Editorial:

FIRST, I want to wish everyone - fur people as well as skin people - a very happy Christmas season and a 2006 full of health, happiness, wealth and achievement.

Unfortunately these wishes must come with a warning - this particular warning applies to the North Island of New Zealand but could apply just as well anywhere else.

Dog thieves are again on the prowl, and this time they are particularly brazen. They are posing as council dog control officers and are "impounding" dogs. But none of the dogs ever make it back to the city pound - they are whisked up to Auckland to become fighting dogs or 'bait' for starved fighting dogs.

It has been reported that the thieves travel in a white van that may even have council markings. If so-called council dog control officers visit you and want your dog, do NOT give your dog to them unless they have council identity cards and are dressed in council uniform and are happy to wait (OUTSIDE your closed door with your dog on the INSIDE with you) until you phone the council and confirm that the named officers (and describe them to be extra sure) are authorised and on their way to pick up your dog. Some people, it seems, have been so intimidated by authority that they have handed their dogs over to these scumbags without even asking what their dog was being picked up for, and when they went to claim their dog back from the council have been told the council never picked up their dog and knows nothing about it.

And this is not the only way the scum have been 'shopping'. One woman left her dog in her car at the supermarket for only a few minutes, and when she went back to her car the window had been smashed in and her beloved little white terrier grabbed. The future of such stolen small varieties is to be torn to pieces by starved fighting dogs. Please everyone be careful.

So what do you do if you suspect someone hanging around homes with dogs or if someone comes in to try and get you to hand over your dog? First, if there is someone else in the house with you, secure your dog safely - lock it in a room like the toilet or bathroom (in case they attempt a smash, grab and run) and get the other person (or even better, persons) in the house to look for a white van parked close-by and let all its tyres down; open the van door and let any other dogs out; and take down the car registration number ... while you talk to the suspects about why they want to take your dog. Then, when that job is accomplished phone the police and tell them you saw a shotgun on the seat of the van - always guaranteed to get a reaction that may not happen if you merely claimed an "attempted theft of your dog". But of course, always stick to your story - you DID see a shotgun!

Make no mistake, these morons must be stopped. If there is anyone out there who knows anything about the Auckland dog fighting scene (or in any other area at all - Hamilton has been hit by the thieves), please give the information not only to the police but to as many animal rights groups as possible. Obviously suburbs classed as 'poor' would be good places to begin - dog fighting is an activity of the lowest of society's classes, who keep their interest going by theft and deception. Why raise your own dog when you can steal someone else's?

And on another warning note, it has been observed that there are still breeders in this country willing to sell their dogs and pups to people in countries like China, Korea, Indonesia and the Philippines. As recently as August some Labrador pups went to China. Either the breeders who sell their animals to people in such countries are the thickest idiots imaginable, or they do not care what happens to their dogs after the money is received. Either way, such people should not be allowed to breed dogs! They should be made to sit down and watch films smuggled out of these countries about the dog meat markets and the dogs being clubbed to death or blow-torched or skinned alive. That is in China and Korea - in the Philippines they have tins jammed over their muzzles so they can not bite or scream and their front legs pulled up and tied over their backs for easy handling in the markets.

It may be that breeders have been approached by an 'agent' and told that any dogs sold through the said agent will have a wonderful home with a breeder who shows his dogs and does not eat dog meat. But such people have expertise in telling breeders what they want to hear and will then go on to sell the dogs to the highest bidder. And that could be someone planning a banquet or wanting breeding dogs for the meat and skin markets! Please breeders wake up and get those dollar signs out of your eyes.

Well, I know warnings such as this are not what one wants to think about over Christmas, but please everyone take special care to look after your dogs over the holiday season when dog fighting is likely to be at a peak. Never leave your dog in any place accessible to thieves, unattended. With just a little more care we will all have a happy and uneventful holiday season. - Elezabeth