Dog News

Insurance Company Pays Out £173m For Dog Bite Claims

admin — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:28:53 +0000

According to a report on Bloomberg, a national insurance company has paid out a staggering for dog bite compensation claims in the United States.

State Farm Insurance, a leading US based insurance firm, paid out $109 million (£173 million) from more than 3,500 dog bite claims made by its customers in 2011.

The Insurance Information Institute projects that nearly $479 million in claims for dog bite injuries were paid across all US insurance firms in 2011, up on the 2010 figure of $413m.

It's not surprising that the state of California, America's most populated state by dog owners, topped the insurance claims list.

A spokesman for the insurer said:

About 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs each year and more than half of the victims are children, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. About 800,000 people seek medical attention for the bites. Less than half of those people require treatment and about 16 die, the agency said.

After children ages 5 to 9 years old, the agency said that seniors represent the largest group at risk, followed by members of the US postal service.

Dogs Attract More Charitable Giving Than Any Other Animal

admin — Wed, 02 May 2012 12:26:51 +0000

New data released by leading not-for-profit social enterprise, Giveacar, show that dogs inspire more charitable donations than any other animal. Nearly a quarter (23.25%) of donations made through Giveacar to animal-based charities were to those that support dogs. Charities that support horses received around nearly 12% and those that support cats received nearly 11%. Overall, donations to animal-based charities accounted for 13% of the total, with the leading causes being medical charities, attracting nearly 46% of the total, and children and families charities (17.64%).

Giveacar’s first Annual Charity Survey shows:

The Welsh donate more to medical charities than the rest of the UK, per head
The most generous donations are made by the Scots
Animals have a very special place in our hearts. Donations to animal charities outstrip the combined donations to charities supporting ex-servicemen and women, the homeless, the environment, sports and the arts.
Horses are more popular than cats, judged by the level of donations to specialist animal charities.
Charities devoted to medical care and research attract far higher levels of donation than any other causes.

The survey confirms the long-held view that the English are particularly fond of animals. In fact the English give more to animal charities than to specialist children’s charities.

Giveacar is unusually well-placed to conduct this survey because it covers the whole of the UK and raises money for any registered charity, with no allegiance to any particular cause. Giveacar donations come from the sale of old, unwanted cars, which are given by their owners on the understanding that the proceeds go to charity. Donors are encouraged to nominate the charity of their choice. So far over 4,000 cars have been scrapped or sold at auction, raising funds for more than 450 charities.

The survey figures are based on analysis of 2,000 donations of old and unwanted vehicles to Giveacar running up to 31st December 2011. To date, Giveacar has raised more than £500,000 for charities throughout the country.

Giveacar’s Director Alan Chance, who oversaw the survey, says:

“The survey confirms the popularity of medical charities – in fact three of our top ten charities are devoted to cancer care and research. Hospices attract steady support in their local areas, and all the major animal charities have their devoted supporters.

“These findings are predictable, but the survey also highlights interesting regional variations and trends. It’s good to see that Scottish donors are more generous than the English, for example.

“However, the figures also show that some long-held views about charitable giving in the UK are well-founded. For example, English donors do indeed seem to give animal welfare a higher priority than many other causes – reinforcing last year’s Charity Market Monitor survey which indicated that whilst overall donations were declining, donations to animal welfare causes were on the increase – and our findings underline the fact that the nation’s wealth is concentrated in London and the south. No less than six of the top ten postcodes for donations are in London and all ten of them are in the South of England.”

“Overall, the geographical differences in support for specific causes may encourage charities to focus their fundraising efforts on areas where there appears to be untapped potential and we hope that the voluntary sector finds this survey helpful.

The top ten postcodes by number of donations to charity through Giveacar are:

1. South West London – 215
2. South East London – 193
3. North London – 162
4. East London – 154
5. Bristol – 134
6. Kingston-upon-Thames – 123
7. Tonbridge – 120
8. North West London – 117
9. Brighton – 112
10. Reading – 109

Bristol has given more cars to charity through Giveacar than any other town or city outside London, whilst Cardiff topped the list for numbers of Welsh donors and in Scotland, Edinburgh headed the list, followed by Aberdeen and Glasgow.

Judged by the cars donated through Giveacar, the twenty most generous postal regions outside London are as follows:

1. Bristol
2. Tonbridge
3. Brighton
4. Reading
5. Oxford
6. Hemel Hempstead
7. Guildford
8. Edinburgh
9. Cambridge
10. Norfolk
11. Redhill
12. Guildford
13. Peterborough
14. Bournemouth
15. Sheffield
16. Portsmouth
17. Cardiff
18. Exeter
19. Aberdeen
20. Glasgow

Alan Chance concludes:

“Car owners who donate using Giveacar can choose which of the thousands of UK-registered charities they want the proceeds to go to. We don’t try to influence that choice in any way, so the data we have analysed present an accurate snapshot of donors’ favourite causes.

“We hope that the results will not only help charities to plan their fundraising more effectively, but also encourage many more people from throughout the UK to scrap their cars and donate the money they raise to the charities they believe in most – and, of course, Giveacar is by far the most efficient and hassle-free way of doing that. Just visit www.giveacar.co.uk or call us on 02 000 111 664 and we’ll take care of everything from picking the car up and sorting out the paperwork to liaising with your chosen charity.”

Vet Reprimanded for ‘Disgraceful Conduct’

admin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:26:46 +0000

The Disciplinary Committee of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) on Wednesday [11 April 2012] reprimanded an Exeter-based veterinary surgeon for practising whilst not on the RCVS Register.

At the outset of the two-day hearing, John Sherry, the former owner of 'The Pet Practice' in Exeter, admitted that he had been practising as a veterinary surgeon during the 17 months following his removal from the Register for non-payment of his retention fees. He also accepted the evidence put forward by the College as follows:

In removing Mr Sherry on 1 June 2010, the College followed procedures set out under the Veterinary Surgeons and Veterinary Practitioners [Registration] Regulations 2005. This included sending a final warning to Mr Sherry prior to his removal from the Register, and publishing his name on the list of veterinary surgeons removed for non-payment of fees.

On 4 July 2011, the College received an email concerning Mr Sherry's registration status and telephoned him. He expressed concern at his removal, explained that he was practising, and requested a restoration form, which the College sent the same day. The College then wrote to advise Mr Sherry that it had reason to believe that he was practising illegally.

On 3 September 2011, the College received a restoration form and payment instructions from Mr Sherry's practice and requested additional documentation as evidence of good standing and identity (as required by the Veterinary Surgeons and Veterinary Practitioners [Registration] Regulations 2010). On 6 September, it received a letter of apology from Mr Sherry, which also said he had had administrative and financial problems.

On 17 October 2011, the College reported Mr Sherry to the police on suspicion of breaching the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, and made an unannounced visit to his practice. Mr Sherry subsequently furnished the College with the required documents and was restored to the Register on 10 November 2011.

The Committee found the allegation of disgraceful conduct proven. However, in mitigation, it formed the view that the Respondent was an honest person who answered frankly and openly all questions put forward in cross-examination. It took note of Mr Sherry's serious financial and family health problems which, Mr Sherry said, were the context to this period and resulted in his bankruptcy in January 2012. It further noted his apology, the lack of other complaints against him, and the fact that no harm or risk of harm to any person or animal occurred from Mr Sherry's actions.

"After careful consideration, the Committee has concluded that the appropriate sanction in this case is that the Respondent be severely reprimanded and be warned as to his future conduct," said the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee, Professor Peter Lees, speaking on behalf of the Committee.

"The misconduct admitted by the Respondent is serious, and the Committee has taken an exceptional course by not imposing a more severe sanction in this case, because of the mitigating factors. The profession must be in no doubt that failing to pay retention fees and practising whilst unregistered are grave matters, which will normally attract a severe sanction."

Shock New Figures Suggest 2.9m British Dogs Are Fat

admin — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 16:20:29 +0000

The impact of expanding waistlines on the health of our nation’s pets is a huge concern for the UK’s leading veterinary charity, PDSA, with around 2.9 million dogs and 3 million cats* in the UK battling the bulge. But worryingly, 84% of owners believe their pets are the right weight, which suggests there is a widespread misunderstanding about what a healthy weight for pets should be.**

Tip: Read this article on dog obesity for more information on dog weight issues.

However, there’s good news on the horizon for 18 of the UK’s podgiest pets. PDSA has announced the line-up of pet finalists in its annual slimming competition – Pet Fit Club – who are about to start their journey to becoming healthier, happier and shadows of their former selves.

The contestants – 11 dogs, 5 cats and 2 rabbits – are currently carrying a combined excess weight of over 24 stone which equates to over 380 tins of dog food, the weight of 35 average sized cats or the weight of 50 Yorkshire Terriers. All of the finalists fall into the category of obese or morbidly obese and desperately need to lose weight to improve their quality of life. Pets carrying 20% or more of their ideal body weight are classed as obese, while pets carrying over 50% are deemed morbidly obese.

PDSA vets are guiding the owners of each of these supersized pets on their journey to slim down and shape-up with a balanced diet and tailored exercise plan.

Sean Wensley, PDSA Senior Veterinary Surgeon, said: “Excess pounds can contribute to a number of serious health conditions and, sadly, it does reduce life expectancy. But the good news is that it’s never too late to make positive changes to a pet’s diet and lifestyle.”

Worth a read: Why killing with kindness is STILL killing!

This year’s 18 finalists include a line-up of pets who have become accustomed to a variety of unhealthy foods including a ‘custard cream loving’ dog called Alfie; a 10.2kg Scottish cat called Maverick who is 85% overweight; food thief, Deco – a canine who likes cake but is carrying 57% extra body weight; Romeo the Labrador who has a penchant for roast dinners who is 47% overweight.

The diets for the finalists are being supplied by Hill’s pet food and Burgess Pet Care. The overall winner of the competition will receive a pet-friendly holiday worth £500 with the Four Seasons hotel in Perthshire.

Pet obesity revealed:

·        Over a third of all dogs (35% or 2.9million) in the UK are now overweight or obese.*
·        Cats don’t fare much better, with PDSA data showing that around one in four are overweight (approximately 3 million).*
·        Rabbits have the worst diets compared to dogs and cats with 42% being fed too little hay every day, and 49% being fed rabbit muesli (a mix of seeds and flakes) which should not be fed as it can contribute to obesity and is linked with painful dental disease.**
·        Overweight pets are at risk of serious health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis, and have a lower life expectancy than healthy pets.
·        Over-feeding treats and providing the incorrect diet can cause pet obesity. 90% of dog owners admit to feeding treats such as cheese, crisps, cakes, biscuits, toast and takeaways.**

PDSA’s pet obesity advice clinic – top tips from PDSA Senior Vet, Sean Wensley:

·        Prevention is better than cure: Preventing obesity is much easier than getting a pet to lose weight. A good diet when a pet is young is essential – fat puppies and kittens are more likely to become fat adult pets due to the number of fat cells they produce while growing.
·        Cut out the treats: feeding a pet even a small treat can significantly increase their daily calorie intake. If you give your pet a treat, perhaps for training purposes, reduce the amount of food given in their main meal on that day.
·        Balanced diet: Weight loss requires a combination of the right diet and the right amount of exercise. Many owners feed ‘by eye’ and it’s easy to accidentally overfeed pets, so use scales to weigh out the daily food allowance each morning. Follow packet feeding guidelines or ask your vet about correct amounts.
·        Regular exercise: Build up activity levels gradually, as a pet shouldn’t go from couch potato to marathon runner overnight. Encouraging play and games is a great way to increase a pet’s activity levels, but every pet is different so ask your vet about how much exercise your pet needs.
·        Seek veterinary advice: PDSA advises owners to speak to their vet before making major changes to their pet’s diet or activity levels. In some pets, such as cats and rabbits, rapid weight loss can be dangerous or even fatal, so it’s important for a vet or vet nurse to oversee the weight loss to ensure it is gradual and safe.
·        Learn about a pet’s healthy shape: Many owners don’t know what a healthy shape is for their pet and may see their pet as simply ‘cuddly’, not realising that they are overweight. Owners should ask their vet, or visit the PDSA website for advice and guidance on a correct body shape for their pet at www.pdsa.org.uk/obesity.
·        Take action now: Some owners are worried about seeking advice for their overweight pet for fear of being prosecuted. However, cases of prosecution for pet obesity are very rare and are usually a result of owners continually ignoring advice from their vet over a period of time.

* Information taken from PDSA PetCheck assessments of the weight and general health of nearly 30,000 dogs between 2006-2010. During this period, the percentage of overweight dogs has risen from around one-in-five (21%) to more than one-in-three (35%). Cat data is taken from PDSA assessments in the charity’s PetAid hospitals.

** Information taken from the PDSA Animal Wellbeing (PAW) Report 2011, a survey of 11,124 dog, cat and rabbit owners in the UK was conducted online between 21st September – 16th November 2010 through the YouGov panel. Data is weighted to be representative of dog, cat and rabbit owners in the UK.

Yorkshire Dales Dog Owner Appeal

admin — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:31:07 +0000

Dog owners are being asked to take extra care as they walk in the Yorkshire Dales National Park over the next five months.

Alan Hulme, the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s Head of Ranger Services said the breeding season for wildlife and for farm animals is now well underway and dogs can cause long-term damage if they are allowed to roam free.

“This is a very sensitive time for domestic and wild animals – especially ground-nesting birds, for which the Dales are renowned,” he said.

“Although dog owners say their pet never chases or attacks sheep and lambs, some do. In addition, a lot of people don’t appreciate that dogs can cause just as much harm unintentionally by keeping parents away from their young, which leaves eggs, fledglings and lambs vulnerable.

“Dog owners are entitled to keep their pets off the lead on public paths although they must keep them under close control. But we would ask them to be on the safe side by keeping their pets on a lead in an effort to reduce the risk of wildlife and farm animals being unintentionally disturbed at this crucial time.”

The Countryside Code contains some simple rules that pet owners must remember, the most important being that, in most areas of open country and common land – known as 'access land' – you must keep your dog on a short lead between 1 March and 31 July, and all year round near farm animals.

National Park Rangers and National Park Centre staff are only too happy to give advice to anyone who is concerned about going into area that may be used as a breeding ground by wild animals.

More information about the Countryside Code can be found on the National Park website at www.yorkshiredales.org.uk.

Urgent Appeal to Find Killers of Kerry the Greyhound

admin — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 11:36:42 +0000

Time is running out to track down the callous 'owners' who threw an emaciated dead female greyhound into a bin – that was subsequently dumped in a Norfolk street.

Please click here for full details of how you can help

greytexploitations.com/resources-and-reports/kerry-an-appeal-to-find-her-killers

Animal Welfare Event Breaks Record

admin — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:37:29 +0000

The Association of Dogs and Cats Homes Conference (ADCH) has attracted the highest attendance in the conference’s 12 year history.

Chaired by Dogs Trust’s Chief Executive, Clarissa Baldwin, and hosted by Cats Protection, the ADCH brings together dog and cat welfare organisations to share best practice and further improve the help given to over 250,000 unwanted animals in the UK. During the conference, delegates heard presentations on a range of issues such as animal hoarding and abandonment, alongside talks on fundraising, the law and digital communications.

Clarissa Baldwin, Dogs Trust’s Chief Executive, said: “It was an absolute privilege to see a packed auditorium with over 320 delegates at this year’s conference. We are enormously grateful to all of our speakers for contributing such insightful and relevant presentations. This conference has become a valuable forum for like-minded people to come together to learn and share best practice in animal welfare. We hope to top this success next year.”

Nick Edmans, Cats Protection’s Director of Communications added:

“I’d like to thank the sponsors, trade exhibitors and delegates for helping to make this the biggest ADCH conference yet, and hope they found the presentations interesting and thought-provoking. Ultimately, the ideas shared at the conference will help to improve the skills and knowledge of ADCH members, and improve the care and adoption of unwanted cats and dogs.”

The ADCH Conference is held on an annual basis, and next year’s conference will be hosted by the Kennel Club. Membership of the ADCH is open to charities and not for profit organisations of all sizes, regardless of scale and turnover. For further information, please visit www.adch.org.uk.

Deceptive Pet Cremation Services Targeted

admin — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 10:13:38 +0000

The Pet Cremation Alliance offers resources to help families and professionals.

The newly formed Pet Cremation Alliance (PCA) is determined to bring scrutiny to the many and varied practices in the pet cremation industry. With no government regulations in place and concerning a topic some would prefer to not talk about, too many pet crematoriums operate in a manner that might shock the pet loving public.

This week the PCA launched their web site PetCremationAlliance.org with the goal of educating the public and pet care professionals. The site calls special attention to the definitions of key industry terms. The same terms that, in many cases, disreputable cremation providers manipulate and misrepresent. The result is that grieving pet parents are not receiving the service they expect for their deceased animal companion.

Promising a major announcement on the evening of March 27th 2012 that will permanently hamper the ability of disreputable pet cremation providers to engage in unethical practices, the PCA is poised to rattle the industry and hopes to enlighten everyone that cares about their animal companions.

Sharing of the address for the PCA web site petcremationalliance.org is encouraged by any and all that care about animals and their families. Those facing the loss of a companion animal should avail themselves of the resources on the site to ensure they do not become a victim.

First Puppy Farming Conference Announced

admin — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:27:54 +0000

On Saturday 31st March 2012, some the UK dog world’s most respected names are gathering in Gregynog Hall in Powys, to speak at the first Conference on Puppy Farming in Wales, hosted by C.A.R.I.A.D. (Care And Respect Includes All Dogs).

The keynote speaker is Professor Sheila Crispin who will discuss why puppies cannot be farmed. Professor Crispin Chairs the Advisory Council on the Welfare Issues of Dog Breeding.

Other veterinary professionals speaking on the day include noted veterinary surgeon and animal behaviourist Kendal Shepherd, animal welfare scientist Rowena Packer, and Dr Muriel Brasseur who is animal behaviourist and zoologist at Oxfordshire Animal Behaviour Centre. Representing the welfare issues associated with uncovering what really goes on in puppy farms is the founder of Puppy Love Campaigns Veronica Lambert, and discussing the rescue and rehabilitation challenges of ex puppy farm dogs will be Eileen Jones who is the founder of Friends of the Animals RCT.

Founder of C.A.R.I.A.D. Linda Goodman is covering the topic of mixed media messages and the public confusion that results. The conference is not an awareness exercise in what puppy farming is all about.

Those attending are all too aware of what it entails. But each speaker is coming at the subject from a different perspective and has years of experience to share with their audience. The objective being that a stronger and more united strategy will come from the one-day event and that this message will be more easily assimilated into the public arena across all areas of animal welfare.

Tickets for the one-day conference, sponsored by ecotricity, are a very reasonable £45 which includes morning coffee, lunch and afternoon tea in the beautiful surroundings of Gregynog Hall.

Tickets are available by emailing cariadevents2011-campaign@yahoo.co.uk before 15th March 2012.

For more information on the conference agenda visit: cariadcampaign.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/the-first-wales-puppy-farming-conference-31-march-2011-book-now/ For more information about the work of C.A.R.I.A.D. visit: www.cariadcampaign.wordpress.com

Pedigree Dogs Exposed 2 – Dogs Trust Responds

admin — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 10:28:17 +0000

Pedigree Dogs Exposed 2 is the much anticipated follow up to the original Pedigree Dogs Exposed documentary by Jemima Harrison.

Dogs Trust, the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, commends the BBC for further highlighting the health and welfare problems affecting pedigree dogs.

Dogs Trust feels that there is still extensive work to be done to protect the future health of pedigree dogs. Most importantly, it is vital to establish and collate sufficient data on the prevalence of hereditary diseases in dogs to determine the scale of the problem and what needs to be done on a breed by breed basis. The veterinary profession has its part to play in better surveillance and reporting of genetic problems.

Dogs Trust Chief Executive, Clarissa Baldwin OBE, comments:

“While some headway has been made by breeders and The Kennel Club to put beauty on the back burner and review breed standards to prioritise the health and welfare of our dogs, there is still a lot to be achieved. We believe it is unacceptable for dogs with breathing problems to be held up as a pinnacle for good breeding at shows. We would like to see a further review of breed standards to ensure that they are firmly focused on the health and wellbeing of the dog and for breeders and show judges to adhere to these revised breed standards.

While educating breeders and consumers is part of the answer, legislation to guard against irresponsible breeding practices is also needed. Dogs Trust would like the government to introduce legislation to help prevent inappropriate breeding practices, particularly the intentional inbreeding of closely related dogs or those with known debilitating genetic illnesses.

We are pleased that this documentary has drawn attention to the unscrupulous breeders who fall under the radar of regulation and churn out puppies for profit with little or no regard for their welfare or the breeding bitches left behind to continue the cycle. Dogs Trust has long been calling on the government to strengthen the Breeding and Sale of Dogs Act to tackle this issue. We urgently need to see the full force of the law applied to breeders who allow their breeding stock to continue to have litters when scientific knowledge has determined that their stock is unhealthy.

There needs to be more investment in education, not only for breeders but, crucially for prospective puppy buyers to understand how to buy a dog responsibly and the questions they need to ask of breeders to help secure the future health of our dogs.

Dogs do so much for humans – it is time we put our investment back in ensuring their health and well being.”

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