# Should all animals be on licence and banned from sale in shopping centre pet shops



## KingSirloin (Dec 21, 2010)

This is the worst time of year for the RSPCA, as so many animals are simply 'discarded' for whatever pathetic reasons.....just can't afford it any more, it's not small and cute like it was 6 months ago, my child wants an x-box this year etc....

They love us more than we love them, they get attached to their owners and comfortable in their home environments, then discarded like last years presents or sold to 'someone else' because they're no longer wanted or afforded.

I'm suggesting a few options to get people's opinions. 
1: ALL animals must be 'licenced' (AND compulsory microchipped). 
2: Have all animals BANNED from sale in shopping centres and pet shops. (Available only from breeders)
3: Both of the above
4: Only licenced buyers can buy from pet shops.

Keep animals away from impulse buyers.......and RSPCA death row!


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## andrew_p (Dec 21, 2010)

i totally agree with you mate if they make its like a reptile licence in nsw it will stop alot of impulse buyers 2 weeks aint impulse if you ask me haha


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## justbrad (Dec 21, 2010)

Same here! If anybodys looking to give away a pug, pm me!


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## grannieannie (Dec 21, 2010)

Certainly ban all pets from pet shops and back yard breeders....all animals should be micro chipped and licenced...and that includes cats as well as dogs. Reptiles should only be sold by and to licenced breeders.


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## D3pro (Dec 21, 2010)

That will put a stop to those puppy farms


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## sarah_m (Dec 21, 2010)

I think they are all good suggestions, anything that stops impulse buying! 
But I think people would still get around it the way they get away with not desexing, micro chipping and registering their animals now.


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## Elapidae1 (Dec 21, 2010)

I opened my local newspaper today and the double page spread in the middle was the RSPCA using the festive season to try and off load dogs. kinda counter productive don't ya think?


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## Jay84 (Dec 21, 2010)

All animals on license? I think this ludicrous. it would be a logistical nightmare!

I wouldn'y want the keeping of my non native pets to be heavily regulated too, paying more fees, more paperwork for me. Waste of money as it won't prevent anything.


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## Waterrat (Dec 21, 2010)

With cats and dogs, there is a simple solution but our politicians don't have the balls to implement it; compulsory desexing and only registered breeders allowed to breed.
How about desexing reptiles? I am now running for cover! :shock:


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## Sawowie (Dec 21, 2010)

i think it would help so much if you had to be licenced to breed and sell puppies and definately ban them from petshops and malls because thats where the kids beg their perants for a puppy


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## nathancl (Dec 21, 2010)

as if you cant impulse buy when you have a licence.......how many people have gone to a breeders place to pick up an animal and ended up leaving with 3


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## Jay84 (Dec 21, 2010)

nathancl said:


> as if you cant impulse buy when you have a licence.......how many people have gone to a breeders place to pick up an animal and ended up leaving with 3


 
Exactly.

A licensing system would not halp anything i dont think. Maybe the registration fee for the dogs and cats can go towards the desexing of animals that are not wanted for breeding. That will eliminate the ''oh my dog got under the next door neighbours fence and now we have 10 puppies to sell''.


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## Titanic_Boa (Dec 21, 2010)

Anyone can get a reptile licence including impulse buyers so it would be the same for a cat and dog licence even though you have to wait a few weeks it doesn’t matter because if they have already payed for the licence they are likely to get one so they feel they haven't wasted their money on the licence


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## AllThingsReptile (Dec 21, 2010)

imo cats and dogs should be on very strict licenses and reptiles (native) not on licenses, coz lets face it, what can an escaped reptile do compared to an escaped dog or cat.....

also if they make a cat and dog licence as nathancl, jay84 and titanic_boa have all said, it may not stop impulse buying, but it will certainly decrease it, also they should have the 6 month until sell rule, like with reptiles, no actually it should be a 1 year until sell/give away rule......


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## Dannyboi (Dec 21, 2010)

That would be horrible more people would have them put down then because they have to move.


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## souldoubt (Dec 21, 2010)

Dannyboi said:


> That would be horrible more people would have them put down then because they have to move.


 
not sure what you mean by that mate

I think some impulse buying will be stopped by people needing to obtain a licence first but it wont stop ALL impulse buying. compulsory desexing except for registered breeders is a much better solution


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## Dannyboi (Dec 22, 2010)

no it was to the post before saying having to keep them for a year.


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## souldoubt (Dec 22, 2010)

ohhhh got ya, my bad i didnt see that post


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## cris (Dec 22, 2010)

IMO no animals should be on licence unless relevant to conservation. Goldfish should have a cooling off period of 30 days to prevent kids and irresposible parents from impulse buying without having full husbandry knowledge to keep the goldfish alive for 20+ years.


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## AUSGECKO (Dec 22, 2010)

Less than 10% of dogs and cats in shelters have microchips, all dogs and cats sold in pet shops must be microchipped by law.
So where do you think the majority of surrendered animals come from? The answer is private sales.
If Pet shops were banned from selling animals that means that there is one less place for people to sell their animals to and means more animals dumped.
Another fact for you: Ten years ago the RSPCA were against selling animals in the lead up to Christmas because they believed these animals would be surrendered after the holiday season. Now that they have several retail stores of their own, they encourage the purchase of dogs and cats at Christmas because it is more time to spend with your new pet.
Don't believe the propaganda of the RSPCA, they are another business that make a hefty profit every year.


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## Dannyboi (Dec 22, 2010)

Is this law nation wide? I swear that people in SA buy animals from petshops without microchips. In fact I have been at the vets and they have been microchipping dogs that were in the petshop the week before.


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## Dannyboi (Dec 22, 2010)

A cooling of period is a good idea like a waiting period for guns in America? But goldfish are a plenty and I doubt they would put that kind of regulation on them.


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## pythonmum (Dec 22, 2010)

Although pet shops get the blame for most dumped dogs, most puppy farms sell through websites and newspapers and these animals are most likely to be dumped. If all animals had to be registered, puppy farms would register as breeders and carry on as before. It is really up to consumers to make the effort to find out about the parentage of their animals and do some research. Making a real difference would require not only registration of breeders, but also inspection and making sure that bitches were not bred more than once a year, etc. Highly unlikely. This would also make illegal some of the most intelligent and useful dogs in the country - farm bred working dogs. I don't know what the answer is, but I own rescue dogs and try to educate people whenever I can. The situation is even worse for cats,and there is no way you can control breeding and sale of other small pets. Would you like to register and microchip your breeding rodents?


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## FusionMorelia (Dec 22, 2010)

all animals not native should be on a strict lic system and ALL cats should be de-sexed and on even more strict lic agreements 
out here in the bush its 300 to de-sex a dog/cat and on the central coast where i used to live it was 45 bucks......this does not help either! de-sexing should be done B4 sale! no dog/cat should be sold to anyone with the ability to breed unless u are a registered breeder! 
out here we have rouge bush cats that are freaking MASSIVE and the toll cats have out here on the natural animals is outragous! 
nextdoor alone i have people with 4 or 5 dogs 4 cats some rabits and a swag of kids i have Never seen the animals washed or put in their yard once! not one time, the council do nothing the animal catcher isnt seen unless somone gets bitten(last person bitten was a cop)
i have sent pics in to the rspca called them they do nothing either i couldnt even get anyone to come help a koala hit by a car and left to die on a hot tar road! i had to catch(not easy) and take it to orange(a 3 hr drive) and wires helped from there.!
the animal situation in aust is a joke! 
so many people only think of city animals and forget out in the bush it can and mostly is worse!


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## dossy (Dec 22, 2010)

i dnt think that you need a licnce for all animals. like fish, they are plentyful and they do not get surrenderd to rspca. if you make it breeders only then dogs will cost 10 grand for an avrage dog.

i think there should be a program for cats and dog that runs for x amount of days ( say 30 days) and u borrow an animal from the program runners and yu see if you like it. once you have done that you are sertified for life. and you can get animals from were ever.


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## theplantguys (Dec 22, 2010)

geck82 is right on the money. 

if you were to remove animals out of pet shops you would be stopping the only regulated sale of animals. 

A breeder (backyard, puppy farm or registered) does not have any rules to follow. a pet shop does, especially if they are a member of piaa.

Piaa members have a set of rules they follow, ie no pregnant animlas sold, no underage animlas (or customers), sick, cooling off period etc. you will also find pet shops as they are a business (yes they sell for a profit, but even breeders dont sell for a loss (most of the time for both)) they have a reputation to uphold, if a retail business sells a sick, too old, too young animals its not good for business, after all you would not go back and you would tell others, does that have the same effect with a backyard breeder? pet shops, vaccinate, worm, flea control (and some desex and/or microchip), backyard breeders generally do not.

Now i am not bagging back yard breeders here there are many that are very responsible and do do all the right things, i have breed dogs in the past, and as i go over the top with most things i sold the puppies for a loss but also i was picky on who i sold to, i rejected several people from buying my puppies, that being said there are many that are not like this, just as there are many good pet shops and bad ones also.

Does a backyard breeder provide all the information when selling a pet of any species? this dog cat snake etc will require you to do this that and the other thing. ok some pet shops also dont but generally a pet shop would give all the advise in the world as it could lead to extra sales in those products also gives a better service so people will return for future sales, hence why they are in business. 

again not bagging breeders, there are good ones out there, but how many people have purchased a snake and was told by the breeder this are some cage, lighting, uv, food, mite, worm, feeding, heating requirements about the snake you are buying? or had a care sheet given to you from a breeder? ok you may already know this information about your particular animals, many people who purchase animals do not, if you were to purchase from a pet shop at least you are informed about options, sizes weights, food etc for your pet, even if you dont buy them then and there at least you are informed about them, which is more than i can say for most breeders.

Again not saying all breeders or pet shops are like this but at least pet shops are semi-regulated and there is a higher chance of getting all the information.

If animals were licensed it will make minimal difference, there are sssssooooo many unregistered dogs, cats, birds out there its not funny. 

Whats that? register the person not the animal, that will work as there are no unlicensed reptiles out there or unlicensed reptile keepers......

impulse pets come from many places, and it is irresponsible owners that do it, not pet shops or breeders, do we really want to me more regulated? more money in licences? are bad pet owners going to bother about a licence in the first place?

not that i have a solution for unwanted pets but licencing or removing pets from pet shops is not the answer. 

sorry for being so long winded i am fairly passionate when it comes to topics about this sort of thing. I have been a orphan wildlife carers for many years, a breeder, a vet nurse, and now a pet shop owner.

Chris


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## Red-Ink (Dec 22, 2010)

I'm all for mandatory desexing and while at it it should be mandatory to surgically attach a pair to parents who can't say NO to bratty kids throwing a tantrum in the shopping centre screaming I want it... I WANT IT...* I WANT IT.. *Maybe we can attch the pair taken of the cats and dogs to them so they can say *NO* to the brats.


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## Waterrat (Dec 22, 2010)

theplantguys said:


> geck82 is right on the money.
> 
> if you were to remove animals out of pet shops you would be stopping the only regulated sale of animals.
> 
> ...


 
Chris, I can see and understand why you're defending pet shops. Perhaps if there were all like yours it'll be ok but most of them are not. I have made some points in regards to reptiles. Dogs, cats, guinea pigs may present a different scenario.


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## KingSirloin (Dec 22, 2010)

All these opinions are great. They show the pros and cons of the ideas suggested, and there's even a few new ideas too. At the end of the day, the purpose is to greatly kurb the number of dumped and excessive animals that 'seemed like a good idea at the time'.

Perhaps it is the people who should be licenced to 'keep' an animal and recorded for every animal they own. At least you'd be able to see who has bought the animal, owned the animal and how long they've had it. This can have some benefits in cases of cruelty, neglect or just plain lack of interest over time. To state the obvious, this won't always work due to illegal activists and won't be suitable for 'all' animals, but we need to look at the BIG PICTURE.

Sadly to a lot of people though, animals are just that..........animals, and they don't have any importance or needs of their own.

This poll is not to mock others ideas, but to produce some, provide advice on the pro's and cons of them, and hopefully result in a law 'of some sort' to protect the majority of animals.


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## redbellybite (Dec 22, 2010)

I have NO FAITH in the RSPCA at all ...they pick n choose what animals will make good headlines and stuff the rest attitude ....I know more private dedicated people doing better jobs then this over hyped business that is suppose to love all creatures great and small!


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## KingSirloin (Dec 22, 2010)

I agree. I've heard lots of reports of cruelty and negligence sent off to the RSPCA and nothing has been done. Are they short on staff, money or general interest?


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## Dannyboi (Dec 22, 2010)

Can't you call the police if its a real issue of cruelty? Actually you would have to get a cop that cares. I know a cop that has people come in with guns to shoot snakes on her property, I tell her its illegal, you would think she would know, but that didn't stop her.


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## AUSGECKO (Dec 22, 2010)

KingSirloin said:


> I agree. I've heard lots of reports of cruelty and negligence sent off to the RSPCA and nothing has been done. Are they short on staff, money or general interest?


 
I think it's all of the above mate, I have made several complaints about a retail store selling reptiles under the counter in NSW, I even provided photographic evidence and still nothing done but thats a story for another day.


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## animush (Dec 30, 2010)

I believe the easiest and simplest solution would be mandatory de-sexing of dogs/cats before sale (i assume there is no issue in de-sexing an 8-10 week old animal?) except for people who are registered to breed. 
I say only dogs/cats as it wouldn't be simple or effective to enforce a policy like this on other types of animals.


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## TahneeMaree (Dec 30, 2010)

I personally believe that unless you're a registered and licensed breeder or shower, it should be illegal to own an entire animal (entire means not desexed)... so no animal can be legally sold entire to someone un-registered or un-licenced. Just like anything there will be a tough job policing it.

This should cut the supply, cut down on backyard breeders and the sheer amount of cheap "quick buys" and impulse buying cause you saw a sign on the street for moggy kittens. I know it will be slightly unfair for those on low wages, however, the RSPCA is FULL of poor little kittens and puppies and adult animals who are perfectly able to go to new homes... many of who get destroyed... so before people say that it's unfair to people who can't afford the cutout of the cheapy backyard animals, take a look at the RSPCA. (I've had my own family members hate me for this point of view)

People don't seem to understand that owning a pet is more than buying a cute fluffy thing, once you bring it home, it's your responsibility to care for it and give it the best life you can until it passes. The amount of people who feel they are disposable is disheartening. There should be a sign in the pet shop window with the estimated LIFE costs of the puppies and kittens that are for sale, it may make people think of the long term so that these pets aren't just bought in the mentality of "oh that's a cute fluffy thing and it's only $***"

I just don't understand the mentality of being able to adopt something on a whim then not wanting it enough to dump the poor thing.


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## AUSGECKO (Dec 31, 2010)

animush said:


> I believe the easiest and simplest solution would be mandatory de-sexing of dogs/cats before sale (i assume there is no issue in de-sexing an 8-10 week old animal?) except for people who are registered to breed.
> I say only dogs/cats as it wouldn't be simple or effective to enforce a policy like this on other types of animals.


 
I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure dogs and cats can't be de sexed until at least 6 months of age. And no one (pet shops included) want to keep an animal in small quarters for this length of time, it's just not practical.


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