| re: Bully dog question | |
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Posted by: |
Leesa (gallytrotter@mchsi.com) 12:58 am UTC 07/26/07 |
| In reply to: | re: Bully dog question - pidunk 05:33 am UTC 07/25/07 |
| Susan, This was just too stupid to let this go. Spuds McKenzie (Honeytree's Evil Eye, "Evie", bred by my good friends David and Peggy Selk, and finished her championship under my co-breeder)was one of the biggest curses our breed had. There are always millers around to fill the needs of people who want animals they simply shouldn't have, hence the shelter numbers. When Evie became popular, rescue then became part of our national club--the numbers spiked. These are not dogs for everyone, anymore than pitbulls or even rotts are for everyone. And not everyone does their homework. Underbreeding is a responsible thing to do in the sport of purebred dogs--we have enough dogs already of every sort in the shelters, for Christ's sake! You don't see overall numbers when you visit a microcosim. Many bull breeds are euthanised upon entry. Breeed specific legislation which deems certain breeds illegal makes it a race to a shelter--we've lost bullies a couple times because 12 hr lead time wasn't enough. We sell our dogs for LESS than millers and many of us guareentee our dogs for LIFE. And as for shows, we mainly compete at specialties, i.e., just Bull Terriers, for 2 reasons--first, most terrier judges in all-breed shows are not fond of the bull-type terriers and usually send Benji-type terriers to group. Secondly, all-breed shows often only have 2 or 3 bullies entered and it's hard to earn points to championships and ROMS are out of the question in such small class sizes. Show weekends are very expensive. So the specialties around the country are well attended, as are our yearly nationals. My co-breeder won Westminster last year so we're definately out there. Their 'secrecy' keeps them rare'--I laughed out loud. Yeah, that's it. My god...! Molly as the Target dog hides really well behind that red bullseye! Anyone who really wants a bull terrier can find one. A responsible breeder who will stand behind their dogs and charge LESS for a quality, well-bred, healthy pet seems a bit better than buying from a miller providing the polar opposite. Most millers don't deal with our dogs because they are a labour-intensive breed. Most bitches don't whelp alone--I spend about a week sleeping beside the whelping box each night before the litter arrives. They aren't retrievers that you can lock in a barn and be presented with a litter. Labour is money and they are not cost-effective mill prospects. Some millers DO sell them however and you just see sometime how they do it and be really glad they have a right to raise and treat dogs as such--maybe responsible breeders fiercly protective of their breed won't look so bad. You think it's about 'control'--well, a breed such as the pits HAVE no 'control'/responsible group. And they are fabulous dogs which have been allowed into the hands of marginals seduced by street swagger who betray the fierce loyalty they have and use them as weapons until they die doing what their masters ask--and most of those dogs have sounder temperments over all than ours. WE have PR and a damned good breed club. And yeah, maybe control to a point. You decide which breed is better off overall. And your take on our rescue is just amazingly naive--you don't have a realistic clue at all--you have NO idea what our 20 yr history has been. Because you don't see more than 20 (20 too many...) BT's listed in rescue up for adoption, doesn't mean that hotspotters as myself (I alone covered 2 states for several years)and regional club members aren't fostering, nursing, or evaluating 10 times that many dogs not ready for (and may never be ready or placeable for) adoption. Meanwhile, their costs fall on us. You talk about a labour of love. Every rescue I've ever had through here has been a stop to our vet on the way home--never under $300 out of my pocket except once--that was $150. BTCA reimburses part of that about 6 months later. And many of these animals are unsocialised, problem dogs or at best traumatised by time at the shelter. Which means many all nighters up with dogs. And some of these dogs stay 6 months or better! Homer, (the poet, not Simpson) was a blind 7 yr old tossed over a shelter fence over night in Des Moines--if we'd not been there in 24 hrs to collect after the call came in, he'd have been euthanised. He was a fabulous dog but died of his advanced renal failure in my arms 2 months later. He was our housedog the entire time we had him and a real joy. But this shit is painful. We clean up messes. I'm bitter about the type of people who create them and I have a short fuse with those who don't understand. The dogs are the ones who pay. We might seem an arrogant lot, but there is nothing, especially ourselves, more important than these dogs. The more we educate, the better the dogs will fare. I sincerely apologise to you for failing to help you more directly more quickly for what you had asked me earlier--I was guilty of the seeming 'elitism' I've accused fellow members of years back. It was my gut reaction to a bad situation. We don't have a problem in rescue as you see it and it's all our fault...gee, if we were more 'popular' then we'd have a BIGGER problem, then we'd be filling a need, then we'd have the right to bitch about the problem we created! Yupper...glad you have cats. Leesa | |
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