Crystal Gazing is undocked and so are her offspring. The fact that many dog-breeders
still insist on docking their pups is rather horrifying
and surprising in today's modern society.
What exactly is docking? It is the removal of all or
part of the tail, usually performed with a sharp pair of
scissors when a puppy is four days old. That sounds
barbaric and indeed it is. The bitch is removed from
where the docking is undertaken so that she cannot hear
the screams of her puppies. Some puppies might even die
after this "act" performed on them as a result
of shock or excessive bleeding.
So why is it still happening? The
only possible answer is - due to people's ignorance and
some might say tradition. If they are born with their
tails why should they be made to live without them.
The tail is such a great instrument of communication
in the canine world and to remove such a means of
communication is unthinkable.
We are members and registered breeders of the Anti-docking
Alliance - contact details
available in our "HOT CONTACTS" section.
Tail docking was originally
carried out mainly by breeders. In 1991 the UK Government
amended the Veterinary Surgeons Act, prohibiting the
docking of dogs' tails by lay persons from July 1,1993.
Now only qualified veterinary surgeons are allowed to
dock.
In November 1992, following the
Government move, the Council of the Royal College of
Veterinary Surgeons ruled docking to be unethical except
for therapeutic reasons.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
News flash !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The following article was
published in Eastern Daily Press, Thursday, July 15 2004
Pets but not pests to get
better care
Pets and farm animals are to be given extra
protection under a major government crackdown on cruelty.
The move, in a new Bill announced yesterday that
modernises century old laws, also protects circus animals and halts the
sale of goldfish as prizes at funfairs.
Children under 16 would be banned from buying pets if
the Bill becomes law. Ministers believe youngsters of that age are not
mature enough to be responsible for the duty of care needed.
There will be a new duty of care on pet owners to
look after their animals properly, and the law will, for the first time,
define what constitutes cruelty.
Mutilations, such as the tail-docking of dogs,
will be banned except where there are welfare or good management reasons
for it.
Junior environment minister Ben Bradshaw, announcing
the shake-up at a London news conference, said he hoped it would lead to
less cruelty and fewer prosecutions.
The letter below was published in YOUR DOG
magazine - Issue April 2000:
Like many Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers, our puppy's
tail was docked when he was just a few days old. We were
not aware of any problems at the time and everything was
fine until he was a year old.
Then we noticed that he was chasing and biting his
tail several times a day and when we investigated we
noticed that the tip was very sore and swollen and had
been bleeding.
On examination, the vet concluded that his tail had
been badly docked as a puppy. Apparently the correct way
is for the skin to be pulled back tightly, the tail cut
and the skin allowed to fold back over the stump, so that
there is a loose fold over the end of the tail when it
has healed. According to the vet, our puppy's tail had
just been chopped off, which meant that the skin pulled
very tightly over the end and this made it uncomfortable
and sore.
Our's had to have an operation to shorten his tail
and loosen the skin around the end of the stump. This
involved an anaesthetic, stitches, pain and distress for
him and also considerable expense for ourselves.
And all this trauma because we - as supposedly caring
humans - choose to remove the tails of healthy animals at
birth for purely cosmetic reasons. In the future, I hope
that breeders will think twice about doing something
which serves no useful purpose whatsoever: Is it not time
we put an end to this outdated barbaric practice?
Sue Ebert, Essex
ANIMAL WELFARE ACT - ENGLAND
& WALES 6th April 2007 - came into
force. NO MORE DOCKING
