Belle Vue greyhound racing track security manager Carl Jacobs is caught on camera throwing a punch at a peaceful protester OUTSIDE the venue where campaigners were raising awareness to the welfare plight of dogs within the racing industry. Jacobs can be seen on film quite clearly attempting to hit one of the protesters before barging in to another, female, campaigner, knocking her to the ground.
UK dog adoption site dogsblog.com has announced a new sponsorship with Direct Line to help more dogs in need find loving new forever homes. During the sponsorship, the pet insurer also will offer advice to new dog owners through the new advice hub.
As the UK’s leading dog adoption site working with more than 530 animal rescues to help more dogs find new homes, the site has helped more than 38,700 to find new homes since launching in 2007.
Ritchie, pictured above, is a 7 year old cross-breed who is on the dog adoption site looking for a new home
Speaking of the news site co-founder Ryan O’Meara said, “Our goal this year is to continue to help more rescues and more dogs in need, while we help more new dog owners set off on the right path with their new companion, and we’re happy to do that through the support and sponsorship of Direct Line Pet Insurance.”
Dog adoption site dogsblog.com, which originally launched in 2007, is happy to announce our new sponsorship with Direct Line to help more dogs find loving new forever homes.
As the UK’s leading dog adoption site working with more than 530 animal rescues to help more dogs find new homes, the site has helped more than 38,700 to find new homes to date.
Max, pictured above, is a 9 month old Lurcher who is on the dog adoption site looking for a new home
“Our goal this year is to continue to help more rescues and more dogs in need, while we help more new dog owners set off on the right path with their new companion, and we’re happy to do that through the support and sponsorship of Direct Line Pet Insurance”, says site co-founder Ryan O’Meara.
Veterinary care can get very expensive and more and more often, pet owners are cutting corners on preventive treatments to try and save money. This, however, can do more harm than good for your pets and tends to lead to more problems (and expense!) down the line.
An article from the PDSA, published on Pet Gazette, has recently revealed that millions of pets are at risk of serious diseases due to not being vaccinated. As a stat, this is very worrying as a lot of poorly pets could be in a much better position if they had been given preventative care.
The Healthy Pet Club is a pet loyalty scheme aimed at helping customers save money on preventative care for their pets. From just £9.99 a month, they offer free vaccinations (and many other benefits) to make sure your much loved pets don’t lose their lives to these horrible diseases, when prevention is so easy.
Read all about how the Healthy Pet Club has helped two Springer Spaniels stay happy and healthy below:
Dolly is an eight year old English Springer Spaniel, both her and her brother Dave, also a Springer, belong to Lynda Dunn and her husband, Roger. They have had Dolly since she was a puppy, but unfortunately in 2011 she was diagnosed with osteoarthritis. Treating this involved regular injections of Cartrophen along with Cosequin tablets, which would have cost the Dunns a fortune had they not been members of the Healthy Pet Club. They have not only saved money on Dolly’s injections and daily medication, but they have also had the benefit of making further savings on her routine treatment, check-ups and vaccinations including Kennel Cough.
Dave was rehomed with Mr and Mrs Dunn when he was approximately 4 years old. About 6 weeks after he joined the family, he started to show signs of not being well and he lost a quarter of his body weight. Luckily, Dave had been signed up to the Healthy Pet Club as soon as he was adopted. This was a good thing too as he was eventually diagnosed by their vet with whipworm and successfully treated.
Lynda explained: “We are now obviously very concerned about the risk of reinfection, and the peace of mind we gain from knowing that we are saving on regular flea and worming treatment and check-ups is priceless. Unfortunately, he has also been diagnosed with osteoarthritis so our medications will be increasing as a result.
“Being a member of the Healthy Pet Club is so worthwhile, especially if you have a dog or cat with a chronic condition that needs regular medication.
“Knowing that we are saving on the various treatments and check-ups gives us peace of mind. I can’t even begin to estimate how much we have saved, but needless to say, it’s a lot!”
To find out more about the Healthy Pet Club, visit: www.thehealthypetclub.co.uk/K91
Every week that goes by a new dog toy, food or accessory will be amid fanfare that it’s the most revolutionary or biggest game changer. Rarely are those claims able to stand up to serious scrutiny. This one might be different. This one really could be as game changing as products like the Kong.
Take a look at the concept for the GoBone. Can you picture this product lighting up your dog’s life in those moments when they’re on their own?
PulsePet, the company behind the product, opened pre-order sales for the smartbone on May 31 via the crowdfunding site Kickstarter and met its first goal in just five days. The firm says:
The GoBone keeps dogs active with automatic, all-day entertainment while their owner is unavailable. The GoBone can also be used as an app-controlled gaming device for owners to play with their dogs in a fun, unique way when they are together. Working toward meeting its stretch funding goal, today PulsePet announced a new charitable contribution.
“As a dog owner and animal shelter volunteer, I know how much being bored and lonely can stress a dog,” says Santiago Gutierrez, CEO and founder. “When I created the GoBone, my original goal was to keep my dog Rufus entertained while he was home alone. But then I realized the GoBone could also be used to improve the bond between owners and their pets through interactive games they can play together. When we tested the GoBone initially, we did so with shelter dogs of all sizes. I saw the impact it made so donating to a local Dallas shelter just made sense as a great way to give back”
GoBone is partnering with Dallas Animal Services and Adoption Center to donate more than $1,000 worth of GoBones to the shelter. The GoBones will help mentally stimulate the dogs and engage them in their kennels. The GoBones will also help engage volunteers under the age of 18 who are not allowed to physically interact with animals. With the GoBone App, they will be able to play with the dogs by controlling the GoBone and playing games with them from outside the kennels.
“As the Dallas Animal Advisor Commissioner (District 1), I’ve been involved with several recently-adopted dogs from local animal shelters that were very reclusive and withdrawn,” said Chris Watts. “The GoBone provides mental and physical stimulation that brings out their personalities. Since interacting with the GoBone, they’ve become entirely different dogs.“
Using patent-pending algorithms, the GoBone automatically adjusts its behavior based on the dog’s age, weight, breed, and play style to engage them longer and more often than other toys. For example, the GoBone moves quickly and takes sharp turns for an Aussie puppy. It slows down and takes easy turns for an older bulldog. Owners can set the GoBone on auto mode or they can schedule playtime via the GoBone App. When together, owners can choose to control the GoBone via the app, giving them more ways to play and interact with their dog.
“The GoBone is effective for playing with and exercising animals,” said Laura Young, Dallas Dog Behaviorist and AKC certified evaluator. “ As a dog behaviorist and trainer, I also see it as an innovative training and assessment tool. The GoBone lets me observe a dog’s natural style of play and drive, which helps me custom-tailor my training techniques to the individual dog’s personality.”
The ultra- durable exterior is replaceable so owners don’t need to buy a whole new GoBone if by chance it gets damaged. It is lightweight so pups can easily carry it around inside or outside. Owners can also customize colors and attachments as they’re introduced. The GoBone’s rechargeable battery lasts eight hours in autonomous mode and 30 minutes in freestyle (manual) mode. As many dogs may not have encountered an automated toy, the creators at GoBone have developed an introduction process to ensure even the most timid dogs gradually fall in love with the GoBone.
The GoBone was designed with safety and durability in mind. All parts that come in contact with dogs are made from FDA food-grade, eco-friendly materials. Multiple hardware and software safeties are in place to keep dogs safe. The GoBone has been tested for over 1,000 hours with more than 120 dogs in homes and shelters, where it has already demonstrated its positive influence on many dogs. For shelter dogs in particular, the GoBone has helped them become more active in their pens, showing potential adopting families the dog’s true self. The PulsePet team believes so strongly in the benefit shown to shelter dogs, that in addition to providing GoBones to a local Dallas shelter, PulsePet offers two Kickstarter pledge options that allow consumers to donate a GoBone to the shelter of choice to help as many dogs as possible.
Visit http://bit.ly/GoBone to pledge your support and save off the final retail price. For the cost of a week’s worth of doggy daycare, your best friend will enjoy all-day mental and physical exercise no matter how your day unfolds. For more information about GoBone, please visit http://www.mygobone.com.
Sixteen-year-old Bretagne (pronounced Brit-nee), the last known FEMA Search & Rescue Canine who served at Ground Zero, has died peacefully in Cypress, Texas.
She was a remarkable canine partner who deployed with her handler Denise Corliss and other members of Texas Task Force 1 (TX-TF1) to the site of the World Trade Center for 10 days in 2001. A Golden Retriever, Bretagne was 2 years old and newly certified as a FEMA Search and Rescue canine when she deployed with the Texas urban search and rescue team to the worst terrorism incident in U.S. history.
At age 15, Bretagne and Corliss returned to New York City to visit the 9/11 Memorial Museum and participate in an interview with NBC News’ Tom Brokaw.
During her incredible career with TX-TF1, Bretagne responded to nearly a dozen other disasters, including Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ivan.
Bretagne retired from formal search work at age 9, but continued to serve others as a goodwill ambassador for her local fire department and as a reading assistance dog at an elementary school near her home. She also became a star of a non-fiction book about senior dogs, met Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott, and late last year, met with former President George H.W. Bush at his Presidential Library in College Station, TX.
In 2014, Bretagne was nominated for the American Humane Association “Hero Dog Award” and received the red carpet treatment during a ceremony in Hollywood, CA.
She also gained worldwide media attention as she celebrated her 16th birthday last year with a Sweet 16 birthday bash in New York City. Watch the video of Bretagne’s Best Day.
Bretagne was 8 weeks old when she met Corliss, a volunteer firefighter with the Cy-Fair Fire Department, who was seeking a special dog to train for disaster work. Soon Bretagne and Corliss were fast friends. When Bretagne was 12 months old, she and Corliss began formal training with Texas Task Force 1 to become a FEMA-certified canine team. Bretagne’s drive, determination and personality were well-suited to her career as a Search and Rescue dog.
A teammate wrote this of Bretagne, “If you ask anybody whoever knew or trained with Bretagne, they would tell you ‘Oh she just loves me!’. That’s the kind of dog she is, affectionate to everybody, and fiercely devoted, never takes her eyes off her handler. She has always taken her job as a search dog seriously, but herself not so much. Always ready for a belly rub, or a treat. In remembering her first deployment at the World Trade Center, there are images of her going to where she was directed to search, the unknown, the chaotic environment. But even then, she knew who needed the comfort of a dog, which firefighter needed to hold her close and stroke her fur.”
Bretagne had a long-term relationship with the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, where her namesake, Bretagne 2, was trained as a diabetic alert dog for an individual with severe Type 1 diabetes.
As a feature about her 16th birthday said: “To Bretagne and all of the working dogs who give so selflessly to help humans around the world, thank you.”
A woman who has dedicated her working life to animal welfare has started work as the RSPCA’s Chief Scientific Officer along with her rescue dog Bridie.
Dr Julia Wrathall has worked for the RSPCA for more than two decades, including most recently as the head of the charity’s farm animals department for 12 years.
Her new appointment sees her leading the RSPCA’s four science teams at the charity’s headquarters near Horsham, West Sussex, accompanied by her Irish Setter Bridie.
She said: “I feel both excited and privileged to be taking on this new role, heading up such an outstanding group of staff.”
Julia has a lifelong association with and love of dogs. She is a dog training instructor, being a strong advocate and practitioner of positive, motivational, reward-based methods, and has recently adopted an Irish Setter from RSPCA Halifax, Huddersfield & District Animal Centre following the dog’s rehabilitation after being rescued from appalling conditions by RSPCA Inspectors.
Dr Wrathall said: “Bridie was rescued from terrible conditions but her positive nature has shone through despite the horrors of her former life. Thanks to the wonderful care and dedication of the those who rescued her and brought her back to physical and mental health, she now lives life to the full and enjoys every minute of her ‘working life’ at RSPCA HQ.
“Her friendly, happy and affectionate nature makes her a big favourite with human and canine colleagues alike.
“Having her by my side at work each day, with her unfailingly positive and upbeat approach to life, is a constant reminder both of the amazing work of our inspectors, vets, animal centre staff and volunteers, and of the extraordinary willingness of dogs to move on from past horrors and give life – and humans – a second chance. What an incredible species they are, and aren’t we lucky to have them in our lives?”
The RSPCA’s Science Group has four departments specialising in companion and farm animals, animals used in research and wildlife. This in-house expert resource was first introduced in the 1970s to help enhance the RSPCA’s knowledge and understanding of the physical and behavioural needs of different species, thereby enabling us to act as effectively as possible to improve their welfare through a scientifically informed, evidence based approach.
Julia said: “If we are to ensure that the RSPCA provides the best possible welfare advice, information and support in all areas of human interaction with animals and to the many and varied stakeholders, it is essential that we take proper account of available factual information about what the different species need in order to have a good quality of life.
“The Science Group’s role in gathering and analysing information from animal welfare science and other robust evidence sources to develop and apply practical solutions is therefore a very important aspect of the Society’s work.
“Whether we are producing fact sheets to advise the general public about the welfare of wildlife in their gardens or how to understand their dog’s behaviour, or developing welfare standards and guidance to improve the welfare of farmed livestock or animals used in research, it’s crucial that our advice is both scientifically informed but also practically achievable.”
Julia added: “I’ll be aiming to help maintain and build on the amazing work of the RSPCA Science Group both within and beyond the Society, and also to raise awareness and understanding of the existence, nature and scope of our work, not least the hands-on, practical approach we take to addressing welfare problems through applying animal welfare science in practice.
“This is a particularly exciting time for the RSPCA following the recent appointment of our new Chief Executive and I’ll be working to ensure the Science Group contributes to making this new era a positive and progressive one for animal welfare.”
In addition to their external advisory and advocacy role, the Science teams also work closely with others across the organisation, providing advice and support to the Inspectorate and animal centre staff, as well as working to help ensure that the RSPCA’s campaigns, press work and educational materials are evidence-based and focused on priority welfare issues.
Julia joined the RSPCA as a Scientific Officer in 1994 following a degree in biochemistry, a Masters in animal production and a doctorate in ruminant endocrinology. She became Head of the Farm Animals Department in 2003. During her career at the RSPCA, she has represented the Society on a number of industry, scientific and governmental committees in the UK and overseas, and overseen on-going development of the widely respected RSPCA welfare standards for farm animals which are utilised by many in the UK and beyond, and underpin the RSPCA Assured ethical food labelling assurance scheme, formerly known as Freedom Food.
Julia has also travelled on behalf of the RSPCA to various countries including France, Belgium, Croatia and Australia to provide advocacy and advice on animal welfare and forge relationships with relevant organisations and sectors to enable collaborative work to progress welfare issues
Meet Bella and George. Bella is eleven years old and she weighs 43 lbs. George is a Great Dane weighing in at 131 lbs. This partnership further illustrates the genuinely life changing influence that dogs can have in people’s lives.
Bella was diagnosed with Morquio Syndrome when she was 2 1/2. A rare genetic disease that attacks the bones, there is no cure.
Before George, Bella couldn’t walk on her own, she relied on crutches or a wheelchair but that all changed because Bella met George at the Service Dog Project in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
Since getting George, Bella has put away her crutches. He helps her get from class to class on her own.
See their amazing partnership in action and hear how this little girl speaks about George’s impact on her young life:
The Yorkshire city of Bradford is home to strangely high proportion of dogs who, it seems, are eating some odd things that were not designed to be processed by the natural digestive system of the canine body. Stones, babies’ dummies, socks and even kebab sticks were among hundreds items vets working on behalf of the charity PDSA had to surgically removed from dogs in 2015.
The vet charity treated nearly 400 pets for swallowing things they shouldn’t. And it appears that pets in Bradford are the most curious in the country, as the charity’s vets saw a whopping 33 cases in the city alone.
PDSA, which has 51 Pet Hospitals across the UK, has compiled a list of the ‘top ten’ items pets swallowed according to the number of cases:
PDSA vet Rebecca Ashman said staff have also removed more bizarre objects in the past, from tent pegs and knives to radio aerials.
Rebecca said: “You’d be amazed at some of the crazy things pets eat. Our top ten list highlights the objects we saw most frequently last year, but every now and again we see even more unusual cases.”
Thanks to funding from players of People’s Postcode Lottery, PDSA is educating pet owners about the phenomenon of pets eating strange objects – known as ‘pica’ – and how to keep their animals’ safe.
Rebecca added: “Pets, especially puppies and younger dogs, like to use their mouth to investigate objects as well as to eat. Sometimes a pet will swallow an item by mistake, even though they had only meant to investigate it.
“We might think it’s comical but in some cases it is incredibly dangerous and can even prove fatal. If an object moves along the digestive system, it can cause a tear or life-threatening blockage.
“If you have pets at home, try to keep anything dangerous or easy to swallow out of paws’ reach. Only let them play with suitable pet toys and try to supervise them to avoid any accidents. If you do suspect your pet has swallowed something you should contact your vet for advice immediately.”
PDSA vets say training pets from a young age can help to curb their temptation to chew objects, and they can learn basic commands like ‘drop’ and ‘leave’.
For more free pet health information and advice visit www.pdsa.org.uk
UK hotspots for pets swallowing strange things:
| PDSA Pet Hospital (city) | Number of pets swallowing strange items |
| Bradford | 33 |
| Glasgow Shamrock Street | 23 |
| Gateshead | 19 |
| Oldbury | 17 |
| Bow | 16 |
| Sheffield | 16 |
Greedy American Bulldog Hooch needed emergency surgery after wolfing down a corn-on-the-cob husk from his owner’s bin.
Sarah Baldwin, from Elland, West Yorkshire, had placed the husk in the bin after having a quick bite to eat before work. But no sooner had she left the house when Hooch (11) stuck his head in the trash and got his paws on the tasty treat.
“The next day he wasn’t himself at all,” said mother-of-three Sarah (40).
“He was sick, he wasn’t eating and didn’t want to walk. One of my sons had seen him finishing off the corn-on-the-cob so we did a quick Google search and were horrified at how dangerous they can be for dogs.”
Hooch was rushed straight to PDSA’s Bradford Pet Hospital where vets performed X-rays which revealed something lurking in his intestines.
The family were warned that their beloved pet would need an emergency operation to remove the cob as it could cause a fatal blockage.
PDSA Head Nurse Miriam Wilson, said: “We could feel an obstruction in Hooch’s intestines and the X-ray was consistent with a foreign body.
“As Hooch was getting increasingly unwell we knew we had to perform emergency surgery to remove the corn-on-the-cob husk. We had to open up Hooch’s intestine to remove a large piece of corn husk and some smaller pieces that had broken off”.
“Unfortunately Bradford seems to be a bit of a hotspot for pets swallowing strange items and corn-on-the-cob cases are ones we see quite a lot. It’s important pet owners recognise how dangerous they can be, especially at this time of year as it’s barbecue season. In most case it is fatal if it’s not treated, as the husk can completely block the digestive system.”
Hooch was kept at the hospital for two days before being discharged on pain relief and antibiotics. He has since gone on to make a full recovery.
Sarah said: “I was so worried when Hooch was in hospital but I can’t thank PDSA enough for saving him.
“The whole thing has really scared me, so much so that it’s put me off corn-on-the cob for life!”
In April 2016, the website HandicappedPets.com learned of dog rescue efforts by exiled Tibetan monks living in the Sera monastery in India. The monks were helping a dog, Tashi, who they had rescued after she had been attacked, consequently losing all use of her hind legs.
The website sent the monks a Walkin’ Wheels dog wheelchair so that Tashi would not have to spend her life dragging the rear portion of her body around and could enjoy a high quality of life instead.
When the dog wheelchair arrived, the monks enlisted the help of local children to assemble it, and then strapped Tashi in for her first “ride.” The monks wrote to HandicappedPets.com with this heart-warming update:
“She now has a new life of walking and playing around. She loves it.” The pet product company’s mission to serve the needs of aging, disabled, and injured pets dovetails perfectly with the monks’ quest to be beacons of compassion; Tashi is now a walking testament to those efforts.
For more of Tashi’s story, go to: http://www.handicappedpets.com/blog/first-steps-freedom/
Animal lovers came together online yesterday to celebrate ‘National Best Friends Day’ highlighting the bond between dog and owner.
From dog lovers to celebrity dog owners and public officials, everyone wanted to share a photograph of their special four-legged friend, including the US Senator for Indiana, Dan Coats, who shared this tweet quoting Harry Truman saying “You want a friend in Washington, get a dog.”
The tweet was accompanied by this photo of Senator Coats and his dog, Honey.
It’s not the first time Honey has made an appearance on the Senator’s social media profiles having been pictured visiting Starkey Farms in Brownsburg with her owner in May on Facebook.
Will his advice be heeded as the presidential election kicks into high gear? We know Hillary Clinton’s family has long been associated with a love of dogs and famously owned Buddy, a chocolate Labrador during her husband’s time in office. We can only wonder, but one thing’s for sure – more Honey please Senator Coats!
Over 500,000 dog bites occur every year in Canada. In fact, the Humane Society of Canada estimates that someone suffers a dog bite every 60 seconds in this country.
Preventing dog bites is all about education. Stacey Huneke is a Registered Veterinary Technician in Ontario, and she says supervision is imperative if parents want to protect their children from being bitten by a dog.
“Dogs and children must be supervised by alert adults,” Huneke explains. “Any interaction, depending on the age of the child, should only be done together with an adult and only if the dog is comfortable.”
Huneke adds that the whole family should learn how to read dog body language so they will know when a dog is uncomfortable or stressed.
“Adults should intervene if dogs are acting stressed,” she says. “Dogs should always have a child-free area to go.”
So how can we identify when a dog is stressed?
“Dogs often show body language asking you to leave them alone before they bite,” explains Huneke. “If you hear them growling you’ve already missed dozens of cues that your dog is uncomfortable.”
When a dog wants to be left alone, they may exhibit one or more of these cues:
Tail between legs
White of eyes showing
Yawning, licking or chewing
Ears are back and down
Mouth/lips closed tight
Curved back
Let’s look at a couple of examples of dogs that are showing signs of being uncomfortable.
“Many dogs show several cues at once,” Huneke says. “Not only does this dog have its tail between its legs, it is also showing the white of its eye, has a curved back, mouth is closed, ears are back and down…and just has an overall appearance of stress. This dog is nervous.”
“This picture terrifies me,” Huneke admits. “This dog is clearly saying I’m seriously thinking of biting you. White of the eye is showing, the dog is glaring at the child, lips are tight, the dog is leaning away and the ears are back and down. I can almost hear the growl right through the photo.”
Another technique to keep children safe is the ‘Be a Tree’ method from Doggone Safe. It is commonly taught to children in schools. It teaches children (and usually teachers) what to do if a loose dog is coming toward them, or is acting too frisky and making them nervous.
“Do not run,” insists Huneke, who has led dozens of ‘Be a Tree’ presentations at schools across Ontario. “The first step in the ‘Be a Tree’ method is to plant your roots (your feet). Then fold in your branches (your hands), so dogs don’t have anything wiggling and interesting to grab. Then stand very still like a tree while staring at your roots and counting in your head or singing a song.”
Huneke always reminds students that trees are boring: the dog will sniff you and leave.
If you would like to arrange a ‘Be a Tree’ presentation for your child’s classroom, visit Doggone Safe’s Find a Presenter page. If you would like to learn more about dog body language and behaviour in general, the best thing to do is contact your veterinary health care team and speak to a Veterinarian or Registered Veterinary Technician with experience in behaviour.
International rehoming of dogs and cats should not be carried out as a standard practice EU Cat & Dog Alliance member organisations have agreed this week. Instead members will work preventatively in the country of origin to minimise the need for rehoming animals abroad, for example through neutering and educational campaigns, to stem the problem.
Simona Lipstaite, European Policy Advisor for the EU Dog & Cat Alliance and Dogs Trust, comments:
“International rehoming of dogs and cats is a practice which is not sustainable in the long term as it only provides interim measures rather than addressing the root causes of companion animals living in shelters or being homeless in the country of origin. It also presents the risk of spreading diseases across borders and introducing new diseases into different countries. The main diseases under consideration are rabies, Echinococcus multilocularis, leishmaniosis, babesiosis, dirofilaria and ehrlichiosis and, in the case of cats, retroviruses.”
International rehoming presents further issues in relation to cats. Being much more territorial than dogs, cats inevitably suffer a huge amount of stress during transport. Cats take a long time to acclimatise to a new environment and some may never recover from the stress of being moved internationally.
Where international rehoming is unavoidable, members have agreed that there must be full traceability and that the rehoming is solely in the best interests of the animal, and not for monetary gain for the organisation. Member organisations must also do it legally and following proper disease testing procedures.
So, do you think it’s the right decision? Do you think it will stop the problem of transmitted diseases or stop animals in need finding safety and a secure future in a new home? Comment below and let us know what you think.
On 7th June a petition made its way to the Chinese Embassy in London. The petition, which featured 11 million signatures urging the ban of the Yulin dog meat festival has gathered much support from celebrities and dog lovers alike online across the globe, all united in their disgust at the country’s tradition.
Mr Rob Flello, an Stoke-on-Trent MP, shared the news alongside a photograph of him on the doorstep of the embassy attempting delivery.
Alongside Mr Flello celebrities, including Star Wars icon Carrie Fisher and her dog Gary, dog behaviourist Victoria Stilwell, singer songwriter Sandi Thom, actress Jenny Seagrove and Made in Chelsea’s Lucy Watson and her dog Digby, all attended the protest arranged by the Humane Society International/UK to raise awareness to the cause.
Pictured above, Carrie Fisher and Gary
Pictured above, Jenny Seagrove and her Spaniel, alongside Lucy Watson and Digby
Most people in China don’t eat dogs, and as the Yulin festival approaches, protests and candlelit vigils are expected to take place across the country. On 14 May in China’s city of Dalian, 100,000 people protested against the Yulin festival. Dog lovers in cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Dalian are increasingly angered by dog thieves who steal their pets for the meat trade and so it’s disappointing their embassy in the UK refused to accept.
We all know there are certain human foods that can be dangerous and in some cases, downright deadly for dogs. But what about the human foods that are not only safe for dogs, but are actually very, very healthy for them?
Here’s a list of some of the foods more commonly found on our plates that your dog can enjoy.
1. Rice. Rice is good for dogs. Rice is a very rich source of carbohydrates, phosphorous, calcium and iron. Rice diet is especially recommended for dogs who have allergies to several foods or dogs whose digestive systems are prone to fluctuations in response to more traditional canine diets.
2. Lean chicken and fish. Lean meat with no visible fat and no seasoning’s and preservatives is healthy for dogs and particularly so for dogs who need to shed a few pounds. Fish is very healthy for both humans and dogs.
3. Liver. Liver can be useful if used in some quantities in the form of a dog training treat. Most dogs seem to LOVE it and will work extra hard for a liver reward. However, dogs should be fed with liver sparingly as it can have a laxative effect.
4. Yoghurt and cottage cheese. Yoghurt and cottage cheese are a natural source of calcium. Yoghurt contains lactobacillus acidophilus that helps in the process of digestion small quantities of cottage cheese added to the dog’s normal food seem to be well received and is a healthy addition to their diet.
5. Eggs. Eggs when given in small quantities can be a good source of protein. A lot of owners will even include the shells. Many puppies are given eggs when they’re first being weaned on to normal food.
6. Peanut butter. Small quantities of peanut butter make for an interesting treat if added to chew toys (such as Kongs).
7. Vegetables. Broccoli, carrots, cucumber, celery, garlic, spinach, parsley, and green beans, squash and sweet potatoes are the top on the list. These veggies can be served raw or lightly steamed.