07.11.07 - Summit a Huge Success!
The 2nd National Summit to End Companion Animal Overpopulation was recently held on the Gold Coast. With 100 delegates from Australia, New Zealand and the USA it once again proved to be a huge success. Held over two days, the summit provided council members, animal welfare organisations, pet industry representatives and veterinarians to name a few, a chance to come together and work towards an end to the tragic problem of pet overpopulation. This years' keynote speaker was Michael Mountain, President and Founding Member of Best Friends Animal Society, the largest animal sanctuary in the USA. His inspirational and informative presentations gave a great insight into the issues facing animal welfare around the world. You can now download the Proceedings booklet by clicking on the links which are below and to the left for a full overview of the presentations from the Summit. It has been decided that the event will now be held bi-annually with the next summit to take place in 2009.
And……
The 3rd National Desexing Month took place in August and once again, we would like to thank all the councils and veterinarians who participated making the month a huge success. This August saw a whopping 592 desexing certificates issued by NDN, a result that we are very proud of. Also a big thank you to all the responsible pet owners who took the opportunity to have their pets desexed.
The $500 Coles/Myer gift voucher went to Dr JC Mullins Surgery in Kingaroy Qld for a second year. Congratulations to Dr Mullins and all his staff!!. There were many vets who went to great efforts and Hampton Park Vet Clinic in Victoria also had a large number of entries. We will be distributing the lucky winners of the Dirty Dog sunglasses very soon so keep your eyes on the post. Thank you again to all who participated and we hope to make it even bigger and better in 2008!


13.08.07 - You Are Invited to the Summit.....
We are very pleased to announce that registration is now open for the second National Summit to End Companion Animal Overpopulation to be held on the Gold Coast on October 1 and 2, 2007. You are cordially invited to attend, and/or to pass this on to others who may wish to be involved.

The Summit is being organised by the Animal Welfare League of Queensland and the National Desexing Network (NDN) - with support from Animals Australia.

Full details of the speakers and program and registration form can be found in the attachment and are also available on the Animal Welfare League of Qld www.awlqld.com.au or on the NDN website www.ndn.org.au. (click on the brochure on the left hand side).

Like last year, the registration fee has been kept as low as possible.

For more information please call NDN direct on 1300 368 992 or email info@ndn.org.au

Please register early

We hope to see you there!
Joy, Sylvana, Gemma and Tracey – Summit Organising Team


11.07.07 - Public feedback sought on managing unwanted cats and dogs
Hello members and supporters

The Premier Mr Beattie has released a discussion/consultation paper on the very complex and distressing issue of managing unwanted cats and dogs in Qld. This issue is at a critical point in Qld, with tens of thousands of healthy animals euthanased each year because homes cannot be found for them.

THIS IS THE CHANCE FOR ALL PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT THE FATE OF THESE ANIMALS TO HAVE THEIR SAY. PLEASE SPEND 10 MINUTES PUTTING SOME COMMENTS TOGETHER AND SENDING THEM TO THOSE PEOPLE IN POWER WHO WILL ULTIMATELY MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT THESE ISSUES – DECISIONS THAT COULD BE IN PLACE FOR MANY YEARS TO COME. YOUR COMMENTS DO NOT HAVE TO BE SCIENTIFIC OR RESEARCHED.

Please note: NDN and AWL Qld strongly support state wide mandatory registration, identification and desexing.

This should be prior to sale or transfer. As well, all cats and dogs should be desexed with appropriate exemptions such as for members of registered breed organizations and permits for responsible breeding of mixed breed dogs eg working dogs and with desexing support programs in place in rural and remote areas and for those who cannot afford it

Please note submissions to this paper close August 3.

The web address to visit to read the consultation paper and to send your comments to is shown here: - http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/cps/rde/xchg/dpi/hs.xsl/4790_6430_ENA_HTML.htm

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO ANYONE ELSE YOU KNOW YOU MAY WISH TO BE PART OF THE SOLUTION, AND NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM.

A copy of Mr Beattie's press release is attached below.


Joint Statement:

Premier and Minister for Trade
The Honourable Peter Beattie

Minister for Local Government, Planning and Sport
The Honourable Andrew Fraser

Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries
The Honourable Tim Mulherin


PUBLIC FEEDBACK SOUGHT ON MANAGING UNWANTED CATS AND DOGS

Queenslanders are being asked to consider a range of measures to address the tragedy of the growing numbers of cats and dogs which end their lives unwanted and euthanased.

Premier Peter Beattie today released a discussion paper on unwanted cats and dogs and urged every animal lover to take the time to consider the issues.

"Every year thousands of pet cats and dogs turn up at animal shelters across Queensland," the Premier said.

"The RSPCA and the Animal Welfare League have been forced to kill more than 53,000 healthy cats between 2002 and 2006.

"Clearly this is untenable and I know staff and volunteers at both organisations are increasingly distressed by this senseless waste of life.

"In addition to slashing the number of healthy animals being euthanased we also want people to consider measures which would help reunite lost dogs and cats with their owners more efficiently.

"While it is easier for animal shelters to place lost or unwanted dogs, the distress caused when a much loved family pet is lost could be significantly lessened if, for example, all companion animals were micro chipped to make it easier to trace their owners.

"I am told by the RSPCA that micro chipping can cost as little as $3 per animal and statistics from other States show owners have a much better chance of being reunited with their pet if it has been micro chipped.

"We want to hear directly from local councils and people throughout Queensland about their experiences and ideas on how to best tackle the problem.

"In particular we want to know people's views on suggested measures including:
o statewide mandatory registration of all dogs and cats;
o statewide mandatory micro-chipping of all dogs and cats;
o mandatory desexing before the sale of all dogs and cats with exceptions for registered breeders, working dogs etc;
o linking cheaper registration for pets to desexing;
o greater public education about responsible pet ownership.

"Across the State councils have a wide range of rules and we want to see if it is feasible to implement a statewide set of companion animal rules.

"It may however be the case that rural and remote communities will, for example, have to operate under special guidelines.

"The feedback we receive from across the State will help us to find a solution to this problem.

Mr Beattie said the discussion paper was prepared by the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) and the Department of Local Government, Planning, Sport and Recreation.

The Premier thanked the Animal Welfare League and the RSPCA for their assistance in the drafting of the discussion paper.

"This problem was brought to my attention by the member for Broadwater Peta-Kaye Croft who has been a passionate advocate on this issue.

"Last year the Animal Welfare League of Queensland which is based on the Gold Coast was forced to euthanase 19% of the dogs and 42% of the cats that it received,'' Mr Beattie said.

"The RSPCA reports that in the four years to 2006 its Queensland branch euthanased 44,173 or 67.35 per cent of the cats it received.

Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries Tim Mulherin said some of the options contained in the discussion paper include compulsory desexing, state-wide animal registration, animal identification, including micro chipping, modification of model local government laws and a state-wide education campaign.

"I would urge everyone with an interest in this matter to read the discussion paper carefully and participate in this important consultation.

"Cats in particular can wreak devastation on wildlife and the booming number of unwanted cats must be addressed," Minister Mulherin said.

Minister for Local Government Andrew Fraser said he looked forward to seeing the views of councils across the State.

"Of the 157 Queensland local councils 124 have a dog registration system in place with just 11 of these also requiring cat registration. All of these 124 councils require identification of registered animals,'' Mr Fraser said.

"Its important councils let us know how they think an improved system can be implemented and funded," the Minister said.

"We acknowledge different areas of the state may have unique dog and cat issues so we look forward to receiving as much feedback as possible."

The discussion paper - 'Managing unwanted dogs and cats' - and a questionnaire to make commenting easier are available on www.dpi.qld.gov.au or www.lgp.qld.gov.au or by calling 13 25 23.

Submissions close Friday August 3, 2007.

Wednesday July 4, 2007

For more information:
Premier's Office - 3224 4500
Minister Mulherin's Office - 3239 3000
Minister Fraser's Office - 3227 8819

13.10.06 - Invitation
Fundraising Luncheon
National Desexing Network and Animals Australia
Sunday 12th November 2006
We are delighted and honored to announce that Joan Pearson – an incredible supporter of all animal causes – will organise a fundraising luncheon to benefit NDN and Animals Australia.
NDN will use the proceeds from the fundraiser to start a new program to help remote outback communities curb their very serious pet overpopulation problem. The aim of the outback desexing problem is to lower the number of unwanted dogs and cats in remote communities by providing a veterinarian to perform desexing operations. The guest speaker will be Sylvana Wenderhold.
Mrs. Pearson has held fundraisers for Animals Australia previously to support them in their campaigns: Live Animal Export and Save Babe. Some 50 million farm animals each year are denied the protection of animal cruelty laws in this country. As a result millions of animals are denied basic needs, such as exercise, and endure a factory-like existence where all they know is confinement, stress and suffering. Animals Australia conducts crucial public awareness to highlight the plight of these animals and to empower consumers to help change the life of these animals through their choices. Animals face tragedies overseas - but this is one for which we, as a nation, are responsible - and which we can directly do something about.
So if at all possible please come to lunch and help make the world a better place for our animals. Auction items are much appreciated.
The luncheon will take place in Mrs. Pearson's beautiful home at 18 Ida Ave, Mosman. If you are interested in attending, please ring (02) 9960 2229 or 0411 044 739. Tickets are $75 per person. The event will start at 12:30.


05.10.06 - And the winners are.....
Councils, vets and animal welfare organisations have submitted their results for National Desexing Month 2006. There were so many great entries that it really was difficult to pick the winners. Councils in particular stood out this year putting in a lot of work to promote the event. In particular, councils from remote communities in the Northern Territory and Queensland who are working tirelessly in very difficult conditions. After closely reviewing all the fantastic results for National Desexing Month, this years prize winners have been selected.
The recipient of the Council of the Year award and $2000 to be used for desexing is Shoalhaven City Council, NSW. A big thank you to Anna Hernell who went to so much effort to promote National Desexing Month in her area. Many of the vets as well as local businesses from the Shoalhaven area took the initiative to join in so thank you and congratulations to all involved.
The efforts of the Animal Welfare League Far South Coast Branch also won them the $2000 prize money awarded to an organisation to be used for desexing. Thank you and congratulations to Deborah Cox and all the staff and volunteers who worked so hard for such great results.
The vet clinic who won the $200 Coles/Myer gift voucher was Dr JC Mullins Surgery in Kingaroy, Qld. Dr Mullins and his staff went to great lengths to promote the event in their area also offering fantastic incentives for their clients during the month of August. A large number of cats and dogs were desexed as a result and the community was made more aware of the pet overpopulation problem.
At the last minute, we decided to include a runners up prize for the outstanding efforts of Hanly Veterinary Clinic in Maddington, WA. Another clinic who offered great incentives, which led to the desexing of a huge number of pets during August. We simply couldn’t let their efforts go unrewarded.
So once again, a huge thank you to everyone who was involved this year making the second National Desexing Month even more successful than the last. We expect that each and every year will be bigger and better than the last and we will be keeping everyone informed closer to the time.