Barking battle between dog owner and council

A dog owner is challenging an attempt by the Gore District Council to bring her pets to heel.

Cheryl Mockford has objected to an abatement notice issued on her two german shepherds, Eve and Sally, claiming they bark too much, and forced the council to hold a hearing. MORE>>

What I find interesting in this story is that there are 10 people who signed a petition that says the dogs are a nuisance, but only 3 are from the street she lives in. Hum...

I know that barking is a real nuisance, and I'm just really happy my dog is a balanced dog and only barks to let us know when someone is at the door. We say 'thank you' and he stops barking.

Canine Job given new life

Being locked in a room with no food, water or ventilation is a distant memory for Job the dog as he runs freely on the sandy beach near his new home.

His new life is a far cry from November 2006 when he was found by Housing New Zealand staff in a vacated property.

He was starving, thirsty and had the worst case of mange that SPCA inspector Vicki Border had seen.

Job’s case of neglect hit the Manukau Courier’s headlines and was followed by media around the country.

After being nursed back to health at the SPCA Animal Village, a revitalised Job found a temporary home with the Bakers in Karaka. MORE>>

Fears for kids after dogs kill pets

A black or black and tan rottweiler accompanied by a brindle bull terrier are believed to have killed most of the three cats, one dog and four chickens in Bethlehem since Christmas. Other animals have also been wounded.

One man watched his dog being mauled by the rottweiler last month, while another resident saw a dog matching the same description digging its teeth into the back legs of her cat on Monday morning this week.

Both are scared children will be next.

MORE>>

Council dog laws not being enforced

Two dog attacks in the Lakes District in the space of eight days have coincided with an admission by a council officer that bylaw enforcement in the region is among the worst in the country.

Eileen Norris, 65, was bitten on an arm and hand by a staffordshire terrier in Arrowtown on Wednesday, while a 13-year-old boy required six stitches on his leg after being bitten in Queenstown the previous Wednesday.

Constable Steve Watt, of Queenstown, said the owner of the staffordshire terrier would face charges and the dog was likely to be destroyed, while the other dog was yet to be found by police.

Speaking at a meeting of the Wanaka Community Board on Tuesday, Lakes Environmental compliance officer Darryl Taylor said he had reviewed dog control statistics at a recent conference.

"We have to be the most lenient of areas in New Zealand," he said. MORE>>

Pet-lovers spend up large for complex operations

Forget worming pills and a flea collar - a trip to the vet in Britain these days could be about heart surgery, joint replacement, chemotherapy or a host of other cutting-edge procedures.

Britain is one of the few countries in Europe to offer many of these complex treatments: devoted British pet-owners have fuelled a fast-growing insurance market that helps fund care that would otherwise take a big bite out of a bank account. MORE>>

Kiwi music charts go to the dogs... literally

It's a doggone chartbuster - a song audible only to dogs has topped New Zealand's record charts, and is looking to go global.

A Very Silent Night, recorded at a frequency only dogs can hear, was so popular among owners it hit No. 1 at Christmas, but has been receiving mixed responses from listeners.

"The most violent one was a dog that physically attacked the radio when it was played and went quite beserk and totally destroyed it," said Bob Kerridge, chief executive of animal welfare group, the Society
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).

"On the other side of the scale, they just lie down and did nothing."

The charity CD, priced at $4.99, contained an instrumental and a vocal version of the song, but Kerridge said he did not know what kind of music dogs would hear. MORE>>

Dog laws get shake up

Dog owners could be facing new rules and regulations after a governmental review of the Dog Control Act

The North Shore City Council is preparing a submission supporting most changes suggested in the review but veterinarians say the current act should be enforced first.

The New Zealand Veterinary Association president John Maclachlan says the existing act gives local authorities effective tools to deal with errant dogs and their owners.

"Wouldn’t it be a logical first step to ensure enforcement of the current regulation before we leap into introducing yet more measures that may be similarly inconsistently applied," Mr Maclachlan says.

(...)

Public submissions on the discussion paper on improving public safety close on March 31.

MORE>>

Get those submission in !!

This dog will roam no more

I was going to write about, well, it doesn't matter what I was going to write about. My dog died. His name was Baz. He was six years old.

For the first time in 20 or so years I woke last Wednesday as a man with no dog. I did not know what to do. For 20 years I have got up and patted and talked to a dog or dogs. Then I have fired up the coffee machine, gone with the dog to fetch the paper, drunk the coffee, smoked a cigarette, gone to the toilet with the paper, then dressed and taken the dog out, or the dogs.
Whatever the season, whatever the weather, we have gone to the hills or the beach for a scamper and it has felt right.

Last Wednesday morning. I made coffee and fetched the paper and went to the toilet and then, well, nothing. Emptiness stood before me. It was like looking down the throat of a huge fish. I thought of going for a walk anyway, but I couldn't see the point. I don't walk for me. I walk for the dogs. It's my gift to them.

Now I have the gift of freedom. Freedom from buying dog food, from pulling on gumboots at seven in the morning, from making arrangements when I go away. But it's a gift I don't want. Freedom feels like imprisonment. In a vacuum of self.

MORE>>

Alzheimer's pet-therapy trial a success

Stroking a dog's soft ear transports Fay King-Turner from the locked dementia ward at Princess Margaret Hospital to her childhood on a farm.

King-Turner is one of 20 patients at the hospital's K1 ward, a dementia and delirium unit, where a pet therapy trial is under way.

Each week, either Kendra, a placid golden retriever, or Le Roy, a border collie, visits with their owners.

MORE>>

Bright future for dog racing

With a new track and dozens of race meetings this season, the Manawatu Greyhound Racing Club is anticipating a bright future.
(...)

The club runs trial meetings on Thursdays and Saturdays, allowing owners to get their dogs race-ready.

Races are held over three distances - 375m, 457m and 766m - with dogs travelling 60-70km an hour.

Mr Pandey says many people don't realise how much contact there is between the dogs as they jostle for the position they want.

"It's definitely a contact sport."

The 620m-long Manawatu track is known as a one-bend track, with dogs only needing to go round one corner for the sprint and middle distance races. Most tracks are smaller and consequently two- bend. One-bend tracks suit dogs with higher stamina as they have to sustain their speed for the entire race.

MORE>>

Song for dogs to hit world stage

Dogs around the world will now get a chance to howl along with a special song recorded just for them.

The single, A Very Silent Night, which hit number one on New Zealand charts just before Christmas, is set to be released globally.

The song was recorded at a high frequency that only dogs' sharp hearing can pick up.

SPCA chief executive Bob Kerridge said interest from international parties to sell the CD in their local markets was thanks to the creative thinking behind the production and promotion of the product. MORE>>

hum.....

No compo for corgi coverup

A kennel manager who faked the death of a corgi had his claim that he was unjustifiably dismissed upheld by the Employment Relations Authority.

But the authority said Peter Stott was not entitled to compensation after it was revealed he had faked the dog's death.

Mr Stott was fired by Redvale Canine Centre, on the Hibiscus Coast north of Auckland, in June 2006.

A month earlier a corgi had been set for adoption by the Humane Society. On the morning the dog was scheduled for its pre-adoption vet check Mr Stott took the corgi off the checklist because he hadn't finished the paperwork.

He then rang Animal Control Services and told them the dog had been destroyed for failing the check-up. MORE>>

What a weird story...

Hotel charges blind honeymooners for removal of dog hair

A blind couple on honeymoon are furious they were charged cleaning costs after their two guide dogs stayed with them at a Wellington serviced apartment complex.

The complex managers, however, say they did the Palmerston North couple "a nice thing" by letting them stay, because "other hotels don't accept" dogs.

Holy smokes !! don't they know the law of the land ?!

Olivia and Jonathan Godfrey were shocked when they went to pay for their three-night stay at the Centr@l Terrace Heights Serviced Apartments in Wellington last month and found they had been charged $85 for professional carpet cleaning.

"We think there was a bit of premeditation going on. They said housekeeping would make the best effort to clean it [dog hair] up and we were fine with that," said Mrs Godfrey, a lawyer.

MORE>>

Guide dogs with an image problem

Guide dog trainers are having problems with people refusing to believe poodle puppies are the genuine article.

Robyn Pahl, puppy development assistant for Guide Dog Services, said poodles' lap-dog reputation counted against them. "I think people are used to poodles being carried by people and used as a handbag. MORE>>

Dog-attack boy has ear reattached

The two-year-old boy savaged by a dog on Waitangi Day has undergone surgery to have his ear reattached.

A Canterbury District Health Board spokeswoman said the boy was recovering and in a comfortable position after the surgery in Christchurch Hospital.

It would not be known for a few days whether the operation was a success.

The toddler was attacked by the dog at Lake Crichton, 6km south-east of Dunsandel, about 3.30pm on Wednesday. The boy's ear was ripped off in the attack. MORE>>

Puppies in training for top job

All Nadia Clark wants is to be treated like a normal person.

The 25-year-old has retinitis pigmentosa, a condition that results in a slow loss of central vision.
Nadia feels there is a lack of understanding about blind people, so much so that going out alone made her nervous. Walking into people, poles, signs, cafe tables and chairs added to her frustration.

But since April she has gained new independence thanks to Spirit.The labrador retriever was bred and trained by the Foundation of the Blind Guide Dog Services.

Nadia says Spirit goes everywhere with her. MORE>>

Snow White owner prosecuted for dog attack

Press Release: Manukau City Council

Snow White owner prosecuted for dog attack

Manukau City Council welcomes the successful prosecution of Snow White’s owner for a dog attack in Papatoetoe last June.

The attack occurred when the victim was visiting the owner’s property on lawful business. The loose Staffordshire bull terrier named Snow White rushed at the man causing serious injury. A large flap of skin (about 20cm x 10cm) on the right leg was ripped open. The man was hospitalised for 10 days where he underwent three operations, including skin grafts, to repair the leg. MORE>>