The Kennel Club recently made a statement about their position on dog owners using their dogs to perform heelwork to music. This of course has become even more popular since the young lady won Britain’s Got Talent and all of the subsequent media coverage about her vast earning potential. I guess this is another area of concern to some dog people, just like the handbag dog issue.
I have long had concerns about dogs performing such tricks for the entertainment of others, because of course it became illegal in most of the civilised world to have animals performing in Circus many years ago. Whilst I am not comparing the treatment of bears, lions and tigers to this relatively new and popular dog training activity, I do feel there are concerns about the use of dogs for the entertainment of others.
The Kennel Club do not have a problem with heelwork to music per se, but are concerned about the tendency to dress dogs in human clothing and also with the tendency to perform on their back legs, which dogs just aren’t designed to do. So there is a real welfare issue here. There are really famous and highly skilled heelwork to music performers such as Mary Rae whose approach to welfare would I am sure, be beyond reproach but there are clear concerns with some others in this aspect of dog training.
Interestingly, I was in correspondence with a former Police dog handler recently, who now takes the position that most use of dogs for service is morally wrong. Now that is a really interesting debate which I cant possibly fully address here, but his position was that the use of dogs in bomb detection work and even Police work, where the dog goes willingly but unwittingly into danger, is morally repugnant. This raises the issue about whether the employment of guide dogs, hearing dogs etc is also wrong.
My own general view is that Service dogs of all types perform a very valuable service to human kind and whilst it is highly regrettable if a dog is injured or even killed whilst performing such work, the contribution they make to the protection of human life is immeasurable.
Of course, I know that there is a massive debate to be had there, which cant take place in this forum, but I don’t think one should compare the use of Service dogs to the mis-use of dogs either as fashion accessories or performing animals for entertainment purposes.
Peter Mounsey, Ashclyst Dog Training and Dog Behaviour, Devon.