15 July 2009

Neuter your mongrel dog!

| MsCheeky
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I received this email in my inbox this morning from a friend who knows I love dogs. It is from a government department bulletin board.

    Hello
    Can you please forward this onto everyone you know as these pups are going to the RSPCA if they can’t be homed.
    They are 7 week old Kelpie cross blood hound/great dane.
    Absolutely gorgeous dogs – if you want to see them please get in contact XXX on 0421 XXXXXX.
    Thanks

I responded in part to my friend who passed it on:

    I find the email offensive. Some dickhead lets their mongrel dog breed, then tries to emotionally blackmail people into taking the unwanted pups by saying that they’re otherwise going to the RSPCA. Not only the dog should be neutered, so should the owner! The RSPCA hates people like this. Gaaah, I can’t stand irresponsible dog owners.

Why oh why do people still allow their dogs to breed unwanted pups?

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We have a dog and a cat, and had them both desexed at the minimum age (according to the vet). I have pets all my life, and I think desexed animals actually make better pets.

Well I have a pure bred toy poodle, my daughters brought her for me, as I had another poodle before her, she lived for 14 years, it took me 4 and half years before I agreed to have another dog, I have allergys to certain dogs and cats, my girls brought her from a breeder in Yass, my daughter was told that she had a groin hernia, and that most people would not buy her, the breeder also had an old poodle with the same problem, so the dog stayed with the breeder as a pet, I don’t understand some people, I have my little girl desexed and mirochipped, turned out it wasn’t a hernia but skin was attached to her stomach, anyway all dogs are designer dogs, the all come from the wolf.

It’s so upsetting to hear all the stories about what some of your dogs have been through. I for one cannot understand how someone can abuse an animal, let alone a dog which is something that will love you unconditionally regardless of what you do to it.

I’ve had my baby girl for almost two years now, and I got her from a pet shop. I always said I’d go to the RSPCA but I was at the mall one day while going through quite an emotional stage in my life and fell in love with her as soon as I saw her. Needless to say we have been inseperable ever since (apart from when I go to work and leave her with nana [my mum!!]). But I was so disappointed with the staff at the pet store where I got her – they told me she was microchipped and that that was included in the cost. They lied. When I went back to complain about it they gave me some stupid excuse saying that girl that I talked to when bought her was new and didn’t know, and when I asked them to give me the difference of what microchipping would cost they said that she was cheaper anyway and wouldn’t give it to me. And that just grossed me out, that they actually put puppies on ‘sale’. So I wouldn’t have it any other way, I’m so happy with my Trixie, but next time will definitely be going to the RSPCA or pound to help a puppy that needs it. Knowing the way I get when I see animals I’ll probably end up going home with 5 new puppies!!

Sorry about the long post. Just wanted to tell everyone to now buy from Tuggers pet shop. From previous posts, it looks like none of you would anyway!!

Wow, my cranky rant has hit a bit of a vein here. Sad to hear some of the stories, but uplifting to hear many others. All you good guys with pound and rescued dogs! It’s a matter of ongoing education in the community to reduce the number of unwanted and mistreated dogs, and I hope this helps a little.

I have two dogs of my own. One I’ve had for thirteen years, since a pup, and she’s a treasure. The other was a rescue of sorts. She came to me from an owner who apparently has a history of getting a cute puppy for his kids, then giving up on them very quickly when he’s tired of them – a cycle he has apparently repeated a number of times. She was quite crazy when I got her at six months, obviously had had little socialisation, left alone in a backyard all the time. A Jack Russell, she now gets on very well with my old girl, is a well-behaved inside dog, and has lost her bad habits, such as digging. She is still wary of and intimidated by many other dogs, however.

I also have a revolving door of looking after friends’ dogs when they go on holiday, and at the moment have a golden retriever pup that was bought from a pet shop. He looks in good shape, and behaviourally, seems ok. My friend probably doesn’t know of the existence of puppy mills, but I think she got lucky with this one.

Thanks all for your contributions – keep up the good dog work!

ant – she’s a maltese x, he’s a pure bred shih tsu. We have no idea what they did, or where. My dad in particular would just LOVE to know, it’s disgusting. And it happened in Canberra – it’s appalling.

We took him to a behaviouralist weekend, where they talked a lot about how training has a lot to do with correcting issues, that they’d only recommended two dogs be medicated (as medication is not a solution). After seeing him, he became the third dog they recommended, but time and understanding has meant we haven’t had to go down that path.

That poor little boy, that’s absolutely shocking. How did they do that to a dog? What breed is he, Enny?

His lead issues are something we see with most of our chihuahuas actually, they just totally resent leads. They seem to see them as Dog Degradation or something.

Both of our dogs are rescue dogs (we had another, who sadly passed away from a stroke).

One of them was rescued from a puppy farm in Sydney, she’d had three litters before she was two year old, and you’ll never meet a sweeter animal. She’s the perfect lapdogs, has so much personality and just wants to be with people, even after ones in the past have used and abused her.

The other one was a stray that we got from the pound, and we’re presuming he was also used for breeding. He was an ‘entire’ male and purebred, but has an amazing amount of psychological issues. He’d never been on a walk before (leading him from the car to the house resulting in him spinning and squirming on the ground, having never been led anywhere – and watching my mum take him for a ‘walk’ for the first time was both hilarious and heartbreaking, he straightened his legs and refused to actually move, but he’s much better now), he won’t walk on grass or dirt, he only does his business when he’s under cover, he doesn’t eat treats (he bats at them with his paws), he becomes obsessed with moving and/or shiny things (ants, sunlight through a hanging crystal, reflections in chrome lamps), he flinches when you go to pat him, hunches up and back when he is still (like has been kept in a small cage), and has enormous separation anxiety when one person leaves a room (spinning until he is sick, biting his tail until it bleeds, crying and barking)….

I just wish pet store sales would be banned, that people would spay/neuter their pets, that people would rescue and adopt pets rather than paying hundreds or thousands of dollars to people who are just using these animals for their own profit.

I can never view the RSPCA’s “dogs available” thing, I’ve had the same problem with a local employment agency and realise it’s my ad blocker. Evidently they use some ad server to run that bit of teh site, and it gets blocked.

Well said three paws. What kind of dog do you have – will keep an eye out for you at the park!

Ivan76 said :

I picked up my fur kid (red healer x bull terrier) (note: a bull terrier is NOT a pit bull so don’t start) after driving past a sign saying “free pups” whilst on holidays on the Gold Coast almost 10 years ago now. The condition of the pups was appauling with all pups severely worm infested & flea ridden. Despite this, my dog (Scrappy) picked me as his new owner and I have been truly blessed over the last 10 years to own such an amazing friend.

My point is, in my experience, regardless of the breed being pure or not you will not find a dog like this in any store & if you do you will not have a story half as interesting as this one..

When you buy a dog from the RSPCA, you are not sacrificing anything over the experience from buying a breeded dog from a store, in fact, you are buying an animal with a history which in my opinion makes for a more unique pet.

If you’ll indulge me, I’d love to share my experience of adopting an adult dog from the RSPCA.

Eyeballing some puppies there one day, a staff member explained to me the benefits of adopting an older dog (older than 6 months-ish), those benefits being that they have had a behavioural assessment and the staff can talk to you about the personality of that dog, their strengths and weaknesses etc, “what you see is what you get” to an extent.

After a time visiting in person and on the internet, I fell in love with a particular dog about 3 years old, and decided to adopt him. There was a problem however, he had been recommended to go to a house without cats, of which I have three (indoor).

The staff worked with me to develop a way in which they could be indoors at the same time, but with no opportunity for a dog/cat war. They were very concerned about my cats obviously given their recommendation of a cat free household, but I was confident that we could all live in harmony albeit with seperate dog and cat areas inside my house, and I had to prove that it could work (please note that I would NEVER put my cats in danger, worst case scenario was that never the twain shall meet). They gave me heaps of reading material on the issue of Dog V Cat, and I am thrilled to say that after about 6 months after we adopted him, the cats and dog were all sleeping in a giant fur ball together, and continue to do so.

But back to the dog, the knowledge that they had of him (which I presume was only based on their time with him as he was a stray) has proved to be invaluable, and even months later I was able to call them and ask for advice about his training and behaviour, and they were always happy to help.

He is an absolute gem and although at the time I found it slightly over the top that they *almost* didn’t let him come home with me, hindsight tells me that they went above and beyond to ensure that he was going to the right home, not just for him, but for me and my cats. That just doesn’t happen at a pet shop.

So yes, it may be a bit more work to adopt a dog from the RSPCA, but they actually give a who and they seem to do their very best to make sure that it’s a ‘perfect’ match.

How much I love my dog, and appreciate him coming in to my life, is why I am so passionate about the RSPCA, and why I have such a distaste for pet shops selling puppies and kittens.

Pets are hard work, and buying a pet shouldn’t be as quick and easy as picking up a loaf of bread on your way out of the mall. When I am ready for dog number two, it will be the RSPCA all the way.

Thanks for letting me indulge.

deezagood said :

I met a lady the other day with a three legged pooch and we had a lovely chat about the virtues of Petbarn … so I put two and two together (based on ‘threepaws’) and obviously came up with zero!

Ahh! A sensible deduction, but I am afraid that I have no three legged pets, so it wasn’t me that you spoke to. My ‘threepaws’ is derived from something else altogether 🙂

As discussed in a previous post, I agree that Tuggeranong dog park is the happiest place on earth and I love to visit, so see you there one day!

I picked up my fur kid (red healer x bull terrier) (note: a bull terrier is NOT a pit bull so don’t start) after driving past a sign saying “free pups” whilst on holidays on the Gold Coast almost 10 years ago now. The condition of the pups was appauling with all pups severely worm infested & flea ridden. Despite this, my dog (Scrappy) picked me as his new owner and I have been truly blessed over the last 10 years to own such an amazing friend.

My point is, in my experience, regardless of the breed being pure or not you will not find a dog like this in any store & if you do you will not have a story half as interesting as this one..

When you buy a dog from the RSPCA, you are not sacrificing anything over the experience from buying a breeded dog from a store, in fact, you are buying an animal with a history which in my opinion makes for a more unique pet.

Mrs MelonHead has a terrier from the same No Achievements class!
He is an RSPCA dog and a good dog too.
Many thanks to the staff at the RSPCA, and Michael Linke

BerraBoy68 said :

WTF? Did anybody say anyhting, other than’NO’ to the offer of a weekend BBQ?

may family chose a very nice dog from ARF. He’s been in our family now for about 4 years and he’s a very good dog. I highly recommend ARF.

Smeg no! We were newcomers to Australia in your average working class neighbourhood. People noticed but said nothing, like when a young boy was dragged screaming down the road to the seminary by his parents to confront a priest who this year finally got his legal comuppance. Besides, it’s not much different from raising backyard chooks or rabbits for food.

I got my Kelpie Cross of No Achievements from the RSPCA, same with my cats. I’d have got my sheep from them too if they’d had any.

but I am also always happy to hear from you Jake 🙂

I met a lady the other day with a three legged pooch and we had a lovely chat about the virtues of Petbarn … so I put two and two together (based on ‘threepaws’) and obviously came up with zero!

Oops – sorry – was skimming and you didn’t want to hear from me obviously! 🙂

deezagood said :

Threepaws – you aren’t, by chance, a regular frequenter of the Tuggers dog park at all?? I think we may have met the other day!

I LOVE the dog park, but my little one is a bit too old to cope with the cold so I haven’t been there in ages.

Sorry, wasn’t me, but perhaps we’ll meet there one day in spring!

mother of many5:04 pm 15 Jul 09

Actually, here is a linkie that says it all for me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpBMwT5L6PI

deezagood said :

This almost makes me as mad as seeing those ‘Toy puppies R Us’ ads on the telly; poor little breeding dogs treated like crap and pumping out litter after litter of ‘designer’ puppies, when there are thousands (and thousands) of gorgeous pound/RSPCA puppies in desperate need of good homes. Please don’t buy your future puppies from these types of breeders or pet shops that sell live animals, as this demand only fuels the breeding industry cycle.

My oath. Those “Come and See The Puppies! We Love Puppies” ads make me furious. They’re a puppy mill, as you say the dogs pump out litters adn then I hate to think what happens to them.

That mob who advertise they are at Hall markets are a disgrace, they are playing on the kids pressurising the parents into buying an expensive “designer dog”. They sell them too young, too, I guess because they’re “cuter” then, and the sooner the litter stops suckling, the sooner they can get the poor mother dog pregnant again.

UGH. Horrible.

SheepGroper said :

BerraBoy68 said :

Well sure they may be cute, but the real question is ‘are they tasty’?

They must be, the family across the street from me in my youth let their bitch breed twice a year, the puppies were eaten before they reached weaning age.

WTF? Did anybody say anyhting, other than’NO’ to the offer of a weekend BBQ?

may family chose a very nice dog from ARF. He’s been in our family now for about 4 years and he’s a very good dog. I highly recommend ARF.

BerraBoy68 said :

Well sure they may be cute, but the real question is ‘are they tasty’?

They must be, the family across the street from me in my youth let their bitch breed twice a year, the puppies were eaten before they reached weaning age.

and there are plenty of ‘designer puppies’ (current trend seems to be anything ending in ‘oodle’) popping up at the pound/RSPCA, just waiting for a loving home.

Obviously having puppies and kittens in display cases is a concern, but more worrying for RSPCA is where and how they are bred and bred and bred.

Think of puppies being bred in something akin to battery chicken cages.

The biggest problem we face isn’t the big designer puppy breeder (although personally I am sickened by this activity) the real problem is the backyard style establishments. They are not visible and governments are reluctant to act.

An RSPCA recently discovered more than 150 poodles, 600 rats and hundreds of mice in an area no bigger than your typical double car garage.

So the traditional view of puppy mills is changing as more people in suburban backyards develop means of generating extra revenue, often at the expense of the animals in question.

The best way to combat this is to not buy from pet shops that supply live cats and dogs, do not buy from market stalls or even from the newspaper. Often sales in the paper are designed to make you think the litter is a one off.

Adopt from RSPCA, the pound, a reputable rescue group, or if you are after a pure bred, go to a registered reputable breeder.

Threepaws – you aren’t, by chance, a regular frequenter of the Tuggers dog park at all?? I think we may have met the other day!

I heart petbarn.

deezagood said :

Jim Jones said :

Someone I was talking to remarked that there’s recently been a ban on pet stores displaying cats and dogs (in order to reduce the impact of puppy mills, etc.). Anyone know anything?

Not sure Jim, but I noticed some very sad looking puppies in the pet shop windows at the Tuggeranong Hyperdome the other day. I refuse to buy any pet product from any store that sells live puppies/kittens, and if everyone did the same, then these stores would soon stop their practice of selling live animals.

Petbarn are great, they do not sell cats and dogs

Reminds me of my neighbours some 15 years ago.
never neutered their little black labrador dog.
fast forward 10 years.
every single family in the street owned a little black labrador dog.

She was perpetually preggers it seemed.
I think the owners took the approach of: If it breeds, the owners of the father take the pups.

Says a lot about my street doesn’t it…

Jim Jones said :

Someone I was talking to remarked that there’s recently been a ban on pet stores displaying cats and dogs (in order to reduce the impact of puppy mills, etc.). Anyone know anything?

Not sure Jim, but I noticed some very sad looking puppies in the pet shop windows at the Tuggeranong Hyperdome the other day. I refuse to buy any pet product from any store that sells live puppies/kittens, and if everyone did the same, then these stores would soon stop their practice of selling live animals.

and I agree with Michael Linke – there are certainly worse fates for a puppy than ending up at the RSPCA, where they are looked after until they are found good homes! I think the RSPCA puppies are the very lucky ones (well, my RSPCA rescue puppy sure is).

Someone I was talking to remarked that there’s recently been a ban on pet stores displaying cats and dogs (in order to reduce the impact of puppy mills, etc.). Anyone know anything?

This almost makes me as mad as seeing those ‘Toy puppies R Us’ ads on the telly; poor little breeding dogs treated like crap and pumping out litter after litter of ‘designer’ puppies, when there are thousands (and thousands) of gorgeous pound/RSPCA puppies in desperate need of good homes. Please don’t buy your future puppies from these types of breeders or pet shops that sell live animals, as this demand only fuels the breeding industry cycle.

nexus6 said :

well when we had excess dogs as a child it was a hessian bag, a brick and a river. im sure that offerning them to people before they are put down is a better option.

Who says they will be put down?

well when we had excess dogs as a child it was a hessian bag, a brick and a river. im sure that offerning them to people before they are put down is a better option.

I agree – People need to realise that you have to make some lifestyle changes when owing a dog/puppy…..as you do with children…………

well, peppablack, this raises the serious need for an rspca-type organisation for unwanted children – mr linke, is there any prospect of expanding the industry?

Well sure they may be cute, but the real question is ‘are they tasty’?

CEO of RSPCA ACT here, Michael Linke. Aside from the fact that in the ACT it is illegal to have an undesexed dog without a breeders license, I agree with MsCheeky, the note is offensive and paints RSPCA as bad and sinister.

In the last 12 months RSPCA had outcomes for 342 puppies. 60 of those were lost and retuned to their owners. 252 were adopted into new families. 17 were PTS for serious health related issues. 13 were PTS for uncorrectable behavioural reasons.

PTS = Put to Sleep

We do everything threepaws says, but we would prefer they weren’t bred at all.

Take them to the RSPCA! They will be wormed, vaccinated, microchipped and desexed before finding a good home with people who actually WANT a puppy and are PREPARED for a puppy, there is no need to blackmail people FFS.

7 weeks is bordering on too young to be away from their mum I reckon, what responsible breeders these people are.

jake555 said :

You can bet your a*se they’ll pop them all in the after-hours drop-off too, avoiding the surrender fees & embarrassment, taking the easy way out.

I’m going to put my money on this, i reckon jake has hit the nail on the head. Perhaps the email can be forwarded to the RSPCA, so they will know the owners when they find 6 puppies on their doorstep one morning.

You should have to be licenced to breed ANY dog (mongrel or not).

Further, maybe it would be better if they organised puppy owners before they decided to have a litter, however still irresponsible in the first place not to have their dog desexed.

You can bet your a*se they’ll pop them all in the after-hours drop-off too, avoiding the surrender fees & embarrassment, taking the easy way out.

No doubt the drop-offs are the only option for some people, as they may not be able to afford the fee, or it is too upsetting for them to surrender their animal in person.

ant said :

The dog owner is rude and ignorant. They’ve let their dog have pups, and now seem to think they can just fling the pups at the RSPCA, like taking rubbish to the dump or soemthing.

Seriously, how do these peoples’ minds work? Not my responsibility? I hope the people in the Department where this person works have educated her. She shouldn’t be allowed to own animals.

I agree – People need to realise that you have to make some lifestyle changes when owing a dog/puppy…..as you do with children………….I don’t think she would advertise her grandchildren the same way. And if you can’t do that, don’t get a dog! Educate and prepare yourself first…its just commmon sense, which is lacking with some people.

The dog owner is rude and ignorant. They’ve let their dog have pups, and now seem to think they can just fling the pups at the RSPCA, like taking rubbish to the dump or soemthing.

Seriously, how do these peoples’ minds work? Not my responsibility? I hope the people in the Department where this person works have educated her. She shouldn’t be allowed to own animals.

nexus6 said :

perhaps they love their dog, wanted to breed from it and got a HUGE litter?

There did seem to be about six pups in the accompanying photo, but that’s not the point, even if there were sixteen. You shouldn’t decided to breed pups thinking that you can then dump the excess on the RSPCA. Irresponsible, thoughtless behaviour. There’s also the aspect of giving them away. Obviously, they’ll give them to anyone who’ll take them, with no thought as to the home they’re going to, ie, perhaps some neanderthal who wants a big dog as a fighting dog.

Most people like the idea of cute little puppies, they get “awwwww” comments from all your friends. Unfortunately these people later find that the pups get somewhat bigger and cost a lot to maintain for many number of years and decide they should give them away. If people too responsibility for their actions the world would be a better place.

perhaps they love their dog, wanted to breed from it and got a HUGE litter?

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