DOG CARTOONS – JANUARY 2014

Here’s links & page numbers of cartoons in the January 2014 issues:

3rd January 2014 (page 157) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/010314_issuu (Pug)

10th January 2014 (page 129) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/011014 (Dachshund)

17th January 2014 (page 97) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/011714 (Chinese Crested)

24th January 2014 (page 109) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/012414 (Chow Chow)

31st January 2014 (page 170) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/013114 (Bichon Frise)

DOG CARTOONS – DECEMBER 2013

Here’s links & page numbers of cartoons in the December 2013 issues:

6th December 2013 (page 142) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/120613 (Poodle & Labrador)

13th December 2013 (page 209) http://issuu.com/dognews/docs/121313 (Bull Terrier & Chihuahua)

THE CUTEST DOG IN THE WORLD?

From my ‘Crossing the headlines’ column in Dog World (11th December 2013) where I discuss the irresponsible and misleading articles on designer dogs.

 

“Is this the cutest dog in the world?” asked the Daily Mail headline. “Imagine the ideal designer dog; it would be smart, healthy and hypoallergenic. It would have the yap bred out of it and longevity bred in. And, most importantly, it would never lose its puppy face…it is the perfect pet accessory”.

Yes folks, this article REALLY did appear in the Daily Mail and, as it went on, it got even worse. Apparently the latest craze Stateside is the ‘Cava-poo-chon’ – a Cavalier King Charles and Bichon-cross mated to a Miniature Poodle.

This creation appears to be the result of a “decades-old search for the dog-face fountain of youth” and that “dog owners…” (so we are told) “have been desperately searching for a dog that never loses its puppy appeal – an eternal puppy”. Up until now buyers wanting that ‘forever puppy-face’ have had to make do with ‘specialised dogs’ such as the ‘Miniature Yorkie’ or ‘Miniature Maltese’ but not anymore; with the help of geneticist and ‘reproductive veterinarian’, the tribrid (or ‘triple cross’) has been created by Linda and Steve Rogers.

DOES A LEOPARD EVER CHANGE ITS SPOTS? NO!

From my ‘Crossing the headlines’ column in Dog World (6th November 2013) where I review more new TV documentaries on dogs and the promotion of designer dogs.

 

So, has the Kennel Club at long last decided to change direction? What with the announcement that crossbreeds will not now be registered and then the change of heart over CC allocation, could it really be true that the KC is now listening to the hardworking breed clubs and councils and, most importantly, the exhibitors?

From a personal point, it’s also been gratifying to have many of my arguments (put forward in this column and seized upon elsewhere) justified.

Maybe now the KC could look across the pond and listen to what the new AKC chairman has recently said:”We will immediately and aggressively respond to any attack utilising our partners, our supporters and our full media assets.”

This is exactly the kind of weapons needed to fend off further attacks from the BBC. Wouldn’t it be good to have our KC put a little of its recent £12m windfall aside for a similar media response or publicity venture?

Far too often, TV shows are broadcast that slate pedigree dogs and their owners and make all sorts of inaccurate statements with absolutely no response or comeback.

ANOTHER DUMBED-DOWN DOG DOCUMENTARY

From my ‘Crossing the headlines’ column in Dog World (9th October 2013) where I review recent TV documentaries on dogs.

 

Having seen the success ITV has enjoyed with its plethora of dog related shows it seems the BBC has decided that it too wants a piece of the action and so it brought us ‘The Wonder of Dogs’. The programme promised to investigate why this “single species comes in such an array of shapes and sizes” and the team also aimed to find out “how the extraordinary genetics of modern dogs underlies the extreme differences we see between the breeds”.

Hearing that promise and those lofty aims combined with the fact the show was being produced by the BBC immediately set alarm bells ringing and it was a feeling obviously shared by many others as one wag posted on Facebook, “has everyone got Ofcom’s address to hand!”