellow, dog absolutely loves it and plays for hours rolling it around and making this weird yelping kind of noise....great toy

Sorry to hear about this. My German Shephard was the same age and I did what you are doing, researched the crematorium (I used Lawnswood and they are fantastic) and planned on getting a mobile vet, more so my dog could die peacefully at home instead of going to the vet. I booked the mobile vet and 5 minutes later she was paralyzed and I ended up having to take her to my local vet to be PTS instead. So if you make the decision for the mobile vet, don't leave it too late. One of my previous dogs actually died at home and the two dogs were best friends. I laid her body outside and the other dog didn't even look or sniff. Maybe because she saw her die, I'm not sure. I do think they search for their mate and wonder why they're no longer around. I would suggest getting the mobile vet out.

If the dog is being cared for by a responsible owner then why have it PTS? It's not in pain, it's not suffering, it's happy. Dogs don't need all of their senses to live normal lives. Lucky dog for finding the owners that it did

missypriss, I read this yesterday and got too upset to respond. I know how you are feeling, it's terribly hard to lose them. Please take some comfort in knowing that you loved Miko and gave him a chance and he may not have had that if he hadn't had you. Miko had more love in his 14 months than many long lived dogs have. You are a wonderful person for taking him on and my thoughts are with you. xoxoxoxoxox