Walk the dog or face time behind bars

I'll be in serious trouble if this is made law. lol
My little dog has decided she doesn't want to go out for walks lately, as she is constantly swooped by magpies and mynah birds.

"PET owners could be punished for not walking their dogs, under radical new laws being proposed by the RSPCA."

http://www.news.com.au/national/walk-the-dog-or-go-to-jail/story-e6frfkvr-1225807140377

10 comments

These people infuriate me Koko. I don't know where people like Dr. Hugh Wirth get off. We were feeding a ferral cat, who got into a fight & got ripped within an inch of his life. We managed, with great difficulty, to capture the poor animal & phoned the RSPCA, who advised that they did not look after ferral animals, no matter how badly he was injured. After threatening to take the matter up with 60 minutes, they decided to send a young woman out to get him. She stated that she couldn't understand why we didn't just leave him, as he was dying anyway & there was no point in taking him back to the RSPCA just to have him put down. She left without him & we found a friendly vet who gave him 20 odd stitches & neutered him. Spider can now sit on my lap for 10 or 15 minutes, before taking a piece out of me.

My next door neighbour has bought a very expensive Malamute pup, from a breeder. The pup, now fully grown & gorgous, has a congenital heart problem,, so can't be walked for more than 100 metres without collapsing!! Is my neighbour going to risk a fine or possible imprisonment, for not walking their dog to death. The RSPCA, are not interested in the breeder, by the way.

I am all for the protection of all animals, even including injured cats, pigeons, crows & magpies. BUT, the RSPCA!!!!

I suppose the proposed law is aimed at people who keep their dogs chained up all day.

Or just left in a backyard with no company, and no exercise.

I understand where you're coming from, though.

There was brute of a man living behind me years ago, and I can't begin to describe his treatment of his dogs.

I'll never ever forget the sound I heard one day from one of them...not a howl or yelp, but it was a scream.

I rang the RSPCA, and was told that unless I could see visible marks on the animals, they couldn't attend! How the heck I was supposed to see over high fences, back and front, with tree cover as well, I don't know.

It IS frustrating. I suppose at best Wirth means well, but it's like so many other things....cruelty and stupidity can't be legislated out of people...and this is what they're trying to do.

I would like to see more resources put into animal welfare, including education. If the govt can appoint inspectors to police water use and other

intrusive things in our lives, they should be able to investigate even the slightest hint of maltreatment of animals, I reckon. That includes you or I being able to report if a dog is left chained up. A phone call from the appropriate authority to warn, then a letter, then serious investigation if ignored.

I agree that there are many older folks that are themselves not able to walk and so can't walk their animals--as long as the animals are treated well / fed well etc it is the cruelty that they should be focusing on. However the way the statement was out it said that they would be fined if they DIDN"T walk their animals--these bureaucrats always see things in back or white

The RSPCA is interested in the welfare of animals.

They would prefer to help people who have problems looking after animals before they embark on legal action.

Fines or jail is a last resort for them when all else has failed.

To say that you could be sent to jail for not walking a dog who cannot walk, is extreme.



To my way of thinking, if you cannot be a responsible pet owner, then you should not have a pet.



Too many get a pet for their children for Christmas, and after the novelty has worn off, the animal is forgotten about and not treated as a pet should be.

I agree with you Gerry--far too many people think animals are disposable items--they are NOT and unless you are prepared and can afford to look after them for the rest of their lives then don't get one. There is a lot of responsibility in owning a pet --However there are many folks that are unable to walk their pets but they are still loved a looked after

Another aspect imo, is the lax laws on breeding and breeders.



Backyard breeding should be outlawed. Too many people see it as a money maker. At the same time of the incident I describe above, my next door neighbours had a cat which they had picked up as a stray, and they deliberately allowed her ..the cat... to remain pregnant all the time. They sold the litters to the local pet shop. The poor little thing never had a chance to gain weight, and live a healthy life.

Selling pets in a shop should be outlawed.



Puppy farms should be wiped off the face of the earth.



Even the registered breeders need to be closely monitored. Did anyone else see the program on TV some months ago on the breeders of certain breeds of dogs that breed purely for dog shows?

It was horrific.

There was a follow up on the Australian scene.



These are the some of the issues and problems, that in great part, encourage the attitude of 'disposable ' pets.

Yes Koko--I agree that pet shops are just outlets for puppy mills and those that run the Puppy mills should be jailed for cruelty--



I did see that she about the inbreeding and that also was sickening.



When I bought my last Dog--many years ago now I went to see the breeder and also met the parents of the Dog I was interested in--and also got to judge the breeder and also the conditions. They were great they had 25 acres and all were very happy and healthy.

According to Hugh Wirth, when I place my dog into the RSPCA boarding facility this Christmas, she should be taken for a walk every day, She should be taken by a responsible worker - not a volunteer. I volunteered with the RSPCA for quite a few years. The boarding dogs were let out of their cage for about 10 minutes per day - not walked, just allowed into a larger run. As a volunteer, I was not allowed to walk the boarding dogs, but I was allowed to supervise their 20 metre cage. I was allowed to walk the surrended, the dumped dogs. Figure that out. Still though, I think she's going to a better place than a commercial dog kennel.

Bev, this is really unbelievable. Talk about living in glass houses. How can Hugh Wirth even discuss any new laws when his own organisation puts dumped animals in relatively little cages until the RSPCA is ready to put them to sleep. I hope I get to meet him somewhere down the line. In the meantime, I will take up the matter of the proposed law with my State Member. She will like me even less, when I have finished discussing this xxxxxxxxx.

I sent an e-mail to the RSPCA head office NSW, just enquring if my dog would be walked daily, while she was in their care. I got a "NO REPLY" e-mail back. Seems like another do what I say, not as I do position.

10 comments



To make a comment, please register or login

Preview your comment