Editor

Volunteers are the unsung heroes of any community, and within aviculture, they are what make clubs shine. At bird club events, volunteers underpin all operations. They set up chairs, table, sounds, equipment, man the BBQ, manage finances, book speakers, prepare newsletters and magazines, maintain membership registers, complete government forms, book venues – the list goes … Read more

I’m often asked whether minis can be kept as pets and ‘lawnmowers’ in suburbia, or to have one instead of a dog or cat.  Mini horses and mini ponies can make excellent pets, but its important to keep in mind that minis are just small versions of full size equines, having been selectively breed for … Read more

Friday, 5th July 2024 Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Amendment (Virtual Stock Fencing) Bill 2024 Opening Statement: Good morning, Chair – I ask that this statement be tabled. Today we are here to discuss the advantages of virtual fencing as they relate to horses and livestock kept on hobby farms, recreationally and as pets, but … Read more

It is now a daily battle to keep up with the changes to animal legislation, with government being steered by animal rights agendas and emotive call outs. Most of these decisions are made with little knowledge or investigation on what the outcomes will be and are then just referred to as “unintentional consequences”. Let’s look … Read more

How are insects and arachnids the silent victims of kidnapping?’ Did that get your attention? I hope so. It is well documented that some species of insects. including tarantulas and praying mantids, are amongst the many facing threat from illegal removal from the natural habitat where they play a vital role in the ecosystem. Whilst … Read more

The Victorian Legislative Assembly Economy and Infrastructure Committee’s Final Report for the Inquiry into the impact of road safety behaviours on vulnerable road users has been released, bringing particularly positive news for horse riders. In May 2023, peak animal welfare body Animal Care Australia worked together with national equestrian association Bitless Inc, to conduct a … Read more

26th April 2024 – Opening Statement. Good morning Chair and Committee, I request this statement be tabled. In 2019 Animal Care Australia supported a recommendation that resulted in the creation of this annual Inquiry in order to address concerns that the charitable organisations were not accountable for their actions or the services they provide on … Read more

An Australian dog breeder has been targeted in an international scam operation that has left victims devastated and thousands of dollars out of pocket. The breeder has been running a popular cavoodle-breeding operation since 2019, and has tens of thousands of social media followers, but was shocked to open her front door one day to … Read more

A strange thing happened in the equestrian world last month, you probably heard about it, but to me it highlighted everything that is wrong with mainstream equestrian sports.  It came down to one question: what about the horses? In case you missed it, 3 time equestrian event Olympian, Shane Rose, participated in a fancy dress … Read more

16th February 2024 Opening Statement: Agriculture and Fisheries and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 Good morning Chair, I ask that our statement be tabled? My name is Michael Donnelly and I am the President of Animal Care Australia. Today I am accompanied by Steve Courtney, President of Professional Dog Trainers Australia, who are a key … Read more

18th December 2023: Opening Statement: Good morning, I am Karri Nadazdy – Assistant to the President of Animal Care Australia and I am also the Horse & Livestock Representative and I have trained feral horses for rehoming. Today I am joined by Rachel Sydenham – the Animal Care Australia Small Mammals Representative and for the … Read more

15th December 2023 – Opening Statement. Good afternoon, I am Karri Nadazdy – Assistant to the President of Animal Care Australia and I am also the Horse & Livestock Representative. Today I am joined by Kylie Gilbert – the Animal Care Australia Dog Representative. Animal Care Australia represents keepers and breeders of pets and companion … Read more

With 2024 being the year of the dragon, there’s no better way to kick off the year than with an article about our amazing dragons in Australia. Currently in Australia, there are 11 genera and over 70 species of Dragon that call this continent home. Many are kept in private collections and the Bearded Dragon … Read more

I guess many of you are thinking “what a weird and strange title for an article, what has aviculture got to do with these new-fangled internet technologies?” Please bear with me, grab a coffee, beer, wine or whatever your poison might be and read on. Internet technologies, as we are all aware, have become ubiquitous. … Read more

From a young age I had an affinity for horses, no doubt about it! I was your typical horse mad child and grew up watching the romantic high country and wild horses in the movie The Man from Snowy River and reading the many chronicles of the Silver Brumby Novels written by Elyne Mitchell. I … Read more

Cats don’t stop using their litter tray because they are trying to “get back” at you, and they aren’t holding a grudge because you accidently stepped on their foot or were late with their breakfast or dinner. If your cat has been a resident of the home for a while, a vet checkup is the … Read more

About 3 months ago, a friend who runs a Sydney dog rescue group messaged me to say that another rescue was looking for a foster carer with a certain skillset … they were getting a small breed dog from a local pound who was quite pregnant, and needed a foster carer with whelping experience, as … Read more

In a world that is ever changing, with new restrictions and new laws, where is the education to ensure everyone can be compliant? Where is the education on basic responsible pet ownership? The average person going out to buy their next animal, isn’t always buying from a reputable breeder who will be there for the … Read more

Animal Care Australia was invited by the Hon Penny Sharpe MLC (NSW) to join 30 other environmental-based organisations, including Greening Australia, representatives from marine conservation, land conservation, fauna conservation, land care, Australian Wildlife Conservancy, RSPCA, WIRES, preservation volunteer organisations and many more. For me, I felt like a little fish in a pond with very … Read more

The Legislative Assembly Economy and Infrastructure Committee Inquiry into vulnerable road users in Victoria invited Animal Care Australia to testify about the issues faced by horse and carriage drivers on their roads. Animal Care Australia Horse & Livestock Representative, Karri Nadazdy, appeared on Thursday 24th August 2023. Opening statement: Good morning, my name is Karri … Read more