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Wagging Tail

Phone: +61 402 443 321

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24.01.2022 Here’s your Saturday smiles for you pet lovers out there..you’ll love this.

22.01.2022 How many of you have seen a dog or cat living in cruel conditions and tried to find someone to take action on it. You go to the police: they send you to the RS...PCA. You go to your council: they send you to the RSPCA. You make a report to the RSPCA and nothing happens. The RSPCA have about 12500 complaints a year and of these 3.5 per cent receive a sentence. Of those around 60 per cent receive a fine, and often no mark on their record. Of those that are fined about 53 per cent pay the fine. What does this tell you? That the system is an abysmal failure. What can you do? You can ask your council if they have a POCTA officer? And if not why not. Have they applied - they can. If your council has a POCTA officer they can investigate these cases themselves. Unless you speak up nothing changes. See more

22.01.2022 We have been sent this moving and disturbing piece by a Lost Dogs Home staff member who has asked us to publish it. "An Open Letter to Lost Dogs Home Senior Man...agement, Chair Simon Greaves and the Board: I’m not the one behind the Facebook ‘Lost Dogs Home We Are Watching’ page. In fact, I have no bearing or care to what this page posts besides this letter though as a current staff member I can confirm the other posts to be true. I have many other stories that would make the public’s heart bleed that have not yet been told here. But that isn't why I'm writing this letter. I'm writing this out of desperation. For a long time, coming to work at the Lost Dogs Home was the highlight of my life. I came to work excited at making a difference in the lives of animals who needed me. And I truly believed that I could make a difference, as the system we had worked. If an animal failed their temperament assessment or needed extra help to pass, staff could step up to provide that. We could query any ‘failed’ animals, request a retest and rest assured that we may still be able to find a pathway for an animal that would see them exit the shelter alive, whether it be to rescue, foster or adoption. Since the hiring of Liz Walker as Head of Operations and Grant Robb as CEO in Winter 2019, I no longer believe in the system. Liz Walker in turn appointed Amanda Smith as Shelter Supervisor and Alex Morgan as Operations Manager, and since this time I’ve watched Liz’s poorly planned restructure take the lives of too many animals, as well as the jobs of many dedicated colleagues. From the start of Amanda and Alex’s tenure, I have seen multiple colleagues bullied, take stress leave, quit due to work conditions, or be fired for fighting for animals’ lives. Our ability to advocate for the animals whose lives are on the line is now nil, and not only that, but Amanda and Alex often ban us, for pathetic reasons, from even being present for the euthanasia of animals we have worked with daily for more than three months. We don’t get to say goodbye, and these animals die without friendly or familiar faces, while we cry in the staff room. Animals have been quarantined in their tiny pens for weeks and months due to the recurrent disease outbreaks at the Lost Dogs Home disease outbreaks that rarely if ever used to happen before Liz Walker was hired. Giardia and canine corona virus are now almost a constant, leading to a sharp decline in the dogs’ mental health which ultimately results in their ‘euthanasia' for 'their own welfare’. Some dogs have been through this loop of lengthy quarantine and sickness several times over. Our own health as staff is at risk due to an ongoing lack of adequate PPE and isolation units. Our staff rosters have been massacred; we are effectively being told our time and our skills are worthless. Our morale is non-existent. We are spoken down to as if we know nothing, despite having more experience and training than many at Management level. Alex Morgan, who was hired by Liz Walker despite no experience in animal welfare whatsoever, has personally and repeatedly told staff he 'does not do emotion' and told staff to 'calm down' when expressing our concerns or trying to save a life. We are simply told to show up if we want to keep our jobs. Some of our staff have had their hours cut to zero, while the rest are left to work overtime without pay. So what are we to do? Leave without making sure our animals are fed, or work until we're done, knowing we won't be paid? Liz, Amanda and Alex, you have zero care to what happens to your staff, and no regard for what we go through every day. Both our dog team leaders quit in the same week recently due to stress, overwork and disgust at the unnecessary euthanasia of dogs, and you have not replaced them. You treat the animals like cattle, a number, a study in behaviour instead of as worthy individuals who we are there to care for. I have seen many dogs 'euthanised' for treatable separation anxiety. I have seen puppy farm survivors euthanised ‘for their own good' and have been told that there is no reason the Lost Dogs Home needs to use our 90-odd Rescue Partners any more except in ‘extreme’ cases. (Apparently neither of the above reasons count.) These dogs were never even offered to Rescue. Instead, a ‘Panel’ decides their fate consisting of one vet who only advises on medical issues; one 'behaviourist' (of the entire Behaviour team, only one has a relevant qualification) and a couple of Management who lack compassion or first-hand knowledge of the animal on the chopping block. Rather than Panel being a fair and impartial group, one person tends to make the decision and others present dare not disagree. No animal attendants who know the animals best are allowed to be present. No team leaders attend Panel any more. There is nobody to stand up for these dogs. Instead, we staff wait until our 10a.m. 'tea break' to learn who lives and dies, and hope our dogs are not on the list. If they are? We are told to move the dog to the Transport area where they wait for the vets to collect them for ‘processing’. Our numbers as animal attendants are ever-dwindling - like you want, like you ask for. We’re told this is to ‘save money’ and make yourselves ‘financially viable’. At what cost? Not at the cost of the impressive salaries that Liz’s new Middle Management receive. No at the cost of animal and staff welfare. We bring our work home with us and cry ourselves to sleep. We drink, we try to ignore the nightmares about our dogs being euthanized and their fate ignored. We email higher management, we beg for meetings, for transparency and to be heard, and in return we get interrogated by an externally appointed private investigator whose job it is to try to find out who runs this online Whistleblower page, because it is harming the Home’s ‘brand’. In all honestly, it just drives us further towards taking a stand. We just want to be listened to. We want the animals to receive the chance at life they used to before Liz Walker and Grant Robb were hired here and our Rescue Program was massacred. Many will question why I don't quit or walk away from the Lost Dogs Home. Simple because if I do, they will just replace me with somebody who doesn't care. A ‘yes man’ who will take the doomed animals to the ‘processing room’ like they are just a number and not shed a tear. They want us to be robots. Those of us that remain will continue to fight against what we know is ethically and morally wrong. We will continue to cry for our lost dogs and cats. We will continue to fight to get them out alive. We will continue to fight for you to treat us like human beings, to listen and believe that we know our animals. Because we do. While you sit in your offices upstairs, we walk them, feed them and love them. And until you force us all out, that is what we will continue to do. Yours, in honesty, A staff member" *** If you want to demand legislative change for both animals and staff in our broken pound and shelter system, please follow this link to sign a petition that is soon to be presented by Andy Meddick MP of the Animal Justice Party AJP Victoria before state parliament, titled 'Stop Convenience Killing of Victorian Shelter Animals': https://bit.ly/3essGfW

19.01.2022 So apparently we have 'bait' dogs. We write this post with some sadness. Fellow rescue groups have advised us of a person who has on his facebook page that he... works for Pet Stock. He is posting that as we have not responded to his application for Tess Adderley we are obviously suss and are known apparently for having 'bait' dogs to attract people to apply for our dogs. Wow! Naturally we intend to pursue this unless there is a retraction made. Last week we had 972 email sitting in our adoptions@ email address alone. We now have five volunteers, who also have their own lives/work/families to care for trained to respond gradually to these emails. They are of course not all adoption applications - they are foster care applications, they are people emailing every second day asking about their applns, they are people wanting advice on their dogs, they are people offering other sorts of help, people giving us advice and of course this does not include the emails coming into our other three main addresses. Each application is looked at but responses from our end are slow or to some it would seem non-existent, as we arrange surrenders, rehomings, vetwork, operations, contact with carers, bringing in new carers, liaising with social workers. Yes we are partly at fault. We are too ambitious. We want to change companion animal welfare in Victoria, we want a high profile, we want to show people that dogs and cats are not part of a 'pass the parcel' mentality. we are as we say over extended, under resourced and definitely too vocal. And this overreach makes us slow. But is this a reason for such an accusation? Even in these times of coronavirus our dogs and cats will only go to the best homes, and yes it is much harder to organise any rehoming at present. We will not rehome an old dog who loves other dog's company to be a single dog. We will not rehome a dog on meds for separation anxiety to you just because you say that'll be fine. Or yes you are sure you can teach your cat to love the incoming dog who we have down as no cats. We are currently sending generic responses to sixty or so people at one time in an attempt to catch up. And yes we admit, we are known to take on dogs and cats with issues. When you look at our webpage the cats and dogs at the top of the list are those that have been with us longest. And there are reasons for this and these guys particularly need the right home, even if we take a long time to find it. Others come and go quickly. Pet Rescue marks us as a strict group and we see this as a commendation rather than a criticism. Each of our dogs and cats go to lifetime homes, with a refund policy that tries to ensure they are protected for their lifetime. As against this person who has posted defamatory remarks, we thank those applicants who write us kind emails, understand the difficulties we are facing, and are patient. Meanwhile we will try to continue on even though like all rescue groups we are worried about losing our income with no access to run fundraisers at present. But let me assure everyone we are busy enough without needing 'bait dogs'. We are really over accepting this type of abuse and letting it pass unnoticed. There is a certain black humour in rescue that usually allows us to pass on and focus on the good, but not this time Heath. Here is the lovely Tess Adderley who does come with some issues. Trisha Taylor #petstock #adoptdontshop #animalrescue See more

17.01.2022 To those members of the public who it seems post non-stop on facebook pages complaining about being rejected, not having a response, not getting a dog, STOP. ...It is so disappointing to groups that are spending an incredible number of hours trying to keep up with all the necessities of running a rescue in these difficult times to keep having these negative posts. Have you forgotten that not much more than a decade ago we did not exist? Your choice to save a rescue dog was a shelter. So now you complain because we are here but take too long to do what you think we should. Adoptions are at the end of what we do, and a small part of what we need to do. Transport, vet visits, training assessments, organising foster carers, assessments of incoming dogs, helping past adopters, assisting carers, and all in a stressful time when we cannot even fundraise, and everything we do externally must be looked at in terms of COVID safety. Instead of being so focussed on your needs, sending multiple messages and clogging up our messenger or inbox, and posting negatively on facebook, try to understand that we are doing the best we can to save dogs and cats so that they do not die or slip through the system. A little less "I want that dog/cat" and a little more kindness and understanding would be appreciated. See more

16.01.2022 Thanks Brent for this heads up!

14.01.2022 Hopefully never needed, but it’s worth watching this video. Thanks David!

14.01.2022 Firstly we hope you all stay safe in these unprecedented times. However the daily battles in the world of companion animal welfare continue on. As most of ...you know, for rescue groups to save animals from the pound we need to have a Section 84y agreement with that pound. Now when CFCNs began we did not have that. That meant that dogs and cats of five or six weeks, pregnant animals, the old, the sick were killed because we were not allowed to take them undesexed. Others we tried to get out the only way we could under the draconian rules, and they died in surgery or on return to the pound after desexing as they were in too bad health to survive the operation and its aftermath. It was a very sad time for us all. None of us want those days back and we have moved on - but not enough! When the Liberal Government came to power in 2010 they kept their promise to us and we were allowed a Section 84y under the Domestic Animals Act. In discussions with Stephen Tait, the then head of the Bureau of Animal Welfare, it was agreed that the agreement should be simple and in plain english. DRAV produced a simple Section 84y Agreement which is used widely in Victoria, sometimes with minor modifications. The DRAV Section 84y Agreement is based on the relationship between the council/pound and the rescue group being a partnership. The council/pound has dogs/cats the public do not want them to kill. Rescues want to save those animals and remove them from the pound at no cost to council, then put money and time into solving health and behavioural problems before rehoming them. Simple, one would have thought. But for some councils the concept of a partnership does not exist. Melton Pound is one such pound. Serafina below was rescued from Melton Pound. The council pound should be grateful that CFCNs take on these dogs, often neglected and needing a lot of money spent on them but they are not. Follow up post coming. #poundreformvictoria #everypoundpetmatters #stopkillingourpets

09.01.2022 Hi everyone, Our female cat went missing on the 17/02 in Chelsea and is still missing! Please contact me if you have seen her

04.01.2022 Sasha practicing social distancing this morning

04.01.2022 THE MOST DANGEROUS PET CHEW EVER: RAWHIDE! How can one of the most popular chew sticks on the planet be so dangerous for your pets, you ask? I mean, most dogs c...hew on rawhide for hours on end, and not only does it keep them busy, but they seem to last forever. Well if you understood what it took to make this toxic raw leather stick, you would quickly understand what the problem is. Aside from the horror stories circulating all over social media these days, of pets needing emergency surgery after consuming rawhide, the majority of pet parents today, especially the newbies, believe that this chew is some sort of dried up meat stick. Let me debunk that myth right away! A rawhide stick is not the by-product of the beef industry nor is it made of dehydrated meat. Rather, rawhide is the by-product of the Leather Industry, so theoretically it is a leather chew. Sounds awesome, right? Producing rawhide begins with the splitting of an animal hide, usually from cattle. The top grain is generally tanned and made into leather products, while the inner portion, in its raw state, goes to the dogs. TheBark.com So, how does this leather, which is conveniently rolled up into pretty shapes, actually get made into those rawhide chews? Follow along my friends and I will enlighten you on how this hide travels through a leathery process where it transforms from hide to a not-so beautiful, colorful, chew stick. Here is a paraphrased tutorial that was explained by the whole dog journal several years back: STEP 1: Normally, cattle hides are shipped from slaughterhouses to tanneries for processing. These hides are then treated with a chemical bath to help preserve the product during transport to help prevent spoilage. (No one wants to purchase a black, spoiled rawhide stick!) Once at the tannery: the hides are soaked and treated with either an ash-lye solution or a highly toxic recipe of sodium sulphide liming. This process will help strip the hair and fat that maybe attached to the hides themselves. (No, no one wants to see a hairy hide) Next on this glorious journey, these hides are then treated with chemicals that help puff the hide, making it easier to split into layers. The outer layer of the hide is used for goods like car seats, clothing, shoes, purses, etc. But, it’s the inner layer that is needed to make the rawhide. (Oh and other things like gelatin, cosmetics, and glue as well!) STEP 2: Now that we have the inner layer of the hide, it’s time to go to the post-tannery stage! Hides are washed and whitened using a solution of hydrogen peroxide and/or bleach; this will also help remove the smell of the rotten or putrid leather. Bonus! (Research also shows that other chemicals maybe used here to help the whitening process if the bleach isn’t strong enough.) STEP 3: Now it’s time to make these whitened sheets of this leathery by-product look delicious! So, here is where the artistic painting process comes in. Basted, smoked, and decoratively tinted products might be any color (or odor) underneath the coating of (often artificial) dyes and flavors. They can even be painted with a coating of titanium oxide to make them appear white and pretty on the pet store shelves. - whole-dog-journal.com the Material Safety Data Sheet reveals a toxic confection containing the carcinogen FD&C Red 40, along with preservatives like sodium benzoate. But tracking the effects of chemical exposure is nearly impossible when it’s a matter of slow, low-dose poisoning. thebark.com Ok, now that these hides have been painted, it’s time for the final process. STEP 4: Getting it to last forever! Because the FDA does not consider these chews to be food, really it’s a free for all when it comes to the manufacturers of these leather strips, and the products they may want to add to these chews, to get them to last forever. Any sort of glue can be added here to get these bad boys to never come apart. When tested: Lead, arsenic, mercury, chromium salts, formaldehyde, and other toxic chemicals have been detected in raw hides. So it’s safe to say that any sort of glues can be used as well! Finally, it’s time to package and attach all the glorious marketing labels to the product. Check out the fine print warning that’s attached with some of these rawhides: Choking or blockages. If your dog swallows large pieces of rawhide, the rawhide can get stuck in the esophagus or other parts of the digestive tract. Sometimes, abdominal surgery is needed to remove them from the stomach or intestines. If it isn’t resolved, a blockage can lead to death. (Oh, how lovely) And there it is! It’s now ready to be shipped to store shelves where it can be purchased for our loving animal companions. How do proactive veterinarians feel about these chews? Here is world-renowned veterinarian Dr. Karen Becker's take on the matter: The name ‘rawhide’ is technically incorrect. A more accurate name would be processed-hide, because the skin isn’t raw at all. But the term rawhide has stuck. Rawhide chews start out hard, but as your dog works the chew it becomes softer, and eventually he can unknot the knots on each end and the chew takes on the consistency of a slimy piece of taffy or bubble gum. And by that time your dog cannot stop working it -- it becomes almost addictive. At this point, there’s no longer any dental benefit to the chew because it has turned soft and gooey, and, in fact, it has become a choking and intestinal obstruction hazard. P.S. Ready for the jaw dropper? An investigation by Humane Society International stated in their report, In a particularly grisly twist, the skins of brutally slaughtered dogs in Thailand are mixed with other bits of skin to produce rawhide chew toys for pet dogs. Manufacturers told investigators that these chew toys are regularly exported to and sold in U.S. stores. dogingtonpost.com Rodney Habib Pet Health Site "An educated, informed and well-researched community of pet owners can only put more pressure on the pet food industry to be better! When pet owners know better, they will only do better!"

02.01.2022 Want to go to the movies to support Vic Dog Rescue? Well unfortunately you can’t, but we have the solution! Just click this link to donate... www.mycause.com.au/page/226967 Join our online fundraiser, donate $10, sit on your couch, and choose the movie you want to watch from your Netflix, Stan or free-to-air TV! See, easy!