Defining 'Puppy Mills'

/in /by

I’ve been thinking about the phrase ‘puppy mills’ for the last few days – what it means, really means, when we refer to someone as a ‘puppy mill’.

Some definitions are simple – places like the ones shown on Prisoners of Greed, for example, or the ones Kim Townsend exposes through No Puppy Mills. Sad, abused, neglected dogs, stacked in filthy crates or wire cages, and denied the very basic necessities of a humane life. No clean water, no veterinary care, no human interaction, no quality food. Breeding machines, used time and time again to produce a product that can be sold. This is what I think of when I hear ‘Puppy Mill’. I think it’s what we are meant to think of. Read more →

Waiting and Waiting… on mother nature

/in /by

SailorIt is an ironic fact that, no matter how high tech dog breeding may have become, it’s mother nature who still calls the shots. I’ve been hauling Sailor to the vet office for daily blood draws and smears and Draminskis, but it all comes down to timing – when she’s ready, she’s ready. And, like all things related to dog breeding, she’ll take her own sweet time getting there.

I shouldn’t be surprised, either. Sailor has always danced to the beat of her own drummer. She cycles when she wants, whelps when she’s good and ready, and makes veterinarians toss their hands up in despair when it comes to evaluating her progesterone results. She’s a rebel, yes she is. Read more →

AMERICAN STAFFORDSHIRE TERRIER INVOLVED IN INCIDENT WITH CHILD AT AKC EVENT

/4 Comments/in /by

PERMISSION TO CROSSPOST

AP NEWS: BERRYVILLE , VA APRIL 5 2007

AMERICAN STAFFORDSHIRE TERRIER INVOLVED IN INCIDENT WITH CHILD AT AKC EVENT

Police were called today to the Clarke County Fairgrounds to investigate an incident involving an American Stafforshire Terrier dog and a 9 year old child. The American Kennel Club sanctions the event, held by the Clarke County Kennel Club annually. Thousands of exhibitors and spectators attend yearly. Read more →

BSL – It's everyone's problem

/in /by

Killer PugI’m so tired of people smugly insisting that Breed Specific Legislation – or breed banning, to call it by it’s more actual name – isn’t their problem. We all need to wake up and realize that BSL is a threat to all of, to all of our dogs, and to our decency as a society. French Bulldogs barely escaped being included in Ontario’s recent BSL laws. Staffordshire Bull Terriers – those little twenty something pound cuties known as “Nanny Dogs” in the UK, for their excellence as children’s pets – weren’t so lucky.

Pugs and Boston Terriers have been included in other areas. Pugs and Bostons, for God’s sakes! Read more →

Yay for Mae!

/2 Comments/in /by

Mae’s ultrasound this morning confirmed that she is indeed with child – or rather with ‘children’, to be more precise. We saw three that we’re fairly certain of, with one or two more a possibility. Really, an ultrasound isn’t about counting puppies – it’s about simply confirming that your bitch is indeed pregnant. This lets me start adding supplements to her diet and monitor her health and behaviour even more closely than I normally do. It also lets me decide that I definitely won’t be making any trips, or attending any shows. In fact, I’ll even have to cancel my attendance at the obedience classes Tula and Penelope had been taking. Read more →