This post did carry for over six months the widget which was a petition in support for animal rights in Barbados.
It is hard to imagine that animals would be forced to endure the suffering of some of the dogs shown. Dogs tied to trees for a whole day, hardly fed and with little fresh water, dogs practically starved to death.
I would hope that by asking for your support, it might result in better education and also controls being implemented in Barbados.
It is all over the world, not just in Barbados. Breeders breeding just for money and people buying dogs for the wrong reasons and all dogs will not be saved. Here is an interesting link: Some Reasons For Buying Dogs
In Barbados, I have heard these reasons for buying/breeding dogs:
The child wants a puppy
We need a vicious dog to scare people
We want to make money from breeding dogs
Our dog is so nice that we must breed her
And reasons for people here dumping the dogs such as
We did not realise a dog is so much work
We do not like cleaning up dog mess
The dog is not vicious.
We do not have the time for the dog
We do not have the money for the vet’s bills
We do not have the money to feed the dog
We did not realise the dog would bark at night
The dog destroys clothes hanging on the clothes line in the backyard
A family member is pregnant and we are scared that the dog might attack the baby and/or give it germs
We do not have the time to walk and care for the dog
I breed dogs very occasionally and I am possibly one of the most picky breeders to buy a puppy from. I would want to inspect the potential new person’s home and also talk to the family, especially the person who will be taking care of the puppy and I would want to ensure that my puppy breed is a very suitable match for its new home. I am not one of the ones who look to just breed and make money from dogs. When I breed my dogs I am looking to keep a puppy or 2 from the breeding and will already have a number of suitable, approved homes booked for the litter.
There are breeders in Barbados who once they see money will part with their dogs/puppies without any checks. It is a heartless commercial transaction for some. And there are breeders who will part with dogs they have had for several years without even checking the homes, especially bitches, they are going to. There is no attachment, it is commercial.
I think the dog rescuers such as The Hope and The Ark do a lot of good but I believe a lot more education and control should help. Up to yesterday, in driving, I passed a cute dog on the highway, no collar, and I could see its ribs from my vehicle.
I don’t know what controls can and should be done by The Animal Control Unit.
I think it should remain an individual decision for the person(s) importing a breed. Barbados already has a list of dogs which are banned from importation and I am not suggesting that the list be changed.
Pertaining to the Dangerous Dogs legislation in place in other countries, sometimes it is the owners and not the dogs which create problems so as an individual and a blogger, I think the legislation needs to deal with the owners of the breeds/dogs. This is the way other countries are going, deal with the owner of the dog(s) as well as the individual dog but thoughly investigate the circumstances. A lot will come back to how the puppy/dog was raised.
All dog owners in Barbados should pay an annual dog’s license or a dogs kennel license and I suspect that few of us pay it. It is a part of the tax system and I feel that all of us who own dogs should co-operate and pay the tax. But I wonder whether people who own dogs even know about the tax.
If organisations like the rescue ones, everytime a dog leaves their place, tell the new owner that they need to licence the dog and breeders of mixed and pedigree dogs when they part with their puppies do likewise, it would help the Animal Control Department a lot pertaining to the licensing of dogs.
I currently have an area on this blog where a registered person on this blog is permitted to advertise a puppy litter, free of cost. However, once their ad has run a reasonable time, I plan to delete their contact information as I do not wish to support puppy milling, back to back breedings or facilitate breeders who are looking to dump their older dogs because they do not wish to have the vet bills that aged dogs can bring. This will be in effect from the end of the year. I will help a breeder who is doing what I regard as sensible breeding and seeks to place all the puppies in good homes but might need help with a large litter.
I removed the widget on August 18, 2013 which carried the petition and I have not seen nor heard anything further about the Animal Rights Petition in Barbados. In the event, that there is some action taken and I can comment on it, I will post a follow up.
Tags: Animal Control Unit, Barbados dog laws, dog legislation in Barbados, dogs in Barbados
