Page 138 - ShowSight - November 2019

Rescue, Stud Dogs,
BIRD BREEDERS ARE IN THE SAME BOAT, AND MORE
Michelle Scott
Breeding purebred dogs and rescue do not have to exist in two separate uni- verses. People can do both. Whether it be a purebred dog without a home or a mixed breed, the love of dogs is what brought me into the sport in the first place.
There are bad breeders. There are bad rescue groups. Perhaps the dog lover in me is more concerned with giving a chance for all dogs to thrive and find love. Our record holding BIS dog slept side by side with a rescue dog. We were adamant that both of them were equally beautiful. The rescue never entered a show ring. Most clever folk were well aware that "all bets were off' if there was any commentary about her lack of con- forming to the breed standard.
—William H. MillerA
The Rescue vs. Preservation Breeders controversy keeps heating up; many in our community think we’re aiding and abetting “puppy mills” when we help with rescue. Yet the dogs needing res- cue are no doubt in real need. Here’s a great look at a compromise which benefits everybody.
Another good article - change the word bird to dog and it's easy to see we're all facing
sOi m i l a r p r o b l e m s .
ver twenty years ago I was telling other breeders that we needed to ac- knowledge that **all**
breeders are not good breeder. You did not need to see a place that was dirty, had poor production and sickly babies to know that some places were bad. That is the case with every voca- tion or avocation, not everyone is good or ethical. We also needed to distance ourselves from them. Most of these bad breeders are now out of business, which is no surprise either. You cannot have babies when the par- ents are not well cared for. You do not have continued business when you treat people badly.
Unfortunately many good breeders have gone out of business too. It is
hard work, both physically and emo- tionally. Many of us are getting too old for it. AND many of us have grown tired of being called, greedy, unethical and told we live off the backs of birds. What I see now is that parrot shelters are where breeders were 25 years ago and they will face the same challenges and will go down the same road. There are places that call themselves shelters that are nothing but filthy hoarders, places that make a shameful amount of money off donations and grants and then there are the really dedicated shelters who have the birds best interest at heart. People are be- ginning to wake up ask questions and are not as easily fooled by the scam- mers who are masquerading as rescue heroes. Real heroes do not see them-
selves as heroic nor do they feel the need to attack others. They just qui- etly go about doing their good work. Animal Rights extremest have done their job at making all breeders look like scum and they have done such a good job of it that breeders are no longer a threat to them. However, they are now going after the pet owner. " No one should have a bird because they will lock it into a cage and it will suffer there till it dies." Their new job is easy to do because pet owners are so very critical of each other that all they have to do is let them destroy each other. Help each other, offer ad- vice, listen to advice and realize that there are many good ways to take good care of birds
—Kashmir Csaky
136 • ShowSight Magazine, noveMber 2019
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