RSPCA Pulls Out of Crufts
September 15, 2008 by Freelance Writers
- Urgent change is needed to save the pedigree dog -
The RSPCA has suspended plans for a stand at Crufts and is calling for new measures to tackle the unacceptably high levels of disability, deformity and disease that threaten pedigree dogs.
In the wake of the BBC documentary Pedigree Dogs Exposed broadcast last month, the RSPCA has become increasingly concerned about the health and welfare of pedigree dogs - and this includes animals entered into ‘best of breed’ classes in dog shows like Crufts.
In the past, the RSPCA has staffed a stand at Crufts in order to promote general animal welfare issues.
RSPCA chief veterinary adviser Mark Evans said: “Dog shows using current breed standards as the main judging criteria actively encourage both the intentional breeding of deformed and disabled dogs and the inbreeding of closely related animals. There is compelling scientific evidence that the health and welfare of hundreds of thousands of pedigree dogs is seriously compromised as a result. From a dog health and welfare perspective, such shows are fundamentally flawed and do our much loved pedigree dogs no favours. Intentionally breeding deformed and disabled animals is morally unjustifiable and it has to stop.
“We want to see the emphasis shifted away from arbitrary appearance, so that health, welfare and temperament are considered first and foremost. We want to help ensure that pedigree dogs have the best possible chance of being fit, healthy and happy and well suited to the lives they will lead as pets. All those who benefit from pedigree dogs have a collective responsibility to solve what is now a very serious and totally unnecessary animal welfare problem - not just here in the UK, but around the world.”
The RSPCA has commissioned an independent review of the science in this field, and will be discussing its findings with relevant experts and stakeholders later this year. Amongst a raft of specific recommendations, the following themes have been identified as possible ways forward:
- An overhaul of the rules and requirements for pedigree dog registration and competitive dog showing (including breed standards). Health, welfare and temperament should be prioritised over appearance.
- The development and implementation of health and welfare-focused breeding strategies for individual breeds. This should include pro-active steps to increase the genetic diversity of dog breeds.
- More data collection and scientific analysis on causes of disease and death in dogs
- Education, especially of would-be owners, to encourage demand for dogs which have the best possible chance of leading healthy, happy lives as pets.
“We know that hundreds of thousands of dogs are vulnerable to illness, pain, disability and behavioural problems because they’re primarily bred for how they look rather than with health, welfare and temperament in mind,” Mr Evans said.
“If things don’t change pedigree dogs will continue to suffer unnecessarily, and their welfare will continue to decline – this is totally unacceptable and can’t be allowed to happen. Careful breeding with an emphasis on health, welfare, temperament and quality of life is the only way to ensure a positive future for the pedigree dog.”
The RSPCA has also cancelled plans to attend the Discover Dogs show, due to take place in November.
Author DetailsK9 Magazine welcomes submissions from freelance contributors. If you would like information on submitting dog related articles for publication see our webpage - See this author's webpage
Related posts:
- BBC Cuts Crufts Coverage: Decision Reflects Serious Concern For Pedigree Dog Health
- RSPCA Chief Vet Condemns ‘Parade of Mutants’ - Pedigree Dogs Exposed
- The RSPCA Responds To The Kennel Club’s Moves To Improve Pedigree Dog Welfare
- Pedigree Pulls Out Of Crufts, Now it’s Over to You BBC
- RSPCA, Dogs Trust and Crufts - Why Withdraw?
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Surely it would be better for the RSPCA to be at these shows,to help reeducate people and to put forward their point of view.
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I applaud the RSPCA for taking a stand against these irresponsible, cruel breeding practices. “Having a stand at these shows to re-educate people”, as commented above, sounds all nice and well, but many people will not get this information and will see the RSPCA’s presence as proof that they are condoning these practices, which should stop NOW.
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About time the RSPCA stepped up to the plate. Its been a long time coming.Having a stand at Crufts is all very well but how do you ‘educate’ people who are obviously so blinkered?. Use the money spent on these stands to increase awareness regarding breeding.
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The RSPCA could do a hell of a lot more good work in the dog world more in my estimation, and I cant see what they hope to achieve by pulling out of Crufts. Few of the 150000 or so visitors or millions of viewers will look at any of the dogs at Crufts and see what the programme described as disabled mutants.
Very few breed clubs, breeders/exhibitors support the RSPCA anyway, no loss in my opinion.
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One less trade stand, less visitors, great.
RSPCA needs to start doing some good work, and acting on some of the issues raised when the public report dogs being abused, instead of ignoring them or failing to act. Perhaps pulling out of Crufts will give them more time to concentrate on the critical issues out there.
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How does pulling out of Crufts help educate the public, and improve the welfare, health and temperament of dogs???
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Well done to the RSPCA for saying the truth and sticking with it! Rare these days. Hopefully others will follow suit.
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Pointless exercise……..Are they not at Crufts to educate the public, as someone has said above, so by not having a presence at Crufts, are they not making matters worse?
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just about sums the rspca up ,someone else does the work(BBC) and they jump on the band wagon to claim the brownie points ,not once have this cowboy outfit prosecuted one of the water utilities following a pollution ,although fish and invertebrates are killed in their millions its left to the aca funded by anglers ,
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As can be seen from the above mix, it’s a no win situation in the publics eyes for the RSPCA.
Don’t withdraw from Crufts and they are condoning bad breeding practises. Withdraw and they are losing an opportunity to educate the public.
My sympathies lie with the RSPCA in this instance.
As far as the polluted water and water utilities is concerned the lead body for that is the Environment Agency. As the Statutory Government Agency they have their own enforcement department and prosecution department.
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It’s no loss, they were all for the DDA at the time and haven’t had my support since. They are jumping on the bandwagon of a one sided edited programme. The Kennel Club and breed clubs do a huge amount of work into health issues but none were reported on, instead of that 7 breeds from about 209 were pulled apart - that hardly consitues ‘bringing down pedigree dogs’. The RSPCA vet calling all show dogs mutants wants sacking, I’ve showed for 15 years and have yet to see a mutant.
Why weren’t the Animal Health Trust interviewed (or maybe they didn’t say what the programme wanted to hear) The AHT and breed clubs have made huge leaps in work into many diseases and it’s the SHOW PEOPLE that are testing their dogs.
No RSPCA at Crufts - great news!
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Wendy, You said: “It’s no loss, they were all for the DDA at the time and haven’t had my support since. ”
So why are you supporting the KC who are STILL looking for new legislation which is breed specific?!
again, at least the RSPCA had the nerve to stand up and say the DDA is wrong and a mistake and dont ge involved unless welfare issues anymore. All the KC have done is shift in their seats go “ummm political climate” alot and come up with a law that carries on BSL AND makes dog ownership much much worse!
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What good is going to be achieved by the RSPCA pulling out from attending Crufts???
The problem with the documentary is that it illustrated the conditions/diseases which certain pedigree breeds are prone to in a one sided point of view & showing real extreme cases.
How do we know certain KC reg breeds are prone to these conditions??? These conditions may not be evident to the eye but we know because KC reg breeders tests for these conditions & results are recorded with the KC.
How can they say non KC reg dogs are healthier when NO tests are carried out on the non KC reg dog, heinz57 or crossbreed??? I’ve seen crossbreeds with Epilepsy, Hip Dysplasia etc but it all goes unrecorded!
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I do think that the kennel club have a lot to answer for– a lot of beautiful dogs, very much loved by their owners,(or not as the case may be ),who now may be Obsolete!! But if you do find a good breeder, with good really well looked after pups (where i got my three cockers from!! ) you really cannot compare that to puppy farming, so a line has got to be drawn somewhere!!!
I live in Scotland so it is the SSPCA that we have, but both charities do hard and often thankless work for our animals.SO PLEASED to hear WENDY thinks ther should be no RSPCA at crufts— so they can do whatever to their dogs !!! Beggars belief! Poor dogs!!
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Not a big loss losing the RSPCA from Crufts anyway, they never want to do work when they dont get any publicity. I have few times rand the RSPCA to report things they really are not interested, even with puppy farmers they only get involved if there is a possiblity they may gain something for themselves to me they really could not care about animals (in my opinion) I will always have time for other animal organisations, but have no time at all for the RSPCA!!!!!!
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Personally I feel it is no loss the RSPCA pulling out of Crufts, as some have already said, they dont seem to help when needed anyway. Although I really feel they should be there to boost public confidence and to educate the general public on dog husbandry. There appear to be a lot of people, including some people from the K9 dog magazine that are generally against pedigree dogs, dog showing and the kennel club, and although the programme showed some disturbing scenes, feel they are grasping at straws in trying to get everyone to see their point of view. The producers picked on a few dogs, in a few breeds, dont tarr everyone with the same brush.
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K9 Magazine and RSPCA are all in the same league, and have picked up on a few breeds with genetic defects. Crufts is full of healthy dogs owned and bred by people that really care for their well being and work hard to support their breed.
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“K9 Magazine and RSPCA are all in the same league”
On the right side of animal welfare concerns is certainly the ‘league’ I’d be comfortable to stay in. Meanwhile, certain apologists can carry on trying to defend the indefensible, deflect attention and point the finger of blame at everyone but themselves. It’s just the way it’s always been, fortunately times are changing.
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I think Ryan, that you are in the league of someone that has a grudge against dog showing, and pedigree dogs. There is no doubt that the programme raised ’some’ issues with certain breeds, but this programme was definitely aimed at ‘all’ breeds, in an aim to try and stop breeding. I just hope there are no re percussions and demonstrations outside Crufts in March.
No doubt this programme has raised the profile of your K9 dog magazine?
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Couple of issues with your theory Charlie.
I own two pedigree dogs. Have always owned pedigree dogs.
How can the programme have raised the profile of my magazine? I think you’ll find, if you wish to check the archives, K9 Magazine has had a steadfast position on this issue for many, many years prior to the broadcast of this documentary. The fact that the programme came along and alerted the general public to the issues that we have been discussing for years is certainly of benefit, but not to us - to dog owners (and dogs) in general.
I don’t have a ‘grudge’ against dog shows. I have a ‘grudge’ against breeding for aesthetic qualities at the expense of health. Personally, I couldn’t give a kettle’s whistle what a dog looks like which is why my (pedigree, KC reg’d) dogs would certainly not meet the criteria for a KC breed standard - I am interested in health, temperament and function. Sadly, the way dog shows are set up currently can NOT say they share my priorities.
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I cant see the reasoning behind the RSPCA pulling out? I was personally appalled at the state of the GSD’s and the genetic defects in CKSC, ‘but’, the problem I have is the way in which the programme indicated that all breeds that met the KC standard were not bred with the health and temperament in mind. NOT all breeds have genetic defects, and NOT all breeds are not routinely screened before being bred. Even if the KC put restrictions on breeding, who is going to control the BYB?
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Where were the RSPCA for Bruce the dog seized in Northern Ireland for looking like a pit bull. So the RSPCA object to breeders using a breed standard but not the Government sentencing dogs to death because they look a certain way.
Bruces story was on you tube and to see the condition of the dog before he was seized and the condition after is appalling maybe the BBC should have done a documentary on that and the others that suffered appalling mistreatment and died while awaiting the outcome of their trials.
If you want to see photos here is a link.
http://z6.invisionfree.com/Northern_Ireland_K9/index.php?showtopic=2281&st=0&#last
While the Kennel club is not perfect it has spent a considerable amount of money over 1.7m in the last ten years invested in research and donations to rescue groups for the good of all dogs.
In another article on your site you mention that the Kennel club should follow other countries like Germany well guess what one of the breeds featured on the programme is a German breed that being the German Shepherd(the name sort of give it away) and they have not changed in twenty years but suddenly the RSPCA is concerned about them. Have they not seen them in the last twenty years whey did they not raise the issue years ago.
Have to agree with Wendy The RSPCA vet calling all show dogs mutants wants sacking, and then you try to tell us that they are not tarring good breeders with the same brush.
As someone else rightly pointed out it is only pedigree dogs that have health tests done on them by concerned breeders aiming to improve their breed so it is easy to compare dogs that have been tested with non pedigree dogs who have never been tested I wonder how. And guess what the Kennel Club that is being bashed by the RSPCA has invested thousands in research but God don’t show that or talk about that as it would not make good viewing or reading material.
The RSPCA got a donation this year of £48000 from the Kennel Club and yet this magazine has the nerve to accuse a dog food company of morals over money.
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I agree with above comment, as in how many unhealthy dogs do you see at Crufts anyway…….none, or else they would not be there?
Ryan - if you have pedigree dogs, are they KC registered, and from breeders with a long standing knowledge of the breed, or unregistered from back yard breeders, or someone with no knowledge of genetic defects and bred from dogs that have not been hip scored etc? Are you supporting back yard breeders, or those that have worked hard to improve the gene pool of their chosen breed.
The programme may make some people to make some hasty decisions, that could prove disastrous and to the detriment of a particular breed.
Crufts is a long standing institution, the pride of Britain, are you trying to ban Crufts altogether, as that is how it would appear?
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oh, the ‘above’ comment I was relating to has now disappeared, when moderated are you choosing which comments you are happy to be printed. Obviously feeling a little hot under the collar there K9 magazine.
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Farsical, I can tackle your points with pleasure.
When you said “the above comment you were relating to has disappeared” what’s actually happened is, when YOU posted this under a different name (Vince Brooks):
“How many unhealthy dogs do you see at Crufts? A programme about the ever increasing number of puppy farmers and BYB’s would have added far more value.”
- this is the comment you thought you were responding to. Only, and this is funny, because YOU posted it and then tried to respond to it as if you were a totally different person (i.e agreeing with YOUR own comment) that’s your big error, right there.
ALL comments go in to a moderation queue. So what you (comically) have done is posted a comment, which YOU wrote, so only you would know what comment you were agreeing with.
This is very funny. That you would create a series of names, use different email addresses all to agree with your own points. And yet you think it’s ME who’s getting hot under the collar? Nope, my collar is as cool as it was yesterday thanks.
If you are going to attempt to mislead by creating several accounts, at least try and use a proxy server and then don’t clown yourself by referencing a comment that only YOU could have seen. ALL comments go into moderation so the comment you thought you were agreeing with, was your own.
Oh, and although your credibility is now (hilariously) shot to pieces, I will answer at least one of your questions:
You asked “how many unhealthy dogs do you see at Crufts anyway…….none, or else they would not be there? ”
I would point you in the direction of the 2003 BEST IN SHOW winner - and that’s just for starters.
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What Best Of Breed Classes at Crufts? There never have been any. Best of breed is chosen by taking the best of all the dog class winners, then the best of all the bitch class winners and then choosing the better of theses two winners. Or does the RSPCA not pay any more attention to this aspect of the Kennel Club’s own show than for all the work the Kennel Club has done into research into disease? Ask any vet how many mongrels he sees with heart, kidney or skin problems or diabetes. It is much easier to research pedigree dogs as the ancestors are known. In over 25 years of careful breeding of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels (which does NOT include litter siblings or parents to offspring - that is a VERY rare scenario, despite the BBC programme showing it to be common practice) I have bred very few dogs who have had any problems with health. The average lifespan has been just short of eleven years of age, with fewer health problems than human friends and family of comparable ages. A few bitches died after uterine infections, most of them had never had puppies, which is a case for spaying bitches not intended for breeding and a totally different issue, and a problem that also happens in mongrel bitches. Quite a few lived well into their teens, 15 and a half being the oldest. Other breeds have a longer average lifespan, especially some of the “unhealthy” toy breeds.
The RSPCA would do better to look into the “puppy farms”, the breeders who churn out litter after litter of puppies and who do no health testing, do not follow pedigrees and do not adhere to any breed club code of ethics. These are quite easy to detect from the Kennel Club Breeds Records supplement, where every puppy registered is listed with its date of birth, number of puppies in its litter, names of its parents, name of breeder, the number of previous litters produced by the bitch and the total number of puppies she has whelped. Each breed club maintains a list of owners, so the information is available.
Jane
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Please realize that many of todays Breeders of pure bred dogs are utilizing the most current technologies and breeding practices known to man. Please not permit one bad apple to destroy the entire basket of apples. As Members of Breed PArent Clubs, we need to be proactive is stopping, preventing and correcting disabling and bad breeding practices.
Best to all in our sport.
As well as to all animal care givers.
Dennis Trout of the USA
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Dennis if Breeders of pure bred dogs are utilizing the most current technologies and breeding practices known to man, then why are they not taking the advice of the scientists and opening the stud books? Maybe they’ll use technologies only when it suits them?
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This time, the RSPCA has really shot themselves in the foot. Yes, there are some people that DO NOT abide by the breeding code of ethics, but to generalise that all dog breeders do not take the care to make the breed the very best it could be is preposterous. Blacklisting every breeder is not only misinformed but highly unjustified.
Yes, you get some immoral breeders who will not have the best genetic breedline, but at the same time, the Labra-Doodle, that crossbreed the RSPCA raves about has some of the worst genetics ever seen! Why isn’t the RSPCA stopping the breeding of them instead of blackballing every breeder when in fact any sensible and decent breeder will be performing every test known to man to ensure that their puppies are as healthy as can be. Sometimes, genetic anomalies happen no matter how careful you are.
RSCPA boycott Crufts? I’d rather boycott RSPCA. They meddle in affairs they obviously don’t know anything about and are never there when you actually need them. Find something else to try and turn people against, it’s bad enough that tail docking got banned because the Govt. listened to the shock videos of again, a few bad apples who shouldn’t have been allowed dogs to begin with.
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Dave the Dog Reply:
June 17th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
You just don’t get it do you!
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