Too many pets

I believe that EVERYONE should need a licence to breed a litter of dogs . Not just ‘serious’ breeders but more importantly the woman next door who has a poor quality , bad tempered dog with none of the necessary qualities to pass on to her offspring and who is really breeding to make money , nothing more nothing less.

These are the pups that will end up in rescue centres because of their poor genes .

In fact let’s go a step further and say you need a licence to BUY a pup! You should have to go to classes , learn how to care for your dog, how to pick a breed appropriate to your lifestyle. All that before you can actually get your hands on one.

I am a dog lover, have bred dogs and shown them and worked them during my lifetime but I totally agree with MissA , so many pups are ill thought out purchases.

The flip side is I totally agree that they are lifesavers to many ( we have one ourselves ), then there are service dogs, cadaver dogs etc etc.

So I would say regulate the industry properly and police it .

Pipe dream ? ?

I couldn't be without my little dog - he came to me via a Rescue (as have all my dogs). He is the light of my life, runs the home, makes me laugh all the time, and is so faithful.

I think as sodapop has said the over breeding of animals, and the constant trend to own a dog purely to carry it about in a handbag etc. is the trouble here.

So many issues around this one. Pets offer companionship and love to lonely people. They help children to act more responsibly and often give them confidence. The down side is the over breeding of animals purely for profit, pets bought because they are 'trendy' and people not considering their life style before getting an animal.
I would never buy an animal from a breeder now as there are rescue centres full of unwanted animals.

One of my 'pet' hates are people who have the latest must have dog, then shut it away in the kitchen because they can't be bothered to train it.