Madam, - Congratulations to the ISPCA inspector Brendan Hughes for his appearance on last Friday's Late Late Show, and to The Irish Times and Karlin Lillington for highlighting the dreadful and inexcusable practice of puppy-farming in Ireland (Weekend, January 31st).
As a dog behaviourist and the co-ordinator of a dog rescue service, we feel we must draw people's attention to serious problems with taking farmed pups into homes.
All dogs go through a "socialisation period" between three and 16 weeks of age. This is the most critical part of a dog's life, when it learns to cope with children, traffic, meeting strangers, other dogs, etc. If the pup is not exposed to such things, or has a bad experience with them, it will become frightened of them. Behavioural problems such as severe nervousness, destructiveness, inability to housetrain, and aggression will develop.
Farmed pups cannot be properly socialised. At best, the only human they see is for the minute it takes someone to throw them some food. They certainly never encounter children, cars or household noise.
Because of the horrendous conditions in which they live, they often become ill within days of arriving at their new home, resulting in high vet bills. We appeal to prospective dog owners to make sure they are not buying a farmed pup and supporting this gruesome trade:
1. Never buy a pup without seeing it with its mother at the breeder's property. Assess the mother's personality, which she nurtures in her pups.
2. Never collect a pup from anywhere other than its breeder's premises. Legitimate breeders have nothing to hide, and should welcome you to their kennels.
3. For the same reasons, never buy a pup from a pet shop. Selling pups to a "middle man" is against the Irish Kennel Club's code of ethics.
4. Never buy a pup younger than seven weeks of age. The mother must complete her part of the socialisation process with her pups.
5. All pups going to their new home should be bursting with health. Look for bright eyes, healthy skin, teeth and gums.
6. Consider adopting a pup or dog from one of Ireland's many rescue centres or pounds. They are packed with all types of beautiful pedigree and cross-breed dogs. A good rescue centre will provide a home-check service, a "no kill" policy, and back-up behavioural and training advice for new owners.
Ireland has gained the dubious reputation of being Europe's puppy-farm capital. We also have the highest per-capita rate of euthanasia for homeless and abandoned dogs. We call on the Department of the Environment to take the following steps to eliminate the national disgrace of our puppy-farms.
1. Implement a licensing system for all breeders, subject to minimum care standards.
2. Introduce mandatory State-subsidised neutering and spaying of all non-licensed dogs.
3. Introduce mandatory State-sponsored micro-chipping of all dogs, to reunite missing dogs with their owners.
4. Provide proper resources for the ISPCA and rescue centres to implement these measures.
Lastly, to the 5,000 people offering the Tipperary dachshunds a home: why not contact your nearest rescue centres and pounds, which have thousands of pitiful inmates literally dying for a new home? - Yours, etc.,
MAUREEN BYRNE, Dogs Behaving Badly?,
MARIE HANNON, Celtic Animal Life Line (CALL), Termonfeckin, Co Louth.