PaddyForever

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Yes, it's terrible. I am in Baw Baw and our laws are less stringent at present, but that would change also if the new bill went through in it's present form. isn't it ridiculous that an OCCASIONAL, ANKC registered member is lumped into the same category as a 'Puppy Farm' BUSINESS, with up to 350 dogs...?! I wouldn't mind being registered as a business, even with only a few dogs, if the requirements weren't so ridiculous and if permits were guaranteed to be accepted if you did meet those requirements...!!!

Fair enough, if you don't agree with this petition, you obviously don't have to sign it. What we are asking, if that members educate themselves with what the proposed new amendment could mean to the Pedigree Dog Community. If you don't agree with the above petition, there are others running. And if you don't wish to sign any, then we are asking members to at least be pro-active in their concerns of what this bill could mean, and that we protest it, as it stands. At last night's DogsVic meeting, all members were asked to be productive on contacting their local council and the DPI to voice their concerns, and to get the full information out to other members and the general public through social media, and any other(peaceful, yet determined!!!)way that we can. This is a link to download the PDF of the proposed new bill. It is 48 pages long, but please, if you care about the future of Pedigree Dogs in Victoria(and in Australia, because these new rules would spread), PLEASE take time to read it! ***Please take note of CLAUSE 5, in particular. http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/domino/Web_Notes/LDMS/PubPDocs.nsf/ee665e366dcb6cb0ca256da400837f6b/6a5d081fa18fd208ca2580490078c5fd!OpenDocument

There are a LARGE number of petitions running. All we ask is that you read them, and if you agree, please sign. If this new bill goes through, ANYONE who breeds even ONE litter of puppies, will have to hold a Domestic Breeding Licence, and many councils, such as Yarra Ranges(as based on a comment above, and which I have also heard), simply WILL NOT ISSUE THEM!!! Breeding permits WILL NOT be considered if you are on a rental property, a pensioner or a pensioner on a rental property!!! This has to be discrimination...?! There is a VAST difference to a small-potatoes, ANKC registered breeder, breeding an average couple of litters a year, for the benefit of the breed, who puts a huge of time, effort, health-testing and consideration into their breeding, to a registered Puppy Farm that has up to 350 dogs...! This bill reads 'Domestic Animals Amendment(Puppy Farms and Pet Shops)Bill 2016', and we are lumped in with them under the very short reference under CLAUSE 5' regarding the definition of a Domestic Animal Business that 'The definition no longer excludes enterprises of which the proprietor is a member of an applicable organisation'...! Surely we deserve better than to be lumped in with Puppy Farmers and Pet Shops...?! The vast number of ANKC registered breeders would run at a loss if considered a 'business'!!! This is a link to another petition- http://www.nealeburgess.com.au/ethical_dog_breeders_petition If you don't wish to sign any of these, then PLEASE be pro-active with approaching your local council to voice your concerns. Call them. Write emails and letters. Spread the word on Social Media and amongst the Breed Clubs, and public Media, if you can. We need to get the information on what the proposed Amendment could mean to the Pedigree dog community. There can only be more safety in numbers...! ***Here is the link to download the PDF of the proposed Bill Amendment- http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/domino/Web_Notes/LDMS/PubPDocs.nsf/ee665e366dcb6cb0ca256da400837f6b/6a5d081fa18fd208ca2580490078c5fd!OpenDocument

Many of you may have heard of the proposed bill to implement stringent changes to the laws relating to the breeding of dogs and cats. Whilst almost everyone would agree to strongly support a crack-down on Puppy Farms and Pet Shops, many people are not aware of how stringent the proposed new laws are and that they threaten the right of ANYONE to breed even one litter of puppies. Under the proposed new laws, ANYONE breeding even one litter, will have to hold a Domestic Breeding Licence issued by their council. Yes, that's right, ANYONE. ANKC members would not be exempt from these laws either. And it would be COMPULSORY to desex your dogs and cats UNLESS you hold a breeding licence. This means that even ANKC registered breeders with only a couple of dogs that they show and breed from on occasion, would HAVE TO HOLD A BREEDING LICENCE to breed and/or advertise even one litter. And at present, many councils will not even consider issuing a breeding permit, and certainly not in suburbia. And also not to renters, or pensioners...! PLEASE THINK about how that will impact our pedigree dogs...! These new laws would only BENEFIT Puppy Farmers, who generally already hold a breeding licence, because to them, their dogs are STOCK. And they will get round the '10 dog limit', by moving on their breeding stock after they have finished their breeding lives, and getting another ten dogs...!!! These laws will mainly effect the small-potato ETHICAL breeders of pedigree dogs, who treat their fur-kids as family members and who breed occasionally with a huge amount of consideration, care and LOVE for our chosen breeds!!! Our dogs are not usually the ones that end up in pounds and shelters! The vast majority of those are cross-breeds or certain breeds of high-maintenance, who generally do not have pedigree papers. Ethical breeders have an 'Open door policy', where they will always take back a dog they have bred, if for any reason an owner can no longer keep them. There was a brilliant turnout to the DogsVic emergency meeting held at KCC Park on Tuesday night, but we still need to band together and stay strong, and HELP to get the proposed new bill amended. PLEASE HELP US to save our pedigree dogs!!! We need to get the word out to other members, Breed Clubs, and the general public, about what the proposed new laws could mean to future of the Pedigree Dog in Australia! We need to voice our concerns to local council and it's members and to the DPI! ***Here is a link to the proposed new bill- http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/domino/Web_Notes/LDMS/PubPDocs.nsf/ee665e366dcb6cb0ca256da400837f6b/6a5d081fa18fd208ca2580490078c5fd!OpenDocument There are a number of petitions running to protest the proposed bill. I have added my signature to several. This is the link to my personal comment on the petition on Change.org, please click on the link provided above it on the page, if you would like to sign the petition and add your own comment. They have nearly 2,500 signatures already, almost at the target, PLEASE add your voice! https://www.change.org/p/mr-andrews-victorian-parliment-save-the-purebred-dog-breeds-from-extinction/c/525922178?recruiter=78096492&utm_source=comment_share&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=facebook_link

Thanks for the suggestion. :)

Barry Haywood is a vet...Kevin Kelly was still at the pool last year? Yes, I actually only saw him only a couple of months ago, but apparently he has left the pool?

Hi- Does anyone know if Kevin Kelly(Canine chiropractor, formerly working from Devon Meadows Dog Pool)is going to be practising from another location? I have been taking my dogs to him for 20+ years and have a lab that I need looked at. Other suggestions for Canine Chiropractors/Physiotherapists would be appreciated, but my first choice would be Kevin, if anyone knows where he is now? Thanks!

Hi- Does anyone use a supplement called 'L-lysine' for their dogs, esp during pregnancy and in what dosage? I know it is in Hills Science Diet foods, but don't know if there is enough in that to be beneficial, or how much of a dose would be too much for a pregnant bitch, if also feeding Hills? I recently had a bitch go into prem labour 10 days early who had an emergency c-section, resulting in 5 dead puppies. No cause was given as to the early labour, but a fellow breeder has suggested that some early labours can be caused by the Canine Herpes virus and that L-lysine can help prevent the passing on of the infection to unborn pups. Don't get the wrong idea about my dogs, you all, but apparently the virus can be very hard to detect when dormant, and if it helps prevent prem labour, it is worth giving it a go... I have read that half a 500mg tablet daily should be the dose for a toy breed...? I have Chihuahuas...TIA.

What a beautifully written tribute. You gave this lovely lady a long and wonderful life, longer than many of us have with a dog we raise from a puppy...She will be waiting for you at the bridge with all four legs, and run joyously to greet you...Thinking of you.

We had the bush fires come through us at Drouin West. Luckily, despite being told 3 times by the local fire station that there was no imediate threat for us, I had called the new owners of our 8 wk old puppies that were due to leave us that weekend, and all but two were picked up early Saturday. We were left with two, when the owners couldn't get through later that day, and I took a lot of large crates to my mother's place in Drouin, just in case we had to evacuate. Still, the fires took us by surprise when they came. My old darling, Paddy, was inside at the time, and he suddenly became distressed, barking in my face and pawing my knee. I told my husband and Father-In-Law that that was it, if Paddy said to leave, then I wanted to get our three children out. They laughed at me, but my husband agreed anyway, and when he went to the door, he came back screaming that the house behind us, between which lay our two dog paddocks, was on fire. He ran to open the runs and let the dogs out, and amazingly, all of them raced over to the cars, except the two puppies, who lolloped around like twits, as Golden puppies do! I scooped them up, too, and tossed them all in the back of the same station wagon (7 dogs in one car!) My husband kept yelling to leave them and just take the klids, but unlike him, I was a bit more prepared and didn't panic(Sorry, Babe). I had packed my Father-In-Law's car with our possesions, and quickly got the screaming kids into my car. We took off with the dogs in Hubby's car, kids in mine, and my father-In-Law with all our important possesions(Kids/wedding photos and momentos, etc)in his car. Luckily, we had the breaker of the mown paddocks, to slow the fire's progress, or obviously we could have been in serious trouble. It was so dark, too, and impossible to see anything (just imagine poor Kinglake, etc). We lost everything around the house, dog runs, barn, fencing, etc, but the house made it. We had to move into town for over a week, and with no fencing/runs, etc, we ended up placing several of our dogs, a couple permanently, which was also really hard. We had been renting(although the runs and fencing, etc, we had done ourselves), and it took over a year to find suitable rural accomodation again, but it could have been so much worse...We had no warning at all, and if we had been surrounded by thick, dry old trees like the house behind us that ended up a chimney...It is o.k. to say that you would never leave your dogs, but I had two children under 2 + a panicing older daughter to consider. When you don't have enough warning, there really isn't a lot you can do, and the best I can suggest, is that if there is the potential for threat to your animals, or children, then get them out EARLY if you can. Everything else can be replaced...I miss my special dogs, that I had to place, and the two that weren't suited to where we are now, so much, but at least they are alive, healthy, and treasured family members where they are now. It could have been so different...I lost my Paddy a year ago next month...I miss him most of all. He was my truest friend...

This sounds like the menu for our dogs, except that we use Supercoat Puppy dryfood, and then Supercoat or Cobber adult food. Many members of the G.R.C.V. have a policy of not feeding over 20% protein after approx 6 months of age, being wary of accelerated growth...Also, many of us are aware that there seems some link between preservatives, esp in tinned food, and canine cancers. We ourselves are fans of Nature's Gift, and of Four Legs products, of raw bones, sardines, raw eggs including crushed shell, and other 'natural' calcium sources, along with a good quality dry food. We are also contious of the fact that the new puppy owner will usually start off with the best intentions of feeding their pet the 'right' way, and then will start thinking about more economical or easier ways of feeding, and we don't want to make the diet too ridiculous sounding or expensive. I am wary of the 'super' foods, when it comes to large dogs, as I have heard of higher incidents of growth-related bone problems. In general, we have had excellent health results for our dogs, for over 16 years, and if it aint broke...

Hi- This breeder wasn't too careful about where this imported puppy(and that's what this sire still is) spread his seed, was she? Also, most of my puppies go as 'pets' too, from thoroughly health tested parents(hips/elbows/eyes/hearts), and it doesn't matter what breed we are talking about, there are always health tests that should be completed re the sire and dam. It also doesn't matter how cute a puppy is, or even if its conformation SEEMS excellent, for me it would just not be worth the potential problems that could be lurking ahead. If you want to take the chance, it's up to you. I would ring the V.C.A to ask them if the pup could be registered in future, even if you don't want to name the breeder or breed. They would have a better idea than most of us, if it could be possible. Also, whilst most breeds can have problems, if this is a large or heavy breed, or a breed with a stronger potential for eye/heart problems, then I would kiss this pup goodbye and find another who comes from parents with the APPROPRIATE testing. Even if you are just looking for a 'pet', you want your dog to be healthy, long-lived and free of genetic abnormalities, such as hereditary eye problems, which can often not become a apparent until this sire is MUCH older than he is now, much less be seen in a young puppy. Good luck.

Thank God, Some good news for a change!!! Have just been reading about the poor dog losing the bottom of his jaw in that fireworks 'prank'. Thank Goodness for a happy outcome, I was fearing the worst there, too. Cheers for Harry! ;)

This was a truly horrible story. Poor, poor dog. The despicable things some people can do... ;)

I'm afraid, that the kind of people who can do this kind of thing, either get off on it, or have anger-control issues. Some find it amusing to cause suffering to an animal, and others go on to graduate to crimes against people...Perhaps the poor puppy barked a lot, showed (probably rightful) aggression to these people(although, with most puppies this age, that would be unlikely), or pooped where he shouldn't have. There is no excusable reason for this torture and abuse. I hope this guy gets more than a slap on the wrist, but I doubt it. He has shown who the real animal was in this situation. Hope the poor doggie makes as full a recovery as possible.

This is just terrible. I really wish they'd increase the possible sentences for crimes like these. Poor dog, no wonder he had an unstable temperament, with such an unstable owner. I know they said that the dog was a stray this man had taken in, but it sounds like the dog would have been better off taking it's chances on the streets. If the dog had an unreliable temperament, and had shown aggression previously, he should have taken it to a shelter, were it could have been assessed, and at least euthanased humanely, if neccesary. Poor dog... :D

My God- I've just finished reading this entire thread and have a darn crook neck from sitting here so long! I've visited kinders and schools with an education program, and am always so disapointed to hear the same answers from many of the children to the same question. "What kind of dog do you think MIGHT bite you?" The answers are always the same. A dingo.(!) A wolf. A Doberman. A Rotweiller. A German Shepherd. A Cattle dog. Occasionally, interspersed with these answers, I am lucky enough to get the right one. "Any type of dog CAN bite." We follow this answer by adding that any type of dog could bite "if you behave in an incorrect manner around them, or ignore the warning signals that a dog is giving you." We have this program to try to educate children in dog body language and behaviours, but it is always clear that most children have a hard time reading a dog's body language. And here, someone may interject to say that some dogs do not give off any warning signs before an attack, but this is VERY RARELY true. It is just that some warnings are not as perceptible as others, and many children, and indeed, some adults, can not 'read' these warning signs. For example, many people think that a dog wagging it's tail MUST be friendly! Most of us who really know dogs, know that a dog's tail can wag when it is really agitated, and it can occur symultaneously with aggression. As to what breeds are capable of aggression, the simple and true answer MUST be the one given. Of course, people should look at what a breed was bred for, and obviously, this has some correlation as to how they TEND to behave in certain situations. But EVERY dog needs training, and early socialisation, with people, other animals, and a variety of different situations and conditions. Good breeding, health and how they are raised from birth are all factors. It all comes down to the breeders/owners, NOT the breed itself. Anyone showing bias against any breed is just ignorant, and insulting to the responsible owners and breeders of said breed, who ARE out there. I own and have bred Golden Retrievers. I have owned Cavaliers, a Min Pin, and a Staffy. I also currently own a Gordon Setter, and a French Bulldog, although some may say that she is not a 'real' bulldog! Why, because of size? Small dogs can cause just as much harm as big dogs, often because people are complacent simply because of their size. Children are much shorter than we are. They usually bend or squat down to say hello. They usually place their face right in front of the dog, so that unfortunately, this is where they usually get bitten. It ALWAYS comes back to the human element. Children, and(quite obviously!)adults need to be educated, and vigilance is all important. Do not allow your dog, or child, into a situation which is threatening to either. Do not place a baby ABOVE a dog's own position, ie, on a bed, in front of a dog and walk away...! This is inviting the dog to assert his/her position in the pack. Never allow a dog that has not had exposure to children, to have unsupervised access to a child. Never allow your dog to greet strangers as they walk into your house, before you warn the dog of the presence of these 'intruders'! Really, it is all basic dog ownership 101. Have my way, and there would be a course for people to undertake, before being allowed to own any dog. But I doubt this will happen, too many irresponsible prospective owners will jump up and down, because they 'don't have time to attend a course!', even a day seminar or such, just as they don't seem to have time to educate their dog, or their children. Oh, and just to add, my Staffy and my Frenchie have temperaments every bit as stable and reliable as my Goldens/Gordon. If anything, they may be more inclined to defend me from a percieved attack though, but I am well aware of it. I have had a rescue Golden, who could have bitten me or anyone else who tried to touch her, quite easily, due to said fear. AND THE WAY SHE WAS RAISED AND TREATED PREVIOUSLY, BY PEOPLE.

I have suffered from severe post-natal depression to the point where I could barely hold on to reality- and it would have been very easy to slip over the edge...There were times when no-one around me really understood how dark and dangerous that depression could be. I lost some friends, and gained others in that time. And I learnt not to judge too severely, because sometimes a person is just incapable of asking for help, and sometimes don't even realise that anything is wrong. That is what some of you simply don't seem to be realising. I don't know this woman personally, and I don't know what state she was truly in. Perhaps she could have helped herself, her children, and her dogs. Perhaps she couldn't. What I do know, is that there are a lot of people in this world living on the streets, in shelters or institutions, hurting others, or commiting suicide. I'm sure that if many of those people could help themselves, they would. And to live in a house with the decaying bodies of two animals is one clear sign that this woman probably wasn't handling things too well- who would choose to do that? Now, she's lost her childeren, and her dogs, and she will have to live with that, and deal with it, if she can realise the severity of what she has done. And so will her poor children...Very sad, all round. Pls, people, don't be so judgemental. I'm not usually such a 'bleeding heart', but I have been in such a state that I could not pull myself out of it. Luckily, I had strong family support, and people who loved me, who got me counselling and help. Where were this woman's family or friends over the 6 months she was neglecting everything? Didn't anyone visit over the 2 months those dogs lay dead...? How sad. :D

Well said. I feel as sorry for the woman as I do her children. Me, too. It's a terrible situation all round. The poor woman must have been ill, if she could live with the smell of the decaying bodies of two dead dogs, in her house, for two months, without removing them...! Those poor kids! They must have been so traumatised by this. Imagine looking at the rotting remains of those dogs for two months, and being so woefully neglected themselves. Sure, she got them to school and so may have looked after them minimally,(more likely, they looked after themselves), but for them not to have said anything? They must surely have been trying to protect her, and themselves...that poor 13 yr old...As a mother, my heart is crying out for those poor kids. I hope they're being cared for okay, and their mother gets the help she obviously needs. RIP at The Bridge, poor doggies.

How horrible- and what a horrible method to use!!!I agree, you wouldn't think that this would be a common poison to get your hands on, would you, and what sort of person would choose it?! I hope that if they find this person, that the punishment will fit the crime, but I doubt it. I just hope it wasn't some sicko just wanting to witness something die in agony... As this may be the case, this person would have to be nearby to witness their handywork, so would probably live close by. And even if the reason was just to stop a dog from barking, what a hideous poison of choice...! Poor little dog.

My first Cavalier, given to me for Xmas 1980, was diagnosed with a 'severe heart murmer', aged 5 and given only a couple of years to live. With the help of medication, he battled on, but passed away an old dog at the age of only 9, when his poor heart finally gave out...he was a little fighter, that dog. Years later, my brother purchased his first Cav, who was also diagnosed with a bad heart condition at around the same age, and died in my sister-in-law's arms one day whilst they were calling the vet. Their next Cavalier was diagnosed with MMVD as a young puppy, and they gave him away to an elderly lady, whose words were "He may yet out-live me." My brother just couldn't stand to go through the heartache of losing a dog at an even younger age than the other two. I have owned another two Cavaliers. One also had MMVD, both had eye problems. A two-year-old bitch developed Star Cateracts, a 4 month old puppy, who had heart problems, also had Severe Retinal Dysplasia. On contacting the Breed Club, I was advised that I'd 'just been unlucky.'! On hunting around subsequently, I was amazed at how few breeders are doing any health testing at all. Very few that I contacted were doing either heart or eye tests. Considering I own several breeds, and hip/elbow/eye/heart test, I found this quite disturbing. One breeder even confided that she had had so many bad results, and had had to start from scratch so many times, that she now wishes to remain ignorant, because 'what she didn't know couldn't hurt her.'! I don't know exactly how rife MMVD is, or how common the eye problems are, and maybe I have been unlucky. But if there can be research into any problems a breed has, and if there have been such a high incidence of a particular problem, you would think that more breeders would be assisting the cause by participating in whatever testing they could, wouldn't you?

I agree with all this, too. Some stupid, ignorant people and their stupid, ignorant comments! Many of us in the dog-show world take better care of, and give more time to, our dogs, than some people do their children! As for comments on leaving the dog alone, all of us ask someone to mind our dogs for a short time whilst we go to the toilet, take our dogs to the toilet, or go for food. I have never left my own without trying to leave a trusted friend watching them, but sometimes, no-one that we know is available, so we are left to trust fellow exhibitors. This is just how it is when you are exhibiting all day. You can take your own food, but unless you are going to pee in a bottle or let your dogs mess where they lay, you will have to leave them at some stage. We don't always have a family member interested enough to help us out all day, either. I hope that if someone was asked to watch this little dog, that they feel terrible now, and I hope fervently that Harry is found safe and well. So sorry, Kylie.

Don't have much to say about this one, except to agree that some people are very wierd...! I could possibly understand putting one dearly loved pet on ice, because you couldn't bare to put it in the ground. Possibly, even two, but 17...!And a spider...? I mean, I know people can get attached to different creatures...But this attached...?!

Sorry, I guess that shows my level of interest in politics Hockey, Helper, they are all interchangeable When Victorian dog legislation got talked about on DOL way back, Victorians mentioned Joe Helper, as the Minister. Well....I though 'Helper' must be a sarcastic nickname. Like, meaning he was no help at all. Took me quite a while to wake up that 'Helper' actually is his name. Don't worry- You're not the only one, I thought this, too...!!!A bit like talking about 'Joe Blow'...!!!