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.

“If I could nail one single cause, it’s quite clearly backyard breeders,” she said. “When you look at it breeders can get $300 a pooch and dogs can have a litter of nine.

“So that’s $2700 in tax-free cash each time. Some breeders don’t care where the pups go. Whether they’re chipped or de-sexed, they just churn them out.”

She said these backyard breeders are operating all over Blacktown.

“Even when I go to the pound to rescue seven dogs from the kill list, I go past a dozen signs that say pups for sale.”

Although Blacktown pound takes animals from up to seven other councils, about 70 per cent of the animals impounded come from Blacktown.

Blacktown mayor Alan Pendleton said the problem was multifaceted but he believed educating residents about responsible pet ownership was the biggest challenge.

“Some people go on holidays and take their cat or dog to the pound then come back and get another when they get back,” Councillor Pendleton said. “That type of attitude is just disgraceful.

“We’re trying to educate our community so that when everyone does the right thing by their pet, we won’t need a facility like our pound, except for when an animal is lost.

“Then it won’t churn through the numbers that it does.”

Details: Anyone who is interested in helping re-home animals can call Vicky Goulding, Pound Rounds, 0425 705 561.

Original here……..

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.

‘These notorious operations generally have very poor conditions – sometimes with hundreds of dogs – and fail to meet any of the dogs’ behavioural, social and physiological needs,’ Mr Mulherin said in a statement.

The registration system will be mandatory for intensive dog breeders with regular monitoring and voluntary registration for smaller scale breeders.

As well, microchips will include the breeder’s information and specific details about the mother of each litter.

‘This will allow authorities to more easily identify puppy farms and trace the origins of puppies,’ Mr Mulherin said.

He said with registered breeders having to display their identification number at the point of sale and on ads, consumer demand to buy from those breeders will soon force puppy farm operators out of the market.

The RSPCA’s Mark Townend welcomed the plan.

‘The RSCPA strongly urges all interested parties to get involved in the consultation process and make a submission,’ Mr Townend said.

The Canine Control Council said it has been working closely with the government for more than a year on ways to wipe out puppy farms.

Mr Mulherin said the standards will be open for comment until March 5.

Original here

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.

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.

Another 25 per cent find homes in Tasmania and the rest are sold interstate.

Mr Bartlett said every pup sold for prices between $1295 and $2295, and the business, especially the overseas component was growing.

Six staff look after about 75 breeding dogs and their litters, with as many as seven pups.

“We breed for demand,” Mr Bartlett said.

Emma Haswell, who owns Brightside Sanctuary, has said that unethical puppy farms can leave dogs terrified of people and with severe health problems.

She said hundreds of dogs were being used as breeding machines at puppy farms around the state.

Her sanctuary had taken in 120 former breeding dogs in the past year, including more than 30 from a puppy farm south of Hobart.

At Tasmanian Labradoodles, Mr Bartlett said two male breeders and one female were typically housed in 5m by 25m pens, with garden shed kennels at one end.

Heavily pregnant mums are moved indoors, to lie in plastic clam-shell containers for giving birth.

Mr Bartlett said that just like humans, relaxed and contented parents produced relaxed and contented pups.

“All of them, we lay them on their backs, give them belly rubs, we rub their ears, rub their paws,” he said.

The dogs feast mostly on chicken, along with vegetables, eggs, yoghurt and some supplements to keep them in tip top health and condition.

Their farm is a commercial-dog-food- free zone.

Photographs of each puppy are published and regularly updated on the farm’s website, in litter groups, to give prospective owners a comprehensive insight.

mounsterb@news.net.au

Original here…

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.

“Will had very serious long-term ear infections in both ears. His ear canals were closed over completely and there was black puss coming out of them.

“They were very inflamed and painful, the actual ear was very swollen about a centimetre and a half thick instead of the little flaps they should have.”

Ms Haswell says hundreds of dogs are being used as breeding machines at puppy farms around the state.

She told the Mercury her sanctuary had taken in 120 former breeding dogs in the past year.

Will arrived at the sanctuary severely underweight, which delayed treatment, and with his coat matted with filth.

“What they were being kept in was a very small kennel complex even the dogs giving birth had no bedding at all and there was no drainage,” Ms Haswell said.

Little Will has since been adopted by a retired couple and Ms Haswell says he’s getting better every day.

“Will was absolutely terrified of people if you take hold of their collars they just crouch down,” she said.

“He’s still very timid but he’s a loving life.”

Many dogs that end up at Brightside are in similar condition to Will.

“The most rewarding thing I do is rehabilitate puppy farm dogs, they come to you so damaged,” Ms Haswell said.

“The first time they look you in the eye and wag their tails is just great.”

Original here

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.

Sanctuary owner Emma Haswell says that the dogs are often forced to live in their own filth in dark dirty sheds.

When brought to her sanctuary, ex-breeding dogs can have conditions ranging from demodectic mange which causes hair loss to severe eye and ear infections or hernias resulting from multiple caesarean sections.

“I think part of the problem is the public don’t know what a puppy farm is or that they are actually buying from a puppy farm,” Ms Haswell said.

“A large part of the problem is that the Animal Welfare Act doesn’t stipulate what you can and can’t do well enough.”

Ms Haswell has worked with animal control officers from various councils to seize dogs that are being mistreated.

She says she knows of about seven farms operating but believes there are many more.

“I know that they [puppy farms] are in every state in Australia and Tasmania has a fair share,” she said. “Everyone thought there were no puppy farms, but when you start looking around there are plenty.”

However, she says that after the animals are saved, no charges are being brought against operators.

A review of animal welfare legislation is happening now in Tasmania.

Dogs’ Homes of Tasmania president John Gray said his organisation was aware of the large-scale operations but could not name them because of a lack of evidence.

“The thing that needs to happen is spot checks to catch them in the act,” Mr Gray said.

He said that a key change needed to be an enforceable registration system for breeders.

“That would make it a lot easier. As soon as someone puts an advert in the paper or online and there’s no licence number, I’d personally be on the phone very quickly,” Mr Gray said.

“If you are not registered you should have to put up with the full force of the law.”

He said that without licences it was very difficult to distinguish between legitimate breeders and people potentially mistreating animals.

He described the current review as long overdue and said the issue needed to be dealt with faster.

“In the eight-or-so months the review of legislation goes for, how many puppies will have ended up in not-very-nice conditions?” Mr Gray said. “We don’t seem to be getting the message across to the politicians or to the courts.

“People that do go to court over animal cruelty so often just get a slap on the wrist.”

A government spokesman said the Animal Welfare Advisory Committee was due to report to Deputy Premier Bryan Green by mid-2012 after spending October to December deciding on a proper consultation process.

hoggettc@news.net.au

Original here..

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.

She said the RSPCA was unable to attend because it had only one enforcement officer and they covered an area from Coffs Harbour to the Queensland border.

She said police were good and attended that incident, but they were short staffed and not always fully versed in animal protection legislation.

“The dog has a fractured leg and lacerations and police said they thought the RSPCA was going to charge the owner with neglect, which is a lesser charge,” she said.

But she said it was sometimes difficult to get information about charges or the animal’s health.

She said that in a recent incident, a South Grafton man was alleged to have lifted a Staffordshire bull terrier above his head and thrown it to the ground with such force it bounced down a set of steps and busted the letterbox.

As no RSPCA officers were available, police attended and ordered the man to take the dog to a vet, but after neighbours later complained to Grafton Animal Rescue the dog was still at home, Ms Holmes attended herself and took the dog. It was later adopted by the vet who cared for it. “We need more inspectors,” she said.

She said the RSPCA had money but seemed reluctant to spend enough of it on policing.

Animal Rights and Rescue Group founder Barbara Steffensen said it was the NSW Government’s responsibility to ensure animal welfare legislation was enforced.

“It is a criminal act,” she said.

“The government is not meeting its duty of care.

“It needs to stand up and accept responsibility for the Act not being enforced properly.”

An RSPCA spokesman said he would examine the frequency and nature of incidents before responding.

Original here

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. 

This week the Home is imploring the community to keep their ‘best friend safe’ over the holiday period, listing five things pet owners can do to ensure their pets aren’t spooked and lost during new years eve celebrations, and that…

… the best hope for lost, frightened animals is to be picked up by The Lost Dogs’ Home’s after-hours ambulances or a local council’s animal control officer… Sadly there is no guarantee that every pet can be reached in time, before the worst happens.

The ‘worst’ is obviously the pet being injured or killed on the street. But what are the ‘best’ outcomes for pets once they enter the Lost Dogs Home’s ‘care’?

The report shows over the 2010/11 year the outcomes for pets were as follows;

3,525 – adopted
7,407 – returned to owner
11,872 – killed (2,879 dogs, 8,993 cats)

This means for every single one of the pets the organisation processes, they make a whopping $536, regardless of the outcome for the pet. By these calculations, they make a staggering $6.3 million dollars for pets who are simply killed and their bodies incinerated.

But how can this be happening?

Local councils pay this organisation for pets collected during holiday celebrations. ‘Pet ambulances’ aren’t an altruistic effort to protect pets, but a money generating investment. Rather than pets being returned to owners as a public service, these ‘ambulances’ are simply glorified ranger vans impounding on behalf of councils, taking pets to the North Melbourne pound. It’s also worth noting they aren’t paid to per-pet returned to owner, but can hold and kill the pet and still be paid for their services.

Cats fare even worse than dogs in this purely profit-driven arrangement. Each year, local councils pay the Lost Dogs Home to actively trap unowned cats and bring them to the Home. Despite being perpetually at capacity with lost pet cats and friendly rehomable strays, the organisation chooses to take on the extra role of ‘cat slaughterhouse’, offering untame cats no option other than death. Untame cats, or those acting feral cat be killed immediately. Each cat-trapping council tender earns the organisation a yearly salary and keeps their intake numbers high, but the organisation does little to actually combat cat-overpopulation, offering just 100 discount desexing surgeries per year under the ‘Who’s for Cats’ program – while they kill close to 10,000 cats annually.

Along with council income, they also receive around $6 million dollars in bequests and donations annually, ($7.5m in donations and legacies this year). Pet lovers hoping their contributions will see pets saved, ironically supporting one of the largest killer of companion animals in the country.

With all this money being generated from lost and homeless pets, what incentive does the Lost Dogs Home have to reduce intakes and killing? None. Even as the solutions to shelter killing have been available to the animal sheltering community since the 80’sand in the popular media since 2009 they still continue to choose to squander the enormous fortune given to them by the pet loving community every year… and kill rather than save the lives of pets.
………………………….

What can I do?

This section has been added to address the large public outcry & requests for people asking “what can I do?”

To lend the words of Lisa, an awesome animal advocate:
The rewards for killing are obscene. That this is accepted without screaming from the rooftops is also distressing, however most in the public domain have no idea. Yes people can stop making financial contributions to LDH but this will have minimal impact. In addition to the bequests, the bulk of their revenue comes from the very lucrative pound contracts. Losing these is what will hurt. Being front page news for their kill rates will hurt. Being held to account by those who support them will hurt. Complaining on facebook may relieve people’s frustration but it makes no difference to the animals. Invest your time wisely and write to all the councils who provide “kill” work to LDH and demand they get with the times and the No Kill movement. Contact the media and demand LDH becomes front page news. If you really want change, you need to work for it and demand change.

If you are in one of the following municipalities, then it is up to you as a ratepayer to demand change. If you are an animal lover it is up to you to let the media know this is important.

The Lost Dogs Home provide pound services for 10 councils (Melbourne, Moreland, Moonee Valley, Brimbank, Maribyrnong, Wyndham, Hobson’s Bay, Darebin, Hume and Port Phillip).

They provide animal management services for the City of Greater Bendigo. The Home owns a property at Cranbourne west to service the Cities of Bayside, Casey, Cardinia, Frankston, Greater Dandenong and Kingston.

They are a leading organisation in providing animal management and pound services for councils. The Home hold more than 20 council contracts. (ref)

Original article here…