Pet death row shame

Blacktown Sun ; CALLAN LAWRENCE; 23 Jan, 2012

Death row? Pound Rounds volunteer Mel Norman with an American bull terrier cross at Blacktown Animal Holding Facility.Picture: Carlos Furtado

ALREADY this year about 400 animals have had to be impounded at the Blacktown Animal Holding Facility, at a rate of about 200 a week.

Cats and dogs that are not microchipped are destroyed at the pound after seven days if they are not claimed and those that are microchipped are kept for 14 days before they are killed.

One volunteer who battles the odds to re-home and save some of these animals is Mel Norman, who travels an hour and a half from her home in Curl Curl each week to help at the pound. She believes unregulated “backyard breeders” contribute to the high number of animals that are being killed in Blacktown.

New laws target Qld puppy farms

Big Pond National News; Saturday, January 21, 2012

The Queensland Government aims to wipe out puppy farms under proposed new registration requirements for dog breeders.

Agriculture Minister Tim Mulherin says unscrupulous breeders who usually run large-scale operations in isolated areas will be squeezed out under a proposed two-tiered breeder registration system.

Dog recovers from horror breeding farm

Herald Sun; Aleks Devic; January 18, 2012

EMMA Paige finally knows what it feels like to be a normal dog.

The bichon spent eight years locked up in a cage at a puppy breeding farm.

She had never seen grass, played with balls or had a cuddle.

EP, as she is known, was riddled with arthritis, and suffered heart murmurs and cataracts in her eyes.

A year ago, the RSPCA raided the puppy farm and she was one of a 100 dogs in horrid conditions, with many of her caged mates put out of their misery.

Kerrie Allen went to the RSPCA looking for a great dane but could not get Emma Paige off her mind.

“It was her little face, she looked so scared,” she said. “I had to go get her the next day.”

The dog no longer hides under tables when people visit.

 ”She is just beautiful,” Ms Allen said.

Puppy farmer attacks cruelty

The Mercury,  BRUCE MOUNSTER   |   January 19, 2012

DOG’S LIFE: Paul Bartlett with daughter Lisa and two pups from their farm yesterday.

ONE of Tasmania’s most prolific puppy farms has spoken out in the face of controversy surrounding the state’s dog-breeding industry.

“Treat all dogs with respect that’s the crux of our business,” said Paul Bartlett, who with his daughter Lisa operates Tasmanian Labradoodles at a farm near Epping Forest.

They said there was no place for unregistered, backyard, or any other sort of puppy farm that wasn’t subject to RSPCA or council scrutiny.

Mr Bartlett said that in the context of an animal welfare storm surrounding unscrupulous breeders, his business had nothing to hide.

They breed and sell between 300 and 400 pups a year.

Of those, about 25 per cent find owners in countries as far away as Singapore, Hong Kong, Hawaii, Bermuda and Japan.

Animal champ’s horror tales

The Mercury,  CRAIG HOGGETT   |   January 12, 2012

LOVE CURES: Emma Haswell from Brightside Sanctuary with Will, right, and Pocket, rescued from a puppy farm. Picture: KIM EISZELE

YEARS of mistreatment in unethical puppy farms can leave dogs terrified of people and with severe health problems, but for the lucky ones like Will the miniature schnauzer there can be a happy ending.

Will was rescued from a puppy farm south of Hobart five months ago with 33 other small dogs.

Brightside Sanctuary owner Emma Haswell said although his coat was rich and healthy now, he was a different dog when he arrived.

“I heard they wanted to go out of business with the small dogs, so we made an offer the condition was that we took all the small dogs,” Ms Haswell said.

Puppy farm cruelty outrage

The Mercury, CRAIG HOGGETT   |   January 11, 2012

HUNDREDS of dogs are being used as breeding machines in squalid conditions at puppy farms around Tasmania, it was claimed yesterday.

Brightside Sanctuary says it has taken possession of 120 former breeding dogs in the past year, including 55 seized from one intensive farming operation.

The revelation is the second in a week about widespread animal cruelty going unchecked across the state.

The Sunday Tasmanian this week revealed that dog fighting rings are under investigation by the RSPCA and police.

The issue has prompted governments in other states to tighten regulation of the breeding industry.

Petshop puppies probe

The Mercury,  HELEN KEMPTON   |   January 07, 2011

THE sale of puppies in pet shops will be examined under a crackdown on puppy farming.

Tamania’s Animal Welfare Advisory Committee has been directed to look into the sale of dogs through pet shops as part of a broader investigation into the puppy-farming and puppy-selling industry.

Earlier this week, animal welfare advocates lobbied the State Government to introduce legislation to regulate puppy farming as a way of squeezing out unethical backyard dog breeders.

Both the Dogs’ Home of Tasmania and RSPCA said a mandatory licensing system and a restriction on how many puppies could be bred per breeder would help address over-breeding, in-breeding, inherited health conditions and abandonment issues.

Call for govt, RSPCA to step in

The Daily Examiner, David Bancroft | 14th January 2012

A three-month-old pup found abandoned recently on the Woodenbong tip is returning to health.

AN apparent jump in the number of cases of animal cruelty on the North Coast has prompted animal welfare groups to call for better resources for enforcement.

Grafton Animal Rescue and the Lismore-based Animal Rights and Rescue Group say the NSW Government and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) had a responsibility to improve policing and prosecution of acts of animal cruelty.

Pam Holmes from Grafton Animal Rescue said she was aware of two recent acts of animal cruelty in Grafton, one this week where neighbours reported a dog screaming in pain.

Record for RSPCA adoptions

Newcastle Herald,  BY DONNA SHARPE; 10 Jan, 2012

FORTY furry creatures great and small found homes at the weekend courtesy of a joint campaign by the Newcastle Herald and the Rutherford RSPCA shelter.The Herald put out the call to Hunter folk on Saturday to help find homes for animals ranging from a guinea pig to a three-legged rottweiler.

Shelter acting manager Scott Meyers said the result was overwhelming, with staff run off their feet on Saturday and Sunday, adopting out abandoned pets, some part of the 1200 dumped at the shelter over the Christmas/new year period.

The Lost Dogs Home; 3,525 pets adopted, 11,872 pets killed, income $12,375,271

Report by Saving Pets, 29 December 2011

How many pets would you expect to see saved in a year with a budget of over $12 million dollars?

$12 million dollars is a veritable fortune in animal welfare circles. From the tiniest rescue group working on a shoestring, through to the grandest private shelter; $12 million dollars should be able to save the lives of tens of thousands of pets, with some left over to put towards impoundment prevention and relationship building with the community. So news that the The Lost Dogs Home have released their annual report, showing that they this year, like previous years, recorded “revenue from continuing operations” of $12,375,271, should be a cause for celebration from pet lovers and homeless animals.

But unfortunately despite its enormous resources, the Lost Dogs Home continues to be a disaster for pets.