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Crufts quits BBC in breeding row
Evening Standard12.12.08
THE BBC will not televise Crufts next year after a dispute over including certain breeds, the Kennel Club said today.
The split follows a BBC documentary which claimed the process used to breed some pedigree dogs had resulted in inherited genetic disease. The BBC insisted that certain breeds should be excluded from March's show.
But the Kennel Club said the BBC's demands did not take into account measures it had put in place to improve the health of pedigree dogs.
Kennel Club chairman Ronnie Irving said: “We have been forced to reject the BBC. We are obviously disappointed as we hoped the broadcast would have supported our focus on health and welfare issues.”
Reader views (4)
I think if you delve further it may have been the BBC that ditched Crufts!
- Marianne, SW France
is there a need for breeders maybe, but it needs to be controlled more effectively, like most things in life its often done for easy money, eg £600 pounds upwards for puppies, there are to many dogs being destroyed on a whim by uncommited owners by unsrupulous vets, the very same vets that give heavy discounts on jabs etc to breeders, but will do little to help rescues by way of dicounts, im afraid Crufts and the like are indirectly responsible for the over breeding of pedigree dogs saturating the market hence we have rescues and pounds over run with dogs nobody wants leading to a very high destruction rate of healthy dogs and puppies, the BBC are right to disasociate with this antiquated circus, there are to many people being driven into the ground trying to pick up the pieces of this bloated self loving fashion show,you only have to look at how many breeders are dumping their dogs and puppies onto the door steps of over worked under funded rescues to see what crufts and specific breeding have created, for once it looks like the bbc has done something positive , seems a bit little to late though as we have a national scandal of neglect and destruction of mans best friend, seems the UK is heading towards the same scale of destruction as Ireland. While we are at it the government should shut down all puppy farms and have a national licencing scheme with free neutering etc this would go a long way in helping us to be a dogs best friend instead of its worst enemy
- Sean O'Leary, Walthamstow London
A step in the right direction. Crufts are also responsible for the breeding of many sick, deformed animals just for show.
- Dhanraj, Basildon Essex
Good one BBC - it's disgusting how the Kennel Club support in-breeding and illness into pedigree dogs and effectively reward physical defects through their guide and judges.
- Ben, Kingston
