
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 28, 1993                   TAG: 9303260071
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-22   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

LITTER CHARGE UNFAIR TO DOG BREEDERS

I was appalled by Jackie Collins' suggestion to charge $20 per animal per litter to help support animal shelters. People such as myself, who love to hunt with dogs and only breed as a means to replenish my hunting stock, rarely breed their animals. But when they do, they make sure their animals are in the best of health, no only at breeding time, but also year-round.

People such as myself have a considerable expense to keep their animals healthy, such as inoculations, the best feeds and housing facilities.

I recently bred my UKC registered 6 1/2-year-old Grand Nite Champion Treeing Walker female. This is only her second litter. I drove to Osceola, Mo., and bred her to one of the top reproducing dogs in the country.

A stud fee of $400 plus 17 hours of driving one way, food, gas and motel fees came to $697. When she has the pups, there will be deworming, shots, feed and care for them until eight weeks of age. Add a $20-per-pup fee and that escalates the cost of a litter of pups at 8 weeks of age to around $1,000. The serious hunter-breeder already has enough expense without adding more.

One way to combat unwanted animals is to strictly enforce [dog license laws] and pick up more strays, and do whatever necessary to get rid of these unwanted animals. Registered dogs and cats are rarely turned loose to roam and breed at will and cause this unwanted animal situation.\ Jeffrey McKinney\ Pembroke

by CNB