Brown pedigree puppies snapped up for Year of Earth Dog

PETALING JAYA: Brown pedigree dogs are the pooches of choice as the Year of the Earth Dog approaches. Higher sales brown Labradors and Golden Retrievers are expected at pet shops.
Animal activists are urging the public to adopt the dogs for the right reasons from animal shelters instead of buying puppies from the pet shops.
"I believe there will be higher purchases of pedigree dogs because it will be the Year of the Earth Dog – a year signified by a brown dog in the Lunar calendar," Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better (MDDB) founder Wani Muthiah said.
"MDDB will not be giving out to those who feel are adopting merely due to the significance of the animal in the lunar calendar," she said when met at the organisation's adoption drive at Jaya One yesterday.
She said MDDB will try to ensure the person is capable of caring for the dog, including the ability to pay for veterinary care.
"We also give them the option to return the puppy to us," she said, adding there have been cases where adopters have returned dogs to them after a year for various reasons.
"There are those who said they're too busy (and) nothing to do with finances. These are just excuses.
"Adopting and caring for a dog is a huge commitment. Some people are just not willing to commit themselves to the responsibility.
"I hope the community will take care of the street animals in their neighbourhood. The situation has gotten out of hand – there are so many rescue groups and street animals. Some rescue the animals to earn a living from it," she added.
Meanwhile, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) inspector Kelvin Cheah said during the Year of the Rat where there were purchases of hamsters.
"We can't stop people from buying a specific dog. We've done our best by going through legislation such as the amendment of the Animal Welfare Act.
"But, we can still make a difference by educating adopters to be responsible," he said.
However, Paws Animal Welfare Society shelter manager Edward Lim said it is difficult to determine if there will be more purchase of pedigree canines due to the year's significance.
He urged those who wish to purchase should think twice because the dog that is bought may come from puppy mills.
Currently, SPCA has 200 animals under its care while PAWS has 500.