It's perhaps timely that National Pet Awareness Week is in April. It aims to promote responsible pet ownership, and April is a Month when, certainly for dog owners, there is a greater need than ever for a keen sense of responsibility.
Even if you haven't been following Lambing Live you will doubtless know that this month is the height of the lambing season when thousands of new lambs will be in fields and on open land across the country. Sadly this fact passes many dog owners by who let their dogs stray onto land populated by new lambs. This increasingly has disastrous consequences for farmers and dog owners alike. This Farmers Guardian article uses data from a Freedom of Information request to show that dog attacks on sheep are on the increase.
In our own area we have acres of farmland together with managed moorland. This means that it's not only sheep that are at risk from straying dogs but nesting game birds too. The law provides protection for farmers to destroy animals that interfere with sheep; and gives gamekeepers powers to ban owners who allow their dogs to stray from being on land where there are nesting game birds.
The bottom line is if your dog is not under control in the countryside it could be shot and killed by a farmer quite lawfully.
Our local newspaper, the Oldham Evening Chronicle, reported this story with a shocking photograph not only of dead lambs but the body of the dog responsible for killing them too. It is probable that the dog was a loved family pet whose family never believed could do something like that; but as we've said before: dogs are predators and will act like them out of instinct, no matter what breed or size they are.
The law is also clear that in open country dogs must be on a lead no longer than 2 metres between 1st March and 31st July. There is a good leaflet produced by the Forestry Commission that explains the law on dogs and the countryside here.
So, lets keep our dogs safe and respect farmers' stock, and nesting birds.
The relationships we have with our pets sometimes we mean we forget their value in financial terms. This makes the tragedy of having a loved pet stolen even greater when it happens.
This week is National Pet Theft Awareness Week, aimed at helping us to take common sense precautions to combat the increasing number of thefts of dogs and cats.
Sadly it is not only the expensive pedigree dogs and cats that are stolen. A number of dogs are stolen to use, horrifically, to use as bait dogs for the sick people who still think dog fighting is an acceptable pastime.
If you saw the first episode of Dangerous Dogs this week you'll know how some unscrupulous people see what, to a dog lover, is a valued family member, as little more than a commodity to be traded.
Many dogs are stolen when unattended from gardens, so there are obvious steps we can take to ensure this doesn't happen. There are also other ways we can ensure that, if pets are stolen, they have the best chance of being reunited with their owners:
- Microchipping - ensure pets are chipped and registered: if your pet is scanned by a vet your details will be displayed as the owner
- Secure your garden - not only so your dog can't escape, but so people cannot have easy access
- If your dog goes missing, quickly get the word out on social media - at least two stolen dogs have been recovered recently when social media made them 'too hot to handle'
- Ensure that the national lost/found dogs database - DogsLostUK - is updated with your details
- Make sure that the professionals who help you care for your animals are trusted, have references and a good reputation.
The aim of National Pet Theft Awareness Week is to give us all the best chance to make sure our loved pets are never stolen, or if it does happen to make sure we are equipped to give us the best chance at getting them back quickly.
You can find out more about protecting your pets and how to use social media to spread the word about stolen or lost pets here.
Watching one of our own Collies stalking crows in a field near us you could be forgiven for thinking you were watching a Lioness stalking a Gazelle in a David Attenborough documentary. As he flattened himself to the floor and inched closer it was easy to see his predatory instincts at work, even if he never catches his prey and comes back wagging his tail, looking mightily pleased with himself.
At Animal Assistance we walk two Chihuahuas. There's no getting away from it, they are incredibly cute. Yet see them with the other dogs in the group we walk and you are left in no doubt that they are absolutely dogs, as they hold their own and put the other dogs in their place.
The point is, and a point that people often forget, dogs are at heart predators with the equipment and instincts of predators.
Today on the news was a report of another tragedy involving a dog. Doubtless there will be a resurgence of debate about dangerous breeds and dog control legislation, yet the proper response is to realise it's often not about the dog.
We promote responsible dog ownership and expect the dogs we walk to have the basics of good behaviour. We work with our customers to make sure their dogs have the groundings of training they need to be well socialised and well behaved.
In light of the most recent tragedy there is good advice about dog behaviour available on line, but we recommend dog training for any dog owner.
In our own areas of Oldham and Tameside we've worked with a number of dog trainers and training organisations including Rachel Bean, Northern Alsatian and All Breeds Training Society and On Track Dog Training School.
