KENNEL CLUB TO CLAMP DOWN ON BREEDERS TO SAFEGUARD HEALTH OF PEDIGREE DOGS

[*Lassie*]

    KENNEL CLUB TO CLAMP DOWN ON BREEDERS TO SAFEGUARD HEALTH OF PEDIGREE DOGS
    The Kennel Club is launching a complete review of every pedigree dog breed in the UK in a move that will have far-reaching benefits for the health of many breeds. It has also called on the government to give it the statutory powers to clamp down on breeders who fail to make a dog’s health their top priority.

    A breed health plan will be coordinated for each of the UK’s 209 pedigree breeds and will benefit from the extensive research that has been funded by the Kennel Club in conjunction with renowned veterinary research centres over the past 40+ years. This will include updated breed standards to ensure that no dog is bred for features that might prevent it from seeing, walking and breathing freely. Judges will be fully briefed on the new breed standards so that only the healthiest dogs are rewarded in the show ring.

    The Kennel Club is releasing the first of these new breed standards today, for the Pekingese, and has taken a tough line with the breed following extensive and abortive consultations. This is set to radically improve the health of the Pekingese which for nearly a hundred years was bred to have a flat face; a feature which can lead to breathing problems; under the new health plan the breed will be required to have a defined muzzle.

    The breed health plans, which are scheduled to be completed by early next year, will also incorporate the results of a thorough, ongoing analysis of the health status and genetic diversity of each breed, drawing on results from the world’s largest dog health survey, conducted by the Animal Health Trust and funded by the Kennel Club Charitable Trust in 2004. This will ensure that breeders and buyers are aware of the health tests that should be carried out for each breed. The final part of the plans will look at ways breeders can expand the gene pool of the breed.

    In order to ensure that the plans are effective and reach all dogs, the Kennel Club has called on the government to give it statutory powers to make its established Accredited Breeder Scheme compulsory throughout the country. If successful, this would mean that all breeders who are not part of the scheme and who have not officially confirmed their willingness to follow the health standards set by the Kennel Club would be unable to produce or sell puppies within the law.

    Additionally, breed clubs are now required to adopt the Kennel Club’s Code of Ethics, to ensure that their practices fall in line with Kennel Club policy for putting the health and welfare of puppies first. This includes a clause that explicitly forbids the compulsory culling of healthy puppies.

    To complement these steps the Kennel Club is developing plans for a new Canine Genetics Centre. This will be run in conjunction with the Animal Health Trust, confirming the Kennel Club’s commitment to research into inherited diseases and the provision of DNA testing programmes which identify the genes underlying inherited health problems.

    Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, said: “The groundswell of public attention on the very important matters surrounding dog breeding is a welcomed momentum that will enable us to drive through, with added urgency, new and extended initiatives that will help to safeguard the health of our pedigree dogs. We have been listening and agree with the general public’s view that more needs to be done.

    “Steps such as our breed health plans will enable us to ensure that the health of every dog is the number one priority and we are taking a tougher line with breed clubs by adjusting those breed standards that fail to promote good health. By asking the government for statutory powers we will be able to take a tougher line with all breeders and breed clubs that fail to abide by our high standards. This in turn will enable us to extend the reach of our Accredited Breeder Scheme, which is the quality control mechanism within our registration process, so that all dogs will be bred by people who abide by our stringent rules and regulations for the breeding of healthy, happy dogs.

    “We have been working hard in recent years to identify and address health problems that exist in dogs, and we are taking advantage of the opportunities that advances in science have given us to improve dog health. We look forward to continuing our work with various institutions and organisations that share the same objective: to protect the health and welfare of all dogs.”

   

[*Nick*]

eerrmm, Val..over to you.  😮

[Anonymous]

We are the lamb spread on the altar of the KC  :help: a dog that has always had a flat face should be allowed to keep it’s flat face in my book,I do not want to even think of a peke with a muzzle.
For once I am pleased to be my age that way I will not live long enough to see a complete ban on dogs cos thats the way it’s going most of my friends will never join the AB so will not be able to breed, why should we belong to yet something else that commerical breeders pet breeders and puppy farmers can join with no check at all and lets no forget it costs money as the KC love money.

Most pekingese breeders will go it alone or give up so looks to me like the peke has no future anyway which is very sad for the Pekingese is one of the oldest dog breeds in the world with a pedigree that stretches back over 2,000 years some of the modern pekes are bigger (not mine) and some have more coat (guilty) but the rest are the same little lion dogs they have always been
Val

[*Nick*]

this sucks Val!  :nono:

Why the Peke? If they wanted to pick on snub-noses i think there would be a few other breeds in front of the Peke! 

all I can say is don’t give up just yet.

[Anonymous]

Val,  i feel for you this is just frightening stuff.

Claire x

[Anonymous]

There are many way of looking at this we register very few dogs compared to a lot of breeds so by using us in this terrible way we are no great loss to their income, the KC had to be seen to do something about the state of some breeds unfortunatly they chose us.
The clubs 13 of them were supposed to be meeting the KC today but they rushed this through and we know have a breed standard thats utter nonsense.
I feel sorry for the judges of this years club shows as they ain’t going to find those dogs that look like the said standards.
Thanks to the likes of the RSPCA there prat of a vet and lets not forget BC the world of dogs is crumbling only today I have heard that a puppy farmer has chucked out 30 cavies some pregnant as the market in the breed had dropped, we may say thank doG they are out of the breeding cycle but guess what it’s those terrible breeders that like showing that are rehoming them as we speak.
Also heard today No more tears has 20 odd in as well.
So really this is just the start would not mind a small bet on PETRA being behind some of this just hope they can all sleep at nights as these dogs are not just cavies that are being dumped it’s happening all over the UK it won’t happen in pekes as we are passionate about our breed and will just keep on going with out an umbrella body we don’t have that many sets of tickets anyway.
I think the peke people will go it alone as the KC are not going to back off so a breed as old as this one will be just the beginning.
At the moment I find it very depressing that a breed far healthier than many has been treated this way
Val

[Foxisle_crazy]

Have they published a new standard yet?  Where can i see it?

[Anonymous]

hi,

i am intrigued – surely to breed for this “muzzle” there will have to be litters and litters of “disguarded cr*p” (in terms of breed std) that no-one showing will pay for because it aint gonna win …. totally puzzled ??

even worse – if there isnt enough diversity in the breed will they cross in from other breeds – i just dont “get it” ?

claire x

[Anonymous]

it’s on the KC site

[quote author=Foxisle_crazy link=topic=12640.msg244444#msg244444 date=1223487771]
Have they published a new standard yet?  Where can i see it?
[/quote]

[*Lassie*]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4902952.ece

Other breeds to face scrutiny will include the Clumber spaniel, bloodhound, bulldog, mastiff, German shepherd, basset hound and St Bernard.

[Anonymous]

Bet the next one will be the Pug the times rang my friend in pekes she said sorry got to go get an MOT LOL they have just guessed at what is happening and the peke guy …………..well better not say  :whatever:

[quote author=*Lassie* link=topic=12640.msg244637#msg244637 date=1223584512]
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4902952.ece

Other breeds to face scrutiny will include the Clumber spaniel, bloodhound, bulldog, mastiff, German shepherd, basset hound and St Bernard.
[/quote]

[Anonymous]

hey look who it is !!!!

quote :

Beverley Cuddy, editor of Dogs Today magazine and a longstanding critic of the Kennel Club, said: “At last this is a sign that things are moving. But I don’t want this to be just a bit of lipstick to make Crufts look acceptable. If it were me, my first change would be to tackle inbreeding and let people know the family history of dogs before they are bought as pets.”

i am just so disappointed in you.

[Kerry_and_Beau]

as i have said before i’m really new to all this and don’t understand too much anout genetics etc but this seems to be one mega rushed huge hitting pathetic system to put through.  its just one knee jerk reaction after another from one ass… who made a pathetic hard hitting completely bias documentory to another fundraising pathetic group to another…

there has got to have been a better way of dealing with this? is there no one with any sense in charge of anything anymore?

as someone who wants to learn more i’m looking at this seeing complete chaos being made into more chaos and guess what i see more dogs suffering…now i’m pretty sure that was supposed to be what all this is going to stop? not seeing that yet…but then i got a lot to learn  ::)

i’m so sorry for people like Val that have bred for years done everything right keep their breed in the best condition possible and done all the health checks they can and they have been dumped on big style by complete wankers that don’t give a damn about anyone or anything just their bleeding income and looking good! 

[Anonymous]

[quote author=piglet link=topic=12640.msg244670#msg244670 date=1223626832]
hey look who it is !!!!

quote :

Beverley Cuddy, editor of Dogs Today magazine and a longstanding critic of the Kennel Club, said: “At last this is a sign that things are moving. But I don’t want this to be just a bit of lipstick to make Crufts look acceptable. If it were me, my first change would be to tackle inbreeding and let people know the family history of dogs before they are bought as pets.”

i am just so disappointed in you.
[/quote]

So am I, we haven’t been told to visit her blog for at least a fortnight now. roflol

Seriously i can’t say i am surprised really.

[Anonymous]

And I bet that some of you thought that we were just picking on her?  But us old timers  😉 have seen her antics before, stirring up pet owners who don’t understand the first thing about dogs or dog breeding!  :boooo:

[Author]

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