Letters from readers:

Dogs in the Philippines
in worrying situation

Hello,
I have just read on your website about Labradors being sent to Asia by Labrador breeders. This has worried me for a long time as a bitch I bred and sold to another Labrador person was sold on to the Philippines when she was made up into a Champion. I was horrified when I found out. She was the
foundation bitch for a kennel over there. I think her life was OK but I did worry about where her puppies may have gone when sold.

The barbaric things that are done to dogs over there is horrifying. I agree with you about naming breeders who send animals to these places They should be named. They only do it for the money.

I saw some emotive and hideous pictures on a website of dogs in cages and being butchered. I had nightmares for weeks. The one thing which will always remain with me was the sad and hopeless looks in the dogs' eyes. Keep up with the good work. Best wishes - Lorraine

Hello Lorraine,
Thanks for the letter of approval. What often worries me is that there are breeders who will close their eyes to the fate of their beautiful dogs and indicate that nobody has a right to interfere with what they consider to be their "legitimate business". These people don't care what happens to their dogs after the money changes hands!

There are of course genuine show dogs in the Philippines the same as most other countries and it is possible to get really good owners who are genuine and want a good show dog. But personally I would never sell any dogs to such countries as what happens when they are no longer in the showring? What happens to their puppies? Especially the puppies that do not make it as show dogs? They can't all be showdogs and their future is very worrying. It is just not worth selling our dogs into such areas.

There are also dog rescue centres in the Philippines that are doing a very good job with limited finances and knowledge, but I have read recently that rabies is quite common there - that country is fourth in the world for incidence of rabies in the canine population. Also heartworms and hookworms are common. All need preventive treatment on an ongoing basis although one rabies shot should last the dog's lifetime (we currently over-inocculate for such diseases that scare the life out of us!).

Currently there are people there who try to justify eating dog meat as "culturally traditional" but this is simply profit-driven promotion! There was never a culture of eating dog flesh in the Philippines other than one tribe that consumed dog on one special celebration day (and it no longer does that). That tribe has expressed disgust that it is being used as an excuse for the treatment of dogs today. - Ed