We Interrupt Christmas........

I hate to interject anything truly "serious" at this jolly time of the year, but the Soapbox calls.

This morning on the Today Show, there was a segment about the BBC's video from last year -- the one that prevented Crufts from being aired...the "expose on pedigreed dogs".  (See it at http://www.today.msnbc.msn.com/)  BBC America is showing that documentary tonight at 7 o'clock CST.  I think it would behoove all of us to watch, make notes and then be prepared to ask questions, make noise, etc.

I also believe that NBC needs to hear from the breeders and supporters of responsibly bred purebred dogs.  For example, I plan to send an email requesting that they actually do on-air interviews (in the interest of FAIR AND OBJECTIVE reporting) with reputable breeders who have years of HANDS ON experience breeding and raising dogs instead of interviewing Ivory Tower professors who probably wouldn't know which end the damn puppy comes out of.  It burns me slap DOWN that no network, no group, no anybody ever wants to hear from the people who actually are involved in the activity being vilified.  Yes, there are crappy breeders......and have been for hundreds of years.  But there are plenty who try very, very hard to breed sound, healthy dogs.  And without good breeders, just where are our liberal, hand-wringing friends going to get their next Lab or Golden or Cocker Spaniel....or whatever breed they have happened to fall head over heels in love with?

And by the way, has it never dawned on any of these yo-yos that one of the reasons it APPEARS that purebred dogs have more health problems is because the purebred community is terribly aware of their breeds and actively watch and test for problems so that they can do whatever they can to eliminate them?  Mixed breed dogs have plenty of health problems, too, only nobody recognizes them for what they are because nobody's looking or keeping track.

And AKC:  oh boy!  They issued a "statement".  Great.  Those boys up there need to get their heads out of their asses and formulate a PLAN that involves going on the offensive instead of constantly playing catchup.  Don't y'all think that Wayne and his minions over at HSUS are going to have a damn FIELD DAY with this?  They'll tie it right in to their "war on puppy mills" that they are ramping up for 2010.  (The latest is their national toll-free hotline to report suspected puppymills.  Somehow they've managed to delude folks into thinking that HSUS has law enforcement powers!)  And of course, to HSUS, anybody that has more than 2 or 3 dogs and breeds more than once a year is a puppymill. 

So, in the battle to keep purebred animals in our lives, if y'all thought 2009 was tough, get ready.  And take your heads out of the sand..........

Sorry.....back to our regularly scheduled festivities.........