Comments on: Lease-A-Puppy a goner?? http://www.snifnycdogs.com/2008/08/lease-a-puppy-a-goner/ Being a happier dog in New York City Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:54:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 By: RTPBlogger http://www.snifnycdogs.com/2008/08/lease-a-puppy-a-goner/#comment-421 RTPBlogger Mon, 04 Aug 2008 16:47:28 +0000 http://www.snifnycdogs.com/2008/08/lease-a-puppy-a-goner/#comment-421 I totally agreee with JO. She's right about the shady people behind this idea here's a link to an article about them: www.runningthepack.com/blog?p=60 As such I'm pleased as punch that the business is closing up. Could something similar be run where people could spend time with dogs in a more positive environment? Perhaps... To me, the first step is that the dogs would sleep in the same place and have the same primary Caregivers EVERYDAY. However if this is the case, people would basically just being taking the dogs out for walks, and you can do that at most shelters once you have gone through training! I totally agreee with JO. She’s right about the shady people behind this idea here’s a link to an article about them:

www.runningthepack.com/blog?p=60

As such I’m pleased as punch that the business is closing up.

Could something similar be run where people could spend time with dogs in a more positive environment? Perhaps… To me, the first step is that the dogs would sleep in the same place and have the same primary Caregivers EVERYDAY. However if this is the case, people would basically just being taking the dogs out for walks, and you can do that at most shelters once you have gone through training!

]]> By: Jo http://www.snifnycdogs.com/2008/08/lease-a-puppy-a-goner/#comment-420 Jo Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:14:24 +0000 http://www.snifnycdogs.com/2008/08/lease-a-puppy-a-goner/#comment-420 Actually, if you happen to read the SEC filings for Asensia/FlexPetz, you will find that they DON'T adopt dogs and never INTENDED to adopt dogs -- it was a scam from the scam artist -- Simon Brodie -- who started the program with his partner, Cervantes. It states clearly in the SEC filings (legal documents, folks!) that the dogs are PURCHASED, and have a useful life of only 7 years. BTW -- do a quick check on Brodie, would you? He's been in jail for fraud in England, and after scamming folks here with non-allergenic cats that were never delivered as well as a special 'rare ashera' breed of cat that is genetically IDENTICAL to an existing Savannah breed, I won't be surprised that he ends up in jail HERE as well. Then again, he's just changed his name to Simon Carradan and is now selling $19,000.00 SKIS from the FP offices in Big Sky, Montana that are guaranteed to make you a world-class skier. One heck of a philanthropist and animal lover, wouldn't you say? The dogs that are being 'put to sleep' every day in the United States are dogs that FP would not adopt anyway. FP would only be adopting the 'perfect' dogs -- IF they decided to adopt, which they DON'T -- only the cute, young dogs with perfect temperaments, ones that would make an awesome family pet. Not to mention, a shelter WON'T adopt to someone who will be keeping the dog in a kennel then passing the dog around, because most animal welfare organizations have Behaviorists on staff and KNOW what it does to a dog, mentally. Go to a good shelter (like your local ASPCA) and see what the requirements are. In order to adopt from a shelter, the FP folks would have to lie, and have others lie for them. Are you going to trust a company that had to be built upon lies? Science has already shown that dogs are capable of cognition close to that of our own -- as a matter of fact, they do better in tests that require working with and understanding people than chimps have ever done. There have also been studies done with shelter dogs that show how much 'serial' adoptions effect a dog -- these dogs have no stability, no 'family' to call their own. With an animal that has evolved to be in a group and with a family, this can cause all sorts of fallout. As a professional CDBC, I work with shelter and privately-owned dogs on the issues caused by instability of lifestyle. Not only do these dogs have a tough time trusting people (fearful), many also develop OCD-type behaviors like constant tail chasing and fly-snapping (biting the air at imaginary flies). So, lets look at this fantasy world a little further: FP adopts one of these great dogs from a shelter (remember, this is a FANTASY). Of course, they don't know it's genetic background, and any CAAB will tell you that genetics plays a HUGE part in temperament. So, this dog is adopted and they send him to a family for a weekend. By the end of the weekend the dog is settling in and really enjoying himself... and then gets schlepped back to the FP kennel for a week or two. He's a little confused by this, as he thought these were really great people and they liked him! So, in a couple of weeks, a DIFFERENT person takes him for a weekend. He's a little more reserved this time but again starts to really like these people... oops, what happened? They took him back!!! he has NO CLUE why this is happening... did he DO something??? Fast forward a few months... He's stressed, and this kicks off this underlying thing that he does when stressed (remember, we don't know his background, right?) and starts chasing his tail... and chasing it.... until it's the only thing that he can concentrate on that takes away his anxiety. Then, he catches it... and starts to lick and chew on it... soon, he has a problem called a lick granuloma... and the kennel staff doesn't notice it right away. OOPS, now they notice it... after it's bleeding... Hey, you can't rent out a dog with OCD, can you? No one wants the 'project' dogs, only the PERFECT ones. So what happens to THIS dog NOW? What do I have against the business model? It's selfish, totally geared toward what people WANT, and NOT at all what's BEST for another living, sentient creature. Want some background research on Animal Cognition and welfare? Ethologist Marc Bekoff is a great place to start: http://arbs.biblioteca.unesp.br/include/getdoc.php?id=481&article=150&mode=pdf http://literati.net/Bekoff/AnimalEmotions.PDF Actually, if you happen to read the SEC filings for Asensia/FlexPetz, you will find that they DON’T adopt dogs and never INTENDED to adopt dogs — it was a scam from the scam artist — Simon Brodie — who started the program with his partner, Cervantes. It states clearly in the SEC filings (legal documents, folks!) that the dogs are
PURCHASED, and have a useful life of only 7 years. BTW — do a quick check on Brodie, would you? He’s been in jail for fraud in England, and after scamming folks here with non-allergenic cats that were never delivered as well as a special ‘rare ashera’ breed of cat that is genetically IDENTICAL to an existing Savannah breed, I won’t be surprised that he ends up in jail HERE as well. Then again, he’s just changed his name to Simon Carradan and is now selling $19,000.00 SKIS from the FP offices in Big Sky, Montana that are guaranteed to make you a world-class skier. One heck of a philanthropist and animal lover, wouldn’t you say?

The dogs that are being ‘put to sleep’ every day in the United States are dogs that FP would not adopt anyway. FP would only be adopting the ‘perfect’ dogs — IF they decided to adopt, which they DON’T — only the cute, young dogs with perfect temperaments, ones that would make an awesome family pet. Not to mention, a shelter WON’T adopt to someone who will be keeping the dog in a kennel then passing the dog around, because most animal welfare organizations have Behaviorists on staff and KNOW what it does to a dog, mentally. Go to a good shelter (like your local ASPCA) and see what the requirements are. In order to adopt from a shelter, the FP folks would have to lie, and have others lie for them. Are you going to trust a company that had to be built upon lies?

Science has already shown that dogs are capable of cognition close to that of our own — as a matter of fact, they do better in tests that require working with and understanding people than chimps have ever done. There have also been studies done with shelter dogs that show how much ’serial’ adoptions effect a dog — these dogs have no stability, no ‘family’ to call their own. With an animal that has evolved to be in a group and with a family, this can cause all sorts of fallout. As a professional CDBC, I work with shelter and privately-owned dogs on the issues caused by instability of lifestyle. Not only do these dogs have a tough time trusting people (fearful), many also develop OCD-type behaviors like constant tail chasing and fly-snapping (biting the air at imaginary flies).

So, lets look at this fantasy world a little further: FP adopts one of these great dogs from a shelter (remember, this is a FANTASY). Of course, they don’t know it’s genetic background, and any CAAB will tell you that genetics plays a HUGE part in temperament. So, this dog is adopted and they send him to a family for a weekend. By the end of the weekend the dog is settling in and really enjoying himself… and then gets schlepped back to the FP kennel for a week or two. He’s a little confused by this, as he thought these were really great people and they liked him! So, in a couple of weeks, a DIFFERENT person takes him for a weekend. He’s a little more reserved this time but again starts to really like these people… oops, what happened? They took him back!!! he has NO CLUE why this is happening… did he DO something??? Fast forward a few months… He’s stressed, and this kicks off this underlying thing that he does when stressed (remember, we don’t know his background, right?) and starts chasing his tail… and chasing it…. until it’s the only thing that he can concentrate on that takes away his anxiety. Then, he catches it… and starts to lick and chew on it… soon, he has a problem called a lick granuloma… and the kennel staff doesn’t notice it right away. OOPS, now they notice it… after it’s bleeding… Hey, you can’t rent out a dog with OCD, can you? No one wants the ‘project’ dogs, only the PERFECT ones. So what happens to THIS dog NOW?

What do I have against the business model? It’s selfish, totally geared toward what people WANT, and NOT at all what’s BEST for another living, sentient creature.

Want some background research on Animal Cognition and welfare?
Ethologist Marc Bekoff is a great place to start:

http://arbs.biblioteca.unesp.br/include/getdoc.php?id=481&article=150&mode=pdf

http://literati.net/Bekoff/AnimalEmotions.PDF

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