A Report to the media on Poodle Rescue

A Report
to
the media
on
Poodle Rescue
Mr. Jack MacGillivray, President,
Poodle Club of America
Mrs. Sally Poindexter, President
Poodle Club of America Rescue Foundation
November 11, 2008
This information packet is being sent to various media groups in hopes of educating the public on our breed, the
poodle.
Recent news coverage of President-elect Obama’s statements about getting his daughters a new puppy has sparked
much opinion throughout the dog community. His daughter mentioned a goldendoodle and we are hoping to educate not only the Obama’s but the public through the media to the truths about this type of dog.
The past has shown us that when a dog is popularized, especially a purebred dog, the over breeding of those dogs rises significantly; cases in point include dogs appearing on television shows such as “Frazier” which featured Eddy, the
Jack Russell terrier, “Lassie” the collie, and “Rin TinTin,” the German Shepherd and also dogs appearing in films like
“Beethoven” which featured a Saint Bernard, “101 Dalmatians,” and Old Yeller, in which the dog was most likely a
yellow Labrador. Sometimes, when a celebrity popularizes a certain type of dog, there is a frenzy to have one like it.
For example, it is well-known that Tiger Woods has a labradoodle and think of how many photographs there are of
tiny dogs carried in female celebrities’ handbags . In the rush to be ‘en vogue,’ many people do not take the time to
educate themselves about the traits of such breeds or mixed breeds and the shelters and rescue groups become full of
the unfortunate castoffs.
No matter what breed of dog the Obama’s may choose, it will become a coveted breed throughout the country and
therefore, a rescue group’s nightmare. The past has demonstrated that many people will buy them on impulse and
cast them away just as quickly. Unscrupulous people over-produce these breeds, and then cash their checks and walk
away. A vicious cycle then ensues with dogs caught in the middle as suppliers fill demand from an uninformed public. Thousands of dogs are euthanized each year because of economic problems in the household, because the owner
has died or become disabled, because of divorce. To add to the burden of shelters and misfortune of these affected
dogs because a particular breed of dog is ‘popular,’ because Tiger has one or because the dog is a cute fashion accessory is a tragedy. My hope is that the Obama family will research any and all breeds that they may be interested in and
then find that breed of dog through a rescue group or a shelter. Any all-breed rescue group in the United States will
be happy to assist them in finding the right dog for their family. Any shelter will welcome them with open arms. It
is our job as breed clubs to educate the public about each and every breed.
The Golden Retriever Club of America and the Labrador Retriever Club of America stand firmly with the Poodle
Club of America to stop the cross-breeding of our breeds. We spend countless hours educating the public to the
dangers of cross-breeding. There is no organization dedicated to these crossbreeds, and therefore, our three clubs
spend much of our time rescuing the dogs that the many unscrupulous producers do not stand behind.
I ask that you please take a few moments to read the attached information and become educated about our beloved
breed, the poodle. You will also see the devotion that our Club has to our breed and our rescue program on our
website, www.poodleclubofamerica.org. The website is full of information on our breed and you will clearly see the
history of our breed club and how dedicated people have worked to keep our breed strong and healthy. In addition,
by choosing “Poodle Rescue” you can see a sample of the many hundreds of purebred Poodles available for adoption
in Rescue in the U.S.
If the Obama family decides on a poodle, we would be most happy to assist them in their search for the perfect dog.
Thank you for your consideration,
Sally Poindexter
President, Poodle Club of America Rescue Foundation
Why a Poodle?
According to the AKC, the Poodle is the eighth most popular breed registered in the United
States, but Poodle owners believe that there is no better breed, period.
The Poodle was originally bred to retrieve water fowl and they retain characteristics such
as webbed feet and a dense, water-repellent coat that make them suitable for that task still today.
With their superior intelligence and gregarious personalities, however, Poodles soon found a place
in the home as companions.
There are three Varieties of Poodle: the Toy - a dog less than ten inches tall at the shoulder;
the Miniature - a dog more than ten inches but less than fifteen inches at the shoulder; and the
Standard - a dog more than fifteen inches at the shoulder. Although there are three different sizes
of Poodle, the Breed Standard for each is the same - “that of a very active, intelligent and elegantappearing dog, squarely built, well proportioned, moving soundly and carrying himself proudly...
the Poodle has about him an air of distinction and dignity peculiar to himself.” When asked “why
a Poodle?,” the late Anne Rogers Clark often replied: “They are Labradors with college educations.
After a day of retrieving, your Lab wants to curl up in front of the fireplace and take a well-deserved
nap. A Poodle wants to be your fourth at the Bridge table and tell naughty stories!”
Poodles excel at all types of dog sports. In Conformation competition in the AKC, the Standard and Miniature Poodles are exhibited in the Non-Sporting Group and Toy Poodles are exhibited in the Toy Group. All three varieties of Poodles can also be seen competing (and winning!) in
Obedience, in Rally, in Agility, and in Tracking Tests. Standard and Miniature Poodles may compete in dry-land hunting and water retrieving trials but alas, Toy Poodles are not permitted in these
activities at the present time.
Why Purebred Rescue?
Every dog breed, from Affenpinschers to Poodles to Yorkshire Terriers, has a Rescue organization devoted to their particular breed and these various purebred rescues are scattered all across the
United States. The Poodle Club of America (PCA) is very proud to claim over 60 groups and many
individuals devoted to Poodle Rescue. Anyone wanting to find more information about helping
a Poodle in need of Rescue has two very easy ways to do so: either through the American Kennel
Club (AKC) website or through the PCA website. Sally Poindexter, Chairperson of PCA Rescue,
handles many of the initial contacts that come through the PCA website. Sally has found that
when asked, the person inquiring about a Rescue Poodle often states that the reason they are interested in a purebred in rescue is because they have researched the breed and appreciate its qualities
and characteristics and want to help a dog in need. A discerning public seems to understand that
there is a difference between designer dogs and cross-breeds and purebred dogs in terms of temperament, structure, genetic health and other things that are of concern to pet owners.
What about those Labradoodles?
Labradoodles were first produced in Australia in 1989 through an experimental breeding
program sponsored by the Royal Guide Dog Association. The goal of this breeding experiment
was to produce a dog more suitable for disabled individuals with allergies than the typical Labrador
Retriever. The Association believed that by crossing the steady temperament of the Lab with the
Poodles that have never known the sadness of Rescue
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Standard Poodle, with its low shedding coat, a soluton for this small population of people would be
found. Upon analysis of the breeding program however, it was found that fewer than 35% of the
labradoodles produced were acceptable as guide dogs and an even lower percentage were found to
be “hypoallergenic.” The last labradoodle bred to attempt to become a guide dog was born in 1996
and the Association has no plans to continue the experiment. To this day, the Royal Guide Dog Association does not claim that labradoodles are hypoallergenic as is often claimed by their producers
in the U.S. (1)
Many an unscrupulous dog producer here in the U.S. (we do not grace those folks with the
term “breeder”) has tried and failed to improve upon various breeds by adding a bit of ‘poodle’ into
their breeding stock. These people produce labradoodles, goldendoodles, yorkie-poos, malti-poos,
cockapoos, schnoodles, the crosses are limitless...but the results are always the same; cross-breed
dogs, mutts, “Heinz57” dogs. The dogs are then sold to an unsuspecting public as so-called “designer dogs,” often at prices higher than what a reputable breeder of purebred dogs would ask for
their puppies. These dog producers tend to not do the due diligence that the pet owning public
should expect when purchasing a dog; they often instead use catchy phrases like “improved hybrid
vigor” and “hypoallergenic” in their marketing schemes in an attempt to mislead the public. Crossbreeding for hybrid vigor is very appropriate in agriculture and the production of beef cattle where
the goal is improving the world’s food stock. Cross-breeding dogs for profit seems perhaps not
quite as altruistic. (2)
Responsible breeders of purebred dogs do all the available genetic testing of the parent dogs
before any breeding takes place. The hope is that by testing their stock, a responsible breeder will
avoid passing genetic problems on in their puppies. In fact, many of the dog varieties used in the
poodle crosses share some of the same heritable genetic diseases such as Addison’s Disease, the skin
disorder Sebaceous Adenitis, epilepsy, hip dysplasia and cataracts. When there are no reliable tests
for some of the disorders, breeders spend untold hours pouring through pedigrees and searching databases for the lowest risk dogs to breed. In a letter to the Golden Retriever Club of America, one
goldendoodle producer proudly wrote that she had two years of research in her breeding stock. To
which the Golden Retriever Club replied that they could trace their entire breeding program back
140 years to the pairing of two individual dogs in the 1860’s and thus establishing the breed. (3)
Very sadly, and all too often, these designer mutts, produced for profit by humans who care
nothing for their existence beyond the time when the check clears, become disappointments to
their naive purchasers; the non-shedding labradoodle does in fact shed. The once darling cockapoo
puppy, now all grown up, snaps at the child in the house. The malti-poo has a coat that cannot be
maintained. The goldendoodle has bad hips. The yorkie-poo is epileptic. And on and on. And so,
these and many other dogs, for many reasons, are sent away every day to shelters all across the U.S.
Rescue
Webster defines rescue as “to free from confinement, danger or evil; to save, deliver or recover; to free from imminent danger by prompt or vigorous action; to bring back to a former state or
condition something that has been abandoned or debased.”
This is what the devoted people of Poodle Rescue do every day all over the U.S. They take in
the homeless, the helpless, the unkempt, the unclean, the broken spirited, the frightened, the young
and the old Poodle and they Rescue them in every sense of the word. Rescue volunteers clean and
bathe, clip and brush, feed and nourish both body and spirit and restore hope to many hundreds of
Poodles each year. And when there is no hope, when the little body or spirit is too broken to Rescue, the volunteers are there too in the Poodle’s last hours on earth, providing what comfort they
can.
Here are some Rescued Poodles’ stories in words and pictures.
Streeter is a charming young cream colored miniature Poodle.
In Summer 2008, he was found as a stray in central NJ by a very nice
family who took him in. They owned pit bulls and thought Streeter
might be happier in a home without such large dogs. It was hard for
them to give him to our rescue group, Watchung Mountain Poodle
Club Rescue, as Streeter is such a perfect dog in every way, even
housetrained. It was difficult for our volunteers to believe he was not
missed by a loving family somewhere as he is such a wonderful and
well-trained boy. He was twice scanned for a microchip which would
have allowed him to be re-united with his lost family but he had no
chip. We were sad to think of the family who could be missing him
every day, but he found a wonderful home with Joan and her mother,
Veronica, in East Brunswick, NJ. Together they provide everything
Streeter needs, with lots of TLC from Veronica who is retired and very
grateful for such a loving little companion.
Lucky and Buddy are two miniature Poodles that were adopted from Watchung Mountain
Poodle Club Rescue.
In 2003, the owners adopted Lucky, a two year old silver miniature Poodle, as a companion
for their elderly Lakeland terrier and it was a perfect match. After their terrier passed away, they
decided to add another Poodle, and so in 2008, Buddy came
to live with them. Buddy, a two year old cream miniature
Poodle, was given up by a family with young children who
decided they did not have time to take care of him.
Pat and Dee of Hightstown, NJ, the happy owners of
these two boys, participate in competitive sports with their
dogs. Lucky has several agility titles and currently is working
on an excellent title. Buddy currently is undergoing obedience training and possibly will compete in rally.
Boating in Maryland is one of the favorite pastimes
of Luella, Marlene and Chica, three Standard Poodles rescued by John and Imelda. They had lost a Standard to old
age that they had raised from a puppy and when they began
thinking about another dog, they decided to try to help a
Poodle in need. They found the Heart of America Poodle
Rescue over the Internet and drove west from Baltimore to
Missouri to see a pair of surrendered older female Standards. The two sisters were too frightened
to be adopted at that time, so rather than make the long drive back East without a dog, Heart of
America showed Imelda a young female Standard that had been picked up as a stray. Although thin
and dreadfully matted from being on the street for a long time, it was love at first sight. “Luella,”
as she was named, was adopted immediately. Two years later, it was time for another Standard and
Marlene, an owner-surrender, was located at a rescue in Louisville, Kentucky. Two years after that,
the family decided that they had room for one more Poodle and once again made the long drive out
from Maryland to Heart of America and brought Chica, another owner-surrender home. Imelda
says, “As much as puppies are cute, I doubt I’ll ever have another one. You could not buy these girls
from me for all the money in the world.”
In April 2008, Carolina Poodle Rescue (CPR) got a call from a shelter in Tennessee. Someone had left a young male Standard Poodle in the shelter’s outdoor drop box overnight. Could
Carolina take him? And so began the odyssey of Waldo. Twenty four hours after CPR agreed to
take him in, Waldo was diagnosed with parvovirus, a disease that usually kills puppies and often results in the euthanasia of affected dogs to prevent the spread of the disease. Having made the commitment to the dog, however, Carolina was undeterred. Not only did they take in the abandoned
Poodle, they nursed him through his illness and then by some quirk of fate or divine intervention,
soon found him a permanent loving home. Waldo’s adoptive owners, Phil and Sherry, say it best,
“this is love!” They believe that the efforts of Carolina Poodle Rescue “have given us Waldo’s life as
a gift.”
Waldo in TN
Waldo the day he left CPR
Waldo at home
Established in 1932, Poodle Club of America is one of the oldest breed clubs registered with
the AKC. Since its inception, Poodle Club of America has always rescued poodles through their
Affiliate clubs. To become an Affiliate Club and to remain an Affiliate club, PCA requires the
Club to have a Rescue Chairman. In addition, PCA has a National Chairman overseeing the all
the rescue groups. In 2006, PCA decided to make Rescue its own entity and so The Poodle Club
of America Rescue Foundation, Inc., a 501 (C)(3) corporation was established. Since that time, 17
new rescue groups have been added to the family of already established groups and more are being
added each month. We work by networking with all rescue groups to save each and every poodle
that we can. PCA Rescue works closely with shelters, Humane Societies and all-breed rescue groups
throughout the country.
For more information about adopting a purebred Poodle anywhere in the U.S., contact Sally
Poindexter, PCA Rescue Chair - [email protected] or see the Poodle Club of
America website - www.poodleclubofamerica.org . Click on the “Poodle Rescue” link to see pictures of
some of the hundreds of poodles, all varieties, all ages, looking for homes everywhere across the country.
Click on the U.S. map to find information on a Rescue near you. Poodles are waiting.
Respectfully submitted,
Cindy Crawley
Baltimore, MD
November 2008
References:
(1) Anne Rogers Clark. AKC Gazette. June 2006.
(2) Christine Scruggs, VMD. Poodle Variety. July 2005.
(3) The Board of Directors of the Golden Retriever Club of America. “Response on
Goldendoodles.” www.grca.org/allabout/goldendoodle_response
Photo credits for the collage:
1. Photograph courtesy of Parrishill Standard Poodles of Standard Poodle “Django,” Parrishill Ukulele Django
Hartland and Maguelone visiting from France. “Django is owned by Jessie Hartland.
2. Photograph courtesy of Parrishill Standard Poodles of Standard Poodle, “Tucker,” Parrishill Bright Day and
friends. Owner wishes to remain anonymous.
3. Photograph courtesy of Mia DiBenedetto of Standard Poodle “Ten,” Bibelot Tolka’s Hands Up and Jack Combs.
“Ten” is owned by Mia DiBenedetto and Jack Combs.
4. Photograph courtesy of Jennifer Pilkerton-Casteel of Standard Poodle “Primo,” Tudorose Primo Bravissimo,
UDX times 3! “Primo” is owned by Linda Rhodes.
5. Photograph courtesy of Judith Galgoczy of Standard Poodle, “Oliver,” Parrishill Oliver Rupert and Zoe Galgoczy.
“Oliver” is owned by the Galgoczy Family.
6. Photograph courtesy of Greg Smith, PPA, Garden Studio, Inc. of Standard Poodle “Tag,” AKC CH. Beauciel
Orion Dartagnan. “Tag” is owned by Dr. and Mrs. William Crawley.
7. Photograph courtesy of Cara Hai Standard Poodles of Standard Poodle “Deanna,” AKC CH. Cara Hai Deanna,
NAP, NJP, OAP. “Deanna” is owned by Caroline Hair.
8. Photograph courtesy of Darla Hook of Toy Poodle “Cash,” Dream Pickets Cashing In, RN, NJC, TG-N, CGC.
“Cash” is owned by Julie Wilson.
9. Photograph courtesy of Julie Wilson of Toy Poodle “Keegan,” Paradise Over The Top, CGC and Denny Wilson.
“Keegan” is owned by Katherine Wilson.
10. Photograph courtesy of Ron Pernicka of Standard Poodle “Reigner,” CT Tudorose Bold Reign VCDIII, RE, JH,
WCX, HTADsI and Carol Pernicka. “Reigner” is owned by Carol Pernicka.
11. Photograph courtesy of Wendy Spivak of Standard Poodle “Chloe,” Beauciel Cassiopia Blanche and Jerry Spivak. “Chloe” is owned by Dr. And Mrs. Jerry Spivak.
12. Photograph courtesy of Cara Hai Standard Poodles of Standard Poodle “Deanna,” AKC CH. Cara Hai Deanna,
NAP, NJP, OAP. “Deanna” is owned by Caroline Hair.
13. Photograph courtesy of Linda V. Rooker of Standard Poodle “Token,” Can CH. Kimelle Forever In Brown
Genes, CD and Kim Savor. “Token” is owned by Kim Savor.
14. Photograph courtesy of The Poodle Health Registry, an online database for genetic health issues in all varieties
of Poodles, of the late Susan Fleisher, Ellie and Standard Poodle “Cricket.”
15. Photograph courtesy of Rick Fleming of Miniature Poodle “T,” AKC CH. U-CD Ravendune Right On Target,
AM/Can CD, RE, MX, MXJ, NF. “T” is owned by Cathi Winkles.
16. Photograph courtesy of Linda Brady of Miniature Poodle “Q,” AKC CH. OTCH MACH 5 Ravendune Right
On Q, UDX, RE, NF, WC. “Q” is owned by Cathi Winkles.