New legislation in Portugal

[All4Kyra]

After some research, I recently decided to decline my vet's sugestion to spay my dog.
I felt that not all was told to me and that there was some hidden risks I could not overlook, and that I personnally believe do not compensate the announced benefits.
Me and wife felt happy because spay was already scheduled and was avoided on time

I understand that some sure have a different opinion and that is ok for me.

Now what makes me feel really mad is that 2 days after I took this decision, the portuguese government decided that 7 dog breeds, called 'PP or potentially danger breeds' do not deserve to live and therefore will be banished from our country.
Not much has been said about this and the community is still shocked.
What has been said is that this new law will be signed within 2 weeks and no longer than 2 months later all PP dogs must be spayed/neutered and breeding and importing will be forbidden. Non confirmed rumours say breeders will be able to get a special permit, not sure what the requirements will be and that pure breed registered dogs may avoid spaying/neutering but are forbidden from breeding.

The 7 breeds are Rottweiler, Pit bull, Brazilian Mastiff, Dogo argentino, American Staffordshire terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier and Toza inu

All this 7 breeds already had a 'special treatment' as law already required owners to have a clean criminal record, a special PP dog insurance, a special registration and dogs could not leave home without a no longer than 1m leashe and a head collar, weared at all times.

This coming week there should be more news about this.

[Buggy]

Where in Portugal are you ?? I go to the island of Terceira every year and have been seeing more and more Rottweilers there for property protection(the island isn't what it was 10 or 20 years ago)
And Oh My Gosh - the Dogo Argentino ---- I have had this breed and it is one of the most stable, loving, great family dogs I have ever had the honor of having. HIGH prey drive - but that is their purpose in life - to hunt. This is just crazy. Unfortunately like many breeds the Dogo ends up in the hands of people who use them for stupid/bad things.
If you spay her can you keep her ??
I wish you luck and please keep us posted on what is going on there.

[All4Kyra]

I'm in the Lisbon area.
Do you sail to Terceira?

Around here, Rottweilers is one of the top breed presented for registration, after labrador and golden retrievers and geman shepperds, no wonder you see many :)

At this moment we only have bits of information, acoording to the media owners may always keep the dogs but have to make a compulsive spaying/neutering.
the only thing they take form you is the money from your pockets.
Some say there will be an exception for pure breed, LOP registered dogs.
Not sure what the requirements will be but thousands of dogs are not LOP registered.
I don't know the US translation for LOP, that is a register made at the portuguese kennel club only for pure breeds, different from the mandatory local register.

[Buggy]

I grew up on the island, and in the last few years have been able to get back because my dogs have all passed away. I wouldn't travel if I couldn't take my dogs! I haven't sailed yet but am looking forward this year to some whale cruises. I also see a lot of the Cao do Sao Miguel on Terceira - they seem like good protectors tho their eyes seem to go right through you !! I love Lisbon ! Used to stay at the Hotel Tivoli in downtown Lisbon when I was too young to enjoy the history and beauty of the city !
Keep us posted on the outcome there and I hope everything works out for all the Rottie owners there.

[makjamz]

Thanks to the input - It is all good now = so I heard.

[All4Kyra]

Originally Posted by makjamz

It is all good now = so I heard.

????
I don't understand

[makjamz]

I received this by email yesterday.

<<March 18, 2008

Dear Rottweiler Friends,

At this moment? we obtained the promised that the Portuguese Government will apply an exception to the law, leaving out? all the Rottweilers duly registered in the Kennel Club.

As soon as we have the official decision or other information we will inform
all of you.

Thank you one more time for all your support.

Best regards,
Hugo Ramos


March 21, 2008

Dear members of the IFR and friend of our breed,

In first place I would like, on behalf of the Rottweiler Club of Portugal and all lovers of our breed, to thank all the support received, in such an important moment for the Rottweiler in Portugal.

Most of thousands messages received by us, with relevant information, were used to reply with reliable and constructive arguments, objecting the radical measures that our government intends to implement.

Working together with the Portuguese Kennel Club, we achieved an understanding that for now those measures will not be applied to the dogs entered in the Portuguese Kennel Club. We are therefore working in a proposal that regulates the control of all dogs, independently of breed or "type", to prevent such "accidents", because we believe that if nothing is done and in the event of any accident even with a dog with no pedigree, the next step will be ending all the Rottweilers.

We are therefore working for the development of a proposal for control of all dogs of the breed and of their own creation to prevent such accidents.

Once again we apologize for not respond individually to all messages that we have reached, but as you must understand these last few days have been very deteriorating and filled with initiatives of pressure on our government to make preventive measures and not radical measures as they wanted apply.

We believe that we are in the right way to resolve this problem, and working together, our strengths combined, we will make our government realise that other alternatives are a better option than the intended current course of extermination of breed(s).

We want to believe that this battle is won, but we still lack win the rest of the war.

We will send information when there are major news.

Please send this message for all your contacts so that all those that have sent us they support can know how is the situation in Portugal.

Thank you to all,
Hugo Ramos >>

[All4Kyra]

Thanks for the input.
I was not aware of that announcement, as the announcement on their webpage is not quite the same.

I would not call it exactly good news.
As you can read, rumours that clubs were making a deal with government are somewhat true.
In exchange of keeping their dogs out of this new law, they somewhat seem to agree that all other dogs be neutered/spayed.
This is a risky move, not only because it opens a bad precedent, but mostly because, as it happens in US, BSL is no solution for this problems, and the next alleged attack may be done by a rottweiler, as they also recognize.

Also they seem to forget that breeders do not exctly follow the rules and a lot more than few pure breed rottweilers are not registered at the kennel club, thus under this new law, only because breeders did not want to register, maybe because the breed ended out of their breeding planning.
Some owners are not aware that pure breeds and registered pure breed are not quite the same.

This is the 2nd wave of BSL in our country.
I'm still not convinced that this clubs alone are the solution. as they were not before.
I can also see a potential monopoly/cartel risk here, if some measures are not taken.

A more honest approach would be to stand against this new law. period.
No concessions to spaying/neutering and banning of breeding or importing. period.
And then start working from there.

[KarenSasha]

All I can say is "PUNISH THE DEED NOT THE BREED"
That is disturbing and not the only place it is happening.
They are trying to ban Rotts And Pitbulls in Mass also. I would move
People are so uneducated and unfortunately that will never change.

[Rottgoris]

Originally Posted by All4Kyra

Thanks for the input.
I was not aware of that announcement, as the announcement on their webpage is not quite the same.

I would not call it exactly good news.
As you can read, rumours that clubs were making a deal with government are somewhat true.
In exchange of keeping their dogs out of this new law, they somewhat seem to agree that all other dogs be neutered/spayed.
This is a risky move, not only because it opens a bad precedent, but mostly because, as it happens in US, BSL is no solution for this problems, and the next alleged attack may be done by a rottweiler, as they also recognize.

Also they seem to forget that breeders do not exctly follow the rules and a lot more than few pure breed rottweilers are not registered at the kennel club, thus under this new law, only because breeders did not want to register, maybe because the breed ended out of their breeding planning.
Some owners are not aware that pure breeds and registered pure breed are not quite the same.

This is the 2nd wave of BSL in our country.
I'm still not convinced that this clubs alone are the solution. as they were not before.
I can also see a potential monopoly/cartel risk here, if some measures are not taken.

A more honest approach would be to stand against this new law. period.
No concessions to spaying/neutering and banning of breeding or importing. period.
And then start working from there.

Hello All4Kyra,

To be possible for you to talk with real information you would have to ask directly to the involved people.

And you know how to do it....

Please be impartial and true in the information that you want to pass.