My own 5Rp: (Perhaps grab a cuppa before I natter on...)
The new transparency measures are a good start, although I wish the measures went further. Simply naming the importer and origin could still allow bad actors access to the Swiss market. Key will be what the buyer/adopter does with that information.
Are Swiss consumers savvy enough to distinguish between responsible, ethical rescue organizations and those who are creating more problems than solutions?
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I am becoming increasingly concerned about the cross border traffic in pet animals, dogs specifically. This is not a concern about 'our need vs theirs'. You'll notice if you browse the various Swiss Tierheim that some are under capacity. That's a win for Swiss Tierschutz law, btw - theoretically there can be no stray dogs in Switzerland.
No, my concern is over how dogs are being brought into Switzerland, and the knock on effect on home-country animal welfare efforts.
In the past my stance has been that compassion should not stop at an arbitrary man-made border. I have adopted several dogs from countries beyond Switzerland, and will likely continue to do so. But my recent search for the next member of the Muttley Crew has been eye opening, to say the least.
This is the first time in ca. three years that I have done comprehensive searching. (As opposed to keeping an eye on my own little niche.) I have to say that I am surprised at the number of perhaps questionable organizations that have sprung up in this short time. I've been talking to some new organizations, and what I heard from some has me worried.
Now - there are many truly outstanding foreign rescue organizations working in Switzerland. That must be said, loudly and clearly. These folks should be respected and applauded for their very much needed efforts. And truly - the need is indeed great. I hope these groups will be able to continue their good work long into the future.
But there also seems to be an increase in what I would call 'unserious' individuals or organizations, who import dogs into Switzerland without the support systems in place to ensure the lifelong welfare of the dogs. These folks, individually, are generally good hearted and well intentioned, but I would say naive. Shipping dogs without backup or any of the usual security provisions if the placement does not work out is not the way responsible rescue is done.
I am becoming increasingly worried that, albeit with good intentions, some of the more naive organizations or individuals might be facilitating the commoditization of dogs. There is a ‘market’ for adoptable dogs in Switzerland; is filling that ‘market’ perhaps unwittingly hindering local efforts to work on the root cause of the problem of unwanted dogs?
I wonder to what extent funds are being diverted from important and effective local animal welfare projects like CCR, like improving local animal welfare conditions, into transportation across borders. Ultimately the only real solution is to stop unwanted breeding, we cannot lose sight of that goal.
This is a difficult ethical question, one I have not finished wrestling with. As anyone involved in rescue knows, there is the big picture vs immediate need conflict, the starfish story delimma.
(On a beach littered with hundreds of thousands of washed up dying starfish, a man comes across another man tossing individual starfish back into the ocean, one at a time. The first man says to the second, "Why bother? With so many dying the few you save won't make a difference." The second man replies."No, but I've made all the difference in the world for this one.")
The eternal rescue question: Do we work long term towards policy goals, or do we work to help the individual? And what is the impact of one choice on the other?
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I will likely continue adopting the dog who needs me, no matter which side of a border he or she might be. However, my personal choice is to go to that country myself to meet the dog, and import the dog myself. I couldn’t do it any other way for the welfare of the dogs, residents and adoptee.
There are many ways to go about helping animals in need, my way is not the only way. Different paths are right for each of us. We each need to follow our own conscience, and towards that end, we need to research what goes on behind the scenes. But above all, we each need to ensure that all our choices are made on solid ethical grounds.
/ meandering self-reflection.