The American Kennel Club Goes on Attack Mode

After a New York Times article links the group to bad breeders, the club fires back.

 On Sunday, the first day of the American Kennel Club's world-famous Westminster Dog Show, the New York Times published a takedown of the club, which we wrote about here. The Times story linked the A.K.C. to bad breeders, including puppy mills, describing how some registered breeders have been charged with animal cruelty, even though the A.K.C. had inspected their operations in recent years. 

The next day, the A.K.C. fired back with an letter, charging the Times with using "unsubstantiated, anecdotal episodes to paint a grossly misleading and biased picture of dog breeders who register their dogs and litters with the AKC."

You can read the rest of the letter here. 

The A.K.C. felt that two quotes were particularly onerous, both by ASPCA president and CEO Ed Sayres:

"A majority of the commercial breeders in the raids that [the ASPCA] participated in had ties to A.K.C.-registered litters." And, concerning dogs registered with the A.K.C., "The irony to the consumer is that they're paying a lot for a fake Rolex."The letter argues that there are no facts, proof, or numbers to back this up. "Both of these statements are opinions that were printed erroneously as fact," the letter reads. 

The article also disputes this line: "As recently as 2010, roughly 40 percent of the A.K.C.'s $61 million in annual revenue came from fees related to registration. Critics say a significant part of that includes revenue from questionable breeders like the Hamiltons, or so-called puppy mills, which breed dogs en masse with little regard for basic living standards." 

The A.K.C.'s letter claims that, "In fact, less than 5 percent of our total revenue comes from commercial breeders who register dogs and litters with us."

The letter also says that the Times story presented an incomplete picture of the breeders it proflied, who were charged with animal cruelty while selling dogs registered with the A.K.C.  

Concerning James and Margaret Hamilton, the A.K.C. says that the Times "inaccurately portrays Hamilton as a high-volume breeder or 'puppy mill.'" In the letter, the A.K.C. counters that "hoarding is likely a factor in what was occurring as the Hamiltons were clearly unable to part with dogs that they had collected over the years."

Concerning another breeder, the A.K.C. charges that the Times failed to make the connection between the deplorable state of one breeder's operation and the fact that police found 200 marijuana plants on the property, "a vocation which likely led to the deterioration of his kennel and his overall ability to care for his dogs in the two years between his last AKC inspection and the raid of this property."

That's right: The A.K.C. is saying that it is "likely" that growing marijuana led to one breeder down the road to animal cruelty, within two years. Sorry, but that's an absurd claim to make without any facts to back it up.

The A.K.C. letter then defends its kennel inspection program, which it says it "spends millions on." It also seems to put down the bad breeders in the story as simple bad apples in an otherwise good program, saying, "It is important to note that in any enforcement and regulatory program, there will be those who approach the regulated activity with a disregard for compliance with the rules." 

That may be true. But when those breeders show a "disregard for compliance with the rules," we hope outfits like the Times will cover it, as it did here. 

View the original article here

Dogs Attack Minivan in Pursuit of Cat

Updated 8:30 a.m. Feb. 28 with information from Adam Morck, who wrote to us hours after the original article came out with some clarifications.

When an Alabama couple came out of their home to find their minivan with its bumper torn apart and blood, scratch marks, and dents all over the exterior, they were stunned. They’d been packing for a fishing trip, and now it looked like a madman had set upon their vehicle.

“I saw the Dodge symbol [lying on the ground] and then turned and looked and saw the carnage,” said Emily Morck, on FoxToledo.

“We thought maybe a disgruntled former employee of mine might’ve done something crazy,” Adam Morck said.

They called 911. Adam Morck said investigators checked out all the damage, including some odd paw prints and bite marks. “[The investigator] looked up like a deer caught in the headlights and said, ‘Guys, I think a dog did this.” According to animal control, the perpetrators were two dogs, and they were after at least one of the Morcks’ cats, who was hiding under the van’s hood.

That cat ran away and hasn’t been seen since the Saturday night incident. The couple’s other cat ran up a tree and stayed there. When firefighters showed up to help get him down, he just went higher up the tree.

Adam Morck, who contacted Dogster to fill us in on the details, says animal control told him the the dogs who attacked were a pair of escaped pit bull-mastiffs who broke free from their owners when left tied up by a rope at the nearby hospital. “There was a white one which remains at large, and a red-brown one which they hit with a tranq gun, but he ran away unfazed and they didn’t catch him. The police have not yet given us their names, but once the dogs are captured we will be requesting DNA samples to validate the dogs and make sure appropriate parties are held responsible,” he wrote.

“The pit bulls were human shy and wearing sharp pointed collars, so animal control suspects they were captive bred fighting dogs — which would explain why they’d be capable of doing the damage they did while going after my cat. I have seen a ‘busted’ fighting dog farm years ago, and these poor animals are kept on the brink of starvation at all times to keep them lean and rabidlike at all times.”

He hopes the owners come forward, help find their dogs, and take responsibility. “My primary concern is that no human or other animals are harmed while these now wild dogs are running loose in downtown Foley,” Morck wrote.

Poor kitties. It’s a sad situation all the way around. If the story is as the animal control staffers tell it, the dogs probably weren’t in the the best of circumstances either.

I originally wrote the story thinking it was the couple’s own pooch who did something odd, and it was a semi-lighthearted “ha-ha, dogs are accused of eating homework, now they’re accused of eating minivans” post. But now that I have the facts, it’s no longer amusing.

View the original article here

Unlucky but Faithful Guide Dog Honored After Savage Attack

Brave Piper (Photo: South Wales Echo)

A loyal and brave guide dog in South Wales dutifully led his blind owner home after being brutally attacked by another dog during an off-leash break in a park.

Owner Sarah Craig-Hancock said she heard her 5-year-old Labrador retriever yelp, but the owner of the other dog said Piper was not hurt. Not realizing anything was amiss, Craig-Hancock put Piper’s harness back on and he guided her home. It was only after she got home that she realized he had injuries that included a flap of skin hanging down one of his legs.

Sarah Craig-Hancock and her very faithful companion, Piper (Photo: PDSA

“He must have been in great pain when I replaced his harness,” she said in the South Wales Echo. “I wasn’t able to see that he had been injured during the dog attack but he still managed to get me home safely, as if nothing was wrong.”

Piper needed stitches but was working as Craig-Hancock’s guide dog again within two weeks.

The plucky dog has been awarded a coveted UK certificate for animal bravery. He’s the first animal in Wales to win the PDSA (People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals) certificate for bravery. Only a dozen UK animals have received this award since its inception in 2002.

“I’m so happy PDSA is recognizing Piper’s devotion,” she told the PDSA during the ceremony on May 3.

The attack was just the first in a series of unfortunate events for Piper. Since the park incident in 2008, Piper’s tail has been run over by a mobility scooter, he’s been knocked down by a car, and he’s now hearing impaired because of suffering two perforated eardrums, the Echo reports.

This dog’s name definitely should not be Lucky. But he doesn’t give up. In fact, he loves to work.

“I am very proud that he wants to carry on working no matter what happens to him,” Craig-Hancock said. “He is a phenomenal dog.”

View the original article here