Dogs

Community outreach – the implications and the powerful benefits!

Posted on by Rose Padmore

Author: Dr Stephanie Hing, Animal Welfare Policy and Research Manager, RSPCA Western Australia and CAWSEL 2017 attendee

 

I’ve had the privilege of volunteering at community outreach days where RSPCA Inspectors, dog trainers and vet clinic staff join together with local council rangers and vet nursing students to help dogs belonging to people who may otherwise not be able to afford pet care. On offer is free advice about desexing and other aspects of dog care, microchipping, health checks, food, flea prevention, worming, leads and collars.

Some of the people who bring their dogs along to community outreach days are homeless, many are disadvantaged and the majority are dealing with hardships we can only imagine. In some cases, their dog is their only constant companion.

Though it may be easy to say, “don’t have a pet unless you can afford to pay for care”, to counter that view, I reflect on the effervescent Dr David Williams’ lecture at CAWSEL 2017. Dr Williams discussed his study of homeless people and their pets in Cambridge. Our local context differs to Cambridge particularly in that charity vet services are less readily available in comparison to the UK but it is still worthy of note that –

“In contradistinction to the negative view…we found that dogs owned by homeless people were healthy animals, less likely to be obese, had fewer behavioural issues…when compared to dogs owned by people living in a conventional home”
(Williams and Hogg 2016)

 

People from all walks of life love their dogs and care for them in different ways. After direct involvement in community outreach days, learning about homeless pet charity programs and lectures at CAWSEL 2017 about the human animal bond, it has become clear to me that if we want to improve animal welfare, it is more constructive to do what we can to help rather than judge.

‘Stop Puppy Farming’ reforms

Posted on by Rose Padmore

Author: Dr Stephanie Hing, Animal Welfare Policy and Research Manager, RSPCA Western Australia and CAWSEL 2017 attendee

 

Attending CAWSEL 2017 and learning more about animal welfare concepts, principles of ethics in animal use and animal law, has further equipped me to work doggedly on reforms to improve animal welfare. One such area for reform is the regulation of dog breeding in our state.

Puppy farms, also known as puppy mills, are intensive dog breeding operations where dogs suffer unbearably in terrible conditions. Sadly, puppy farms have long been making headlines in different parts of the world including the UK and Australia. Though they may not all make the headlines, there are many dogs who are left with lifelong physical and emotional scars as a result of irresponsible and indiscriminate dog breeding more broadly. The emotional and financial toll on the dogs’ families is also profound. All too often, due to lack of regulation in the dog breeding industry, the people responsible are not held accountable. This must change. Governments around the world are introducing laws to regulate dog breeding and improve the welfare of dogs.

Since attending CAWSEL 2017, on behalf of the organisation I work for, I have been providing input on proposed ‘Stop Puppy Farming’ reforms in our state. The four main components of the reforms include:
(1) a centralised state database for dog breeders
(2) desexing of dogs (unless they belong to a breeder on the centralised state database)
(3) pet shops only able to rehome dogs via accredited rescue organisations and
(4) mandatory animal welfare standards for dogs.
Together, these reforms aim to increase traceability and accountability in dog breeding, reduce over-breeding and the number of dogs in shelters, interrupt the supply chains fuelling puppy farming and improve dog welfare overall.

Hopefully together, we can make legal history for dogs. The ‘Stop Puppy Farming’ reforms in Western Australia are currently out for public consultation until August 3: www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/stoppuppyfarming

 

Dogs as pets and food in Vietnam

Posted on by tmp-admin

Dogs_blog postAuthor Dr Anthony Podberscek

 

Dogs are not only pets/companions, in some countries they are also food. Two issues arising from this are 1) is it ethical/OK to eat them? and 2) what is the welfare like for these animals? I’ve written previously about these issues in relation to the situation in South Korea. In July I’ll be giving a talk about the situation in Vietnam at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology in Barcelona, and the research will also soon be published as a book chapter in “Companion Animals in Everyday Life” (edited by Michał Pregowski).

In my research, funded by the International Fund for Animal Welfare, I collected data in two ways. Firstly, relevant information on the history and current status of dog use and consumption was sourced from academic literature, newspaper reports, websites, and animal welfare organizations. Secondly, in 2004, the polling agency Market & Opinion Research International (MORI, now known as Ipsos MORI) was contracted to survey 1000 adults (15 years and above) in the cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City about dogs. Respondents were asked about their attitudes to the roles that dogs had in their society and whether or not they would support a ban on eating certain animals, including dogs.

Over the past few decades, pet ownership has increased in popularity in Vietnam; popular breeds of dog are Pekingese, poodles, Chihuahuas, and Huskies. A magazine just for pet lovers—Me Thu Cung (A Passion for Pets) —commenced publication in 2014. Of the participants in the survey, 52% owned pet animals, for example dogs, cats, birds, and fish. The survey showed that, overall, people were supportive of the use of dogs as pets, as assistance animals, and as guard dogs, but were against the use of dogs as food. In line with this, there was support for a ban on the eating of dogs. However, there was a major difference of opinion when residents of the two cities were compared: the majority of people living in the north (Hanoi), as opposed to the south (Ho Chi Minh City), were actually supportive of using dogs for food and would not support a ban on the eating of dogs.

With increased interest in the keeping of purebred pet dogs and the promotion of kindness to dogs via animal welfare organizations, it will be interesting to see what happens to the prevalence of dog-meat eating in Vietnam in the coming years. In the meantime, the welfare of the dogs used as food (how they are raised, transported, and slaughtered) is of paramount importance.