Interesting News from a Interesting News Source

Honda introduces 'Dog Friendly' components in its fall 2009 Element

Dog-friendly vehicles? I'm still not sure it is a good idea to leave a pet in an automobile with a vent and a fan. Hot summer days down south can be brutal.

And another dog news story:

Vaccinations and your dog: how often is really necessary?

"I'm not a Veterinarian, but I play one on the internet!" Take this info with a grain of salt, and always, always check with your vet.

Obama girls name their new puppy 'Bo'

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090412/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_promised_puppy

I hope 'Bo' has a nice time chewing the carpets in the most exclusive house in the country. Also, I hope he completes his potty training well. It is our house, after all...

In older puppy news, Biden's puppy, named 'Champ', resulted in much grief for the breeder.

Biden's Puppy Breeder: "Never, Never, Never Again" Are you next?

Biden's Puppy Breeder: "Never, Never, Never Again" - Philadelphia News April 10, 2009

This part is frightening:

Dog wardens from the state showed up at Brown's Wolf Den kennel, repeatedly, for inspections.

"I was cited for a piece of kibble on the floor and five strands of dog hair. They took a picture of that, they walked around, snapped pictures and don't tell you why," Brown told the newspaper.

Are we hobby breeders supposed to hide? Keep a low profile? These were not crazies from PETA or ELF that harassed this lady, these were duly authorized representatives of the government.

Where is the appropriate line? A breeder with 200 dogs needs regulating by the state, right? 20? 2? A normal citizen with a few pets? Someone with children?

Must the conditions be better for dogs than, say, children? Should children be removed from homes because of food on the floor? Other trash? What if a family doesn't sell puppies, but just has multiple pets? Should they be regulated? Why are their pets less valuable in the eyes of the law than any other animal?

More government regulation of puppy mills would be good for me. They make thousands of puppies while I produce only a few. With fewer puppy mills, the supply would be dramatically reduced. It would no longer be good for me when they try to regulate me. I don't make enough money to be able to afford to learn and comply with onerous regulations.

Should buying a puppy really be this complicated?

Congratulations to Deb and Gypsy

Congratualtions to our friend Deb and her new Champion Maltese Gypsy.

GREAT WORK by both of you!

Legislative Action Against Puppy Mills

Puppy Mills are back in legislation in Ohio:

http://wksu.org/news/story/23246

And in Wisconsin:

http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/stories/2009/04/06/daily47.html

Hobby Breeders versus Shelter Adoptions

There is a great deal of debate about whether anyone should ever buy a dog or whether everyone should adopt one of the millions of dogs and puppies that are euthanized each year. It would be nice if people would be willing to adopt a pet from a pound, but most people are just not willing to do this.

It would be difficult and speculative for me to try to list all of the reasons that people prefer to buy a purebred puppy from a hobby breeder over an unregistered pet from a shelter. (PLEASE DON'T EVER BUY A DOG FROM A PET STORE OR A PUPPY MILL.) It is likely very similar to the reasoning behind the vast majority of people having their own baby over adopting one that is available in need of a home. Sadly, that is human nature.

My wife and I are hobby breeders. We love our dogs. They often sleep with us, sit on the sofa with us and take walks with us. This is, sadly, not the case for way too many breeding dogs. My parents were of the philosophy that a dog should be allowed to have one litter, then it should be spayed. It was a member of the family and this is what it deserved. We would find friends and neighbor to adopt the puppies or we would raise them. This is also somewhat out of favor these days. My parents were also of the school of thought that no one should ever pay money for a dog. There were always people looking to give one away. This includes people looking to give away purebred dogs that they could no longer keep.

As I grew up, we had many random new dogs and puppies come randomly into our lives over the years. Most people do not wish to live this way now. People expect to be able to pick the breed of dog they want, with characteristics that they want, when it is convenient for them. This almost always means buying a puppy. Given this fact, we strive to do the best we can with breeding healthy and high-quality puppies from well-cared for and loved dogs.