PetRescue is very excited to announce our first Celebrity Supporter - Wil Anderson!

"As someone who was convinced the internet had been pretty much invented so people could waste time at work, and have access to Paris Hilton's private movies, I'm pleased to see it's finally being used for something that actually helps the world. As the owner of a rescued cat myself (his name is Tip because we found him at the Bowral tip) I take my hat off to the guys at PetRescue."

We really appreciate Wil's support in highlighting the plight of homeless animals in Australia!

We've been really delighted with the response to our recent media release and were ecstatic to get the chance to spread the word about rescue!

On Friday the 4th of March we were given a slot with Graeme Gilbert from 2SM (NSW). It was great as he is clearly an animal lover and could really see what we are trying to achieve.

We were also interviewed for ABC South East (NSW) with Sophie Longden and later, a piece with Alex Sloan 666 ABC (ACT).

We are also included in the current issue of Dogs Life Magazine.

Lastly we were invited to do a segment on PetTalk Radio. This community station is broadcast to animal lovers all over Australia and we were incredibly pleased to be included on the show!

It's wonderful to have these opportunities to promote rescue and thank would like to thank everyone for their support!

Recently, we were lucky enough to do a live interview with the amazing Rosie Beaton from Triple J. This has lead to having a PetRescue PetSaver module on the Triple J Super Request website. A huge thanks to Nat and Priscilla for their help in getting it included.

We were also featured in on the ABC's Catalyst program (a initiative dedicated to supporting young people in innovation). See the full article here.

All this support is fantastic as it really allows us to reach a large Australian audience who may be in the market for a new furkid!

When we saw the number of visitors to the site on January 15th, we thought it was a denial of service attack! (where someone maliciously tries to take your website off the air by sending traffic to it).

Luckily, it wasn't - instead we had a link on the ninemsn homepage that was sending an enormous number of visitors to PetRescue. Busiest day EVER! Check out the graph! :)

We're very excited to announce the winner of our Banner Competition! The very witty entry was from:

Laura has nominated Victorian Canine Rescue to receive the $200 pet shop voucher as she recently adopted a new family member from them.

We'd also like to give a special mention to Abyss for being one of the first people to ever link to PetRescue and for the ongoing support. Much appreciated!

Thank you to everyone that entered!

Here's a great new way to support your local rescue group - the PetRescue Pet Saver!

The PetRescue Pet Saver (pictured at left) is an easy-to-install module that allows you to display homeless pets on your own website.

Featuring up to date, real time information about animals in need, the Pet Saver can be customised to support your favourite rescue organisation! Installing the Pet Saver on your website is quick and easy, and it's a great way for you to help homeless animals find new forever homes.

Don't have your own website? Ask your work to put it on their intranet or your favourite Australian site to include it on theirs - the more people who are clicking the more homes we can find!

Click here for instructions...

Made of state-of-the-art "Zogoflex™",
a material invented just for dogs, the Hurley is totally flexible yet strong enough to challenge even the most aggressive breeds!

It's great for retrieve games and chewing and perfect as a training dumb bell.

And it's backed by a replacement guarantee — if your dog destroys the Hurley, we'll cheerfully replace it with a new one!

Small Hurley $18.00 inc GST
152mm long

Large Hurley $24.00 inc GST
210mm long

Save-A-Dog Scheme Shop
jlk@saveadog.org.au
0418 525 004

And remember that 100% of profit helps to support Save a Dog save other dogs and find them loving new homes!

Most people will walk into a pet store and admire the cute and fluffy puppies and kittens that adorn the windows. Most people also don’t realise just where these animals come from.

The majority of puppies and kittens sold in Pet stores Australia wide are purchased from Puppy Mills.

The brutality and malice of puppy mills knows no boundaries. The people who run them have little care for animals.

In Puppy Mills, bitches are breed from a young age and forced to produce litter after litter for many years whilst living in tiny cages barely big enough for them to move in. The dogs in puppy mills are bred solely for financial reasons. Don’t ever let anyone convince you of it otherwise.

Puppy Mills are cruel, disgusting and one of the worst forms of animal cruelty today. Dogs there are sick, injured and poorly cared for. Breeds of dogs that shouldn’t be mixed are. To those that run Puppy Mills, dogs are not living, breathing, feeling animals, they are merely machines. The ignorance, cruelty and viciousness of Puppy Mills know no limits.

These disgusting prisons are where equally ignorant pet stores purchase their puppies. For they to do not care about anything more then the money they make.

These poorly bred puppies will be sold at pet stores for ridiculous prices with no health guarantee. A pet store will sell a Maltese cross for $800 dollars and more, without papers. You can purchase a purebred Maltese from a breeder with papers and a lifetime health guarantee.

This article has covered the vague outline of the vindictive world of Puppy Mills. I urge all to purchase puppies from Registered Breeders or even better go to your local rescue and adopt a dog. Don’t feed these dog hating machines.

Cass Cullen

The real face of Puppy Mills...

Pebbles and Caddy are two very special girls. They were rescued from a Puppy Mill after being used as breeding machines; living for years in a cage continually birthing and bringing up pups only to have them taken away as soon as the pups were strong enough. They are presently in care at Hunter Animal Rescue in NSW. They are looking for a dedicated owner who will give them the life of luxury they deserve and in return will have two lifelong, devoted companions...

LAST-MINUTE UPDATE!!

An update from Hunter Animal Rescue: "Good news, Pebbles and Caddy have found a new home! A husband, wife and his elderly mother. It's the perfect home for both of them and they have settled in a lot better than anyone expected." Great news!

Kaye Hargreaves is a professional dog trainer and behaviour consultant. She runs Wagging School, in Melbourne. She is the author of four entertaining and positive training books (see end of article).

Dogs in Bed...

People frequently ask me where their dog should sleep. This can be a highly personal matter. Some people assume that a dog's place is outside. Others take the view that the dog is a member of the family. If you don't want to live with your dog, why have one? I think that a dog that sleeps inside will be less likely to become a nuisance barker at night. The dog will be better able to protect you if you have an intruder. A puppy will bond with you if sleeping nearby. However, you must establish a few ground rules. The dog should be taught house manners, including being confined to a mat or basket, rather than running riot at night.

Within days of coming into your house your new dog will have sussed out where the pack leader sleeps (the most important place in the pack's territory), what is the most comfortable spot to lie down and rest (probably the couch), where the food is kept and what you have to do to get it (look cute and whinge).
One sensible way of looking at it is that allowing your dog on the furniture is not a problem. What matters is whether you can ask your dog to get off. If you catch yourself saying 'He won't let me pull him off the couch' or 'Oops! Don't try to sit in his chair' you have a leadership problem.

If you sit on your couch and teach your dog to lie down on a mat at your feet, you teach the dog what its status is in the pack. It's also a practical way of controlling unruliness inside the house.

A dog that sleeps on the floor in the bedroom will be content to be part of the group, but on a lower level than its leaders (you). I would generally have a new dog tethered at the foot of the bed, on the floor. Later, I would let the dog up on the bed as a privilege. If it's not a problem, it's not a problem. If the dog thinks he is sharing your bed, rather than the other way around, dominance will not be an issue. If you do not want your dog to be so close to you, the family room or laundry are popular alternatives.

If you find you dog becoming bossy, guarding favourite spots, you may need expert help. If you have been sick, and have spent a lot of time in bed, with your dog in the room or on the bed, you may find that the dog becomes over-protective of your shared den.

The no-nonsense British dog trainer, Barbara Woodhouse, told the story of being summoned on an emergency house call to deal with a dog that had taken up position in the middle of the bed, snarling, and would not allow the man of the house into the bedroom. She of course marched in and said 'Stop this nonsense. Get off at once!' (or words to that effect) and the dog slunk away. I remember reading a doggy 'agony aunt' column in New York in which a young women asked for advice because her dog would not allow her new boyfriend to enter the bedroom. The advice of the columnist was 'get rid of your boyfriend. Your dog's got better taste than you'. Different places, different values.

Whether its morally, aesthetically or behaviourally correct to allow your dog to sleep on your bed, you might end up thinking it is just plain uncomfortable. Fiona was a client of mine with a large male dog who was in the habit of retiring to his basket for a daytime nap with a pair of her lace knickers to rest his head upon. When, for various reasons, she brought him into her bedroom at night, there was much restlessness. As she told me: 'So I said to him, darling, if you can't stop wriggling, you'll just have to go and sleep in the spare room'. I swear that to this day, I don't know whether she was referring to her husband or the dog!

Kaye Hargreaves' Books...

Training With a Friendly Face

Your Positive Puppy Training Starter Pack

Sit Happens - Civilising Your Dog, and

Dogs and Children, a behavioural training guide

As well as a set of eighteen booklets on behaviour problems: Positive Solutions to Behaviour Problems, available as a set or as booklets on individual topics including: aggression towards other dogs, aggression towards people, chasing or nipping, destructive chewing, digging (+ many more).

Available from www.naturescreatures.com.au or by contacting Kaye by email, kh@netspace.net.au

Kaye will also be giving a series of seminars this year:

#2 'Training Ralph'
The Rambunctious Adolescent Lunging Posturing Hound...
Every class has its RALPH. Learn how to prevent, manage and overcome problems in this frustrating stage.
Monday April 4, 2005 at 7-30 pm

#3 Aggression
'Aggression' can mean many things in many different situations. Most pet dog owners and instructors are faced with relatively low level but still problematic aggression, which needs to be assessed, managed and, best of all, prevented.
This session looks at the contexts in which aggression is found, and what you can do about it.
Monday June 6, 2005 at 7-30 pm

#4 Dogs and children
Most dog bite injuries to children are caused by mismanagement of the family pet, rather than 'dangerous dogs' as such. This seminar presents practical training strategies to promote greater safety.
Monday August 8, 2005 at 7-30 pm

#5 Nuisance barking
There are many humane, practical and sensible solutions to a common problem.
Monday October 3, 2005 at 7-30 pm

#6 Leading the way...
Why is it that instructors spend most of their time teaching dogs to walk on lead, and it remains the most difficult and persistent problem?
Learn Aunty Kaye's Top Ten ways of teaching loose lead walking.
Monday Dec 5, 2005 at 7-30 pm

Seminars will be held at Natures Creatures Bookshop Shop 15A, 163 Boronia Rd Boronia unless otherwise advised.

Kristen Zekic is an incredibly talented 13 year old with a passion for rescue. She has found it difficult to volunteer at shelters and rescue groups due to her age, so has instead put her attention to inspiring other young people to get involved.

She joins us to speak about her experiences and some suggestions on how other innovative young people can help their local groups.

How Can I Help?

So you want to help rescue, you have all the facts, you are prepared for the hard work and you’ve decided that this is what you really want to do. BUT, no rescue will take you on. “You’re just too young” they tell you “How do we know you’re going to be serious about this” is what they say. So what is there left to do? Do you just give up? NO! Is rescue really worth it? YES! Here are some things that you can do to help rescue in your area. And if you save one animal….it makes it all worthwhile.

Click here to read the rest of this article...

Canberra Greyhound Adoption Service is a new volunteer group that fosters and rehomes Greyhounds in the Canberra region.

We accept surrendered ex-racers, and also rescue impounded greys, and find them loving, permanent pet homes. All Greyhounds that come into foster care live as part of their carer's family until the right home is found for them.

All Greyhounds are desexed, microchipped, C5 vaccinated, wormed, flea treated and started on heartworm prevention before adoption. The adoption fee of $230 helps us pay vet bills and also includes muzzle, collar, lead, new owner pack and free CGAS membership for one year. CGAS takes great care to match Greyhounds to new homes and provides ongoing support and advice to adopting families.

Being a new group, we are looking for new members and foster carers to enable us to help more Greyhounds.

If you can help please read on...

One of the biggest challenges faced by shelters maintaining their own websites is keeping the content up-to-date. In today's internet-orientated society, having a current website is a necessity for effectively promoting the rescue animals you have in your care.

PetRescue have designed an easy solution to the 'updating animal' problem - the PetRescue Feed. For an excellent example of how the PetRescue Feed works, visit www.helpingpawrescue.com.

Update all your listings in the one place using PetRescue's state of the art systems, and your website is automatically updated - eliminating any double-entry and reliance on your web-savvy volunteer.

Similar to the PetRescue web site, but customised for your shelter, this gives you access to PetRescue's features, including automatic image resizing and thumbnail creation, printable posters, email-to-a-friend functionality, and access to over 120,000 visitors per month!

RSPCA SA has been posting animals on the PetRescue website for several months now and it has been extremely fruitful. Each time an animal is listed on the website, we receive such an overwhelming response from interested parties, and it doesn't take long until a suitable home is found.

Putting animals on the PetRescue website is so easy to do and hassle free. It is also makes it easier for those people keen to adopt an animal; they can simply log on to the website, see if an appropriate animals is available and then either email or call the RSPCA for more details.

Click here to view the full letter of support from the RSPCA SA.

Name:
Lisa White

Organisation:
Friends of the Hound Greyhound Adoption Group
Phone: (02) 6677 9115
friendsofthehound@linknet.com.au
www.friendsofthepound.com

Position/Duties:
I Set up the group in 2003 as part of Friends of the Pound (Tweed) Inc. I am also currently fostering some of our available Greyhounds as well as co-ordinating other foster carers & being main point of contact for adoption and surrender of Greyhounds. I am also responsible for organising promotional and fundraising events, and marketing/advertising.

What animals do you have presently at Friends of the Hound?
Friends of the Hound currently have 7 Greyhounds available for adoption & can often have up to 12 dogs available at one time. Two Greyhounds have been successfully re-homed in the past week! With the foster caring system, our Greyhounds’ personalities & characteristics are well-known and suitable dogs are generally available for adoption in most situations.

What’s the best thing about working for Friends of the Hound?
SATISFACTION! Owning a Greyhound as a pet is not yet popular in Australia like it is overseas in countries such as the UK & USA. At Friends of the Hound we are slowly helping to educate the public about the attributes and advantages of owning a Greyhound. We are creating public awareness about the breed & dispelling the misconceptions and preconceived ideas that many people have.

What things do you think they do really well?
Friends of the Hound are only a small organisation but we are committed and passionate. We try not to be too judgemental – we just want to help Greyhounds, and source as many good homes as possible for our rescued dogs.

What’s the most touching thing you've ever had happen at the rescue org/shelter?
Recently, we successfully re-homed a lovely dog to an elderly lady that had recently suffered a stroke. “Heli” had been fostered by us for many, many months & we were wondering whether she would ever find a suitable home. A perfect ‘therapy’ pet, Heli has managed to instil incentive & focus in her new owner, whose daughter & granddaughter are delighted with the result. A gentle, affectionate dog, Heli is enjoying the spoilt life of much-loved indoor pet and in return is a devoted, loyal companion.

When I'm not at the shelter/rescue org, you can find me....
Working at the Rehabilitation Unit of Murwillumbah Hospital, or at home caring for my young children & dogs, horses, cats, chooks, budgies and guinea pig! Otherwise, I may be busy with my other volunteer position as President of the Murwillumbah Community College (ACE Adult & Community Education Centre).

What's your best pet care tip?
Remember that you are RESPONSIBLE for your animals. Don’t have an animal unless you are prepared to be responsible for it …..always (or at least for its lifetime!)

Why do you think more people should get their pets from rescue?
Animal shelters are always full of beautiful unwanted animals that are usually there through no fault of their own – it is usually due to a human failing & animals are the poor victims! People should always try to get their pets from animal shelters, this in turn will reduce the demand for pets from backyard breeders & hopefully compulsory desexing will one day come in to effect across Australia to reduce the numbers of impounded animals & irresponsible backyard breeders.

My pets are…
2 lovely adopted Greyhounds & 2 adorable Staffy X’s (adopted from the Pound), plus 6 horses, 3 cats, 2 budgies, 1 guineas pig & 14 chooks.

If you could get a message out to the public - what would it be?
GREYHOUNDS MAKE GREAT PETS! They ARE the dog world’s best kept secret…. gentle, affectionate dogs that are low maintenance, great with kids, & make lovely indoor family pets

PetRescue was pleased to announce it's 1000th animal rehomed last month. Here are a selection of pooches and pusses who are now in new homes around Australia...

Wallace - Cordelia's Canine Rescue (NSW)

Wallace and William have been adopted together by a lovely couple in Canberra. They will both have a wonderful life and were very happy going home with their new mum and dad. Thanks PetRescue....... all because of this site!

Caddie - Paws N Hooves (NSW)

Thanks to PetRescue Caddie has gone to live on 3 acres with another rescue dog, Scout.

Penny - Maryborough Animal Refuge (QLD)

It is always good to think that there are people out there who love all cats and thankfully, prepared to adopt a "non" kitten.

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