Press Release
For Immediate Release
November 26, 2007

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SUBMISSION OF URBAN ANIMAL MAGAZINE - PAGE 4

ANALYSING THE ISSUE AND COMING UP WITH AN EQUITABLE SOLUTION

Like any other trade, there are a variety of pet stores ranging from exemplary to woeful, from those that go over the top with care and consideration to those for whom pets are a pesky commodity to be turned over as rapidly as possible without regard to ethical standards of care and health. Fortunately, the latter are a very small minority of operators, but they should not be the reason that legitimate, caring, responsible and traditionally excellent pet shops should be punished by the proposed total ban on sales of mammals. We are appalled at the sort of stores that offer interest free payment periods on overpriced animals as though they were furniture or appliances rather than living beings. Often, these are the impulse-driven, front window displayed animals with spurious names and no papers.

We've also seen a minority of pet shop operators in this industry who grossly overprice animals of dubious parentage, poor health and bad condition, exhibit them in a way as to be sold as impulse items with shocking care and bad management policies. From cramped cage conditions, bad hygiene, poor nutrition, lack of care and stimulation or over stimulation, these are the types of pet stores that should be shut down immediately or have the right to sell live animals taken away from them.

There is a case for banning the sale of animals in those stores, but we believe, not all stores. The industry has lacked the momentum and strategy to sufficiently self-regulate in time before this legislation was proposed. The fight now will be between commercial interests and animal rights activists with the consumers and pets in the middle. I feel that our Parliament wants to balance the proper care of pets for sale with the rights of commercial operators who act in the appropriate manner to not be denied their traditional and rightful livelihood. And we believe there is a more moderate way that this be achieved than an outright ban-which would still have negative implications by driving certain parts of the illicit pet industry even further underground at the expense of legitimate, honest and caring pet retailers and breeders.

There is a lack of up-to-date, accurate statistics on the pet problem and far too much emotional hype to drive an extreme solution to what can be a manageable issue, progressively and effectively controlled through government regulation and industry co-operation.

More than a decade ago, I argued at Federal Government level in the Prices Surveillance Authority hearings the delicate issue of copyright versus price fixing in music sales. I used some analogies about the business-comparing musicians to plants, their songs to fruit and the exploitation of music similar to the commercial operations of the 'food chain' of this creative industry. It was an argument that made greater sense to the panel of economists, bureaucrats and politicians that had to wend through statistics and arguments in these lengthy hearings and in the end had a great effect on the outcome and legislation. I hope to offer something similar here and also draw a parallel to another industry that has faced similar challenges and regulation.

Here is our submission for your consideration. This has been given to Clover Moore's office and is also being sent to all Parliamentarians and interested parties including the PIAA, Dogs NSW, the RSPCA, Animal Welfare League and others.

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