Dogs££££££

[neilo]

I've been saying this for years. £100 per dog per year consequent to getting signed off at an annual vet check-up. Vet can also check the microchip details and third-party insurance is up-to-date.

I’d object to that. We have 6 dogs here, 3 working collies and 3 useless twits in the house. None have an annual vet check up, but do go to see them if there is any suspected problem. I do annual vaccinatIons myself though.

I really don’t see why dogs should go to a vet check up on any schedule, any more than most normal people would see a doctor unless there was a problem. As for £100 a year ‘fee’, how would that make any difference to anything? Would it be policed in the back end of Welshpool etc amongst the dog fighting community?
No, as usual, the law abiding folk would be asked to pay yet another unnecessary tax that costs as much to collect as it brings in.

 

[lloyd]

I’d object to that. We have 6 dogs here, 3 working collies and 3 useless twits in the house. None have an annual vet check up, but do go to see them if thereis any suspected problem. I do annual vaccinate myself though.

I really don’t see why dogs should go to a vet check up on any schedule, any more than most normal people would see a doctor unless there was a problem. As for £100 a year ‘fee’, how would that make any difference to anything? Would it be policed in the back end of Welshpool etc amongst the dog fighting community?
No, as usual, the law abiding folk would be asked to pa6 yet another unnecessary tax that costs as much to collect as it brings in.

My local vets are run like a supermarket checkout the customer
care is sub standard and the billing is one big rip off.
Cross the border into Wales and things are better though.

 

[Al R]

Do folk have their working dogs registered with anyone in particular incase stolen? A friend said they wanted theirs on a internet system incase they were lost/stolen that they could be traced back to them.

 

[Highland Mule]

Do folk have their working dogs registered with anyone in particular incase stolen? A friend said they wanted theirs on a internet system incase they were lost/stolen that they could be traced back to them.

Don’t all dogs need to be chipped by law these days?

 

[neilo]

Do folk have their working dogs registered with anyone in particular incase stolen? A friend said they wanted theirs on a internet system incase they were lost/stolen that they could be traced back to them.

That’s what the microchips are for, those that have been a legal requirement for several years.

 

[johnspeehs]

Donedeal have stopped advertising dogs so I would say it has had a major hit on prices here, it was the biggest site for pet dogs.

 

[dudders]

Rather get a pup so we know what it's upbringing is like. Seems like some of the proffesional breeders have stopped just now, tried to get one from dogs Trust and because the dog wouldn't be with me or my wife every second of the day we couldn't have one. Never mind that they would be with their friend in a spacious well ventilated kennel watching over the farm yard for a few hours at a time, thats when they aren't out and about in the truck or fields with me. I want to just leave it a bit but my wife thinks the other dog has lost his 'sparkle' despite the fact that he is getting plenty of walks and he is with her or me during waking hours as she is working from home. Do dogs grieve?

Yes, but like us, they get over it.

 

[Colin]

That's what I'm thinking, but wife is concerned! He'll be right, doesn't cut it.

 

[Al R]

Don’t all dogs need to be chipped by law these days?

@neilo too.

their microchipped but you can register with PETrac etc I think so their on a database assigned to an owner?

 

[Chopsy Varmint]

I’d object to that. We have 6 dogs here, 3 working collies and 3 useless twits in the house. None have an annual vet check up, but do go to see them if there is any suspected problem. I do annual vaccinatIons myself though.

I really don’t see why dogs should go to a vet check up on any schedule, any more than most normal people would see a doctor unless there was a problem. As for £100 a year ‘fee’, how would that make any difference to anything? Would it be policed in the back end of Welshpool etc amongst the dog fighting community?
No, as usual, the law abiding folk would be asked to pay yet another unnecessary tax that costs as much to collect as it brings in.

Fine, but you're not really representative of the majority of the dog-owning public. I've been a volunteer with a breed-specific rescue and some of the dogs coming into the rescue would have benefited from an annual vet visit, if only to check basic health and microchip details - it'd be less a medical visit and more to check admin is up-to-date. I only suggested using a vet because more of the target demographic may be inclined to go the the vet than to a dog warden or police station.

The policing issue is a separate one and yes, it should be policed across the board regardless of whether it's pikey dogs or not. A localish notorious pikey site was raided a couple of years ago and 130 dogs were taken into care, some were pikey-bred for puppy-farming but others were stolen and unable to be returned to their previous owners due to obsolete microchip data.

I appreciate my idea would be unpopular but that concerns me less than creating advocacy for improving dog welfare. In an ideal world it shouldn't be necessary. What would you suggest instead to help all the dogs which are being bred as a cash-crop, puppy farmed, sold through Pre-loved or just dumped?

 

[kermit]

Regarding microchips.
There are number of different companies supplying chips & they do not all cross reference.
The other problem, Vets very rarely read the chip, they have never checked ours.
If you buy a stolen dog it is doubtful to be read unless picked up by a dog warden or similar.
So microchips are another con.

 

[dudders]

That's what I'm thinking, but wife is concerned! He'll be right, doesn't cut it.

I've never bought a dog except my first, a 6-month Border Collie for £20 in 1979. Just from an ad in a local paper, and she did all my small-time sheep and cattle work, won cups & rosettes in trials. I still miss her now, 28 years later, her photo on the wall in front of me. Since then, dogs seem to have found me - once people know there's a good home available, word gets around.

My folks used to be German Shepherd people - one died, they got another, always the same breed. Then one day my mother had pushed on her a toy poodle - very much against her will. But that little guy had so much spirit, they were converted and only had toy poodles after that!

If you're only after a companion, not a specific breed, your local rescue home will have plenty, and won't be half as bureaucratic as the big organisations. Seems to me the human element disappears once any charity gets to a certain size. They start employing media people and pen-pushers and then the whole purpose of the charity becomes the business of looking after itself, rather than doing the job it first set out to do. Go down to your local one, run by volunteers, and don't be fussy about breed. Your spaniel won't know a chihuahua from a mastiff - just needs company.

 

[Chopsy Varmint]

Regarding microchips.
There are number of different companies supplying chips & they do not all cross reference.
The other problem, Vets very rarely read the chip, they have never checked ours.
If you buy a stolen dog it is doubtful to be read unless picked up by a dog warden or similar.
So microchips are another con.

That's a breakdown in the administration - microchips are more useful than not on the whole but they do have to be kept up to date and it seems to be one of those things that people don't get round to.. Hence my idea that they are read once a year as part of an annual vet visit like a basic canine MOT.

I agree though, small animal vets should be routinely checking chips on a visit, same as horse vets should check the passport but hardly ever do unless they are doing annual boosters.

 

[Chopsy Varmint]

I've never bought a dog except my first, a 6-month Border Collie for £20 in 1979. Just from an ad in a local paper, and she did all my small-time sheep and cattle work, won cups & rosettes in trials. I still miss her now, 28 years later, her photo on the wall in front of me. Since then, dogs seem to have found me - once people know there's a good home available, word gets around.

My folks used to be German Shepherd people - one died, they got another, always the same breed. Then one day my mother had pushed on her a toy poodle - very much against her will. But that little guy had so much spirit, they were converted and only had toy poodles after that!

If you're only after a companion, not a specific breed, your local rescue home will have plenty, and won't be half as bureaucratic as the big organisations. Seems to me the human element disappears once any charity gets to a certain size. They start employing media people and pen-pushers and then the whole purpose of the charity becomes the business of looking after itself, rather than doing the job it first set out to do. Go down to your local one, run by volunteers, and don't be fussy about breed. Your spaniel won't know a chihuahua from a mastiff - just needs company.

Toy poodles are nails. They all think they are Cerberus however nobody has told them what they actually look like.

 

[dudders]

Regarding microchips.
There are number of different companies supplying chips & they do not all cross reference.
The other problem, Vets very rarely read the chip, they have never checked ours.
If you buy a stolen dog it is doubtful to be read unless picked up by a dog warden or similar.
So microchips are another con.

A microchip should be read by a vet when first registered with the practice. It's RCVS recommendation, but not actually the law. Dedicated dog-nappers apparently use scanners to locate the chip and dig them out. Seems there's no level below which some people won't sink.

An annual health check is probably a good idea, as catching something early, like a tumour, can mean getting another 10 years' life. And we owners don't always know if the dog's got a rotten tooth, which could be why he's a bit short-tempered if he's always in pain. I get checked by the dentist every year and it costs a tad more than the dog's check-up!

 

[yorkie]

Rather get a pup so we know what it's upbringing is like. Seems like some of the proffesional breeders have stopped just now, tried to get one from dogs Trust and because the dog wouldn't be with me or my wife every second of the day we couldn't have one. Never mind that they would be with their friend in a spacious well ventilated kennel watching over the farm yard for a few hours at a time, thats when they aren't out and about in the truck or fields with me. I want to just leave it a bit but my wife thinks the other dog has lost his 'sparkle' despite the fact that he is getting plenty of walks and he is with her or me during waking hours as she is working from home. Do dogs grieve?

Yes they do

 

[Landrover]

We've got a lab pup coming in early December, £700 but from a local respected breeder, she won't sell you a pup until she's done her homework on the prospective buyer and deems you suitable to own one of her dogs ! Had a lab cross from a rescue center once, poor thing was terrified of life it hadn't had a good life until we got it

 

[Highland Mule]

@neilo too.

their microchipped but you can register with PETrac etc I think so their on a database assigned to an owner?

The main database does that anyway. And it can be checked and updated by your local vets or dog shelter, easy enough. No need to register for any additional service.

Regarding microchips.
There are number of different companies supplying chips & they do not all cross reference.
The other problem, Vets very rarely read the chip, they have never checked ours.
If you buy a stolen dog it is doubtful to be read unless picked up by a dog warden or similar.
So microchips are another con.

Disagree. I found a dog not so long ago, scanned with my own tag scanner and then called my vet with the number. They checked it through the system, contacted the owner and it was reunited.

So long as dog owners keep the registration up to date, it works well.

 

[Gong Farmer]

You don't have to scan for a microchip, thieves just feel for it and crush it with pliers, so I've heard.

 

[Adeptandy]

You don't have to scan for a microchip, thieves just feel for it and crush it with pliers, so I've heard.

It would take a clever person to feel for it, its smaller than a grain of rice and can migrate around a dogs body as iys not fixed in place, you'd be a long time feeling for it. All the thief needs is a scanner ( not that expensive ) to locate it, then the practice is now to cut them out and re chip them.