Best future for our dogs?
Thursday 4th February 2010, 7:19AM GMT.
Letter: I was absolutely astounded to hear that Dogs Trust is spending £5 million on the dog home at Roden.
I have rehomed 11 dogs over the years from various dog re-homing centres and I have supported and been to Roden’s open days and fund- raising events on several occasions.
There are a lot of abused and homeless dogs out there that would jump at the chance of being accommodated at Roden as it currently is; I think it is more than adequate and far superior to a number of dog boarding kennels.
Far more sensible to spend £5 million on where it is really needed – neutering, micro-chipping, pet licensing and registering dog breeders to limit the number of dogs being born for profit.
One can always hope that common sense will prevail and the proposed veterinary centre will neuter, vaccinate and micro-chip every dog before it leaves for a new home, or is it just a nail clipping, worming and flea treatment centre – nothing would surprise me.
I really do think Dogs Trust has got its priorities all wrong and I was even more horrified to read that not only was it costing £5 million but the number of dogs was being reduced by approximately 50.
So where are the rest of the homeless and needy dogs going to go? They are not just going to disappear.
The pressure to take on more will end up on the doorsteps of people like Jenny Martinez at Grinshill who works tirelessly for stray, abandoned and abused dogs.
They are in dire need of funds and threatened with closure as a result but they have got their priorities right – dogs come first.
Christina Birch
Whitchurch
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Yes it seems ludicrous. Rehoming centres such as Hilbrae and Grinshill need funding to cope and provide shelter for dogs and it does seem to me that Roden have their priorities wrong. At the time of writing this my dogs wont come in they are rolling outside chasing rats behind our fish pond. When they come in they are oblivious to their surroundings they just want to be treated like dogs. Luxury for the staff at Roden though!!! 50 dogs doesnt scarape the bottom of the barrel.
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A little perplexed by the above dog breeders do have to be licenced if they have more than a certain amount of breeding bitches.I for one would rather buy a dog from a breeder who has bred 2-3 times than some one who is licenced and breeding any breeds over the year week in week out.micro chipping is a 50-50 good ida if the dog is lost great if it is of a required breed and stolen to order no good at all.Licence for pets absolute rubbish .As for dog breeding in general it is done well by many licenced breeders but their are the odd dishonest ones around , But remember the kc club do not register pups g the mother is over 6 etc, yes we do have homeless breeds but the majority of dumped dogs are mongrels etc and it has yet to proven otherwise ,if you pay over £650 for a dog you dont dump it.
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Hear, hear!
I am a dog lover and have been lucky enough to have been blessed with three wonderful rescues over the years: two from Hillbrae and one from Grinshill… both are, in my humble opinion, much more switched on to the needs of the animals and are much more effective at rehoming dogs before they go kennel crazy than Roden…
I am an animal lover, but also a realist and find that Dogs Trust’s proud boast that “we never put a healthy dog down” is a ridiculous policy, as some of the dogs in there are clearly no longer capable of being homed.
Surely it would be better to direct precious resources into rehabilitating and rehoming animals as quickly as possible and if a dog comes in and its prospects are living in a tiny cell in a rehoming centre for the rest of its life in misery then it is humane to end it’s suffering.
The Dogs Trust cannot have any effect on licensing, (which would be a brilliant thing to bring back, but with the state of the civil service and public coffers it would just be turned into another stealth tax costing vast sums), or breeding policy. For my tupppence-worth I would reintroduce licenses, but only for un-neutered dogs, (and cats for that matter), so that anyone breeding has to contribute to the costs of a robust regulatory system and inspectorate…
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In response to Andrews Comments the majority of abandoned dogs are no longer crossbreeds. The recession has seen to it that all breeds cross or otherwise are abandoned. The dogs at Roden are the ones who generally are handed in by people who cant cope. Grinshill etc are left with those dumped ill treated etc.
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I cannot understand why these excess dogs aren’t euthanized.
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These dogs are not excess to our requirements they are healthy creatures simply unfortunate to of passed through irresponsible human hands or victims of our economic climate!! Somewhere there is a comfortable home witing for all of them. Perhaps all the low life offenders who choose to commit crime should be euthanised.The whole issue in the letter above is that places like Roden have gone off track in providing five star accommodation for a few dogs when money could be best spent on extending kennel space After all a dogs needs stretch as far as water food exercise and occasional human contact.!!Therefoe in your words there would be fewer “Excess dogs”
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Roden dog trust etc we do not put healthy dogs down is as stated silly it is I belive cruel to kennel a dog for lfe as in a zoo.
As for breeds being dumped as I have said where is the proof?? and i am talking dumped not handed in or the owners pegged itcross breeds breeds and breeds favored by chavs and not kc registered are the main problem.
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Roden told me I wasn’t suitable to take a young dog for rehoming as I have a job. Apparently you need to be home all day for a young dog. We could have given an unwanted animal a happy home.
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H St John Peasbody
Your sentence has just confirmed what arrogant twerp you are and that even if you now made any kind of sensible comment on the various subjects you comment on that I wouldn’t agree with you, on principle.
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So Diane (no.9) chooses not to agree with my comment but goes on to insult me and call me names. Can’t handle the truth, eh, Diane?
However, I do have another suggestion that might satisfy bloodthirsty Salopians – why not use these excess puppies for hunting purposes instead of a fox?
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n0 10 do you have a job or a life?? or do you simply make use of your time talking through other areas rather than your mouth. If you cant make constructive comments in line with the origonal letter and if you really dont give a damn . Dont waste your time!!
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In reply to Andrew finch Pure breeds are dumped. Proof!! is in my house . I work with dogs and many pure breeds are abandoned. A customer only last week took possession of a choc lab who was left outside a kennels in wales microchipped and traced to an origonal owner. The dog is KC REGISTERED!!! he simply didnt meet the demand for breeding. Crosses, pure bred, all dogs are simply just a dog in the wrong hands. Being a kc registered breeder is nothing more to SOME people than an invisible cloak. No disrespect to all those registered that who take the status responsibly.
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Mandy, i doubt very much the choc lab was dumped for not meeting the demand for breeding also not the most expensive of breeds £250-£400.
The facts are not clear and are fuzzed pure breeds are not dumped on a regular basis as cross breeds are .
Cross breeds are for all to see in places such as dog trust homes such as roden pure breeds are few and far go take a look . I would also add roden and the like is sadly over seen by people who as we have seen in the past from letters to the paper the fluffy bunny gang they make it so difficult to rehome a dog people go and buy one instead, rules dreamed up by who?? but the charity hand is still put out by roden and others of similar ilk at xmas .The homes are full of dogs because of the charities concerned.
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I am a volunteer dog walker at Roden and have first hand experience of working with the dogs and members of staff. I know the original letter related to the new build but most of the comments have drifted away from this point. I have rescue dogs myself; the ones that some of you have said should be put down, i.e. disability, old age, fear aggression, but there is a loving home out there for all of the dogs. Sometimes it takes longer than other times to find it. To those who say the dogs are not treated well, etc., I can categorically say that some of the dogs are better treated at Roden than they have been in their previous life. They are guaranteed a full belly, a warm bed, at least one (long) walk a day – more when volunteers are on site = and lots and lots of love. The carers are really dedicated to ensuring their dogs are well looked after.
To the person who said they weren’t allowed to re-home a younger dog if you work all day; this is because the dog is going to be restless if left alone all day. There are plenty of not so young dogs that will happily stay alone. It’s about putting the dog with the right family environment. If you are out at work, why not look at an older dog who will still enjoy going for long walks and play with you, but will be happy to stay at home for a high number of hours.
I am a dog lover and, if I wasn’t happy with what I see at Roden, I certainly would not give up my free time to get wet, dirty, and smelly on a regular basis. Come along and see for youself, if you have the spare time; the dogs would love it.
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