Better Farming - March 2007

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March 2007 Issue

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Behind the Lines

Questions about the Grey Bruce Bruce Veterinary Association

The letter in your December issue by the “Animal Welfare Committee” of the “Grey Bruce Veterinary Association (GBVA) piqued my curiosity, as it started with the claim that “many of the controversial OSPCA cases in the April 2006 issue of Better Farming had involved members of the GBVA.” In point of fact, there was only one case that involved a Grey County veterinarian.

Attempting to find out information about this committee proved to be challenging, to say the least. Many vets spoken to were unaware of this committee’s existence. Others were not members of the GBVA. Apparently membership is voluntary and many vets do not belong.

According to Dr. Wayne Murray, the recently elected president of the GBVA, the Animal Welfare Committee was newly formed in the past year to answer concerns about so called “puppy mills.”

The committee apparently consists of five members, four of whom are veterinarians from Hanover/Walkerton, Ripley, Mildmay and Kincardine. In addition, however, the coordinator for the Bruce-Grey branch of the OSPCA, inspector Jennifer Bluhm, also featured in an article in your April 2006 issue, is a member of the committee.

In other words, a committee which includes a member of the local branch of the OSPCA wrote a letter praising the “knowledge, professionalism, and dedication” of the members of the local branch of the OSPCA.

For this committee to write such a letter so long after the fact and not reveal their affiliation with the OSPCA, to which they gave such high praise in their letter, I believe, reveals exactly the type of problem which your articles were trying to address.

I hope that Better Farming, as well as other publications, continue to expose this and other ongoing problems for the farming community, because as one farmer put it, “unless you’ve had them knock at your door, you just have no idea.”

Roy Bevan
Holstein

Editor’s note:
The animal welfare committee was formed to deal with various welfare issues as well as puppy mills, says a member, Dr. Allison Hooper of Kincardine Veterinary Services. Jennifer Bluhm sits in on some meetings as a resource person. About three quarters of the county’s veterinarians belong to the GBVA.

Hooper said the humane society calls upon many veterinarians in the Grey Bruce area to deal with welfare issues. Professional rules prohibit them from attending to an animal welfare concern with the OSPCA if the owner is a client. The reference to “many controversial OSPCA cases” was an error on their part,” says Hooper. “We are new at this.” BF

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