Australia Proposes Tough New Pet Purchasing Law

Children under the age of 18 will no longer be able to buy pets without their parents' permission in Victoria (Australia) if the Brumby government is re-elected.

RSPCA Victoria president Hugh Wirth said he was "thrilled" with the government's election package of animal protection measures, which includes a ban on selling pets to minors.

Dr Wirth said the change would make it illegal for children to buy pets without their parents' permission and sellers could face fines of between $1000 and $2000 for doing so.

 

"The reason we requested the government to do that is by law at age 18 everyone is deemed to be mature enough to make a positive decision and be accountable for that decision," he said today.

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Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

Microchip Miracle "Down Under"

Lost Australian dog found alive and well....
Nine years later and 1,900 km away

SYDNEY - If "Muffy" could talk, she would have some pretty amazing stories to tell.
Thanks to a microchip, this little dog's story is amazing!

Inspectors with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) were investigating a possible animal cruelty case at a home in the southern city of Melbourne when they found the fluffy white mutt sleeping outside on a scrap of cardboard.

A microchip identified Muffy's rightful owners, and, after a few days of searching for a current phone number, officials tracked down Natalie Lampard. She hadn't seen Muffy since the pooch disappeared from her backyard in the eastern city of Brisbane nine years ago.

"When the RSPCA described her, I told them her name; I knew immediately it was our Muffy," Lampard said. "It was totally out of the blue - after nine years, I thought she was long gone."

Muffy was suffering from a severe allergic reaction to fleas and has been under treatment since the RSPCA removed her from the Melbourne home, Pilgrim said. The dog, which the Lampards originally adopted from an RSPCA shelter near Brisbane, is recovering well and will soon be reunited with her long-lost family.