Black Dog Barn

20/12/2024

Nothing wrong with a dog in a muzzle. 👍

29/03/2024

Microchips for cats are a legal requirement from June 2024.
ttps://www.bluecross.org.uk/advice/pets/wellbeing-and-care/microchipping-your-dog-or-cat

Microchipping your dog or cat | Blue Cross https://www.bluecross.org.uk/advice/pets/wellbeing-and-care/microchipping-your-dog-or-cat

21/02/2024

Great summary of the devastation that the Breed Specific Legislation causes and does not fix.

07/02/2024

Save stamps for Staffies

To all our amazing SSC suppawters 😃.
Do you have or regularly receive mail with stamps? If so please save them and send them in!
The stamps are received by a third party who pay SSC funds based on the weight received. This helps towards the kennel and vet bills for our adorable seniors before they find the forever homes they all deserve 🥰.

Every little helps, so don’t bin….send them in!

🐾🐾🐾

07/02/2024

Pet welfare is at the core of Agria Pet Insurance. We would like to announce we are taking a stance to support American XL Bullies and their responsible owners by providing lifetime veterinary fee cover for both existing and new policyholders.

Although some UK insurers will continue to offer protection to existing policyholders, Agria is one of the few insurers to offer lifetime veterinary fee cover. Insurance will be available to owners demonstrating they are following advice on safe ownership and public safety by being in receipt of an exemption certificate.

Vicki Wentworth, Managing Director at Agria Pet Insurance, says: “Prioritising animal welfare is at the heart of everything we do at Agria and we want to be there to protect pets and their owners should they need veterinary treatment. We know that the last few months have been particularly difficult for owners of American XL Bully dogs, and we are pleased to be able to reassure them that we can provide lifetime veterinary fee cover for their dog, so we can support them in prioritising their pet’s welfare”.

For owners looking for lifetime veterinary fees cover for their American XL Bully, Agria can help with this over the phone. Please get in touch with its specialist team on 03330 30 10 00 (policies are not available online).

01/02/2024

Advice on how to keep your dog safe once exempted.

To everyone who acted to protect their dog by securing their exemption in time - well done and thank you, you have made them safe ❤️

BUT WHAT COMES NEXT? How do you KEEP them safe?

This post is not intended to frighten or scaremonger BUT we must make sure that as responsible owners of exempted dogs we are all aware of what is required of us from now on. It would be horrific for someone to go to the trouble of exempting their dog and doing everything right, only to find themselves breaching their exemption and exposing their dog and others to risk!

PLEASE CONSIDER THE FACT THAT EXEMPTED DOGS WILL BE UNDER THE MICROSCOPE MORE THAN EVER. Rightly or wrongly, there is little chance of any leeway for an exempted dog who makes a mistake behaviourally - remember they are now already classed as a “dangerous dog” for the purposes of the law. Do not put your dog in a position where you know something could go wrong!

This includes situations such as:

*when children are visiting
*when opening the front door for deliveries
*when you put out the bins
*when a piece of equipment breaks
*when moving in and out of a vehicle
*when you are distracted by something else
*when visiting a vet/doggie shop/park or other facility with other dogs around
*when employing a dog walker or groomer
*when someone else is caring for your dog
*when your third party insurance is due
*when you move house
*when you go on holiday
*when your dog is allowed into the garden

PLAN AHEAD!
*install safety gates
*crate train your dog
*use a lead indoors if need be
*carry a spare muzzle, collar and harness
*speak about what is needed to keep your dog safe and obtain written agreements that confirm people caring for your dog have read and will adhere to their conditions of exemption
*use a car crate and seatbelt lock
*always use two points of contact
*diarise for two months and then a month from the date your insurance renewal is due
*notify DEFRA if you move house
*check your microchip details are up to date regularly
*supervise your dog and check gates and fences are secured EVERY TIME before they are allowed into your back garden

Remember that things can go wrong inside the home as well as outside! Dogs knock children over, and no bite need occur for an offence to be committed and your dog seized. Private places can become public places when someone has a legal right to access them - this includes workmen, delivery drivers, cleaners etc.

Your dog’s exemption conditions are non-negotiable and apply at all times.

Please don’t let your dog, yourself or anyone else down now.

As long as you remain vigilant and responsible and stick to all of the requirements of exemption, as well as general good ownership, you and your dog can continue to have happy lives where no one is placed at risk.

YOU MADE THEM SAFE 🙏🏼❤️ PLEASE KEEP THEM SAFE!

Please Share. Thank you.

28/01/2024

Deadline to exempt and save your dog is 31st January.

Important message and guidance from the Trustees at
CARLA LANE ANIMALS IN NEED

REGISTER YOUR XL BULLIES NOW - PUPPIES AND ADULT DOGS

We all know that BSL does not work, it is a cruel and ineffective law and now the XL Bullies and others that meet the description of the standard, will be banned from 31/12/23.

We are advising and encouraging, ALL owners of XLs or Bully dogs that resemble XL to get them on the register of Exempted dogs NOW!

There has never been an easier way to get a Bully dog safely on the register, a guarantee that your dog can never be seized in the future as long as you abide by the stated rules.

• Set up your 3rd Party Insurance through the Dogs Trust Companion Club membership - £25 (or £12.50 if you are over 60yrs old) https://support.dogstrust.org.uk/companion/step1
• Get your dog microchipped.
• Pay £92.40 Exemption Fee via the Government website - https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-a-certificate-of-exemption-to-keep-an-xl-bully-dog
• Make sure your dog is wearing a muzzle and strong lead (not an retractable lead) at all times in all public places. This also includes your front garden and in a car.

If you need help, please contact us.

The alternative is that Bully dogs that are not exempted risk being seized, taken away for many months, put in kennels, not allowed visits by owners, have a strict assessment, temperament tests, behavioural report, Court and lawyers involved!!!

This is what happens when a dog is suspected of being a Pit Bull and will happen for XL Bullies and Bullies that are considered to be banned breeds, once the amnesty period is over at NOON on 31/1/24.

** Please check out Merseyside Police XL BULLY guidance post, which is very helpful.

STAND BY YOUR DOG, MAKE THEM AS SAFE AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN FROM SEIZURE !!

If in ANY doubt REGISTER NOW

DEADLINE TO EXEMPT - NOON ON WEDNESDAY 31ST JANUARY 2024

21/01/2024

Great advice

Please please PLEASE check and double-check ALL fences and gates in this extreme weather before you even think of letting your dog out. Dogs will be spooked by the wind and any dogs who do escape are at extra risk in conditions like this. It only takes a second!

Please secure your dogs on walks using two points of contact and hi-viz equipment to make yourselves easier for motorists to see, and don’t let dogs off lead as the wind can easily disorientate and confuse them, making them more likely to run away. Look after your furry friends!

01/01/2024

Hi Everyone, Mistletoe aka Missy here. I am looking for my forever family. I am a Rottweiler cross, one year old and a very happy, pretty young girl.

Marmalade Sandwich Cat & Dog Rescue was asked to help me find a new home and I have been living at Black Dog Barn for a little while now, apparently I am in foster care.

🐾 I love people and other dogs and am very respectful of cats, sheep and horses. I haven’t met any cattle yet.
🐾 I am clean in the house and don’t chew furniture or human belongings. I can reach up high enough to put my paws on the kitchen side but I only look at the food.
🐾 I don’t mind being left in the house on my own for short periods of time or overnight but it would be lovely to be a hot water bottle instead.
🐾 I like travelling in the car, and am happy to visit the vet. I have learnt to have my paws washed after walks and I am learning to come back to a whistle when I am off lead.
🐾 I would like to live with adults or older dog-savvy teens – I am big and bouncy so I don't think little people will be happy with me.

I am looking for a family who will give me plenty of exercise and stimulation. They need to be willing to invest time in my education and fill in all the gaps I have; I pull a bit on my lead and haven’t seen much of the world so everything is very exciting out and about.

Consistent and focused training will see fast results – I am super smart. I would love to accompany someone who walks a lot, or is keen to do some specific activities, I hear scent work, agility, park runs and canicross are fun.

I have had my operation so I can’t have puppies and I have had my vaccinations and some worming tablets. An adoption fee and home check will be required if you want to give me a happy ever after home.

🐾Please contact Black Dog Barn for more information about me.

Love from Missy x

31/12/2023

When you sign remember to check your emails and click the link or signature will not be counted.

XL Bully dogs cannot be rehomed after 31/12/23, and will be illegal to own without an exemption certificate from 1/2/24. As a result many Bully dogs are being abandoned or placed in rescue. We want more time for owners to rehome or get exemptions, to avoid dogs being euthanised unnecessarily.

29/12/2023

We are trying to produce an estimate of how many XL Bully 'type' dogs there are in England and Wales to support the Judicial Review application. The government believe there are only around 15,000 dogs that meet 'type'. We believe this number to be far higher. No names will be shared, but we need to...

29/12/2023

XL BULLY TYPE OWNERS

Please be aware that if you have applied for the exemption certificate for your dog, the muzzle/ lead / insurance rules apply with immediate effect from you gaining the exemption.

You do not get to wait until the 31st of December to muzzle and lead in public.

Some people have already fallen victim as they have applied for exemption, been granted the certificate, and then thought they could still walk their dogs muzzle and/or lead free till the 31st of December.