Pup Aid 2013

Yesterday my gang and I went to Primrose Hill charity dog show to support Pup Aid 2013. We didn't participate in the show, but my doggies were happy to get attention from various people and we had a fun and exhausting day. Rosie was especially wiggly, she saw the show ring and thought it was all about her again and she was a star! She had to settle for cuddles and treats from kids so she calmed down eventually. She was still my number one star even though we met some "proper" celebrities.

Pup Aid was founded in 2010 by TV vet Marc Abraham to stop the puppy farming in UK. Puppy farming is a huge problem, so one aim of Pup Aid is to educate animal lovers and future dog buyers to never buy the pets from a shop, or buy it from websites that will deliver the pet to you.

Puppy farm dogs are usually kept in horrific conditions, they are forced to stay in small confined spaces where they eat and defecate, no socialisation whatsoever and are often riddled with illnesses and other medical conditions.

Most people are not aware of this when they see a cute puppy in a pet shop. They see a pup with its big sad eyes and feel sorry for it and want to save it. Unfortunately saving that one pup is the wrong way to go about it, it just fuels the puppy millers to supply even more puppies for sale in pet shops.

As those poor pups are often separated very early from their mums, they are very likely to suffer from diseases and on top of that you won't see people who run puppy mills doing any health testing as that would eat into profit.

After all, these dogs are not seen as pets, they are seen as commodity that makes the puppy miller money. They won't have necessary vaccines, worming, vet check and I won't even talk about them having a good start in life by being handled gently by humans, socialised with children and adults in all shapes and sizes, accustomed to the sounds of modern life. The less these pups have socialisation and adequate medical care when really small, the more you are likely to inherit problems when grown up.
Yes dogs in pets shops are often cheaper than when buying from a responsible breeder, but that's a false economy. You'll end up spending thousands on their care and some will end up in shelters.

I've seen some ex breeding bitches yesterday and I could not stop crying. And those were the lucky ones that managed to get a normal life in the end with someone who cared about them, but what about so many that are still foced to mate every heat and until old and then discarded?
It's heartbreaking.

So what can you do to avoid buying a pet from a puppy farm?

- Never buy a dog from pet shop. Period.

- Try and get a rescue dog from shelter.

- If rescue dogs are unsuitable as most of them will come with some sort of problems that some people are not able to deal with, then find a responsible breeder.

- Research the breed you are interested in.

- Kennel club has its own assured breeder scheme which is not brilliant - for example Coton de Tulear do not need any health tests and KC relies on clubs to suggest which tests, if any, should be done. Anyone who has bred one litter and pays for membership can apply to be an assured breeder. Some breeders get visits from Kennel club, some don't.

- Call the breeders on the phone. Interview them. They should be interviewing you too if they care about the welfare of their puppies.

- Try and visit the breeder's home, see where the puppies are kept, is it clean, where is their mum? Dads are not always present as many breeders seek studs from elsewhere, but if dad is kept at home, get to see him.

- Once you find the breeder that you like, be prepared to wait for the puppy.

- Ask what happens if you want to return the puppy if things don't work out? Most responsible breeders will be happy to take the puppy back.

- Be suspicious if the breeder has more than two breeds and ones who have puppies all the time.

- Kennel Club allows breeders in UK to only register four litters per year, anyone producing more needs to seek a licence from the council, hence the 'licenced breeder' which is nothing else but a high volume breeder. Might not be a puppy mill, but know the difference.

For more details and help and to sign a petition please check out the http://www.pupaid.org/