Posts

Stupid people own cats, too

/1 Comment/in /by

I was becoming convinced that stupid people just tend to naturally gravitate towards dogs, but it seems they own cats as well.

From http://www.wauwatosanow.com:

Kitten Left in Trunk of Car at Mall

An alert patron called police after hearing a kitten meowing from the trunk of a car in the Mayfair Mall parking lot, 2500 N. Mayfair Road, at 3:48 p.m. Saturday.

According to police:

The man said he was worried about the cat’s safety due to the hot and humid weather. He told police he was appalled that someone would neglectfully leave an animal locked in a vehicle.

About 45 minutes after the officer’s arrival, the vehicle’s owner and a man returned to the vehicle and confirmed that there was a new kitten in the trunk.

A litter box, food bowl and water dish also were in the trunk.

The 20-year-old owner of the kitten intended to leave it in the trunk until after 5 p.m., when her work day was completed, because she could not bring the kitten into the mall.

The 45-year-old man told police that he had bought the kitten for her earlier in the day and thought leaving it in the trunk was acceptable.

The man was irate and demanded the officer show him which law he broke.

The officer informed them the incident would be reviewed by the city attorney for possible animal neglect charges.

I love that part – “The man was irate“. I can just picture the ranting that took place:

“Why can’t I leave a tiny kitten in a car? Cats like warm places, right? And what’s warmer than a car trunk on a sweltering July day?”

God, that’s why I could never be a cop – I’d just be ‘accidentally’ tasering people like that all of the time.

“Hey, what’s wrong with leaving my seven dogs locked in my car? I left the windows ro… ”

TzzzzzaaaaP!

“Officer, did you just taser the crap out of that woman mid sentence?”

“Yeah, so? People like being tasered, don’t they? And look, I left her a bottle of water.”

God, I wish summer would end soon, just so I can stop reading about dead dogs in cars.

Newsflash redux: People more stupid than previously thought possible

/3 Comments/in /by

Remember the Frenchie who died from heat exhaustion after her owner left her in the car at the mall?

At the time, I wasn’t sure I could conceive of a stupider (and more cruel) way to have killed your dog than because of a mall shopping emergency, but it’s good to know that people are setting that stupid bar even higher every day. Turns out that scented candle withdrawal wasn’t the real reason why they just had to leave her in the car on a sweltering July day.

From the Daily News Tribune –

WATERTOWN —

Two Waltham residents will be charged with animal cruelty after their dog died of massive heat trauma from being left inside a car outside the Watertown Mall.

According to Watertown police, a 39-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman who shared ownership of the dog will be summonsed to Waltham District Court. No date has been set yet.

On July 16 at 12:42 p.m., police responded to a call from Main Street at Church Street with reports of an injured dog.

Upon arrival the couple 3-year-old female French bulldog appeared “limp and unconscious” with no signs of trauma. The couple told police they left the dog unattended in their car for close to a half hour while inside the Watertown Mall at the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

The couple reportedly told police that they took the dog with them to prevent her from peeing inside their home.

“They didn’t want to leave it alone,” said Lt. Detective Michael Lawn.

Honestly, have people never heard of crates? They are these magical inventions that have been around for eons. And yes, I know that Frenchies possibly one of the most frustrating dogs alive when it comes to housebreaking. I’ve seen skilled trainers reducing to quivering bundles of nerves after a run in with a French Bulldog and a Persian rug, but holy cow, the options other than roasting your dog to death in car are almost legion. Wee wee pads, puppy diapers, crating, tile floors… or just re home the poor thing to someone willing to deal with it.

There’s just no excuse for this, none at all.The only consolation is that it looks like they will be facing charges after all –

O’Reilly said causing an animal to be subjected to unnecessary cruelty or suffering is a felony in Massachusetts, and is punishable by imprisonment for up to two and a half years and a fine of $2,500.

If you’re in the Massachusetts area, rest assured that I will be blogging the shit out of this story, and nagging you all to go to court and heckle these dog murdering scumbags into next week.

Pet Store Hate Mail…

/15 Comments/in /by

Oh, goody. We’ve got some pet store hate mail to share with you today, which always makes for fun reading. I should actually clarify here that the mail came in response to this post that I made over on the French Bulldog experts blog.

I don’t know if the person who wrote it is affiliated with the Pet Store mentioned in the blog. I assume not, but since they didn’t sign their mail other than with a first name, I can’t say for sure.

I’ll give you the entire email first, then break it down bit by bit afterwards.

Firstly I am writing to ask WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE???? You dont know anything about my pet store or probably any pet store anyplace. Mine is as very up scale a place as you will ever find. My puppies and kittens are all clean and healthy and friendly. We are a GREAT PLACE for people to get their new pets from!!!

So what if some people want to use a credit card to buy a dog???? Big deal!!! Do you think only rich people should get to buy a dog???? Money isnt everything you know.

You don’t know where we get our puppies from. For you information we only ever get ours from real LIVE caring breeders. Yes caring sell to us, imagine that!!! We look in the papers and find people who have had a litter and let them know we can find such good homes for them. They are grateful to us!!! And the puppy buyers are too. Other times we have agents who find us puppies from great breeders. All our puppies and kittens are loved!!

If a puppy we sell gets sick we take it back. How many breeders do that huh?? We will even partly pay vet bills or even sometimes just give them a new puppy. You don’t even get that when you buy a car, but we do it because it’s the RIGHT THING to do. We have a vet look at all our animals and he says no breeders can care for them as good as we do.

So you need to get off your high horse and stop thinking that all you breeders are sooooo special and better than pet stores. We are as good as you and better. And people who get a puppy here come back again and again to us. I would say you need to APOLOGIZE but you likely dont even know what that means. Well God bless anyways or are you not even a Christian huh???

Whew. She sure told me, didn’t she? I need to take a moment here and recover from the total shaming she gave me, and then I can move on.

Firstly I am writing to ask WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE????

I think I’m Carol “Just-Gravestock-dammit-stop-calling me-Taylor-it’s been almost ten years now”, and that I breed French Bulldogs under the prefix “Bullmarket”. I also waste my time running far, far too many French Bulldog information sites, because I need to get a life. Oh, and I’m a capricorn, my favorite color is black, my favorite drink is two pots of coffee per day and I’m not a fan of pet stores, BYBs, or stupid people in general.

You dont know anything about my pet store or probably any pet store anyplace

Well, you didn’t sign your full name, or the name of your pet store, so who’s fault is that? If you’re so proud of it, why not share it? As well, I feel I’ve done a good bit of research into the retail pet industry, but again, if yours is so outside the norm, share its name and address with us. I bet one or two of my readers will be happy to stop by for a visit (and a bout of covert photography).

Mine is as very up scale a place as you will ever find. My puppies and kittens are all clean and healthy and friendly.

My Grandmother always said “Pretty is as pretty does”. Clean does not equal ethical. Also, it takes a truly sick baby animal to not be cute, or to not beg for attention.

So what if some people want to use a credit card to buy a dog???? Big deal!!!

Do you want to know why it’s a big deal? It’s a big deal because people should not view their purchase of a living being the same way they purchase a sweater. If you can’t afford the puppy, you’ll be unlikely to afford its on going care, either. No one claimed pet ownership wasn’t a luxury, especially ownership of breeds prone to esoteric diseases and conditions even when bred to the best of a breeder’s ability.

Money isnt everything you know.

Yes, I’m sure you’re one of those non profit charity pet stores. Give me a break.

You don’t know where we get our puppies from.

Yes I do – the same place every other pet store does.

For you information we only ever get ours from real LIVE caring breeders.

As opposed to what, dead caring breeders?

We look in the papers and find people who have had a litter and let them know we can find such good homes for them.

Oh. My. GOD. Did you just admit to trolling the papers for BYB litters, then re selling them? And you think you should be praised for that?

They are grateful to us!!!

Of course they are, because they bred their pet without any idea at all what to do with the puppies, and now they’re getting older, and eating, and pooping non stop, and now they need shots and… that breeder is thinking “Who cares who the pet store sells them to, because my wife/spouse/parents are going to throw a fit if I don’t get them out the door soon, and the kids who kept telling how they’d do all the work are no where to be found, so good riddance”.

Other times we have agents who find us puppies from great breeders.

Umm, those agents? They’re called brokers. They’re the middle men between you and the puppy mills, and the big outfits like Hunte Corporation. This makes you different from other pet stores how?

If a puppy we sell gets sick we take it back. How many breeders do that huh??

Every single good breeder I know. That’s sort of the line in the sand between ‘good’ and ‘bad’.

We will even partly pay vet bills or even sometimes just give them a new puppy.

“Partly”? “Sometimes”? Let me guess – the only way they get a refund is if they ‘return’ the puppy to you so you can ‘euthanize’ it. That’s called the death card insurance policy – the odds that someone will return a sick puppy they’re emotionally invested in weighed out against the risk of refunding their money. I bet you don’t have to pay out very often, do you?
You don’t even get that when you buy a car, but we do it because it’s the RIGHT THING to do.

You do it because most states require it by law. Also, dogs – living beings. Cars – hunks of metal. Not a good analogy.

We have a vet look at all our animals and he says no breeders can care for them as good as we do.

Have your vet breathe on a mirror. Does it fog over? No? That’s proof your vet has no soul, a common trait among the living dead. He sold his soul when he came to work for you. I’d pity him, but really zombies just sort of freak me out.

So you need to get off your high horse and stop thinking that all you breeders are sooooo special and better than pet stores.

I like my high horse. It’s comfortable, and the view from up here is great. Plus, I don’t think all breeders are so special, but I do, however, think all pet stores are the debbil.

people who get a puppy here come back again and again to us.

Of course they do, because they are the type of Paris Hilton esque nitwits who change their pets like the rest of us change our socks. They buy a cute puppy, get sick of the not so cute adult, dump it, then buy another cute puppy. Stupid people are a pet store’s best friends.

I would say you need to APOLOGIZE but you likely dont even know what that means.

No, I do apologize. I apologize to every puppy hauled cross country in a truck to be sold by you. I apologize to every sick kitten sitting in your display window and shivering with FLV. I apologize to every well meaning person who ‘rescues’ a puppy from you, only to have it break their heart when it dies.

Who do you apologize to?

Well God bless anyways or are you not even a Christian huh???

Why? Why do they always, always have to throw in the God part? Do they think it’s some sort of animal cruelty get out of jail free card?

Am I a Christian? Not if being a Christian means that I have a special dispensation to commit acts of animal cruelty. Not if being a Christian means cloaking myself in God every time someone questions my very dubious morals. Not if you’re one.

Somehow, I have the feeling that Jesus would be saying the same thing – “If that’s what they’re calling themselves, I’m getting a name change”.

So, Mr. Pet Store owner, if you have any more to share, please do so. And, like I said, share the name and address of your store with us, too. Come on – prove me wrong. It would be a relief, actually.

Renting a movie for the kids? Skip 'Snow Buddies'

/2 Comments/in /by

I am not a fan of movies featuring talking animals. Let me clarify that — I don’t really mind the ones where the animals are shown ‘speaking’ via a kind of internal monologue, but the ones where the animal’s mouths are digitially manipulated to make it appear as if they’re talking freak me out. It also annoys the crap out me that the girl dog always has to wear a bow on her head, because, you know, a girl isn’t a girl unless she’s wearing something frilly and pink.

Based on this revulsion, and the fact that I don’t have kids under the age of 10, Disney’s new movie ‘Snow Buddies’ wasn’t ever tops on my ‘must rent’ list. This news release seals it for me, however — if I had kids, the last movie they’d be watching is “Snow Buddies”.

Here’s the press release from American Humane, the people who give the ‘No Animals Were Harmed During the Making of this Film’ certification —

http://www.americanhumane.org/site/PageServer?pagename=nr_news_r%20eleases_snowbuddies

Snippet:

The American Humane Association is conducting an investigation after five puppies died while on location for the filming of the movie Snow Buddies. As many as six others have fallen ill after exposure to parvovirus. Twenty-eight puppies are being treated after being exposed to the virus. Earlier in the production, 30 puppies were removed from the set when 15 of them showed signs of illness, eventually diagnosed as giardia and coccidia. Three of these puppies were euthanized due to intestinal complications. Parvovirus, also known as parvo, is a highly contagious viral infection in dogs. It causes fever, vomiting, diarrhea and lack of appetite and it can be fatal.

American Humane is the authority behind the “No Animals Were Harmed” end credit on movies. An American Humane Certified Safety Representative visited the Snow Buddies set in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Feb. 19, 2007, the first day of shooting. Fifteen golden retriever puppies were on set, and American Humane learned that 15 others had been treated by a local veterinarian since Feb. 7. The Safety Representative requested that all the puppies receive additional veterinary checks before proceeding with filming. Twenty-five of the puppies were from an American breeder and five were from a Canadian breeder.

At the time they were seen by the American Humane Safety Representative, the puppies were approximately 8 weeks old. However, it is believed that they were only 6 weeks old when they were separated from their mothers and brought by the trainer, Anne Gordon, to the Snow Buddies movie set. American Humane has recommended that Snow Buddies only import puppies that are older than 14 weeks. All vaccinations have to be done by a veterinarian, along with thorough check-ups. American Humane was unaware that the puppies were underage when they were transported by the trainer from the breeders.

American Humane will investigate the breeder who allegedly exported 25 puppies to Canada under the age of 8 weeks. Per the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it is illegal to transport puppies under the age of 8 weeks. American Humane has contacted the Canadian authorities and is working with the U.S.D.A. Investigations and Enforcement division.

To continue filming the movie, Snow Buddies hired 28 older replacement golden retrievers after the first 30 were removed for treatment. Unfortunately, this second group has been exposed to parvovirus.

American Humane learned recently that one litter of the older puppies used after the first became sick was vaccinated for parvovirus at the Canadian border by a veterinarian contacted by the puppies’ trainer, and the first sign of the parvo was from that same litter. We have also learned that, unbeknownst to the production, the filming location in the lower mainland of Vancouver has witnessed an outbreak of parvo dating back as far as six months before production began. In this case, the puppies from Washington State were removed from their mother (breeder) too early and vaccinated. The vaccine takes two weeks before it is effective. Sometimes when puppies are vaccinated early there is still a risk of infection. High levels of maternal antibodies present in a puppy’s bloodstream will block the effectiveness of a vaccine. Despite being vaccinated, puppies can still contract parvovirus because the window of susceptibility can be several days to a couple of weeks.

American Humane is conducting a full investigation on the trainer and breeders and following the progress of the puppies that have been retired from the production, many of whom have been placed in new adoptive homes. The company producing Snow Buddies has complied with each request from American Humane and has made changes so that working puppies will not be put in any position where they may fall ill. The film production company has been very cooperative and has suspended filming until further notice. All of the dogs in the production now have been checked and are being cared for by a veterinarian. We will continue to monitor the production and release our findings once the investigation is complete.

Here’s the link to American Humane’s final rating for the movie ‘Snow Buddies’ —

http://www.ahafilm.info/movies/mr.phtml?fid=7893

Snippet:

American Humane has rated this film “Monitored: Unacceptable” due to the numerous deaths of young animals and the unlawful and fraudulent behavior that we believe impacted their fate. Although the producers may have been victims of unscrupulous people in their hire, American Humane, as an animal protection organization and the animals’ safety representative, finds the outcomes for these animals unacceptable.

Would you buy shoes from these people?

/6 Comments/in /by

I have to wonder what the geniuses with Ogilvy Advertising were thinking when they green lighted this ad for Exit Urban Shoes.

“Say, that Michael Vick thing sure did seem to get a lot press. Let’s see if we can get in on that!”

Here’s the ad they came up with to sell shoes.

Abusive Advertising

Yup, shoes. Do you see any correlation between this horrific, abusive, highly disturbing ad and foot wear?

No?

Me either.

If you find it as disturbing as I do, write and tell them how you feel ::

Write to Exit Urban Shoes: alma.sa@chello.be

More contact methods for Exit Urban:
Phone +32 (0)2 345 08 79
Mail info@exit-and-co.be

Ogilvy Advertising Press and General Inquiries
Contact Eleanor Mascheroni, Chief Marketing Officer, at eleanor.mascheroni@ogilvy.com.

Ogilvy Advertising Media Planning and Implementation
Contact our digital/direct media company, Neo@Ogilvy at neo.info@ogilvy.com

Also, here’s the link to the Advertising Standards Council of Canada –
http://adstandards.com/en/standards/consumerSubmission.asp

More contact links as I find them….