for the love of dog

I grew up with dogs in my parents' and grandparents' homes. When I was 5 years old, my dachshund died of strychnine poisoning. The only vet was out of town. I vowed there and then that I would be a vet, so that this would never happen again and in spite of scepticism and objections from family, teachers and friends over the years, never wavered in my resolve. So in a way I became a vet to avenge Woofy's cruel and senseless death.

What I never could foresee in those years was how many dogs I would have to kill in the course of my career - some to relieve suffering, but far too many were victims of "disposal dog syndrome", and were killed for the sake of their owners' convenience. Throughout the years I have struggled with the ethics and emotional issues. At times I am in tears and close to leaving the profession, at other times I manage to distance myself emotionally and rationalize - too many dogs, too few people to care, behavioural issues, disease or injury, which though treatable, exceeds the budgets of their owners. If I refused their owners would sometimes threaten to beat them to death, or shoot them or dump them by the side of the road. During a recent visit to the RSPCA someone brought in two 6 week old puppies that had been found tied shut in a bag and left in the hot sun in the bush. Some dogs I have saved and rehomed, but too many have died and are continuing to do so.

Veterinarians and veterinary nurses as a group have an unacceptably high suicide rate, which has often been related to the stress and distress caused by having to kill the very animals they dedicate their lives to saving.

Therefore I dedicate my paintings to the dogs that I and my colleagues have killed, and to my colleagues who suffer deeply every time this happens.

I have a dream to establish a no kill animal shelter, where all dogs will be welcome, and they will be rehabilitated and rehomed or housed and cared for until they die of old age. If I could become as famous and succesfull as Ron Burns,the artist who is my inspiration for this series, I will use the money to start a trust fund towards fulfilling this dream.
Tragically most existing animal shelters are compelled to kill vast numbers of unwanted pets as they are severely constrained by limited funds.

Dogs love their humans without holding back, with no guile or subterfuge and will often be loyal to the death, even throwing themselves at gun toting intruders and in the way of bullets as happened to a German Shepherd I treated in Sydney late last year. Their loyalty and devotion are technicolour bright, without shades of gray. Their love knows no compromise. All they desire is too please their owners. So I chose bright colours for my paintings, to reflect the bright bold technicolour love that dogs have for their owners, deserving or not.

These paintings have given me great pleasure and they are just the begining. I am inspired by my subject matter, their beautiful transparent eyes and the huge variety of shapes and characters they come in. I hope I can do justice to the love I have experienced from the dogs in my life, and in some way, maybe save a few lives, by making people appreciate dogs for the wonderful animals they truly are

Budgie

Veeartsenykunde is vir mal mense. Ek het in die vroee ure van Sondagoggend 'n budgie verlos van 'n eier wat vassit met sy histeriese eienares se bogpratery in my ore. Sy beweer die budgie is verlief op haar man, daarom is haar hormone deurmekaar (die budgie s'n, my lam). Daarom wil sy eiers le terwyl haar liggam nie gereed is daarvoor nie. Ek het my bes probeer om die budgie te hou en haar weg te stuur, maar sy het bly sit. Nou ja, met groot moeite, geduld en toewyding kry ek toe uiteindelik die eier uit sonder veel trauma - behalwe vir die wat die vrou op my psige uitgeoefen het. Die budgie lyk toe goed, dis 5 uur in die oggend, ek is gatvol vir die mal vrou en reken dis die beste vir die arme budgie om huis toe te gaan na 'n bekende omgewing. Soos Leon sou se "WRONGGG!!"

Gisteraand na aan middernag storm die vrou die spreekkamer binne met die budgie styf toegedraai in 'n handdoek teen haar boesem. Toe ons hom losgewikkel kry, is hy nie alleen dood nie, maar lankal stokstyf, hoewel sy oortuig is hy het gelewe toe sy by die huis weg is. Nou ja. 'n Drie jaar oue kind kan baie by haar leer oor die gooi van tantrums - huil, skreeu, rol op die vloer, stamp jou kop herhaaldelik teen die toonbank, hard. Skreeu 'n bietjie harder. Vloek - vreeslik. Dryg om jouself dood te maak, want jou lewe is nie meer die moeite werd nie en dit sal die veearts se skuld wees. (Selfs al onderdruk die veearts die innner voice wat se "Nou, vat haar kop vas op die agterkant van sy trek en help hom vorentoe - na die skerp rand van die toonbank".) Beskuldig die veearts van budgie moord. Skreeu nog harder en dreig om die veearts hof toe te neem. As die veearts steeds haar inner voice ignoreer, dreig om haar dood te maak. As dit ook nie werk nie, dreig om almal by die praktyk dood te maak. Intussen staan die man in die hoekie en skop na die muur. Hy se egter niks. Is hy ontsteld oor sy enigste ware geliefde dood is, of verbeel hy hom die muur is sy vrou? Sy broer staan hulpeloos en toekyk. Eindelik is die spul darem by die deur uit en gelukkig was daar nie ander kliente in die spreekkamer nie.
Toe se die veearts wat nog agter besig is dat dit praktyk beleid is om enige dreigemente van geweld aan die polisie te rapporteer. Dit is een ding wat my beindruk van Oz - hulle was binne 10 minute daar, hoewel ons vir hulle gese het die mense is reeds weg en ons glo nie daar is regtig enige gevaar nie. Hulle was vriendelik en professioneel en het gese hulle patrolleer heel nag in die omgewing en kan gou daar wees en moenie huiwer om te bel as daar enige verdere probleme is nie.
Nogtans, dit was 'n lang donker nag in die stil gebou en enige krake was harder as gewoonlik en die arme Amerikaanse verpleegstertjie - my enige geselskap na 12 - was maar senuweeagtig om die honde buite toe te neem om te gaan piepie.
Ek wens ek was 'n kunstenaar! Of dalk die Filipino wat om 4uur in die oggend die gebou kom skoonmaak. Behalwe vir groet, hoef hy met niemand te praat nie en na niemand te luister nie.

Nitrate Poisoning in Livestock

Significant Stock Losses caused by drought feeding.

Last week two farms suffered significant livestock losses. Deaths were caused by drought feeding of millet silage in one case and millet hay in the other. Approximately 10% of cattle died apparently overnight after being fed the millet products.
Laboratory tests confirmed that the cause was nitrate/nitrite poisoning in both cases.
Nitrates in fodder are converted to nitrites in the rumen. Nitrates in stored fodder can also be converted to nitrites when plant materials heat up or are attacked by bacteria or fungi. Normal levels of nitrite are converted to ammonia in the rumen by bacterial action. However excessive levels of nitrate or nitrite are poisonous.

Certain soil and environmental conditions facilitate nitrate uptake and accumulation by plants, eg.:

Use of nitrogen containing fertilizers
Low soil sulfur and molybdenum
Areas where stock have congregated and urinated and defecated (stock yards)
Drought
Cloudy or cold weather
Herbicide application, esp 2.4-D
Wilting
Plant species
Stage of maturity of plant
Part of plant

Young plants have higher nitrate concentrations and most plant nitrate is located in the bottom third of the stalk.
Hays made from cereal crops, especially those grown under drought conditions and cut while "sappy" can develop toxic nitrite levels when they heat up.
Hays contain almost the same level of nitrate as the parent crop. Silage normally contains significantly less due to the fermentation process.

Sheep are less susceptible to nitrite poisoning than cattle, but can also be affected.
Stressed animals in poor health or poor condition are more susceptible and hunggry animals are more likely to eat large amounts.

The risk of poisoning can be reduced by
Having feeds and forages analysed for nitrate levels.
Gradually introducing any new feeds by feeding small amounts frequently and diluting with known safe feeds.
Cattle can become acclimatized to relatively high levels of nitrate this way.
Frequent observation of stock, especially when changing food or grazing.
Don't overstock.
Prevent hungry stock from grazing on high risk fodder.
Do not graze high nitrate pastures for 7 days after rainfall, cloudy weather, frosts or high temperatures causing wilting.
Do not harvest pastures under these conditions either.
Graze these pastures during sunny afternoons above 15 degrees Celsius and remove livestock at night.
Never feed mouldy hay.
Harvest crops close to maturity and raise the cutter head selectively to avoid the bottom part of the stalk.

Keep in mind that rapidly growing weeds after rainfall may also contain excessive levels of nitrate as well as cyanide (prussic acid).