General News www. pettradeworld. comPET TRADE WORLD OCTOBER 2009 11 Weighing your horse - new research Over the last 3 years, Dodson & Horrell Ltd have been working with World Horse Welfare, The Horse's Trust and the Royal Veterinary College to gather information on owners' perceptions of fatness in their horses and gathering data to help keep horses and ponies healthier! Over 2000 horses and ponies have been weighed, weigh taped and fat scored and at the same time owners have been asked to estimate their horses' bodyweight and fat score. A smaller group of horses and ponies were also ultra-sounded to measure the amount of fat under the skin. Initial results show that if a horse or pony is fat score 4 or more ( using the modifi ed 0- 5 scale) that he will weigh more than the reading on the scientifi cally validated weigh tape. Dr Teresa Hollands one of the researchers says she is ' not surprised by the result as the original population of 3000 horses and ponies used to calibrate the weightape were fat score 3 or less. It is most probable that the extra bodyweight is due to internal fat that the weightape is unable to monitor. Research that is being supported by the World Horse Welfare at the Liverpool Vet school has shown that for every kg that a horse is overweight, then 50% of that weight is due to fat around their internal organs.' The research team would like to thank Burghley Horse Trials, The Golden Horse Shoe, The Right Weight Roadshow, The Home of Rest for Horses, Hall Farm World Horse Welfare, Pony Club, and all the livery yards and Riding Schools that made time for them to go and measure and prod! If you know someone who needs help monitoring their horse's weight or would like more information information, then please contact the Dodson & Horrell Helpline on 0845 3452627 or World Horse Welfare on 01953 498682 ¦ BURNS developed by a veterinary surgeon Experienced fi eld support team . Dedicated to the independent pet trade . Free expert health and nutritional Advice . An alternative to most Veterinary and Prescription Diets TM . Developed by Veterinary Surgeon John Burns BVMS MRCVS How Burns can help your business........ Call 01554 890482 to fi nd out more

General News 1 2 PET TRADE WORLD OCTOBER 2009www. pettradeworld. com " How much is that illegal doggy on the website." Pet buyers warned of dangers of classifed ads The UK's leading animal welfare charities have united to clamp down on illegal pet classified adverts following a record number of complaints from people buying poorly pets. Members of the Pet Advertising Advisory Group [ PAAG] have launched a new website aimed at both consumers and publishers. The site www. paag. org. uk will also encourage recession- hit members of the public to think carefully before buying a new family pet through classified advertisements. With the alarming rise in status dogs and underground dog fighting rings, the site also provides valuable help to publishers to ensure they don't inadvertently publish illegal or inappropriate ads. PAAG is made up of 12 animal welfare organisations, the Metropolitan Police, DEFRA and free- ads publisher Loot who have all noticed a worrying increase in the number of unsuitable pet related classified adverts appearing both online and in newspapers. In particular ads for banned breeds of dogs such as Pit Bull Terriers have become more common. These advertisements are illegal under animal welfare legislation. PAAG members are also concerned that consumers looking for a bargain family pet are falling foul of unscrupulous pet traffi ckers. Chairman of the Pet Advertising Advisory Group, Clarissa Baldwin OBE, explains: " We're urging people not to act on impulse and buy from a classifi ed ad but to think carefully before taking on a family pet. Without the proper research you could unwittingly end up supporting a puppy farmer or an illegal animal breeder. Sadly the recession has meant some people are now looking to make a quick buck by breeding animals - the end result is an infl ux of pets being sold online with no consideration given to their health or welfare." PAAG members were particularly concerned when a member of the public recently posted an online ad off ering a German Shepherd dog in exchange for an iphone or wireless laptop. This highlights a worrying trend that some people regard pets as disposable commodities. Consumer Direct reported a concerning 40% increase in the number of complaints related to animal and pet purchases from 2006 to 2008. In 2008 alone the helpline received 4,953 complaints about pet purchases compared to 3,787 calls in 2007 and 2,843 calls in 2006. The user- friendly PAAG website off ers consumers advice on a wide range of topics and now also boasts a new ' click through' button designed for pet owners to report any problems with animals bought online or through classifi eds. The site also aims to encourage publishers to be as uniform and transparent as possible when it comes to pet advertisements. The Animal Welfare Act now places a responsibility on the seller and buyer for the care of companion animals sold through classifi ed advertisements. The advertiser's responsibility however is purely ethical. With this in mind, PAAG has launched an appeal to the Committee for Advertising Practice for the introduction of a formal Code for the advertising of ' Companion Animals'. Publishers are being asked to run a short paragraph alongside any advertisements for sales of animals, birds, fi sh or exotic species, encouraging prospective buyers to ensure their choice and the place they buy it from is the right one for them. ¦ New position at Pets at Home Leading pet retailers, Pets at Home, has recently appointed Matthew Stead to the new position of director of multi- channel, in a move by the company to strengthen its online presence and retail. Previously marketing director at The White Company, Stead will sit on the Pets at Home operating board and will be in charge of bringing a multi- channel perspective to the company's retail approach. Whilst the company already has a strong presence with the wealth of ' bricks and mortar' retail outlets across the country, Stead will be tasked with building on the company's transactional website, including looking into the potential launch of an ' order online, collect in store' service. ¦