Free Membership to the Pack

Calling all responsible pet owners that want more access to beaches, parks, transport and accommodation. You can now join Barking Mad for FREE by completing our survey. (Sept08 - This special offer has now closed, check here as we have special offers from time-to-time). We have an active campaign for pets on public transport - the same as in London. We need 10,000 signed up members to get this on the radar, so tell your friends and let's get some positive change now.

All Welcome Including Dogs & Tired Walkers

It may come as no surprise that a large percentage of Barking Mad Members have lived or travelled overseas where socialised dogs accompany their owners (AND THEIR CHILDREN) to all manner of places. It may also be concluded, though not yet proven, that those Australians who think dogs are vermin may not be so well travelled.....

We love this photo sent to us by a member who comments:

"Apart from the incredible culture and beauty of Florence we were also struck by this phenomenon -the popularity of dogs and how they are welcomed in the main squares, and would you believe in a number of smart boutiques and stores. In was quite wonderful to be greeted each day in the breakfast room by the resident dog Poldo. The streets are not covered with dog pooh which one therefore assumes this freedom to dogs and their owners must bring about mutual respect .

Britain has always been a nation of dog lovers and certainly this has not changed, with so many country pubs and areas welcoming man and his best friend. We were missing our 2 mini schnauzers very much, but we were compensated by many a canine friend to cuddle and talk to. There was a greater percentage of holiday accommodation that readily accepted dogs, quite unlike in Australia.

One of our best memories was a visit to a delightful restaurant in Norfolk which overlooked the marshes of the Wash. After lunch we joined the many families and their dogs on a delightful walk, truly doggy heaven and then enjoyed tea on the terrace where the same hospitality was extended to the children, their parents and their beautiful dogs.

We love living in Sydney having left UK nearly 5 years ago to retire here, but we are always amazed at the bureaucracy surrounding dog owners and the tension that exists in pursuing less restrictive laws for dogs and their owners, certainly unheard of in Europe."

Our comment: WE KNOW. THAT'S WHY WE ARE BARKING MAD.

Cats that look like Hitler

We couldn't resist linking to the catsthatlooklikehitler website. Why? Because they can laugh at themselves. Also, the debate from viewers is mighty! It is as polarised as that on Hensen and Hanson and these are just innocent cats!

No Sh*t - Campaign for Cleaner Shoes

What is it about dog poo that gets up peoples noses so much? That's it! It STINKS. When our local council doesn't enforce the poo laws, they make us, the responsible pet owners out to be a public enemy. Yet, we pay rates for litter pick-up without fining those people who dump there cigarette butts and drink bottles... Read today's media on 'Stubbing Out the Mess' and add your comments.

Join our Campaign for Cleaner Shoes on Shitonmyshoe.com.au and Register your support.

Fox Hound

When in too deep - look straight ahead and say nothing!

Putting Good Dogs Down

BORN THE WRONG BREED: Today we mourn the loss of two vibrant, healthy, desexed, 3 year old dogs who were put down by their loving, and experienced Doberman owner. Here is a quote from one family who knew these dogs:

"It is a sad old world when dog lovers of such obvious passion are placed in such an impossible position. I hope the gutless council members involved in this travesty of justice choke on their tea and scones. And to think we by our ambivalence and lack of involvement in local government affairs are passively supporting these people.

And for what ?

Well there is always vibrant discussion and obstruction when some poor resident submits a development application for a driveway 2 inches wider than regulation. They do a song and dance to protect their precious regulations. Well this time it was more important than the width of a driveway.

Tonight children who were fortunate enough know your dogs are crying themselves to sleep. And when they ask why you had to put them to sleep, perhaps our elected officials can fill in the blanks because I can't. I attempted the dangerous dog line only to be corrected by my daughter bringing the wisdom that her five years have given her.

No Dad, that cannot be because the dogs are not dangerous. Of course she is right."

Barking Mad comments: This post is as much of a warning as it is a memorial to these two dogs and their courageous owners. The owners, who provided 5 fenced acres for their pets and who nearly never left the dogs alone, fought a protracted battle against one dangerous dog accusation, an 'incident' with conflicting reports and a neighbour who strongly believed that dobermans should not be kept as pets. The matter did not go before the court. The dog was not found guilty of being dangerous and strong evidence from professional dog trainers favoured this finding if it had gone to court. So why give up after 6 months? They were not going to win. Rhetoric wins over fact, belief wins over science and it's politically easier to remove a perceived threat than to look at cause and effect . "No community minded, responsible citizens should ever have to go through what my wife and I have had to endure; almost 6 months of gut wrenching stress for the benefit of absolutely no one."

The dangerous dog declaration in NSW can happen to anyone and any dog that is ever outside of it's property. When my dog lunged at another dog who also lunged at her while both owners were going opposite directions on a pedestrian crossing and both dogs were on leads is enough to declare both dogs dangerous if someone takes offense to this doggie behaviour. What's wrong with the provisions of the current Act:

• The provisions came in as a political reaction.
• A dangerous dog declaration can be made on a council officer's own initiative or on the written application of any other person (YES – ANY PERSON).
• The owner of the dog is subject to penalty before evidence or trial - guilty before proven.
• Council will favour matters going to a court so they wash their hands of any incidents.
• On the positive, some Councils now realise the extensive financial burden of these provisions and are reviewing their enforcement procedures with a view of more fairness to the dog and owner.

I myself have witnessed 'breedist' behaviour from people who are conditioned to be frightened of big dogs, shepherds and dobermans. We don't know all the facts in this case, and never will because it didn't go to court. Because of that, I can make no other comments other than to point out the guilty before innocent application of the 'dangerous' provision of the current law. I will also say that I have received numerous calls from dog trainers who are very fed up with slap happy rangers who declare dogs dangerous as a result of any complaint. I've also received calls from owners who have voluntarily put their dog down (mostly rescue dogs) when they were not able to obtain a required level of trust of the dogs' behaviour. I was surprised at a comment from someone working in an off-leash dog area for several years: "I would say that Maltese Terriers are responsible for half of the dog aggression incidents I have seen".

We try to do the best with our dogs and meet societys' ever increasing standard of acceptable dog behaviour. No longer will we tolerate dog coming back from a day out playing with a bite out of its ear. But with ever increasing restrictions on where we can take pooch, and households with fewer people, it can be difficult to socialise a dog to the level required.

Paws Action Update

Congratulations are due to our members Cat Rescue & Death Row Pets for their successful rally at NSW Parliament House. Read their blog here.

Parliament House NSW - Wednesday

Hi everyone, I'm out of hospital and working one or two days a week for the remainder of the month of May. Thank you members for your terrific support, cards and messages during these last few difficult weeks.

Tomorrow many Barking Members will be joining Paws for Action at NSW Parliament House. Pema and I will be there as well and are being accommodated at a wonderful Sydney Hotel. (Think Paris and her dog. Do you think she would put up with the 'no pets' signs so prolific in some parts of Australia?)

On a serious note, we love to rescue pets and give them a second chance. It can be rewarding and satisfying (Pema is a rescue). As so many animals lovers know, or quickly learn when they volunteer to rescue, is that Australia has a shocking record of pet euthanasia. We are really bad, which seems inconsistent with the money we lavish on our pets, but it is true.

The most interesting thing about the 'Animals Bill' is the amount of mis-information being touted about it; a time wasting tactic that diverts attention from the real issue. Pet owner education that includes reducing impulse pet purchases as well as integrating pets into our communities (housing, transport, recreation) will reduce the pet surrender rate.

• The UK has not had dogs and cats sold in pet shops for years. They still have high pet ownership and a lower surrender rate than we do. Pets are also welcome on public transport and in pubs, and frequently live a happy life in a unit or with an owner who rents.

But we don't like 'facts', they don't make good media or create shock. Example: North Sydney has had the majority of parks off-leash for ten years, yet that hardly figured in the vigorous and often vicious and personal debate about the City of Sydney's (successful) plan to expand their off-leash parks. Please come to Parliament House between 11.30am and 2pm if you are able.

Food + Bones = Community

A room full of support and months of lobbying has paid-off for Cafe Bones. post incomplete

Police and CHARGE against Barking Mad

Maybe they read the paper the day after their arrest of me in February and found out, once again, Barking Mad did our legal research better. Can't say much more as I am still in hospital and now I have plaintiff lawyers chasing ME and you can read into that what you wish. Here is an excerpt of the email from the NSW Police; we love their use of the softer word 'allegation' when in fact it was a charge - by three arresting officers.

Dear Ms Zey,

I wish to advise you that the prosecution will seek to withdraw the allegation of 'Resist Police in the Execution of Duty' which is currently listed for mention before the Burwood Local Court. (name), Senior Sergeant, Burwood Area Prosecution Co-ordinator

Barking Mad is still dealing with 'dog on railway property' from Central Station Sydney and once again, can't say much. But have a laugh: we think LEVEL CROSSINGS are railway property, and if they are, you can't cross them with your dog or that dog would be 'on railway property' and get a $100 fine. Can anyone confirm this for me? No word from RailCorp as yet. And what if you cross those tracks on foot and/or in a vehicle (or train!).

I'm heading into hospital so Barking Mad will be slowing down for the next few weeks. Check contact us for urgent matters and please lend your support to the Clontarf Sandy Bay campaign near Manly.

One of my heath concerns is related to being brutally arrested on Victoria Road when travelling legally with my dog; and that is why I've posted this wonderful guide written by the EDO NSW. I just wish the NSW Police would know how different our rights are before being arrested than to after being arrested. Their knowledge of this and the DDA (login for this link) would have prevented any issue on this bus trip. (Barking Mad would also like to stress the co-dependence of rights and responsibilities. Lastly, please check-out the updated events and work for us pages.

Summit Dog

We attended the 2020 local summit in the most marginal seat in the country today. It was NOT a talk-fest. It was a wonderful to be with people who were engaged in their community and had practical solutions to ongoing issues - such as our 'growing' economy that is dependent on the cheap labour overseas, or the selling of public assets.

Our contribution was to the summit topic 'health' where I introduced Pema as a 24 x 7 health care worker. She will work for ten years or more, never needing a pay rise and without complaint. No, she can't change a nappy, but brings joy, i.e. respite, to both staff and clients at hospitals and in aged care. No one in health care disagreed. Why then is every obstacle put in front of people and agencies who want to expand the therapeutic experience by getting more dogs working with the ill?

My Dog Isn't Invisible....

. . .but my disability is. Join Barking Mad for events around the country to raise awareness and celebrate the value of dogs to people with disabilities. In this event, now in our second year, we aim to demonstrate how highly trained (and often self-trained) dogs assist people with invisible disabilities. Event date 3rd December, events announced in August.

IT COULD BE YOU! Grief, despair, stress, change - it can get to us and stop us from functioning fully in life. It could be temporary, long-term or even permanent. If you don't get on top of it after it gets on top of you, you can become a 'burden' on our health care system. If your dog assists you to maintain a healthy life, to stay alive, to participate in society, then you and doggie may be protected from discrimination by the Disability Discrimination Act.

IT COULD BE YOUR MUM. Barking Mad is often told about a women in her senior years who is having difficultly coping with grief after the death of a life-partner. (As boomers, these 60 year partnerships leave us in awe). We then hear of how their partner's dog comforts them. This may sound like a difficult but manageable situation, but what about when Mum moves into a unit and the neighbour decides that 'dogs don't belong in units' and lets Mum know. Barking Mad gets these stories nearly every week. Dog gets surrendered because Mum can't deal with conflict from her new neighbour. Lots of doggie rescue organisaitons come in to help the dog, but who now assists Mum with getting through her grief? Sure, she may cope; but she may start to withdraw and lose her will to live as she has now lost her reason to go out for a walk every day.

I really want to stress how often Barking Mad hears these stories. If we are hearing so many, how many aren't we hearing? We are an ageing population. The average age of people in care is 70, and the average age of their carers in 50 (source Legacy employee). In ten years, we will have a major crisis. If a dog assists a person to keep their independence longer, it is essentially a HEALTH CARE WORKER. Full stop. It will work 24/7 for ten years without complaint and never ask for a pay rise.

Please - if you can organise an event in your area, perhaps if you have a dog that visits health care facilities, or if you have had a 'my dog saved my life' experience, contact us. We will be registering events mid-year. We are quietly excited about some health care agencies who 'love' our campaign in this area and hope we can announce sponsors or partnerships with these organisations soon.

Dogs: Fight or Flight?

It's often said that the best way to introduce one dog to another is in the same situation, i.e. both on a lead, or both on a lead. I've heard it explained that this because of their 'fight or flight' animal nature, and on a lead, 50% of their choice is taken away. Don't panic professional dog trainers - Barking Mad is not and does not profess to be dog trainers; I'm just repeating what I've heard and trying to make a joke!

Because FLIGHT now has turned into travel on Qantas for Kane (above) and a very joyful experience for the flight attendants. Kane was a star, completely settled. It was reported that two other assistance dogs last week would not settle for the entire flight. Good on you Kane and good on his guardian for putting up with the daily discrimination for having a self-trained assistance animal.

Paws Fly Qantas

As I write, one of our members is flying from Sydney to Brisbane with his previously 'unidentified' assistance dog. This dog enables our member to travel without the need for a human companion and provides him with Independence. Nope - not a guide dog, hearing dog or other dog trained by an organisation at the cost of $20,000, but a dog trained by his owner and recognised by the Disability Discrimination Act but not many State governments and pitifully few Local Governments. Qantas even provided doggie with an absorbent mat in case of a doggie accident. It won't happen as dog has flown before and is trained like most assistance dogs to toilet on command, but it is a gesture of kindness we appreciate.

Parliament Animals - NSW

Pema at NSW Parliament HousePema at NSW Parliament House Roof Garden with the children of one of our MPs. Another view of the NSW Parliament Roof Garden - no doubt a butt more tolerated than the (shock-horror) incident of dog poo - which is highly unlikely. OK, the question is - why do we tolerate this litter but not the occasional dog poo. To take it further, why can ducks, seagulls etc poo on our streets without a public outcry?
_______________________________________________

Barking Mad Equity for Pet Owners is now a registered lobby group in NSW. They won't miss us as we show up with dogs! Today was our first day in Parliament and we will be there most of next week. Free doggie travel bag to the member who chooses to sponsor our $220 lobby pass! Email Eedra.

barkingmad.org.au - our new home

We've lost the dash - does that mean we are no longer a dash mad, or does that mean our symbolic 'dog lead' dash was obtuse? Probably both, but dot org is a good place for an organisation so here we are!

A members journey...on public transport with Mojo

For a multitude of mishaps and reasons member M.B. had to travel from Sydney to Newcastle by train instead of driving on a weekend. Here is her story: All was well with my killer miniature poodle until guard 4904 walked through the train approaching Newcastle. It was obvious 4904 was having a VERY bad day. His conversation with me was extremely heated and volatile and he threatened to throw myself and killer Mojo off the train, (which did send me into a panic as I didn't have the resources for a cab AND I had a considerable amount of luggage).

His attitude was sufficiently hostile and loud that on his departure other passengers came to offer support. He paid me a further visit to reinforce the ruling (and further distress everyone in carriage) and at Fassifern he approached the carriage with the Station person in tow. The train was held for almost 10 minutes for my dog who had slept on my lap or on the floor for almost the entire journey. With a 'suitable' amount of huff and bluster 4904 finally announced that I would be permitted to continue to Broadmeadow but that the police would be waiting for me.

(Must admit to a certain amount of glee when passengers behind me laughed out loud at that stage). Got to Broadmeadow and was so thankful that the police had decided they had better things to do with their day and failed to turn up for our 'scheduled' rendezvous! Although I must admit I was keen to see Mojo's 'mug' shot! One of the passengers, who had been particularly supportive, was rather delighted to see the look on the guards face when we walked off the platform as free as birds! Hope none of you have had a day like mine. Regards Member M. G.

Clontarf dog swimming

This tidal area has been an 'informal' dog swimming area for the past 50 years. Manly Council want to make it 'legal'. Although we doubt their jurisdiction to do so (and are in court over such at a matter a present), it is a recommendation we support. A designated off-lead dog area lets the public know that dogs have priority and makes sure adequate rubbish bins are provided.

HOWEVER - no one likes change, and even this positive action has raised the hackles of a few residents who have lived with status-quo for years and never before had a problem - until now.

We're working with the local dog owner's group and will be campaigning at 'Sandy Bay' this Saturday between 10am and 2pm for sure with a possible assembly the following weekend. Join this campaign. Watch video - go to Telegraph TV and scroll to dog-of-war.

Random notes on tactics....

“As with other social justice movements, activists are seeking to push the existing boundaries and achieve law reform through a range of strategies, including lobbying for legislative change; utilising targeted and test-case litigation; undertaking community and professional education campaigns; and harnessing the power of consumers in the marketplace." Australian Law Reform Commission 3-March 08

"Any fool can make a rule, and any fool will mind it." Henry David Thoreau

Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves. Henry David Thoreau

Click here for my personal note on tactics

"I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good. No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau. As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest. Martin Luther King

While Walden can be applied to almost anyone's life, "Civil Disobedience" is like a venerated architectural landmark: it is preserved and admired, and sometimes visited, but for most of us there are not many occasions when it can actually be used. Still, although seldom mentioned without references to Gandhi and King, "Civil Disobedience" has more history than many suspect. In the 1940's it was read by the Danish resistance, in the 1950's it was cherished by people who opposed McCarthyism, in the 1960's it was influential in the struggle against South African apartheid, and in the 1970's it was discovered by a new generation of anti-war activists. The lesson learned from all this experience is that Thoreau's ideas really do work, just as he imagined they would.