Tag Archives: UK

Calling Out the Big Dogs in Rescue : Underdogs Dig Up the Truth

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I grew up watching Pet Rescue and dreaming of growing up to be an RSPCA officer, driving around answering calls to rescue and save neglected, abused and abandoned dogs all across the UK. I sponsored a dog for The Dog’s Trust for 5 years and I signed and shared every PETA issue i came across as well as using the PDSA charity shops and buying the Battersea Dogs and Cats home Christmas cards and books. These organisations were my hero’s and i thought they were the angels for animals. Having now been running a small rescue for 3 years slap bang in the middle of the UK, I have been enlightened.

I wondered how it was possible for all these phone calls, emails, social media tags and poundie requests that were flooding in, to be asking for my help when i was nothing but a small group of experienced volunteers and our own homes. The shocking moment i first heard the words: “and the RSPCA won’t help” or “The Dog’s Trust won’t take him/her” i was confused and actually didn’t believe these people had approached the organisations. Until i began getting the same phone calls from other rescues seeking support or veterinary centres with animals dumped on them.

So what is going on out here in the secret underworld of rescue? It appears to have turned into a corporate and political trolling nightmare with the root ethos of helping dogs in need being completely forgotten by the larger organisations that are receiving the majority of the public’s monetary support and have access to the best resources and facilities.

The RSPCA
In 2012 former RSPCA employee’s; inspector (2008-2010) Dawn Aubrey-Ward, vet of 12 years David Smith and manager (1990 – 2000) Egan Ravenscroft, gave the newspapers an expose on the organisation claiming that inspectors themselves were reluctant to take animals back to headquarters in fear the charity would deem their needs too costly or time consuming and euthanise the animal. The charity has lost it’s original cause and is no longer helping vulnerable people and their pets choosing instead to focus their efforts on prosecutions of animal cruelty cases as well as political and legislative changes.

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In 2013 they received around £105.4 million, in 2016 the RSPCA received a whopping £143.5 million in donations and legacies and spent £123 million, with £77.5 million on animal care and inspectors, £2.9 million going on campaigns and promotions, and £8.2 million on prosecutions. They “collected” (notice the use of this word oppose to “rescue”) 8,009 dogs in this financial year, but in 2015 it was discovered that they actually put to sleep 46% of all animals they take in and admitted 3,400 had been euthanised wrongly due to a lack of shelter space. They claim those euthanised under “behavioral issues” were never going to be adopted and had little to no quality of life in kennels. Perhaps the RSPCA should consider putting more effort into their training, handlers and care policies and procedures to actually rehabilitate these dogs they have collected up?

They rehomed 10,000 less animals than the year before yet had an increase of 20% in prosecution cases. Surely with all these donations and over £20 million left over in the bank, the RSPCA can more than afford to build and maintain an extra centre or 2 to create space for these dogs? Well they pledged to join the ‘No Kill’ movement by the end of 2017 and never unnecessarily put down an animal again due to spacial or minor behavioural issues so lets hope that is their plan with all that spare cash.

rspca costs stats.jpg

Now I think we all know that sadly animal cruelty is on a disturbing rise in the UK and this could account for the significant increase in the RSPCA prosecution figures, this alongside the fact that they are the sole authority for seizing and prosecuting cruelty cases, as the local police and councils are both simultaneously too busy and not interested. In 2016, pro hunt and mass production farming MP’s attempted to strip the RSPCA of their power of authority to prosecute cruelty cases, most probably with the intentions to protect their own interests. Whilst the RSPCA might not be perfect, i think we can all agree that it is a dog-send the MP’s did not win that battle.

On the flip side though, another story released in 2012 told of how the late Mr David Brown left his cottage and small adjacent nature reserve to the RSPCA with the “wish” for them to maintain it for the foxes, badgers, hedgehogs and squirrels living there whom he used to keep safe and feed by hand. The RSPCA chose to instead go through a legal loop hole where Mr Brown had not made it a ‘legal condition’, so they sold it to developers The Emerson Group who promptly bulldozed the area killing the animals, destroying their habitat and 6 trees including 2 large oak trees. The RSPCA made £295,000 from this sordid deal.

 

If you google ‘RSPCA Scandal’ you will be overwhelmed by stories of elderly or vulnerable adults having their animals removed for minor misdemeanours or simple lack of education and knowledge. The UK’s favourite animal charity with its expensive TV adverts and Channel 5’s show The Dog Rescuers is trying to maintain it’s loved reputation but as more stories and statistics come to light, it will have an uphill struggle.

The Blue Cross & Battersea Dogs and Cats Home
The Blue Cross is another interesting contender amongst the Big Dog’s of rescue, with 7,500 dogs rescued in 2014 and 525 of them were put to sleep. The Blue Cross works with local councils to take in strays and have an obligation to make space as other council contracted kennels do. Battersea Dogs (and Cats Home) took in 5000 dogs and put to sleep over 1200 of them, that is a 34% euthanasia rate, a third of the dogs they have come in killed due to a lack of space for their council contracted strays as well as the dogs they deem unadoptable due to “behavioural and temperamental” issues.

Battersea Dogs Home had an income in 2016 of £36,716,707 and had total funds of £72,828,752 as well as celebrity endorsement and the ITV show Paul O’Grady’s For the Love of Dog’s. 

Birmingham Dog’s Home
Our local big dog, Birmingham Dog’ Home (BHD), recently took a hard hit after it was discovered to have around £1 million of legacies embezzled by its financial director Simon and his partner, Adele. The scandal shook the nation and certainly the rescue world as for a few months the donations certainly dried up as their was a huge drought of trust.

 

However, this is not my biggest issue with this particular big dog… BHD does not neuter any of it’s dogs, it also has a high euthanasia rate deeming dogs unadoptable with little effort to change that. They also strictly keep to a policy of only taking in strays when they can to increase their revenue from council contracts. I myself have had to take a dog there (once and never again!) when Broken Souls Rescue was full, the RSPCA had refused to get involved in removing a dog from a house where the owner had been taken into hospital terminally ill. BDH wrote down on the intake slip that the dog was a stray and then when it was later discovered by senior staff he wasn’t i received a rude phone call. I later found out the dog in question was put to sleep for “behavioural reasons”.

PETA
‘People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ or PETA as they are ‘affectionately’ known, are the baddest of the big bad wolves. With some of the most graphic advertising campagin’s, known for using pictures out of context and violent, forceful protests that usually endanger the animals they are supposedly trying to protect. They receive over $33 million per year in donations to fund their extremist and usually criminal activist’s. They actually strategically employ people who fail or score lowest on animal warden and inspector tests to work in their “shelters” to ensure no conflict from staff over their actions.

Most animals are euthanised within 24 hours of entering a PETA institution with more money going towards running the freezers for storing the deceased bodies than on animal care and welfare. They rehome just 1% of animals they “rescue”, putting to sleep 99% with no adoption open hours or promotions. Their facilities do not even meet national minimum standards for animal housing facilities with cramped cages, lack of bedding, no staff on weekends or bank holidays (meaning no food or water) and animals suffering of horrific diseases or injuries are left to die slowly and alone on a hard cage floor. In 2015 alone they are known to have killed at least 29, 426 cats and dogs.

The Dog’s Trust
My preferential Big Dog of the pack, The Dog’s Trust has mostly fantastic policies and procedures when compared to the rest… They rehomed 13,067 dogs in 2016 and put to sleep 270 claiming they “…never put a healthy dog down”. In 2016 they received £98.4 million and spent £86.1 million and put the rest to good use of beginning the building a new centre and £46.1 million went direct to the dogs and their welfare which is over 50%. They also have a strict neutering policy, run free microchipping events, good dog citizenship training groups and education courses in schools for the next generation. They run the most wonderful dog fostering program for victims of domestic violence and offer pre-booked safety for your pet when you pass away. They gave us the phrase “a Dog is For Life Not Just For Christmas” …but when you have as much influence and resources as they do, being the best of the worst just isn’t good enough.

 

The Dog’s Trust have some minor customer service issues they need to iron out as I’ve had adopters come to Broken Souls complaining about having thought they’d reserved a dog only to turn up and discover it has already been adopted out! However, this really isn’t my complaint, i’m more bothered by their stance on puppy sales. In 2017, The Dogs Trust and the Blue Cross opposed a complete ban on third party puppy sales which would have enforced only licensed breeders to be selling puppies ensuring the welfare of breeding bitches and their pups. The Dog’s Trust and Blue Cross were quoted to have opposed the idea claiming it would push puppy farming further underground akin to that of drugs with the welfare of mum, dad and pups being at more severe risk. It is slightly questionable that the dogs trust were happy to take in 330 foreign puppies seized as illegal on UK borders and reap the benefits of the publicity and adoptions fees they generate.

 

My last complaint to the Dog’s Trust is their stance on intake of particular breeds. Whilst they claim to have no official limit or policy on in-taking certain breeds or quantities of some breeds, they do state that they: “do seek to ensure that our centres do not become full of any one particular breed”. We believe at Broken Souls Rescue that our resources should be foccused on the breeds in need, if that means we have 99% staffies in our kennels so be it. The country unfortunately follows fashions with it’s pet types like it does with anything else, one minute it’s all staffies, then lurchers, then husky and akita types…. The resources should be where they are needed, not dispersed to ensure an aesthetically pleasing kennel.

Summary
I’m almost certain some of these statistics and facts will have shocked you but the fact of the matter is the public is blind to what is really going and keeps throwing money at the wrong organisations whose original intentions have long been forgotten. CEO’s, directors and managerial wages as well as promotional financing is a waste of donations when the smaller, no-kill rescues across the country are scrambling to pay their veterinary and boarding bills.

The UK councils put down around 18 dogs every day. Last year 3463 healthy dogs were put down unclaimed with no rescue space offer. The council contracted kennels that take in strays often disguised as re-homing centres, only receive financial aid for the first 8 days, it is then the kennels responsibility to care for these dogs, or alternatively choose to put them to sleep. The Blue Cross and Battersea both have contracts with their local UK council’s and are obliged to make quick turn over of dogs or make space by which ever means necessary.

After dogs in need Broken Souls Rescue have had no space for have been turned away by ALL the above mentioned rescues, deemed as unadoptable due to their size, breed or training issues, i can no longer vouch for them with pure heart. I have no doubt all their hands on, genuine, animal-loving staff and inspectors go into the job with the same ideals and disillusionment i myself had not so long ago and i am not slating them personally. I have dealt with hoarding, neglect, abandonment and cruelty cases that the above Big Dogs have refused to even acknowledge. I have no kennels and an average of jut £17k income of donations and adoption fees per year. We put to sleep an average of 3 animals per year and rescue over 150.

Broken Souls Rescue is currently working towards building our own centre and growing from UnderDog to Leader of the Pack. To donate towards our funds for our own kennel premises please go to: http://www.paypal.me/brokensoulsrescue or transfer directly to Lloyds TSB Broken Souls Rescue Ac: 28807262 Sc: 30-92-33

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It’s a Dog Eat Dog World: International Rescue Dog’s in the UK

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Every Life Matters.

This is a fact not an opinion and before a mob chase me down with pitch forks i completely appreciate that the amount of dogs abroad facing life on the streets or in a “shelter” (where the conditions are often more appalling than the streets themselves) is significantly larger than here in the UK. I cry at every YouTube or The Dodo video i come across that is showcasing an extreme case that breaks my heart as much as the dogs in our own rescue.

conditions
So why are all these dog lovers and rescuers kicking up a fuss about dogs being rescued from abroad and coming into the UK?

Well for starters in 2016 the average amount of dogs put to sleep every day in the UK was 18, hence #18DogsADayUK, now in 2017 that average is 19 per day. 19 dogs being needlessly euthanised on a daily basis because there are no available rescue spaces, adoptive families or responsible owners. UK rescues are scrambling for foster families and kennel space as it, so surely it is irresponsible for us as a country to begin committing ourselves to saving the lives of dogs from abroad when almost 20 dogs here in the UK already are still being killed everyday?

However, this can and usually does, lead to a lengthy, volatile and deeply political debate that takes tangents like a firework and leaves a group of once-friends-dog-rescuers in an angry-no-longer-speaking-dispute. So a reason we can all agree on: the spread of disease. In the last 2 years the UK has seen a significant increase in reported fatal canine diseases such as Parvovirus and the newly arrived CRGV aka. Alabama Rot. The dogs from abroad are rarely vaccinated, do not go through proper quarantining and many become sick during travel. They then immediately join their new foster or adopting family who unknowingly spread the disease like wildfire.

alabama rot map 2

An often overlooked factor is the lack of Home Checks for the adoptive families taking on these dogs. To adopt a dog from abroad with an extreme story of abuse or neglect has become somewhat of a strange fashion for social media posting and general attention seekers. The fees to adopt from abroad are often triple those of the UK rescues due to transport fees, however, there are many who ship the animals en mass and raise the funds online for transport making adoption fees much lower. This attracts an unsavoury type of adopter who may take dogs on for puppy farming, dog fighting and bait dogs. It also means any well meaning but utterly clueless family can adopt any dog without even meeting first and having no option but to take their new friend home from the airport with them.

Last but not least, these dogs often arrive into the country with behavioral issues that may not have been fully or even remotely disclosed to the unwitting but charitable family. 100’s of these dogs are now being seen being sold online or given away for free, or more often that not, end up in the UK pounds and rescues. They have no “rescue back up” (or RBU to those in the biz), so when the family can no longer cope with the dog; there is no team of staff to support with training or finding a new foster or adoptive home. The already swamped rescue system in the UK is involuntarily taking on an international animal rescue crisis.

dogs intnl.

Now of course there are good international rescues that usually have their team here in the UK, ready and on call to support fosters, home check adopters and ensure things run properly with correct isolation and vaccination procedures. These guys are doing an amazing job and with them i have no qualms.

Please remember to #AdoptDontShopt #StopPuppyFarming and #EndBSL

To support our work at Broken Souls Rescue saving poundies from deathrow please visit: www.broken-souls-rescue.org/donate.html 

Dog Training Methods: Cesar Millan vs. Victoria Stilwell

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There is an international dog training dispute going on that has been rumbling away in the background of the canine community for years. If you work in the canine industry or just really love dogs, there is a chance you watch some form of dog themed TV show, as more and more documentaries, welfare series and training reality shows hit our screens.

So what the real arguments revolve around is the difference in ethical opinion between the use of positive and negative reinforcement methods in dog training.
1)Positive reinforcement is the training of specific behaviours through rewarding the desired action.
2) Negative reinforcement is the training of behaviours through making an undesirable behaviour ‘uncomfortable’ or through a form of punishment. 

Now personally as a dog trainer, i have watched both Animal Planet’s “The Dog Whisperer” and Channel 4’s “It’s Me or the Dog” observing the common but effective methods utilised by both trainers. Now many trainers out there are just as good as those who have their own TV shows, but the effectiveness of any tool or method is the way in which it is carried out, this is where most dog owners find themselves dumbfounded as they copy these TV techniques and yet still fail to see any improvement in their dog’s behaviour. Any form of training strategy, if done incorrectly, can cause more damage than good.

Cesar Millan is often trashed in the canine world as intimidating with a style of training and thinking from cave man days. His dominant methods of becoming the ‘pack leader’ are labelled as old school and his frequent use of the ‘touch’ is thought of as abusive. His steps of often triggering the behaviour that requires rehabilitating can be perceived as over bearing and almost in the dogs face. He is seen as a trainer who uses negative reinforcement by forcing the dogs to become submissive.

Victoria Stilwell uses positive reinforcement through and through with clicker training, treats, toy drive, distraction and other such techniques. Since moving to the USA she has become involved with other dog TV and media such as USA Dogs, America’s Greatest Dog and of course It’s Me or the Dog USA. Positive training method use is her mission in life with her website even being http://www.positively.com. However, the case studies that Victoria publicly handles could arguably be called less severe in comparison to Cesar and on frequent occasions i have felt she could have assessed the family and owners more thoroughly and done more to change the human’s behaviour to make more of positive impact on the dogs training. I also feel that perhaps as we have seen no evidence yet, she would not be able to rehabilitate a human aggressive dog.

As a private and rescue dog trainer what do i think?

I see every kind of behavioural issue from simple lead pulling on a walk and jumping up to severe fear trauma, dog and people aggression. I find that in most cases, the root problem is fear, insecurity or learnt behaviour. The psychology of a dog versus dog training is where i find these lines can cross when rehabilitating a dog, because a dog’s basic psychology comes down to pack hierarchy and instinct. In severe cases where for example a dog has become human aggressive and a trainer must gain this dog’s trust and respect to begin to work with it, i feel some of Cesar’s alpha tactics could have the upper hand. Whilst i would always try to sit next to the dog (with a form of barrier of course) and allow the dog to go nuts and then over time calm down as it becomes habituated to me, there are some dogs that just won’t quit or there is no barrier and pen available. In this instance a completely dominant attitude and the approach to follow the dog until it submits is actually very useful and effective. I also feel that the “touch” that is most widely discussed and debated, is only used in situations where the dog is the one first willing to “touch” you, or to put it less subtly, bite. In this case we should look back the dog as an 8 week old puppy, developing its social skills amongst it’s litter mates, playing rough and boisterous. Puppies will bite each other with more malice and a different energy when a sibling causes genuine pain and injury during play to correct them that “this bite was too hard”. By a small sharp touch to the neck and shoulder joint, you are not hurting your dog anymore than a poke to snap their brain from an instinctive train of thought back to reality and inform them that their behaviour is too aggressive. This is not hitting, kicking, beating or smacking a dog, these are abuse. This is synthesising a natural correction in the canine world.

Cesar’s Techniques

Calm and confident energy that releases a leadership role or alpha male, but can be difficult for owners to understand and recreate within themselves.
Not allowing your dog to lead in front on walks or through entry ways.
Ensuring a dog is always invited onto the furniture oppose to when it wishes
His thought process of nose-eyes-ears to appreciate how your dog is perceiving you
His skills of observing and reading a dog’s body language to know when to correct or treat or sit back
Small touch/poke to snap the brain from instinctive thinking in more serious situations such as food or dog aggression.
No touch, no talk, no eye contact to almost immediately resolve bad behaviour with guests.
Use of other dogs or a whole pack to rehabilitate and build confidence, “Power of the Pack.

 Victoria’s Techniques

Food, toy, attention and fuss based rewarding
Fabulous clicker training
Her skills of owner interaction, explanations and education
Experienced and perfected timing of rewards
Application of consistency, patience and routine
Use of activities to build confidence
Use of techniques and tools that with practice anyone can mirror.

As a dog trainer for the every day owner; i feel that Victoria Stilwell wins the debate here, she has a more approachable persona and better skills at explaining how she does things and really educating owners. She instils a new way of thinking within the household and highlights the importance of consistency whilst using tools that can cause minimal damage whilst owners get to grips with the technique. Her methods can be learnt by anyone who really wants to train their dog with ease where as Cesar’s energy cannot be replicated so easily and once back in the owners presence it is often the case that the dog reverts back to it’s old negative behaviours. However it should be noted that when Cesar does make an effort with the owners themselves to teach them how to properly utilise his methods, he can really make a significant difference in that human’s overall confidence and life attitude.

Cesar fascinates me and will always have my support because of his deep understanding of canine psychology and his learnt connection with dogs. His ability to accurately read a dogs body language and to adjust his own so as to carry out a silent conversation is amazing and can have such positive effects on those dogs that are shut down or are on a completely basic level of social skills. It cannot be said at all that Cesar Millan is in anyway cruel, although he may appear forceful and not be to everyone’s liking. Cesar is simply adapting techniques that canines would show every day in a pack in the wild or with their mother and litter mates, so that he may connect with and utilise the natural behaviour instincts and canine psychology to make the greatest impact in each rehabilitation he embarks upon. His methods if performed incorrectly, (as has been done by many wanna-be trainers), could be seen as cruel and abuse but this is because ignorant people confuse the difference between the dog being responsive due to fear or due to respect…

Each dog training endeavour can only be successful if the owners put in the work with patience, persistence, positivity, consistency, calm and basic canine knowledge. In other words; if the owner doesn’t put the work in each and every day, you can’t expect a trainer to make miracles happen. Although you would probably liken my sessions more to that of something Victoria might take part in, it must be noted that in situations where i see an extremely aggressive dog or a dog particularly difficult to understand the root cause, i always think, “Cesar would be able to fix that case…”.

I offer dog training one to one sessions across Coventry and the West Midlands, UK at £20 per session plus £10 travel charge to some outer areas. To book a private session with me or to support the rescue work we carry out please visit: http://www.broken-souls-rescue.org

#EndBSL #18DogsADayUK

3 Amazing Reasons to Neuter Your Dog

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Oh here she goes again, another boring lecture from another animal welfare advocate about getting your dogs reproductive bits removed. Well you can stop rolling your eyes at me because not a day passes that i don’t see a whole pack of dogs with their wedding tackle dangling or in heat when I’m out and about walking the rescue dogs, so clearly some of you haven’t heard yet….

Neuter & Spay: The Basics

Neutering is a general term for the surgical removal of reproductive organs from your pet, spay refers only to the female procedure. Every veterinary surgery across the world offers neutering options and the prices do vary from around £60-£150 (male dogs) £88 – £220 (female dogs). Cats and smaller animals are much cheaper as the surgery tends to take less time and require less anaesthetic drug. Animal charities such as Cats Protection and Dogs Trust (UK) and SPCA (USA) often offer free neuter and spay months or weeks and for those in financial difficulty the PDSA in the UK offers a low cost neuter. If you think these costs are outrageous, let’s see how you feel about the costs of problems that could be found later on in the animal’s life as discussed below…

The Surgery

The surgery for your pet doesn’t actually take that long and is a routine operation with minimum risks unless your pet has underlying medical issues which may be affected by anaesthetic. A sedative is given which takes around 5-8 minutes to kick in and then your pet will be shaved in the area of the operation to avoid any hair making the surgical site dirty. A male dogs surgery will take only 20-30 minutes usually as an external removal is much simpler than the female internal organs. The female surgery usually takes around 45 minutes to an hour depending on the size of the dog. Your pet will be observed in their vet kennel as they come round from the surgery and can be picked up just an hour or so post op! A follow up will be required a few days after to check the site for infection and again in 2 weeks to remove stitches. Your dog will probably be sent home with a few days worth of pain killers and either a vet cone or body grow vest.

Ok so why am i telling you to do this?

The Good Bits

  1. Prevents any accidental puppies being brought into the world from risky rendezvous in the dog park and adding to the over population problem. 

2. Prevents multiple types of cancers developing in your dog which are becoming more and more common such as; testicular, ovarian, uterus and cervical. These cancers if left untreated can spread through the hormones, blood and lymph system to grow and could develop into other types such as lung or even bone cancer which will be fatal. 

3. Prevents negative behaviours in both male and females such as: increased energy levels and hyperactivity, possessiveness, territorial, aggressive, resource guarding, humping/sexual behaviour, lack of attention, difficulty training. 

So what are you waiting for? The main culprits of the anti-neuter brigade, and i’m not being sexist i’m being honest, are the men who feel they are being cruel to “take away their man hood” or end their favourite hobby of licking their balls… Well guys if the Big-C wasn’t enough to scare you and you still want to argue that you are a responsible dog owner who will never allow an “accidental litter” to occur, let’s put it like this;

Imagine your dog is allowed to keep his “manhood”, and you are a responsible dog owner who never allows him to mate….Your dog is running around pumped full of hormones and no way of releasing them! You cannot allow  a dog to mate with a spayed female because the female will not feel the urge to mate and therefore you will be technically raping the female dog… There is no justification for allowing your dog to remain un-neutered. Get it done.

balls lick neuter

Many dogs who are found in the county pounds left as unclaimed strays appear to once have been well loved family dogs, and we often wonder why they haven’t been found, what happened? More often than not, after a full vetting, we find the dog is riddled with cancer and instead of the previous owner taking the difficult but responsible road of euthanising or treating the dog, it has been dumped.

18 dogs are euthanised in the pounds alone every day across the UK. Let’s end this now. To support our efforts pulling dogs from deathrow go to http://www.broken-souls-rescue.org

#AdoptdontShop #18DogsADayUK

CRGV (Alabama Rot) – The New Incureable and Unpreventable Deadly Canine Disease

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“Cutaneous and Renal Glomerular Vasculopathy” is otherwise known as CRGV or ‘Alabama Rot’, and is in the simplest terms a disease causing small blood clots to form in the blood vessels of the skin and kidney in dogs. These clots form blockages and damage to both the skin and kidney resulting in ulcerations, lesions and renal failure.

Symptoms are initially thought to be ulcers and lesions on the skin, in particular, the paws, legs, under carriage and mouth and tongue. Now obviously dogs cut their paws and legs running around the park or garden quite often, so let’s not all rush to the vet with every minor skin issue. Other symptoms from more progressed cases are lethargy and tiredness in your dog, a loss of appetite, vomiting in general, diarrhoea and both of the latter may contain blood. However, i feel it is extremely important to note that the skin ulcerations and lesions are not always present! Your dog may just suddenly seem not themselves and begin presenting with bloody fluid from both ends…It is an almost dreaded ‘Parvo’ like disease shutting down the kidney function causing havoc across the entire system of organs. A dog can go downhill in a matter of 12 hours and in 9 out of 10 cases: it is fatal.

alabama rot leison.jpg

So how do you prevent your dog from getting CRGV? Well to be honest; the vets don’t know. There is no vaccine against CRGV currently as the exact cause and specific bacteria causing this outbreak is unknown. The only tips available is to wash your dog down thoroughly after every walk paying attention to the paws and legs and in particular, to dry these areas thoroughly. Other than that, the areas of known cases in the UK is currently at 56 and i suspect many more cases left uncounted.

If your dog appears to be showing signs of or to have contracted CRGV what should you do? Get to your vet. The most important thing is topical treatment of the lesions, IV fluids, nutrients, electrolytes and vitamins as well as glucose. A dog who is not eating and is vomiting and excreting blood needs to be seen immediately to give the dog a chance of fighting off the disease. However, it really needs to be noted here that even once in the care of a vet, they will be dumbfounded as their is no cure or treatment for this disease. Application of antibiotics will negatively influence the already failing renal system and may push the kidney beyond its toxin limit.

There are cases of dogs becoming ill with bloody excretions and vomit across the country with outraged owners suspecting the vaccination “Lepto 4” as the cause. We ourselves as a rescue lost a mama dog and 5 of her 7 puppies and another 4 month old pup to an unknown “infection or disease” that caused loss of appetite and severe sudden weight loss in a matter of 12 hours followed by extreme bloody vomit and blood coming out of the back end like a tap had been turned on…. The antibiotics seemed to make the situation worse and we lost all of them. There was no raised temperature present in any of these cases which would be a usual indicator of infection and illness.

CRGV, Alabama Rot, what ever you wish to call it, is fast becoming a deadly disease with absolutely no information or medical aid to battle it. Anderson Moores Veterinary group are currently the leading UK researchers on it and need urgent funding.

Forget Parvo; CRGV is here UK. RIP Miami who we lost to “Unknown” January 2017.

Miami.jpg

 

The Dog Pound: UK

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We all remember the dog pound from Disney’s “Lady & the Tramp”, the dog catchers portrayed as evil with their catch poles crawling about in their cage van searching for dogs to catch and take back like it was their hobby. A dark and dingy place full of dogs in cold kennels looking sad, lost and alone. The little brown mutt too sad to sing who was crying always made me cry as a child. But having been in the animal industry for 13 years now, i know that the reality of UK dog pounds somewhat brighter, (thank goodness).

ladytpoundcry

Dog wardens in the UK are mostly people who actually adore dogs and want to be first on scene to respond and ensure each animal is treated with dignity and love. They don’t have time to be hunting down hiding doggies to make up their numbers; the kennels are already crammed and the calls keep coming in about stray and dumped dogs. I have also found that dog wardens are very active in the Lost & Found pet world to try and reunite any of their charges with their families outside of their work hours on their own time, and failing this,  they are extremely active in the rescue world, seeking out pound pulling organisations and rescue back ups to take the dogs in when their 7 days are up.

So what are our pounds actually like? Well think of the bottom end of the scale of boarding kennels and you’re pretty much there. UK country dog pounds are a council service or contracted purely for council dog warden intake, and therefore do not often have the biggest resources to be refurbishing their premises or improving their resources. Time is the biggest problem, the staff are usually spread thin keeping a full kennels clean and sanitary with feeding times and daily walks. Luckily, many pounds have volunteers who come in to walk dogs, spend time playing and being affectionate as well as helping to train out any behavioural issues.

Unfortunately, like everything in life, there are pounds who try to make profit from their rehoming services by selecting certain breeds of dog deemed more adoptable to extend their time in the kennels and put other breeds (like the staffy) to sleep without hesitation. Pounds can also be difficult when dealing with rescues trying to pull dogs from death row. Most pounds also won’t work with any rescue that publicly states a dog has been on death row, it says it gives the dog warden service and that particular “rehoming centre” a negative connotation. Posing as a rehoming centre and not allowing true no-kill rescues to be more honest and open about the problem is meaning their is little to no public awareness of the 18 dogs a day issue in the UK.

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So is their really a clock ticking? Yes. Once admitted into the kennel and found to have no chip or not be able to contact the owners or have the dog released to the kennel by the owners; the dog has 7 days to be claimed or bought from the pound. Once the 7 days are up, it is all down to how full the kennels are as to how much extension each dog will get. 99% of the time, the pounds are full. If no rescue steps forward to pull an un-“adopted” dog from death row, the dog will be euthanised via lethal injection. Put to sleep. Killed.

Call it a rehoming centre, a county kennel or a high kill shelter; the pound represents the stray, abandoned, dumped, unwanted dogs of the UK being turned away by large rescues due to their breed and smaller rescues are too full to help. The 18 dogs a day in the UK being killed.

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Dog Death Row…Yes; It’s A Real Thing.

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If you haven’t seen the brutal yet underground documentary “Death Row Dogs”on Netflix yet, i suggest you take a peep to catch just an edited glimpse of the UK’s dog death row situation. The documentary focuses on those dogs who have been reported as “dangerous” to police and are seized for genetic and behavioural testing.

In the UK, should a neighbour or family spat turn sour, no longer is it just the social services being falsely called with reports of addresses to inspect; now your Staffy could be reported for being dangerous or suspected “pit type”. The police must respond to every report, and the manner in which they respond is truly quite horrific and needs some serious revision. Picture a team of 5-10 officers dressed in full riot gear bursting through your front door 10pm at night, shouting, brandishing shields and acting like they’re searching for Osama Bin Laden. You’re dog is separated from you, barking in fear trying to protect you and itself, as they corner it, catch pole in hand. Looped and tightened, you watch screaming in protest as they drag your poor dog down the stairs, out the front and into a dog van where they slam the door shut as if your loving family pet is an alligator.

Where is your dog going? To a concrete kennel block to be kept in isolation for “observation” and DNA testing to determine what percentage is Pit Bull and whether your dog is friendly or not… Disorientated, confused, defensive and with negative connections to these people manhandling them, being kept in quarantine with minimal human contact; what chance does any dog have of passing the test? How would you be affected after 6 months in isolation; could you interact normally? Even if your dog passes this emotional and mental mountain, should it be more than 20% pit bull DNA, it will be euthanised any way. Because of it’s breed. Nothing else.
What world are we living in where a country calls itself an “Animal Loving Nation” yet turn the other cheek to such a horrific system that puts healthy and happy dogs to sleep simply because of their type, or in human terms; race? The UK classes itself as having the best animal rights legislation’s in the world, yet we allow the system to try our canine family members in court because of their heritage, this would be the same as determining without any biological proof that all white people are criminals because of their skin.

This is without even beginning to talk about the pound dogs who have their 7 days to be claimed and removed from kennels by their owners after paying a release (“boarding”) cost. 18 Dogs are euthanised in the UK every day just in the county pounds… yet people continue to breed and buy puppies…

Support our work pulling dogs from UK death-rows, rehabilitating and rehoming them via online donation through PayPal “Friends & Family” to: broken-soulsrescue@outlook.com or visit http://www.broken-souls-rescue.org.

Thank You for your support.

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#18DogsADayUK

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Buster is 10 years old and i have no idea where he has been, what he has seen or how he came to be on deathrow. He has the goofiest face you just want to laugh at and all he wants to do is cuddle up and watch TV. Out and about he has been a perfect gentleman with a particularly gentle nature around children and a playful attitude to other dogs and cats. Why is Buster on deathrow with 1 day left until he will be taken down that hall and “put to sleep” with the subtle pink fluid.

I will never know why Buster was on deathrow, an unclaimed stray, nor Oliver, or Mitch or Cubey or any of the 100’s of others i see everyday in our rescue, in my email inbox, on my facebook wall all desperately begging me for a rescue space. I can’t save them all, we are a small scale rescue after all, but if ignore that email, that post, that voicemail…where will that dog be tomorrow?

How can the UK be so ignorant to not be able to see the severity of this animal overload on the island to continue to breed more puppies and kittens? They will complain about graphic images in social media posts and the never ending plea for donations but they refuse to realise the source: Themselves.

Until we stop treating our loyal canine companions like commodities and possessions we can pick up, throw away and replace the problem will not cease. 18. Eighteen. 18 Dogs are euthanised each day UK. Wake Up!

Please tweet, post, blog but #18DogsADayUK today.

Donate to support our rescue work through PayPal (broken-soulsrescue@outlook.com) or via the website on our contact page.