Up a Gumtree with a load of Staffies
Jordan Shelley asked me to give the "Get Gumtree Animal Free" campaign a push and he is right, it definitely needs it.
One of the horrors of foreign travel used to be finding a market that sells pets next to the fruit and fish as if they are just as insignificant a purchase.
But in the UK on Gumtree today you can find 27,773 pets for sale. That's the biggest pet market I've ever seen. Every few minutes you hit the refresh button and there are a screen full of Staffie pups being sold and other dogs being given away free... it is really disturbing.
I have heard stories of dogs being harvested as bait dogs, and I have to say it all looks very unregulated to me. There are some rules, but 4 week old kittens have been spotted for sale. No one seems to police the site, but with 27,000 plus to check, no surprise really. It's enormous and it's all very ugly. Lovely dogs being put on a site designed to sell things that don't have feelings - that can't get messed up.
Look at this beautiful six year old in Belfast, being given away due to "shrinking homespace and growing family" http://www.gumtree.com/p/pets/dog-free-to-very-good-home/100304755.
Or this young dog, described as "Rottweiler puppy bitch 4 months old, excellent temperament very lively puppy loves being outside very active dog, the puppy has full vaccination full pedigree papers & his electronic chipped, this dog is worth its money £500."
I'm sure the dog "LOVES" being outside....ugh.
And the worrying, "I will collect any pets but must be free please contact me on 0787918871" well actually it said before I interpreted... "I will collect any pets bat most be free please contact me..."
But I don't think they want pet bats... that's definitely illegal. But then again...
The site is peppered with people who don't even know the names of the pets they are selling or giving away.... kittins, shepards, pedegrees, minitures and even one dog that is "flead and wormed".
How about this one...
http://www.gumtree.com/p/pets/american-bulldog-x-staffie-for-sale-150-ono/100512792
Almost housetrained at only six months old!
It is heartbreaking to watch pets being passed on like it's the 70s and again and we're in a very un PC version of Noel Edmond's Multicolour swap shop.
It's just so wrong. Pets ricocheting from one disaster to another.
If you think that pets deserve better than this, do join the facebook campaign group https://www.facebook.com/
One of the horrors of foreign travel used to be finding a market that sells pets next to the fruit and fish as if they are just as insignificant a purchase.
But in the UK on Gumtree today you can find 27,773 pets for sale. That's the biggest pet market I've ever seen. Every few minutes you hit the refresh button and there are a screen full of Staffie pups being sold and other dogs being given away free... it is really disturbing.
I have heard stories of dogs being harvested as bait dogs, and I have to say it all looks very unregulated to me. There are some rules, but 4 week old kittens have been spotted for sale. No one seems to police the site, but with 27,000 plus to check, no surprise really. It's enormous and it's all very ugly. Lovely dogs being put on a site designed to sell things that don't have feelings - that can't get messed up.
Look at this beautiful six year old in Belfast, being given away due to "shrinking homespace and growing family" http://www.gumtree.com/p/pets/dog-free-to-very-good-home/100304755.
Or this young dog, described as "Rottweiler puppy bitch 4 months old, excellent temperament very lively puppy loves being outside very active dog, the puppy has full vaccination full pedigree papers & his electronic chipped, this dog is worth its money £500."
I'm sure the dog "LOVES" being outside....ugh.
And the worrying, "I will collect any pets but must be free please contact me on 0787918871" well actually it said before I interpreted... "I will collect any pets bat most be free please contact me..."
But I don't think they want pet bats... that's definitely illegal. But then again...
The site is peppered with people who don't even know the names of the pets they are selling or giving away.... kittins, shepards, pedegrees, minitures and even one dog that is "flead and wormed".
How about this one...
http://www.gumtree.com/p/pets/american-bulldog-x-staffie-for-sale-150-ono/100512792
"American Bulldog X Staff Bitch £150 o.n.o
one female american bulldog x staff pup
shes 6 months old
mainly white with a few black spots starting to come through
shes almost house trained and trained to sit
lovey dog selling due to no time.
email for more details and pics"
one female american bulldog x staff pup
shes 6 months old
mainly white with a few black spots starting to come through
shes almost house trained and trained to sit
lovey dog selling due to no time.
email for more details and pics"
It is heartbreaking to watch pets being passed on like it's the 70s and again and we're in a very un PC version of Noel Edmond's Multicolour swap shop.
It's just so wrong. Pets ricocheting from one disaster to another.
If you think that pets deserve better than this, do join the facebook campaign group https://www.facebook.com/
Comments
I have had three pets from Gumtree now, sincere ads and people, and the pets have been 'as described' and the people were honest with me. Granted they were not dogs, but rabbits, but still, with rabbits needing vaccinations and neutering just as much as cats and dogs, it can still go wrong.
To me, moderation is the way to go, but I can completely understand why people want it banned.
Gumtree's policy's include.
No animals under 8 weeks old.
No animals advertised for breeding.
No animals advertised for food purposes or as working.
No animals to be swapped for other item's
No " wanted" ad's
The purpose of reporting ad's is to make it more bother than it's worth for Gumtree to have pet ad's, and to get the ad's removed if they breach the rules.
Also this week a Welsh breeder of French Bulldogs purported to be selling a family pet, and even attached a video of his son pushing a terrified puppy down a slide.
It is so heartbreaking.