Victoria Proposes Tougher Pet Breeding Laws

[wayrod]

But no one in government will do that. PIAA is too powerful. There is too much money in pet shops. They dont want to lose the votes.

So they will keep pussyfooting around, giving real breeders a hard time.

I very much doubt that they want to stop puppy farms.

They want to stop people breeding and keeping dogs.

Any member based organisation is only as powerful as the actual number of members that it has.

Any membership based organisations foothold can be altered by rocking the areas where their membership $ come from. It is up to the general public not to support businesses that belong to particular organisations. Businesses that begin to feel there is no value in paying membership $$$ year after year with little or no return are not likely to continue placing their $$$ in their coffers. Memberships numbers begin to fall and their support both in the community and in government dwindles.

The pet related industry is supposedly worth $4 billion dollars annually, imagine the taxes/revenue that governments receive, I do not thinks it is about votes but about the almighty $.

As for Governments, they will change their legislation based on public pressure, the strongest and loudest will be heard.

The squeaky wheel receives all the attention.

So where can we direct our attention to:

Should it be areas like:

• unethical and indiscriminate breeding.
  
• Make it mandatory for eye testing puppies, and hip and elbow dysplasia testing of breeding stock and the like, the added costs may become a deterrent.
  
• Alterations to the legislation so that members of an approved organisation (currently Dogs Victoria is one of five approved organisations) can have special priviledges like 10 breeding bitches in comparison to five if not a member of an approved organisation; or
  
• changes to planning legislation that limits where such large scale operations can operate from and under what strict terms.
  

Dogs Victoria has a representative on AWAC, they are the committee that makes recommendations to the Minister of Agriculture, also a state election is due in Victoria around November now is the time to lobby politicians.

Someone has also mentioned about the numbers, this is a grey area, Is it five on site (currently ten) at any one time? or five in total registered with the local council in my name. Example: lets say I have 20 bitches living with families elsewhere, they come back to me to be bred each year, yet for all intensive purposes I may only have one dog at home and these bitches come and go on a regular basis. Will the legislation cover this abnomality? So how can it be enforced if the legislation is not worded correctly. This has been a loophole area previously. Like any legislation there is always someone that will find a loophole.

[Steve]

We already have too many laws and regulations now. Only people who are doing the right thing comply with them anyway. We keep saying this but no one listens even though all over the world its being proven every day of the week.

Its time to stop and before any more crap is on about what new laws are needed they should do something about enforcing the ones we already have.

Wayrod is right all the way and just to demonstrate we are already hearing what people are doing to get around the ewe bewt laws which have been bought in as a pilot program currently being assessed as a model for other places on the Gold Coast. What a joke - all its doing is making small time registered breeders walk away and say it's not worth the crap they have to go through to own a single entire dog.

Dog breeding is being hogtied and shackled and stopping puppy farmers is used as an excuse to squash it down even more.

[PaddyForever]

[

The person you are talking about is Joe Helper, he is in the Labor Government which is currently in power in Victoria. He is the person who wants to make more legistation agaisnt dog breeders.

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'...!!!

[Steve]

It would be good if we could say its a simple case of voting them out but problem is the other guys have let all this stuff go through without a whimper

so there is no guarantee that this would help at all.

However, I think its time we had some meetings with both sides to rattle it a bit and inform people of the most hopeful place to lodge their votes.

[Tibbielova]

We already have too many laws and regulations now. Only people who are doing the right thing comply with them anyway. We keep saying this but no one listens even though all over the world its being proven every day of the week.

Its time to stop and before any more crap is on about what new laws are needed they should do something about enforcing the ones we already have.

Wayrod is right all the way and just to demonstrate we are already hearing what people are doing to get around the ewe bewt laws which have been bought in as a pilot program currently being assessed as a model for other places on the Gold Coast. What a joke - all its doing is making small time registered breeders walk away and say it's not worth the crap they have to go through to own a single entire dog.

Dog breeding is being hogtied and shackled and stopping puppy farmers is used as an excuse to squash it down even more.

Totaly agree.The way the RSPCA is going the future of pure bred dogs will not survive and it will be the end of alot of peoples hobbies of going out with their dogs and showing them.It will be a terrible shame.We have to keep fighting and standing up for what we believe in.Our PURE BRED DOGS>

[LizT]

Com'on guys we have to start somewhere!!! Everyone complains about "Puppy Milling" and those unethical people who keep too many dogs and are keeping them in horrible conditions in cages etc. We've seen the "Posters", know about the "Rally" and then we all go Oh, woe is me I have to apply for a different kind of Permit if I keep more than 5 fertile animals and earn more than $XXX per year from income derived from my dog breeding.

My understanding of the proposed changes to legislation is to nab those that are making big bucks out of dog breeding. That wouldn't be any "Registered Breeders" now would it??? We all know where the money is in Dog Breeding.

[LizT]

Ooops!

Edited September 8, 2010 by LizT

[LizT]

Ooops!

Edited September 8, 2010 by LizT

[Souff]

Hmmm, I wonder what one has to do to become a "rogue" breeder ....

[WreckitWhippet]

Hmmm, I wonder what one has to do to become a "rogue" breeder ....

Have more than five dogs, mate a bitch when you think she's mature or heaven forbid mate her back to back .

Oh yeah and just having the pups in the box in your loungeroom turns you into one of those rogue criminal breeders.

[Steve]

Com'on guys we have to start somewhere!!! Everyone complains about "Puppy Milling" and those unethical people who keep too many dogs and are keeping them in horrible conditions in cages etc. We've seen the "Posters", know about the "Rally" and then we all go Oh, woe is me I have to apply for a different kind of Permit if I keep more than 5 fertile animals and earn more than $XXX per year from income derived from my dog breeding.

My understanding of the proposed changes to legislation is to nab those that are making big bucks out of dog breeding. That wouldn't be any "Registered Breeders" now would it??? We all know where the money is in Dog Breeding.

Well your understanding is VERY wrong . We attended the roundtable discussions and there isnt a hope in hell they are after peopLE who are making big bucks out of breeding dogs.

Better take a better look at what they define as a puppy farmer because it has nothing what ever to do with making money.Its anyone - anyone who ever breeds a litter of puppies who keep them in substandard conditions. Then stand back and take a closer look at what they want as standard conditions.

Of course its registered breeders.

Edited September 9, 2010 by Steve

[Steve]

Hmmm, I wonder what one has to do to become a "rogue" breeder ....

Have more than five dogs, mate a bitch when you think she's mature or heaven forbid mate her back to back .

Oh yeah and just having the pups in the box in your loungeroom turns you into one of those rogue criminal breeders.

Or keep your cat feed bowl in the same room as your water bowl!

[WreckitWhippet]

What shits me the most is I've always done what is in the best interests of my bitches and pups and have made informed and educated decisions. I chip and register, follow the leash laws etc and currently I am a criminal.

Earlier this year I said I wouldn't do it again, as I feel torn. I can't expect others to follow the laws if I won;t follow them myself, but I cannot and will never whelp and raise a litter away from the house.

This is what makes me a law breaker. And to think I could be charged, lose my home and be prevented from owning and showing/breeding a pedigree dog again.

[LizT]

Hmmm, I wonder what one has to do to become a "rogue" breeder ....

Have more than five dogs, mate a bitch when you think she's mature or heaven forbid mate her back to back .

Oh yeah and just having the pups in the box in your loungeroom turns you into one of those rogue criminal breeders.

Seriously? is that a 'Law'???

[LizT]

Com'on guys we have to start somewhere!!! Everyone complains about "Puppy Milling" and those unethical people who keep too many dogs and are keeping them in horrible conditions in cages etc. We've seen the "Posters", know about the "Rally" and then we all go Oh, woe is me I have to apply for a different kind of Permit if I keep more than 5 fertile animals and earn more than $XXX per year from income derived from my dog breeding.

My understanding of the proposed changes to legislation is to nab those that are making big bucks out of dog breeding. That wouldn't be any "Registered Breeders" now would it??? We all know where the money is in Dog Breeding.

Well your understanding is VERY wrong . We attended the roundtable discussions and there isnt a hope in hell they are after peopLE who are making big bucks out of breeding dogs.

Better take a better look at what they define as a puppy farmer because it has nothing what ever to do with making money.Its anyone - anyone who ever breeds a litter of puppies who keep them in substandard conditions. Then stand back and take a closer look at what they want as standard conditions.

Of course its registered breeders.

All I'm going on is a Newspaper article my OH cut out for me this week and that was the jist of it.

Frustrated to hear that is sounds like nothing useful is/will be achieved after all.

[Steve]

I have a major issue with the definition of a puppy farmer. that's because at that meeting it was decided what a puppy farmer was - someone including anyone who has even one litter and keeps the dogs in a sub standard condition.

So the RSPCA go off and do their anti puppy farm marketing - but problem is everyone else in the world thinks a puppy farmer is someone who breeds dogs for money.

So yelling at puppy farming is going on all over the place and the reality is no one is asking first what it is they are supporting or exactly what it is they all think they are fighting against!

Edited September 9, 2010 by Steve

[WreckitWhippet]

I have a major issue with the definition of a puppy farmer. that's because at that meeting it was decided what a puppy farmer was - someone including anyone who has even one litter and keeps the dogs in a sub standard condition.

So the RSPCA go off and do their anti puppy farm marketing - but problem is everyone else in the world thinks a puppy farmer is someone who breeds dogs for money.

So yelling at puppy farming is going on all over the place and the reality is no one is asking first what it is they are supporting or exactly what it is they all think they are fighting against!

Yep people running around yelling " ban puppy farms , ban puppy farms " , when they think it means hundreds of dogs living in sheds being bred to death, when actually it's registered breeders.

[Souff]

What shits me the most is I've always done what is in the best interests of my bitches and pups and have made informed and educated decisions. I chip and register, follow the leash laws etc and currently I am a criminal.

Earlier this year I said I wouldn't do it again, as I feel torn. I can't expect others to follow the laws if I won;t follow them myself, but I cannot and will never whelp and raise a litter away from the house.

This is what makes me a law breaker. And to think I could be charged, lose my home and be prevented from owning and showing/breeding a pedigree dog again.

Well, I hope you didn't have those little black things in your loungeroom ..... you rogue breeder you!

Actually, come to think of it one of my litters spent quite a bit of time in the BED-room one cold winter, so I guess that would put you in the rogue category too.

Stoopid people have got the wrong end of the stick, yet again!

Souff

Edited September 9, 2010 by Souff

[mita]

The way the RSPCA is going the future of pure bred dogs will not survive and it will be the end of alot of peoples hobbies of going out with their dogs and showing them.It will be a terrible shame.We have to keep fighting and standing up for what we believe in.Our PURE BRED DOGS>

Depends which RSPCA you're talking about. RSPCA Qld directs people to good registered breeders if they want a purebred puppy (see their February newsletter). Not surprising, because University of Qld research has demonstrated that registered breeders beat unregistered breeders hands down in 2 areas:

1. they socialised young puppies far better, which means they will have less behavioral problems later on, with less chance of being dumped;

2. they had far less numbers of accidental litters. In other words, registered breeders know what they're doing & are well organised .

The University of Qld Vet School clinic will be moving onto the same new campus as RSPCA Qld and they intend to work together re many issues.

There'd be no way purebred dogs would be regarded as something to be 'wiped' out, in Qld. The research is clear, in this State. The registered breeders of purebreds have emerged as those doing the best thing by the puppies they produce. In addition, they cooperate with University of Qld research in other studies to bring about improvements in dog health. For example, the Australian Cattle Dog Club of Qld has been involved in world-standard research about deafness. Findings which will flow on to advancing human health, as well.

Edited September 9, 2010 by mita

[Shazzapug]

Doesnt this part of whats on the Dogs Vic site cover us Rogue breeders.....

"A person who is a member of an Applicable Organisation (including Dogs Victoria, Cat Authority of Victoria, Feline Control Council, Governing Council of the Cat Fancy and Waratah National Cat Alliance) that registers their puppies and/or kittens with that Organisation and has less than 10 fertile females of either species is not required to be registered as a breeding establishment with their Council. The reason for this is that these groups have been approved as Applicable Organisations due to their members being required to operate in accord with a Code of Ethics established by their Organisation. The Code of Ethics established by these organisations mandate responsible breeding and responsible pet ownership principles which are similar to the aims of the mandatory Code of Practice"