Harley — update, adopted!

Update: Harley is adopted. Look for a post on his story soon!

Harley, French Bulldog foster dog available for adoption
I don’t know if anyone remembers Harley, but he was the water chasing Fawn Frenchie that we were fostering earlier this summer. As of this weekend, Harley is back with us again, since things at his new home haven’t quite worked out as planned. Harley and his new Frenchie sister never did settle their differences (said differences consisting of her saying “You suck, get out of my house” and his saying “Please stop biting me on the ear”).

Harley is a young, healthy, energetic Frenchie. His only health issues are food allergies which are being controlled by a raw diet, which he MUST remain on. Since he had a bad experience in his current home with another Frenchie, we’re looking for a home with either no other dog, or with a dog who is proven and temperament tested NOT canine aggressive. Harley is very handsome, and weighs about 26 pounds. He is neutered, microchipped and current on all shots and preventatives.

Harley is located in Southern Ontario, and is available for adoption to approved homes willing to travel to meet him.

Read more about Harley here, and you can also watch his video —

https://www.bullmarketfrogs.com/blog/2010/07/harley-hangs-out/

If you are interested in adopting Harley, please complete our adoption application —

http://www.frenchbulldogscanada.com/french-bulldog-rescue/ecfbc-adoption-application/

Harley is an Eastern Canada French Bulldog Club foster dog.

New Rules for UK Breeders

French Bulldog mother with puppies

Tula and Teddy

The Kennel Club of England has announced new rules for UK breeders, starting in 2012.

From a November 22cnd news release on their website:

The Kennel Club has announced that from 2012 it will normally register no more than four litters from any one bitch because of concerns that the current legal limit of six litters can potentially be detrimental to a bitch’s welfare.

The decision was made by the Kennel Club General Committee after receiving a recommendation from its Dog Health Group and will be effective for litters born on or after 1st January 2012.

Six litters per bitch is the current legal limit enshrined in the Breeding and Sale of Dogs (Welfare) Act 1999.

Bill Lambert, the Kennel Club’s Health and Breeder Services Manager, said: “The Kennel Club wants to ensure that all breeders put the health and welfare of their puppies and breeding bitches first and foremost, and this decision underlines our commitment to this issue.

“Whilst the law allows bitches to have six litters in a lifetime and our registration system has previously fallen in line with this, the vast majority of responsible breeders feel that this is too high and that there is potential for this to have a negative impact on the welfare of the bitch.

“Very serious consideration has to be given to the matter if a breeder wishes a bitch to have more than four litters but the Kennel Club may grant permission for this to happen if it believes that there is good and justifiable reason for doing so on a case by case basis.”

There are also new restrictions on Caesarian Sections for bitches in the UK.

Excerpt from the news release:

The Kennel Club has had discussions with the major veterinary organisations over restrictions on the number of litters born by caesarean section which may be registered from an individual bitch from 2012.

The Kennel Club has confirmed that it will no longer register any puppies born by caesarean section from any bitch which has previously had two such operations, except for scientifically proven welfare reasons and in such cases normally provided that the application is made prior to mating. Refusal to register a third or subsequent litters of puppies born by caesarean section would occur irrespective of whether the progeny from either of the first two operations had been registered with the Club.

Following discussions with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, the British Veterinary Association and the British Small Animal Veterinary Association, the organisations have agreed to advise their members that any caesarean sections which they perform on a Kennel Club registered bitch should be reported to the Kennel Club.

To allow the reporting of such operations by veterinary surgeons, an additional section will be incorporated into the form which is presently completed to notify the Kennel Club of any operation which alters the natural conformation of a registered pedigree dog.

This policy will become effective for all litters born on or after 1st January 2012.  Further details relating to the timing of reporting by veterinary surgeons will be announced in due course.

In essence, bitches may have no more than 2 c section deliveries “except for scientifically proven welfare reasons and in such cases normally provided that the application is made prior to mating.”

No one seems to have any idea what defines a “scientifically proven welfare reason” is, or if it will be allowed to be applied to French Bulldogs.

As more and more countries move towards restrictions on routine c sections, it behooves us as breeders to begin breeding intentionally for dogs with the ability to free whelp. I believe that many of our North American bitches could, if allowed, actually free whelp, but fear of complications or uterine inertia causes many of us to consider c sections to be an unavoidable reality.

As someone who has lost a puppy due to uterine inertia, and has also had several successfully free whelped litters, I agree that it’s a hard call to make. C sections are horribly invasive procedures, with copious risks to both bitch and puppies, and yet it’s also true that many puppies have died due to a bitch’s inability to deliver them naturally.

As I said, tough call.

Labradoodle Lamentations

The original creator of the Labradoodle now says that he regrets ever having created one of the world’s first “designer cross breed dogs”.

From The Guardian Newspaper:

If Wally Conron had known what was going to become of the labradoodle, he wouldn’t have bred the dog in the first place. It was 22 years ago and Conron, now 81, was working as the breeding and puppy-walking manager for the Royal Guide Dog Association of Australia when his boss set him a tough task. A blind woman from Hawaii had written asking if it they could provide a guide dog that would not shed hair, because her husband was allergic to it. “I said, ‘Oh yes, this will be a piece of cake. The standard poodle is a working dog, it doesn’t shed hair, it’ll be great.’ I tried 33 in the course of three years and they all failed. They just didn’t make a guide dog. Meanwhile, the woman in Hawaii was getting older and the boss was getting on my back.”

Conron decided there was one possibility left – take his best labrador bitch and mate it with a standard poodle. They created three crossbreed puppies that needed to be boarded out to be trained and socialised, but nobody would take them – everyone wanted a purebred. And that’s when Conron came up with the name labradoodle. “I went to our PR team and said, ‘Go to the press and tell them we’ve invented a new dog, the labradoodle.’ It was a gimmick, and it went worldwide. No one wanted a crossbreed, but the following day we had hundreds of calls from people wanting these master dogs.”

The labradoodle proved to be a brilliant dog for the blind, and the woman in Hawaii was happy. Job done. So what was the problem? Ah, says Conron, it’s how the dog has been used and abused, and sold under false pretences. “This is what gets up my nose, if you’ll pardon the expression. When the pups were five months old, we sent clippings and saliva over to Hawaii to be tested with this woman’s husband. Of the three pups, he was not allergic to one of them. In the next litter I had there were 10 pups, but only three had non-allergenic coats. Now, people are breeding these dogs and selling them as non-allergenic, and they’re not even testing them.”

Banning Puppy Mills = The Commies Win!

Black Helicopter mocking at its very finest, courtesy of the Daily Show!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Big Red Dogs
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Rally to Restore Sanity

Nemo – New Frenchie Foster Dog

Nemo is now officially available for adoption.

His bio, from the Eastern Canada French Bulldog Rescue website:

Nemo- French Bulldog/Boston Terrier Cross

Nemo is the perfect dog for someone who has always wanted a Frenchie, but would also like a more “athletic” dog. At six and a half years old, Nemo is 25 lbs of solid muscle, with perfect breathing and the ability to run like the wind and jump like a gazelle!

He’s a total lap dog, who loves cuddling up and watching television, and he’d love to sleep next to you at night. He gets along with people of all ages, including children, and listens to commands including “sit”, “down” and “stay”. He has had basic obedience training, but could use a refresher course. What Nemo needs most of all is energetic play, and more attention. He would benefit from at least two to three good walks or runs a day, and would be the perfect partner for someone who walks or jogs (or even bike rides).

Nemo gets along well with female dogs, but he is not suitable for homes with other male dogs. He is not aggressive, but will not back down from a challenge. Nemo is NOT suited to homes with cats, as he is a dedicated cat chaser.

Nemo is house broken and lead trained, but is unused to spending time in a crate, although we are working on this.

Nemo is in Southern Ontario, but is available for adoption to any suitable homes willing to travel to pick him up. He cannot be shipped.

If you are interested in applying to adopt Nemo, please complete our adoption form:

http://www.frenchbulldogscanada.com/french-bulldog-rescue/ecfbc-adoption-application/

Once we have received your form, we will contact you to arrange an interview.