President’s Message

DOG OWNER’S MANUAL ON SALE NOW!

Written by distinguished veterinarian Karen Hedberg, the Dog Owner’s Manual takes you through the process of choosing and raising a puppy. It also includes breeding, geriatric care, lists canine ailments and summarises various treatments.

Clearly written and easy to comprehend, this book provides an up-to-date one-stop reference for both breeders and all those who really care for their dogs. To purchase your copy, visit Dogs Queensland, phone the office on 3252 2661 or email pina@dogsqueensland.org.au. The Dog Owner’s Manual is priced at only $50.00 plus postage.

DOGS QUEENSLAND SHOP

We now stock Royal Canin and Eukanuba products specific for breeding bitches, puppies and adult dogs. Also available is a range of high quality shampoos, conditioners and grooming products from Plush Puppy. Shop hours are: Monday to Friday 8.00am – 5.00pm “There has been lots happening with events in our dog world both in Queensland and interstate with a great opportunity for members to enjoy activities with their dogs.

As mentioned before, we have had great feedback about the new RNA venue for the conformation dog shows and sport events. It is a venue that compares very well with the Melbourne and Sydney venues and will no doubt improve even more come next year’s event.

I was lucky enough to attend both the Spring Fair weekend in Sydney and the Melbourne Royal and Whippet Specialty Shows in Victoria. The Whippet Association of Victoria has been the fortunate beneficiary of a sizeable bequest in the will of a late member. This club has since consciously funded a number of improvements that benefit the wider Victorian dog community and is to be commended for these initiatives.

Where the dog world has been an important part of your life, a bequest in your will to a club or dog body is an option you may like to consider.

TAKE THE LEAD As members would know, I do like to run different concepts “up the flagpole” for feedback from members and other directors. We are a member organisation, so we do try to be all about members and their dogs. Sometimes our members fall on hard times and support can be very limited. I had one long standing dog world person who has experienced a wave of personal difficulties say that the dog world just does not care.

I know that in the case of fire and floods and other

extreme events our dog bodies and members do rise to the occasion, with financial and in-kind support being provided. I think most of our dog bodies in Australia have a budgetary allocation for such emergency events and that is certainly the case with Dogs Queensland.

I wonder though whether we could go a bit further and provide some support for members in grave difficulty. A first port of call may be for members suffering from a life- threatening or terminal illness. It’s all about dog people helping their own, and that has been a very long tradition in our dog world.

In the American context, the AKC has established “Take the Lead” with a separate endowment fund. This started in the 1980s with the Aids crisis but has evolved since then to assist members in dire straits. Their home page setting out their history and background is reproduced after my message. And by the way, I love their logo with the whippet!

I think it is important for us, as members, to have a dialogue about this, and if supported, to then look at possible models, whether at a State or National level. We will be discussing this at Board level so do provide feedback to rob@dogsqueensland.org. au and/ or provide feedback to a director. In a way it is surprising that such a trust or charity has not previously been progressed at a State or National level.

NEW RENTAL LEGISLATION As we know, our dogs are wonderful companions and members of our families. I think it is great that the Queensland tenancy legislation has been amended with effect from 1 October 2022 to overcome a blanket ban by a property owner on a person renting from keeping a pet.

Now the person can apply to the property owner for approval to keep a pet. The property owner can only refuse the application on stated reasonable grounds. An example would be in a unit where the keeping of the pet would be a breach of the body corporate by-laws, whether it was the owner or tenant. Mind you, some of these by- laws have been successfully challenged in the courts.

If the request is not responded to within 14 days, then consent is stated to be automatic. It is all about being a responsible dog owner and it is great that people renting will benefit from fairer processes. I enjoyed being interviewed by ABC radio on this subject this morning.

FESTIVE FIESTA I certainly enjoyed the recent weekend of Advance Pacific International Shows. A big thank you to the office and to Waterloo Bay Kennel Club and the Judges and the myriad of volunteers who made it all happen. Having different show formats adds interest and challenges in my view.

So if you enjoyed that weekend make sure you pencil the Christmas/ New Year Festive Fiesta in your diaries. It will be even bigger and better this year. Look out for the schedule in Paw Prints.

Have a great October!

Ulla Greenwood, President Dogs Queensland 30 September 2022

The AIDS crisis opened our eyes to the many ruthless illnesses that were challenging us to our very core. Though we came together week in and week out to compete at shows and trials, to participate in club activities, to share knowledge and common interests, we had inadequate resources in any one place to take care of those in our community who so clearly needed our help.

Take the Lead was founded in 1993 as a not-for-profit foundation under Section 501 (c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code dedicated to provide direct services, support and care for all qualified participants in the sport of dogs who suffer from the devastating realities of life-threatening or terminal illnesses.

THE EVOLUTION OF TAKE THE LEAD

So here’s what you need to know about take the lead…

L We’ve been here to serve as a lifeline for the Fancy since 1993. L We originally began simply; to lend the level of support to those impacted by the aids epidemic. L The Pure Breed Dog Fancy, our grassroots community, are our main contributors and make all of this happen. Dog people helping our own.

This has never changed! Our Evolution

$ We soon realized we could do much more and expanded our mission to include assisting those with all life-threatening or terminal illnesses.

These include (but are not limited to) cancer, heart disease, kidney disease, and more. $ An endowment fund was established to ensure funds would always still be available to the Fancy far into the future. $ In 2016, we once again reviewed and renewed our mission and added our ability to now provide temporary emergency assistance to those affected by disasters such as fires, floods, earthquakes and the like.

This is accomplished through a separate and expedited application. (Both applications are available on our website).