History
The humble dog was first domesticated around 15,000 years ago. The early role of the dog was to protect the camps of humans, to keep them clean and to hunt. They would eat food scraps and bring down larger prey. In Australia, the Aboriginal expression “three dog night” for a very cold night indicates that dogs provided warmth.

After World War II, the population of pet dogs grew, and has continued to grow since. In the UK, the dog population stands at eight million. In Ireland almost half of all households own at least one dog.

Loyal companions

It’s a cliché, but dogs are quite simply ‘man’s best friend’. They are very loyal, trustworthy, affectionate and loving animals. They can have a very positive effect on young children. They can provide comfort and companionship for the elderly. They also keep us healthier!

Pet owners are less likely to visit their GP than non-pet owners. Following heart surgery, patients who have a companion animal recover more quickly than those without animals. Companion animals save the government money in terms of public health!

Of the 7,211 secondary school attendees surveyed in Census At School 2011, over 4,300 had one or more dogs. Some 16 per cent of male students liked to cuddle their pets. One in three females liked to cuddle theirs.

Dogs play their part in our society as police dogs, search-and-rescue dogs, therapy dogs and herding dogs, as well as being our loyal and faithful companion. They are deserving of our care, love and loyalty and, while most people look after their dogs, there are many who don’t.

In most European countries, dogs are treated as part of the family and live in the family home. In Ireland, unfortunately, there is still a tendency to leave dogs in the garden for most of the time.  As dogs are pack animals, they see this exclusion as a sort of punishment.

Dogs can experience negative psychological effects of spending day after day alone which may manifest itself as bad or nuisance behaviour. In some cases the dog is dumped as the owner cannot cope with these negative consequences. Dogs are pack animals by nature and need companionship.

During 2011, many hard pressed small rescue groups around the country have reported an increase in the number dogs they have rescued. In some cases this increase is as much as 48%. Animal rescues say the amount of dogs being abandoned has never been so high. 

Stray dogs

In Ireland we also have a problem of overproduction of dogs. This leads to many dogs being killed in our pounds as there are not enough homes for them. More than 5,000 dogs were killed in Irish pounds in 2010. This figure is set to rise with an increase in the number of dogs coming into shelters and pounds.

Stray dogs are taken to the local dog pound. They have just five days to be re-claimed from the dog pound by their owner. After that the dog can be re-homed or destroyed. Each local authority must operate a dog pound. There is a lack of standardisation in how those pounds are run. Some dog pounds have destruction rates of 70% and higher.

See our Dog Pounds page
 
Changing our mindset

The Dog Breeding Establishments Act should go some way to protecting dogs – if enforced properly.  It may also reduce the number of pups being born.

We need to go further. We need to educate adults and children about caring for dogs and the benefits of worming, neutering and micro-chipping.