Puppy Awareness Week!

Source: The Kennel Club.

My apologies for the late notice but for those of you who don't already know we are half way through The Kennel Club's National Puppy Awareness Week!

PAW is running from 8th to 15 September and aims to help ensure that a dog is for life.  Dogs all over the country are ending up in rescue homes due to the fact that people are buying the wrong dog for their lifestyle from the wrong breeder.  The Kennel Club states that there are 210 breeds of dog as well as many crossbreeds, all have very different needs.  Pedigree dogs are bred to have predictable traits and characteristics and by doing some simple research it is easy to find a dog that is best suited to your lifestyle.

Thinking of getting a dog?  Find out which breed is best suited to you.

KC research has shown that in 2011 as many as one in four people could potentially have bought their puppy from a puppy farm without even knowing.  As you already know if you are a regular reader of this blog, puppies on puppy farms are born to overused and abused dogs that are kept in horrendous conditions.  Puppy farmers place health and welfare beneath their greed, as far as they are concerned: more puppies = more money.

Beware of puppies advertised in free ads (Gumtree for example), sold over the internet or in pet shops and are collected by buyers from neutral locations such as service stations, or delivered direct.  Always ask Where's Mum? 

KC encourages people to always go to a member of the Kennel Club Assured Breeder Scheme, members of this scheme are the only breeders in the country who agree to follow high standards for caring for the health and welfare of their pups and who agree to allow a KC inspector access to their premises.  If you are looking for a rescue dog, use the Kennel Club Rescue Dog Directory to find a Breed Rescue or another rescue home.

Other recommended rescues include:

Battersea Dogs & Cats Home

RSPCA

Dogs Trust

Mayhew Animal Home

The Kennel Club is asking people to:

Show your support for Puppy Awareness Week here by printing off posters, leaflets and stickers and spreading the word.

Paul O'Grady: For The Love Of Dogs

Finally a reason to look forward to Mondays!

I was blown away by the first episode of Paul O’Grady: For the Love of Dogs shown last night at 8pm on ITV 1.  Much loved comedian, television presenter, actor, writer, radio DJ and passionate dog lover Paul was absolutely fantastic as he investigated just what it takes to look after the thousands of dogs travelling through Battersea Dogs and Cats Home every year.

ITV are finally showing a responsible prime time animal programme in this seven part series showing Paul O’Grady getting to know both the dogs and the staff at Battersea.  Each episode is 30 minutes long and the series promises to be humorous, emotional and inspiring as Paul gets involved with everything from cleaning kennels to rehoming dogs.  Last night’s episode hilariously saw him grilling Radio DJ Neil Fox who wanted to adopt a puppy even going so far as to ask him if there was any chance the family could be expecting a baby!

Heartbreaking scenes in last nights episode featured a young Staffordshire Bull Terrier, christened “Sparkles” by staff, who was thankfully rescued after being deliberately starved and abandoned in a London park.  Paul quite rightly exclaimed “And they call us a nation of animal lovers!”  After miraculously surviving her first night at Battersea and being fed little and often, Sparkles was on the road to recovery.  I am sure that the little beauty won many hearts last night, her beautiful eyes glistened with love, trust and hope despite the horrific treatment she had received.  Her tail didn’t stop wagging and she soon transformed from an emasculated downtrodden pup to a happy, healthy and boisterous Staffie who was swiftly rehomed as soon as she was given a clean bill of health.

Paul spent just over two months at our London centre and got to know everyone here at Battersea. He says: “This has been one of the nicest jobs I've ever had. Everybody knows Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, it’s one of the jewels in London’s crown and it’s a joy to be there; I feel so at home. I’m hoping that people will watch this programme and see what a happy, professional environment it is. There is humour, sadness, pathos, genuine concern – it’s going to be different to everything else that’s on the telly.”

(Source)

Catch up with this weeks show on ITV Player and catch all subsequent episodes each Monday at 8pm on ITV 1.

Follow Battersea Dogs and Cats Home on Twitter @BDCH and become a fan on Facebook.

What did you think of the show?

Joining forces for people and dogs

The

Happy December!

The RSPCA have joined forces with 19 organisations all in agreement that the UK government must do something about the irresponsible owners of dogs who are considered dangerous.  This 20-strong partnership including organisations such as the Dogs Trust, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, the Police Federation and the Royal Mail Group are urging the government to consider the following laws:

·   Ensure dog owners take responsibility for their pet’s behaviour

·   Improve both public safety and animal welfare

·   Require micro-chipping for all dogs

·   Increase education and engagement to prevent problems.

The measures listed about are aiming to protect people and dogs and could save the country around £75 million a year in health costs.

Please sign this petition on Prime Minister David Cameron’s official website which could ignite a debate in the House of Commons.  

The RSPCA are aiming for 100,000 signatures so please share this with your friends on Facebook and Twitter as much as you can.

Thank you.