New Movie “The Dog Lover”: Propaganda or Parable?

By Ron Sturgeon, NADBR Sr. VP and Founder

“The Dog Lover,” a just-released film based on a true story, is likely to make some dog lovers angry.  Spoiler alert: It is about an idealistic dog lover, a veterinary student, who goes undercover to capture video of conditions at a commercial dog breeder. The evidence she gathers is taken out of context by a large fictional animal rights organization and used to draw negative media coverage and incite authorities to seize the breeder’s dogs and farm.

In the film, the activist dog lover starts with the point of view that all dog breeding is wrong. When her father suggests to her that she may find the people she is trying to expose are responsible dog breeders, she says, “There is no such thing. Every time someone buys a designer puppy instead of adopting from a shelter, a homeless animal loses its chance of finding a home, and then it’s euthanized.”

I know lots of people reading this may feel that way. Although I rescue and foster dogs, and have done so for many years, I don’t believe it’s quite that simple. Dogs come into people’s lives in many ways. Buying a dog does not mean a shelter pet will not find a home or that it will be euthanized.

The dog lover in the film gradually comes to a less black-and-white view of the world. She comes to believe that dog breeders should be judged based upon how they treat the animals in their care. She distinguishes between the breeder she originally targeted and a callous breeder producing puppies under appalling conditions next door to him.

I agree with the point implied by the film: dog breeders should be judged based upon the way they treat the dogs in their care. We live in a world in which dog breeding is going to happen because people want to buy the puppies that breeders produce.

If dog breeding is going to happen, dog lovers should do what they can to ensure that the people who breed dogs have the proper regard for them. The National Alliance for Dog Breeding Reform was founded on the idea that all dogs should be treated humanely, shown kindness, and bred using only medically sound practices.

I plan to see “The Dog Lover” because I am interested in improving dog breeding for the dogs. I am curious what reaction dog lovers and people active in rescue will have to a film that casts one dog breeder in the role of victim of overzealous government persecution and another in the role of villain. If you have not seen “The Dog Lover,” do you have plans to see it? If you have seen it, what did you think?

More about the film from a review in Variety: http://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/the-dog-lover-review-1201809980/. Commentary on the film and its executive producer from Dogster: http://www.dogster.com/lifestyle/why-everyone-who-cares-about-dogs-should-see-the-dog-lover

 

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Four Ways to Help Dogs in a Buy-It-Now World

By Rita Rice, NADBR VP of Research

After 25 years in the dog world, I can tell you that many dogs are bought in haste. Some buyers don’t go to a rescue or a breeder because they’re unwilling to put up with the scrutiny that well-run rescues and quality breeders require before a dog goes home with a new owner, or they want a dog or puppy now and don’t want to wait for a breeder or a rescue to have the type of dog they want.

I wish people approached getting a companion animal with the care it deserves, but many don’t. Nor are all “buy-it-now” owners bad. Some, frankly, are just Type A personalities, people who know they will be responsible dog owners but who won’t answer 5 pages of questions.

Other prospective dog owners are simply accustomed to being able to get what they want today. They have a buy-it-now mentality and don’t understand the work it takes to match dog to owner or to breed and socialize a puppy properly.

Human nature dictates that some human beings will get a puppy where it’s easiest. If a puppy of the desired breed isn’t easy to find locally, the buy-it-now person turns to Google or Craigslist to find their new puppy. Despite how happy the puppies look on the website or Facebook page, I can tell you from years in rescue these photos don’t always represent the true conditions in which the puppy was raised, and that many do not become happy, healthy, well-adjusted dogs.

The stories about online puppy sales gone bad are legion. By the time the vet bills start rolling in, the hasty buyer has learned that consumer protection laws are nonexistent in the Ukraine (or whatever country the puppy came from) and that puppy buyers have no recourse. Check out the Facebook page Puppies for Sale for a few of these stories.

Some people will read about these bad breeders and conclude dog breeding should be outlawed. Of course, that position ignores that most dog breeders in the US are responsible, that their work has preserved many of the breeds we love, and that shelters and rescues wouldn’t be able to meet the demand for dogs for long if all breeding stopped.

Dog breeding will continue because people want dogs. So, which will do the most to ensure that breeding dogs are treated well? Passing a ban in a city or a town that stops a pet store or two from selling dogs, or focusing on setting and enforcing sensible standards for all dog breeders?

Trying to control where puppies are sold just moves the problem out of sight. It does not improve conditions for dogs or ensure a supply of healthy well-bred puppies. Instead of trying to limit sales outlets, we should focus on improving the care and conditions of ALL dogs.  Only setting care and conditions for “commercial” breeders ignores the many litters of puppies that are bred in your local neighborhood by people who don’t consider themselves to be “breeders,” by families who sell them to make a quick few hundred dollars, and who don’t follow up on puppies or consider their fate when that “buy-it-now” home decides they no longer want the dog.

Here are four ways we can help all dogs. First, we can support well run local rescues. Second, we can support dog breeders who meet those standards. Third, we can support standards for dog breeding and enforcement of them by supporting responsible breeders and responsible rescues, and helping our friends learn enough to do the same. Finally, we can insist that cases of genuine neglect of dogs or cruelty to dogs be prosecuted vigorously.

Post by National Alliance for Dog Breeding Reform VP Rita Rice. To learn more, visit https://www.facebook.com/NationalAllianceForDogBreedingReform

 

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Response to Forbes’ “French Bulldog Puppies: Inside The Business Of Breeding New York’s Most Fashionable Dog”

Original Article: French Bulldog Puppies: Inside The Business Of Breeding New York’s Most Fashionable Dog

Response By Rita Rice, NADBR VP of Research

Forbes writes a balanced article about the pitfalls of popular breeds, how to shop for a quality puppy, and how to avoid accidentally supporting irresponsible, neglectful, or abusive breeders.  While it’s easy to respond with platitudes, every potential owner needs to examine their own needs and wants for their new family member.  Apartment and/or city life brings challenges that aren’t always answered by adopting a shelter dog.  Breed specific rescues are one possibility, responsible breeders another.  First, though, the new owner needs to decide if they’re in love with a breed or with a fad.  Popular breeds are often popular for a reason; they fit common needs and lifestyles. Popular breeds often attract numerous responsible breeders; for example, an entire Breeder/Pet Owner online “College” was founded by a group of Golden Retriever breeders who are dedicated to breeding happy, healthy Goldens for companion owners.  Unfortunately, these breeds often attract “fly by night” breeders, “amateurs” who buy a couple of dogs and think to make some easy money (responsible breeding is many things, but never easy), and “retail rescues” who suddenly “find” a glut of the desired breed in another part of the country (usually in an unregistered breeder’s kennel).

While Forbes touches on the issues, the article fails to help these potential homes find their desired canine companion.

So how do you find that preferred pooch?

First, don’t assume that the best breeders charge the highest prices.  Your breeder should justify their price: that high price tag should be accompanied by membership in a parent club (such as the French Bulldog Club of America), AKC championship (or working titled) pedigrees, proven health testing submitted to the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (offa.org), health and temperament warranties, and a LOT of owner support.  A breeder doesn’t need all of these to do a good job breeding, or be a responsible, ethical breeder – but their prices should reflect the difference; there’s profit, then there is price gouging.

With a rescue, you should know where your puppy comes from.  Vague responses or claims of “high value” breeds languishing unwanted in shelters 2,000 miles away should be treated with the same skepticism as the half price car on the lot (with good breeding, you’ll own your pet longer than you will own your car – and spend as much money in care and maintenance).  No matter where the shelter, there is almost always a major Metropolitan Statistical Area within a few hundred miles, and those pups are as desirable there as anywhere else in the US.  Your rescue should be well established, with a track record and – if purebred – an affiliation with their AKC Parent Club.

Finally, you should be willing to wait.  From the time a breeder plans a litter, waits on the dam to come into season, breeds her, whelps the litter, raises the pups, and send them to their new homes, you might be looking at a wait of 6 months or more for that responsibly bred pup.

So what if you do all of those things, and your perfect pup proves impossible to find?  Look at similar breeds.  Love that Frenchie?  Maybe a Boston Terrier will capture your heart just as easily.  Looking for a Golden Retriever?  Perhaps a Labrador (or Flat Coated Retriever, or a Chesapeake Bay Retriever if you want a non-shed coat) will fit your family to a T.  Check the AKC website: breeds are organized by Groups, which means that you can find many similar breeds for comparison and research.

And when you’ve found that baby, and the wait seems interminable….join a Facebook Group or other online forum.  Buy training books or watch videos or podcasts.  Puppy proof your home; I recommend that new owners crawl through the house at puppy level – if you can reach it, so can they!  Check out training classes, day cares and dog parks (visit them and meet other like minded owners).  Catch up on sleep, and work on your bucket list; your free time will be limited to the length of time your pup can be crated at home, and no matter how well trained your puppy you should expect a few 2am wake up calls (if not for a potty break, then for emergency snuggling, or the spectacular scream of a puppy who catches his toe in the door of his crate).  Make friends with your neighbors, and bribe them with food; they, too, will be subject to the wail of a puppy in (imagined) distress, if you live in close quarters.

Most of all, enjoy the decision you’ve made, knowing it is the right one for your home and lifestyle, and get ready to have your heart and world expanded by your new friend!

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Fact: Dogs are going to be bred for profit and to meet demand.

You can’t limit or regulate demand. People will always want to buy dogs. Trying to limit demand is pushing a string. We can’t change that, but we can change how many of those dogs live.

Read more

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Thoughts on How to Reform Companion Canine Breeding Practices

Everyone understands that many breeders don’t follow any guidelines, and that many safety, health and abuse conditions exist in the most offensive breeders. There are large breeders, small breeders, and everything in between. Different titles are synonymous with this discussion, including backyard breeders and puppy mills. All are just dog breeding operations, put simply, for monetary gain.

Read more

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Are We Winning the Battle But Losing the War? Reflections on Rescue Groups’ Bidding at the Missouri Auction

I have been following the news of the auction of King Charles Cavaliers that took place in Missouri and the efforts by many in our rescue community, especially the Alabama Chapter of Cavalier Rescue USA, Brittney Wilk, and the Greater Birmingham Humane Society, to save these dogs.

Thanks to them, scores of our beloved breed will eventually be in forever homes and be cared for by people who love them. Many gave their time and money to make sure that rescue groups acquired every single King Charles Cavalier.

Read more

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Are You Your Dog’s Owner or Guardian?

By Rita Rice, NADBR VP of Research

In a few cities in the United States, advocates for animal rights are attempting to change laws so that pet owners become pet guardians. Maybe such a change is being considered in your city or town.

Boulder, Colorado, has made the change. So have San Jose and West Hollywood in California. The State of Rhode Island has even made pet guardianship part of its Constitution.

So should you care whether your state or city adopts a pet guardianship law? Would you lose anything if you became a dog guardian, rather than a dog owner?

Advocates for the change believe that guardianship will result in a higher standard of care for dogs and make it easier for the courts to step in when the rights of dogs are being violated. They argue that dogs have rights and that guardianship is a better way to protect those rights than treating dogs as property and requiring owners to meet standards of humane treatment

In a society in which many Americans feel great affection for their dogs and call them fur babies and fur kids, advocates for guardianship already have an argument with strong appeal to many dog owners.

The word guardian has positive connotations and changing from owner to guardian can be made to seem like a small matter.

However, it isn’t. Ownership and guardianship are distinctly different in the eyes of the law, and dog owners should understand those differences before they give up one status for the other.

Guardians can be relieved of their duties based upon a finding by a court that they are unfit. Pet owners who become guardians may find that those who deem them unfit can take their dogs away more easily in a world without dog ownership.

The other argument that advocates for pet guardianship make is that guardianship will somehow improve the way dogs are treated. Think about that. Will it? Will the person who is abusive as an owner be any better as a guardian?

What would giving dog guardianship do to veterinary medicine? Would the added complexity, cost, and liability risk for veterinarians really result in better care for dogs? I think it is apt to produce less choice of care, wasteful defensive medicine, and less care because veterinary care will cost more.

Dogs are property, but they are a special kind of property because they are sentient beings. We cannot do with them as we will. We have a duty to treat them humanely and with kindness.

Dog owners should celebrate the progress toward objective, scientifically validated standards for the care of dogs. At NADBR, we applaud the work that is underway at Purdue CAWS and other schools of veterinary medicine to better define humane treatment and to set standards for dog breeders.

All of would like to see a world in which dogs are treated humanely and shown kindness. The best path to that world is not to give dogs rights and make humans their guardians. Instead, we should set and enforce clear standards for the humane treatment of dogs.

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