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Crufts Demo Report

Nottingham Animal Rights | 08.03.2009 15:17 | Animal Liberation | Birmingham

Crufts 2009 is coming to an end.

Animal rights activists from Nottingham, London and elsewhere gave a grand farewell to the Kennel Club, hoping that this will be the last year that people will be allowed to breed dogs for racial(breed), purity whilst thousands of healthy dogs die in shelters around the world because of a demand they created.

Demo Panorama
Demo Panorama

Who protects the purity of the bloodline?
Who protects the purity of the bloodline?

Fluffy Supporters
Fluffy Supporters

Incest is NOT Best
Incest is NOT Best

Darwin's Nightmare
Darwin's Nightmare


The purpose of the demo at the Birmingham NEC, collectively organised by grassroots campaigners, was to pass on two very important messages to the public.

1. Breeding unhealthy dog's for aesthetic purposes is morally wrong.

2. Breeding dogs is pointless when there are existing dogs all over the world needing homes.

As Ronnie Lee said in an earlier report:

ALL dog breeding is a problem

There is a sense in which all breeding of dogs by human beings is morally unacceptable.

All dogs are descended from the wolf and we only have domestic dogs because human beings, for their own selfish purposes (mainly to kill other animals) deliberately bred wolves in a selective fashion in order to create all the different shapes and sizes of dogs we have today.

It could therefore be argued that we are morally obliged to cease the breeding of dogs, while at the same time doing our utmost to protect wolves in the wild and to preserve their habitat. As long as we have the wolf, the dog will not die out, as they are essentially the same species.

In addition, it is surely also morally unacceptable to deliberately or negligently breed dogs (no matter how kindly the breeder might be) in a situation where many thousands of dogs are being "put down" every year because no homes are available for them.

Alice Walker's words (from her book "The Color Purple") that "The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for whites, or women for men" are just as much applicable to dogs/wolves as they are to any other animal.

That is not to say, of course, that we should not try to help dogs that have already been bred, in order to save them from death and suffering.

----------------------

Links

'Pedigree Dogs Exposed
 http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=44215931

PETA's Kennel club spoof
 http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=rxAaK0iJ2vQ&feature=related

Independent article
 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-big-question-is-the-breeding-of-pedigree-dogs-leading-to-cruel-abnormalities-902853.html

Animal Rights Calendar listing
 http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=30

Nottingham Animal Rights
- e-mail: David_best@hotmail.co.uk


Comments

Hide the following 3 comments

Great demo...poor turnout!

08.03.2009 17:48

Yes a great demo today. Apart from some mad woman spraying us with a can of coke! And another woman who tried to slap protesters in the face!! But those were isolated incidents, most of the public were good humoured and interested to see/hear our message. The chanting was very loud and could clearly be heard inside! :-)

Between 40-50 people attended, which might sound good, but that includes a coach from London and a smaller crowd from Nottingham and further affield. Turnout from the West Midlands was strangely very poor, probably only 6-7 in total. Considering there are alot of campaigners spread across the West Midlands region, particularly Birmingham and Coventry, this was very disappointing.

Come on you Brummies...get yourselves sorted!!

Woof


Miss guided and Miss informed

13.03.2009 01:44

If the protestors at this years Crufts had actually gone into the halls of the NEC and spoken to the many thousands of animal loving owners and breeders of dogs inside both pedigree and cross breeds they would realise that their protest was a misinformed one to take. The thousands of dogs are first and foremost peoples beloved pets, and its their health and welfare is the prime concern of their owners. The Kennel Club who run the show despite what some recent programmes have mislead the public into believing , look after the rights of ALL dogs be they registered with them or not, over the [past few years they have donated almost £4,000,000.00 to canine welfare and research to combat diseases in dogs (much of this research will benefit humans as their gene pattern is similar) all the profits from the Show and the various activities from the Kennel Club go towards the Kennel Charitable trust which makes these donations. The Kennel club has also founded and runs along with BVA a number of health screening schemes (copied by many countries around the world) that have over a period of time enable breeders to reduce incidence of many health conditions in ALL dogs (pedigree and mongrel ). Inside the hall were many eminent vets and scientist who by working with breeders, owners and the Kennel Club have enhance the life and continue to enhance the welfare of ALL dogs. The KC is also the founder of the Pet log scheme that reunites thousands of lost and stolen dogs with their owners each year. Unlike the RSPCA who According to the annual report in 2007 the RSPCA rehomed/released (released means gave back to when dog was lost) 15,787 dogs yet it Humane euthanasia(ie destroyed)7,506 dogs more than HALF the dogs it rehomed!!! In fact in 2007 the RSPCA euthanized 66,489 animals (granted it less than the 72,042 they destroyed in 2006!!). Their income in for 2007 was £114,100,000, it has £83.2 million in fixed assets, it has £123.5 million in investments so over £206 million pounds in assets and investments alone. Yet it spent £8,189,000 on campaigns and media work £1,349,000 on its Governance costs, and it it paid just 18 of its employees a total of £1.2 Million pounds in one year. So you asked can my source be trusted?
Well its all there in the RSPCA Annual review for 2007 – Trustees and Financial report (on the RSPCA web site). If the people at Passionate Productions really cared about animals perhaps they should of investigated the people who pay the that former TV presenter as their CHIEF vet!! And ask why an organisation who had access to over £320 million pounds in one year still destroys over 7,500 dogs and has never spent a single penny on canine health reserach...now that is a dogs story that should be exposed

Sirius


Problem with transport to the demo, smoking coach driver

15.03.2009 14:01

Well I did go to support this demo and help make up the numbers, I came on the coach from London, but thanks to the selfish smoking coach driver (he actually did smoke on the coach which was illegal, so I am pressing hard for a prosecution), I have been totally put off attending such demos again.
Organisers and others within the AR movement need to show some backbone and loyalty stand up to people who try to make some of us ill!
I did not stand up for myself properly, wish I had but I have found that even in standing up for myself by reporting it afterwards, only one person out of about a dozen witnesses to the driver's irresponsible law-breaking cares enough to do the right thing and support me.
If support is needed for demos, and transport organised, there has to be a bit more loyalty between us and understanding for people with health conditions!
If anyone else had suffered I would support them, I would even support a smoker if they were on the end of a similarly bad wrongdoing. Having a drop of cola squirted on you is nothing compared to a week of breathing difficulties and chest infection following a passive smoking incident (I am very allergic to it and this is how it affected me, as it always does).

Lesley Dove
mail e-mail: Lesley@vegan4life.org.uk


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