March 11th, 2010 by joeinglis
It’s been all go this last week, with a last minute film on The One Show on Tuesday all about the proposed new dangerous dogs regulations hot on the heals of my puppy farm film last week. This film really was very much last minute – I got a call from the reseacher at 9am and by 11.30 I was down in London talking to the director and planning how we were going to shoot the film and have it finished and edited ready for transmission in under 8 hours!
A
fter planning the script for my pieces to camera, we headed out to find some dog owners to interview in a local park. However, as soon as we got the camera out and started talking to people we found ourselves in trouble – a burly policeman asked us what we were doing and before we knew what had happened our researcher had been cautioned for trespass and the council were demanding an extortionate fee to allow us to film in the park! This seemed utterly ridiculous as we were filming a public-interest film for the BBC rather than a commercial, but the police and council authorities were adamant that we needed the correct permits – and that meant paying the fees. In the end we sorted things out (and our researcher was allowed to go!) and got on with the filming, but the bureaucracy had cost us precious time and we were rushed around the park chasing down unsuspecting dog owners until we had enough interviews to make the film.
After recording my pieces, we raced back to the One Show offices and the director started to edit the film while I started to prepare for my appearance on the live show. By now it was after 5pm and we had just under 2 hours to finish the film and be ready for transmission! In the end, as you may well have seen, it all went well and the film looked good – but it certainly was a stressful day to say the least!
As for the subject of the film, as I said on the show after the film, I welcome any new legislation that helps control dangerous dogs – provided it doesn’t overly restrict normal everyday dog owners. I think compulsory microchips and insurance can only be a good thing, but I doubt whether it will really solve the problem. And on the subject of banned breeds, I really do feel that there’s no place for fighting breeds such as the Pit Bull in our society – there are plenty of other much better adjusted breeds out there, including the Staffordshire Bull Terrier which I think is a cracking breed.
Let me know if you have any comments on what you saw…
And you can watch again at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00rd3gh/The_One_Show_09_03_2010/
Tags: dangerous dogs, The One Show
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March 8th, 2010 by joeinglis
As you may well have seen, I was on The One Show last week presenting a film about the problem of puppy farms. It was a fascinating – a very disturbing – film to make, and after chatting to Mrs Chennells who appeared in the film with her puppy which had come from a suspected puppy farm I was really shocked by just how callous and unscrupulous some breeders can be. In her case when she arrived at the house to look at the puppy after having seen an online advert she found the place so unpleasant that she tried to turn around and leave – but before she could, the puppy was thrust through her car window and before she knew what had happened she found herself buying the puppy simply to save it from staying in that environment a moment longer.
This is one of the most underhand ways in which puppies from puppy farms are sold – using emotional blackmail to take advantage of decent people’s shock when confronted with a puppy that is obviously suffering or being kept in poor conditions. Not giving in to this kind of planned emotional blackmail is one way of fighting back against the puppy farmers, but there are also some other key tips to remember when looking for a new puppy:
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- Always see a puppy with its mother in the place where it was bred. If the breeder can’t show you the mother, be suspicious. Ideally see the father too.
- Check vaccination details carefully. Vaccination cards are easy to fake – if the vet’s contact details are not visible or have an address from outside of the UK, the vaccination card may be a fake.
- Bear in mind that pedigree certificates are never a guarantee for the condition of your puppy and may not even mean you are being sold a pure-bred puppy.
- Never buy a puppy just because you feel sorry for it.
- The cost of care, vet bills and pet insurance could total more than £10,000 over a dog’s life!
- A dog needs at least 1-2hrs of exercise and mental stimulation everyday. Do you have the time?
- Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 a pet owner has a legal duty to ensure the welfare of his animal(s).
If you missed the film – and also the cute Staffie puppies on the show afterwards – can can still catch it on the i-player this week at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00r5zzl/The_One_Show_04_03_2010/
Tags: puppy farms, The One Show
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March 8th, 2010 by joeinglis
As you’ll know if you read my blog last year, I went out to Malawi in Africa as part of my role as patron of the LSPCA – the Malawian equivalent of the RSPCA. As it turns out I wasn’t the only TV vet to visit, and you can see Luke Gamble on The Worldwide Vet on Sky 1 this Sunday when he visited the LSPCA and looked at the work they do out there. You can find out more at www.lilongwespca.org, and you can also help support the charity with much needed funds by donating at www.justgiving.com/lspcamalawi.
Tags: charity, LSPCA, Malawi, Sky 1
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March 3rd, 2010 by joeinglis
I’ve always been a great supporter of pet insurance as it helps ensure that pets get the very best care if they are injured or ill, and so I am really pleased to announce that Pets’ Kitchen are teaming up with leading insurance company MORE TH>N to offer an amazing discount on pet insurance to our customers.
Because as a vet I believe that feeding a high quality natural diet keeps pets healthier – and therefore less likely to require veterinary treatment – MORE TH>N are able to offer 20% off the cost of pet insurance for anyone whose pets are fed on our natural Joe & Jack’s or Joe & Jill’s foods! I think this is an amazing offer and reflects the growing recognition of the importance of a healthy diet in keeping our pets healthy.
To take advantage of this offer, simply call MORE TH>N on 0800 300 885 and quote the code PETSKIT when you insure your pets.
(Please note this offer is only available for pets fed regularly on Joe & Jack’s or Joe & Jill’s food, and you will be required to quote details from the most recent packaging in order to claim your discount.)
Tags: MORE TH>N, pet insurance, Special offer
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March 1st, 2010 by joeinglis
I’ve just signed up a deal to work with MORE TH>N pet insurance, which is very exciting – and it’s not just me whose been getting excited – Jack has also been getting into the swing of things on our recent trip out to London...
The trip was to a photo studio in London so MORE TH>N could get some photos of me for their website – and they’d asked if Jack could come along too. The day started bright and early as I took Jack for a walk in the crisp pre-dawn air before getting in the car and heading off to the station to catch the early train down to London. I was a little nervous about how Jack would cope with all the noise and busy people at the station but he was absolutely fine and instead of being stressed he spent his time charming the commuters and getting his back scratched! The early morning travellers seemed fascinated by seeing a dog on their train and it was strange how Jack’s presence seemed to make the whole experience of being on the train much more relaxed and friendly – rather than sitting silently ignoring each other, people were engaging with me and Jack and each other far more than usual and by the time we got to Paddington there was quite a sense of community on the train!
At Paddington we were met by a woman from one of the agencies organising the shoot and a car took us across town to Shoreditch to the studios. Not suspecting that he was about to be cooped up in a studio and asked to perform for camera all day long, Jack bounded enthusiastically from the car and half-dragged me along the corridors to where the photographer and his team were waiting.
The shoot itself was quite something, with a full team of people including photographer, 3 assistants, creative director, make up lady, advertising agency representative and 2 marketing people from More Than, in a large professional studio. Thankfully Jack seemed to take the whole thing in his stride and really turned on the charm for the camera – I’m sure he knows what media work is all about as he always seems to perform whenever there’s a camera about!
It was a long day, both for Jack and me, as we took literally hundreds of shots trying to get the exact images that the creative director was looking for. There was much standing, sitting, moving slightly to the left then the right, smiling, grinning, frowning and gesturing (and that was just from Jack!) before the team were happy with the shots, and it was late in the afternoon by the time we’d finished.
It was well worth all the effort though as the photos looked great, and it really made me appreciate the value of having such a professional set up for a photo-shoot – it may seem over the top to have such a big team of people to just take a few snaps, but it makes such a difference to the end result to do things properly.
At the end of the day it was back on the train and home. Jack was wonderfully behaved all day (apart from a minor misdemeanour where he tried to follow me to the toilet on the train and got caught up in the automatic doors!) and really seemed to enjoy his day out. I had a great day too – but I must admit that however exciting it is to spend a day in the big smoke, it’s always a relief to be back in the countryside again at the end of the day.
Tags: Jack, London, MORE THAN, pet insurance, photoshoot
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