Puppies could have lived

The owner of a dog whose six puppies were put down by the Invercargill City Council found owners for some of the pups but had his offer turned down.

Why? too much paperwork?

Dog owner Neihana Bostock said he had lined up owners for two of the rottweiler-mastiff puppies before they were impounded by animal control last week.

He sounds like a very caring, and responsible owner...

"They said it didn't work like that and told me the dogs would be destroyed if I couldn't come up with the money I needed to get them out, inside a week," he said.

hey? it doesn't work like that?!

I don't understand. If you are looking for a dog to adopt, can't you check the Pound and ask dogs that they have needing a new home?
Does this mean that all pound dogs, if not collected, are killed?

I checked their City Council's website (http://www.icc.govt.nz/council/services/animals/lostimpounded/en/lostimpounded_home.cfm) and there is nothing about not allowing an owner to find a home for their dog.

"The owners I organised pulled out when they heard the dogs were at the pound anyway."

Isn't that sad! They neednt have been at the pound in the first place!

The six-week-old pups were given a lethal injection on Tuesday because the council felt they would grow up to be dangerous.

Now THIS is dangerous territory!

The move angered the SPCA, which had offered to find good homes for the pups or move them out of Invercargill.

Mr Bostock said he did not want the puppies to die but simply could not afford the $1200 in various impound fees he needed to save them.

"That's a lot of money to find in a week, especially now I'm in the (Alliance meatworks) off season."

The $255 fee to get the puppies' year-old rottweiler mother Jazz back was all he could afford, he said.

Council chief executive Richard King said there had been enough dog "incidents" in recent times for the council to err on the side of caution when choosing dog owners.

So this means that the SPCA aren't good dog owners?! Remember, the SPCA did offer to rehome these pups!

He did not have figures available to back up his claim.

Of course not. He's a city employee, what would he know? Shabolt is in the same basket.

Maybe Mick Jagger is correct. Perhaps Invercargill is "the arsehole of the world" (at least some council folks. I do know many great Invercargillians... but not at the council)

Mr King disputed the breed of the puppies, saying they were rottweiler-bull terriers, which meant they were likely to become dangerous despite the SPCA claiming good homes created good dogs.

They didn't CLAIM, there IS scientific evidence that proper socialisation, and proper care make great dogs (and humans too!)

"In theory that's all good but (killer) Charles Manson was a lovely person at one stage, too," he said.

Huh? What does Charles have to do with dogs?

Dogs aren't born bad... Is this what Mr King has for evidence ?!? Can I sue him for slander ?

However, in this particular case, the puppies were destroyed because of their particular crossbreed, the mother's aggression, and the council being cautious, Mr King said.

Bullshit!

Four official complaints had been made against Jazz; one for barking at a person outside a supermarket, one for chasing children into a school, and two for being off her property, he said.

"I'm not criticising the SPCA, they do a good job, but the SPCA wants to make the world safe for animals, and sometimes that is at odds with what the council is trying to achieve."

That's at odds ?! Where's the soap?

Royal New Zealand SPCA national chief executive Robyn Kippenberger said Invercargill had done a poor job of dealing with dogs.

It should have taken a leaf out of the Dunedin City Council's book and desexed dogs for free, Ms Kippenberger said.

Desexing would reduce the aggression in male dogs but fewer puppies would also mean fewer dangerous dogs, she said.

"It's bizarre. I've never heard of a council acting this way before. Shooting puppies is not the way to do this, you're taking care of the problem at the wrong end."

She said she would raise the issue with the council at a special meeting in Invercargill next week.

Can I suggest to Ms Kippenberger that she ask that Council pay for Ian Dunbar to come and talk to them about dog behaviour.

Check http://dogstar.doglinks.co.nz/ for more details

Who is Dr Dunbar?

Over the past 30 years, Dr. Dunbar has given over 750 one-day seminars and workshops for dog trainers and veterinarians in an effort to popularise off-leash puppy training classes (which he pioneered), temperament modification, and owner-friendly and dog-friendly dog training. Dr. Dunbar's books, videos, and AKC Gazette "Behaviour" column (which he created), have won numerous awards. Dr. Dunbar is currently Director of the Centre for Applied Animal Behaviour in Berkeley, California, where he lives with his wife Kelly, plus Claude, Ugly, Mayhem and Dune.