Heart of Ohio Great Pyrenees Club, Inc.
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HOGPC Code of Ethics
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The Heart of Ohio Great Pyrenees Club
in keeping with its aims of encouraging the development of finer
Great Pyrenees has adopted the following Code Of Ethics to
promote and foster the highest standards among breeders and
owners and to encourage cooperation in the improvement,
advancement and protection of our breed.
All members of the Heart of Ohio Great Pyrenees Club
shall abide by this Code of Ethics.
MEMBER RELATIONS
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Members shall be aware at all times that the Club exists
to protect the breed and that these aims are to be
uppermost in the minds of members in all their activities
in the breed.
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Members will at all times, whether at home, traveling, at
shows or at motels, display good sportsmanship and
conduct themselves in such a manner as to reflect credit
upon the club and the breed.
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Members shall refrain from unnecessary and unconstructive
criticism of another's dog and from personal attacks upon
a fellow member.
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Novices are encouraged to seek the advice and assistance
of more experienced owners and breeders, and the more
experienced shall graciously assist the novice with his
problems, and share for the good of the breed, the
benefits of his knowledge.
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In all questions of ethics, covered or not covered by
this Code, the individual member shall act solely in the
best interests of the breed, and the membership as a
whole shall willingly aid any fellow member in upholding
these interests.
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Members shall bear in mind that a Code of Ethics is more
than a set of rules; it is a commitment to a high
standard of practice in owning and breeding and that
adherence to the spirit of the Code is as important as
adherence to its law.
TREATMENT
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All Great Pyrenees owned by, or in the care of, members
shall be given a proper, healthy environment, nutrition
and care at all times and no member shall have more dogs
than can be safely and adequately housed and cared for.
No member's dog may be treated in an inhumane manner
subjected to cruel or unusual punishment or abused. Nor
may it be subjected to any conditions likely to eventuate
in unnecessary danger to the dog's life.
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Members shall be diligent in the handling of their dogs
in public places and shall do so in a manner to minimize
the risk of trauma or danger to any human being or
animal.
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Members recognize their responsibility to protect the
name and reputation of the breed and shall not allow
their dogs to roam at large unsupervised, nor to become a
public nuisance, nor to become a public trust.
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Treatment and handling of active livestock guardian dogs
owned by members shall be consonant with the best
management techniques for such dogs.
ADVERTISEMENT
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All advertisement of puppies and adult dogs, written or
oral, shall be factual and as forthrightly honest as
possible in both substance and implication.
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Advertising and promotion, written or oral, shall be
confined to the aspects of the breeder's stock and shall
not degrade the stock of others.
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The breeder shall be cautious in discussing show
prospects of any animal lest it imply a guarantee of show
success that cannot or will not be insured.
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The breeder shall be equally cautious in encouraging
buyers as to breeding prospects, inasmuch as the breeding
of a Great Pyrenees is not to be undertaken lightly by
any owner.
BREEDING
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Anyone breeding a bitch bears great responsibility to the
future of the breed; therefore a breeder shall plan each
breeding with the paramount intention of advancing and
protecting the breed, and only when in a position to give
proper care to both bitch and offspring.
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The bitch owner safeguards a bitch from breedings which
are not carefully planned.
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Recognizing the extended growth pattern of a giant breed,
the breeder shall not breed a bitch before her second
heat; breed a bitch before 20 months without the express
approval of a veterinarian; breed a bitch more than 2 out
of 3 heats.
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A breeder carefully selects stud and matron with an eye
to conformation and temperament and only after careful
study of the breed standard, the individuals and their
near relatives, the pedigrees and the basic principals of
genetics.
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All animals to be bred shall have sound, typical
structure, conformation and type, and shall be of sound
temperament and free from crippling or disabling
hereditary defects.
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A breeder shall refrain from using an individual who,
although free from such hereditary defects, consistently
produces afflicted offspring from different mates.
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Any breeder breeding from lines in which any serious or
disabling hereditary defects occur has an ethical
obligation to disclose that to all buyers.
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Dogs being bred shall have been x-rayed for hip
dysplasia. The results of these x-rays shall be made
known to the owner of stud and bitch and to all buyers of
pups. If the animal is not free of dysplasia, the
implications of that fact shall be made clear to all
buyers. Members should be aware that it is inadvisable
and genetically risky to breed an animal which is not
totally free of hip dysplasia. If an individual is bred
on the basis of a screening x-ray at under 18 months old,
it shall be re-xrayed at over 18 months. Adult x-rays
shall be submitted to the GDC, OFA or Penn Hip.
STUD SERVICE
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Anyone using their dog at stud bears great responsibility
to the future of the breed; therefore a stud owner shall
use the dog discriminately and with the paramount
intention of advancing and protecting the breed.
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No member shall offer at stud an animal who does not meet
the requirements set forth above for bitches in sections
4-8.
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If the stud has not been bred before or has not produced
a live litter or has had breeding problems in the past,
such information shall be provided to the bitch owner
before the bitch is accepted for breeding.
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Prior to accepting any bitch for service, it is the
obligation of the stud owner to advise novice breeders of
the responsibilities, problems, obligations and expenses
involved in breeding a litter.
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It shall be the responsibility of the stud owner to
ascertain that any bitch brought to any stud shall meet
the requirements of the Code, whether owned by a club
member of not. The stud owner shall further ascertain to
the best of his ability that any produce of the breeding
shall be raised and sold in a manner in keeping with the
ethical standards of this Code. The stud owner shall
supply any bitch owner who is not a HOGPC member with a
copy of this Code and explain its provisions.
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The owner of the stud is under no obligation to provide
stud service for a bitch who when brought to the stud dog
is not as represented by her owner or presents serious
hereditary defects or is not in good health.
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The owner of a male shall not accept a bitch for service
if the bitch cannot be maintained in a safe and healthy
manner.
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Bitches shall be bred only to the stud specified by her
owner unless an acceptable substitute is agreed upon by
both parties.
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Insofar as is possible, at least 2 services shall be
effected, and it is the obligation of the stud owner to
offer a free return service under the same conditions if
no litter results. A litter is defined for the purposes
of this Code as a minimum of 2 live pups at 36 hours.
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Owners of stud and bitch shall sign a written agreement,
clearly stating the conditions and terms of service.
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The owner of the stud dog has an obligation to all pups
sired by his males (s). Therefore, if the owner of the
bitch (breeder of the litter) refuses to take
responsibility for the puppies produced as set forth in
"Sales" the owner of the stud dog shall assume
that responsibility.
SALES
- A breeder shall be discriminating in the sale of all dogs
and concerned with the type of home in which they are
placed. No member shall engage in wholesaling litters, or
in individual sales or consignments of pups or adults to
pet shops, dealers, catalog houses or other commercial
establishments. Nor shall they be donated or given as
prizes in contests, raffles or fund raising events, no
matter how charitable.
- A breeder shall be available to buyers for whatever
advice, reasonable aid or assistance they may need for
the life of the dog. HOGPC members shall help and support
their fellow members in fulfilling this obligation.
- Any member selling or placing a Great Pyrenees is
expected to assist any buyer in finding a suitable new
home for their dog at any time that the buyer wishes to
relinquish it. If the buyer is unable or unwilling to
find such a home, the member shall assume physical and/or
financial responsibility for that animal. The same
responsibility shall be assumed for any animal sold or
placed which comes into the possession of any rescue
network or shelter at any point in the dog's life. This
applies to all co-breeders of the dog.
- A breeder, for the protection of both breeder and buyer,
shall provide adequate written contractual proof of sales
and guarantees. No promise shall be made orally which is
not put into writing.
- It is recommended that a breeder supply a Copy of the
Code of Ethics to all buyers and explain to them its
provisions.
- The breeder shall supply the AKC full or limited
individual registration form or a written guarantee that
it shall be supplied by the time the pup is 4 mos old, or
on completion of sale. A puppy may, for good cause, be
sold without papers if this is understood and agreed to
in writing by both parties, as specified by AKC.
- Any animal sold under the designation
"pet/companion" shall be sold without full
registration papers and on a mandatory spay/neuter
contract. A breeder may supply full registration papers
upon proof of sterilization or upon the breeders
reassessment of the animal as being of
"show/breeding" quality.
- It is the responsibility of a breeder to grade all
litters as to quality. A breeder shall not offer a buyer
the choice of purchasing the same pup for one price with
full registration and another price with limited
registration. A breeder may choose to change a
registration from limited to full at a later date. The
buyer may be offered this option which may be contingent
upon a change of contract and terms but not contingent
upon payment of an additional price.
- It is the ethical obligation of a member breeder to
guarantee dogs produced and sold to be as represented.
Any replacement or refund arrangement agreed to by
breeder and buyer and just to the interests of both
parties shall be considered satisfactory. It is
understood, however, that any dog which dies or must be
destroyed before the age of 18 months due to physical or
temperamental conditions which are hereditary, shall be
replaced one for one, within a year of death or If that
is not possible, the full purchase price shall be
refunded.
- Upon releasing any Pyr, pup or adult, the breeder shall
follow these guidelines:
a. He shall supply a pedigree of no less than 4
generations.
b. He shall provide written information of the care of
the animal.
c. He shall supply records which detail all dates and
types of medical care given the animal including shots,
d. He shall release only animals which are to the best of
his knowledge in good health.
e. Animals being released shall have had all the
necessary inoculations and worming for their age.
f. All puppies leaving the breeder shall be at least 8
weeks old. Those to be shipped shall be 9 weeks.
g. He shall request that buyers take the animal to a
veterinarian of their choice upon receipt and if the
animal is unhealthy, allow buyers 72 hours to return the
animal at their expense for a full refund.
h. If the animal has not been seen by the buyer or the
buyer's agent before shipping, the breeder shall allow
the buyer 48 hours to return the animal at the buyers
expense if not satisfied that the animal is as
represented by the breeder. A full refund shall be made.
LIVESTOCK GUARDIAN DOGS
- All provisions of this Code apply to livestock
guardian dogs, except as specified.
- Members will not engage in the breeding or
selling of livestock guardian dogs unless they
are willing to undertake the education and
responsibility involved with such animals.
- In order to protect both type and function in the
breed, breeders shall not separate show and
guardian stock.
- It is the obligation of the breeder to determine
the specific needs of the buyers and to be
available to them for information and advice.
- Members recognize the growing impact on the breed
of the indiscriminate production of livestock
guardian dogs. Therefore, they will observe the
following:
a. All dogs intended to be primary livestock
guardian dogs shall be sold on written
spay/neuter agreements, and without registration
papers . Registration papers may be supplied with
dogs that have been spayed or neutered before
leaving the breeder.
b. Pairs of pups or dogs shall not be sold to the
same party unless they have been spayed and
neutered before leaving the breeder.
c. Extreme caution will be taken in selling a
breedable animal to anyone who breeds, or intends
to breed, livestock guardian dogs if that person
is not a member of the HOGPC. Such dogs shall be
sold on co-ownership with written contracts
specifying that the buyer shall abide by the
provisions of this code.
IMPLEMENTATION
- All suspected infractions should be reported to
the President in writing. All reports must be
signed by the complaining party and shall be
accompanied by a $50.00 deposit which shall be
refunded if the complaint is upheld. Complaints
against members under this Code may be filed by
non-members.
- Within 30 days the Board of Directors shall
appoint a committee of 3, no more than one of
whom may be a member of the Board of Directors.
- The investigation committee shall immediately
contact the accused party and provide him or her
with a photocopy of the complaint, including the
name of the complaining party. Once the
investigation is undertaken, both the complainant
and the accused shall refrain from harassment of
the other. any violation of this shall be
reported to the committee and may be considered a
violation of the Code.
- This committee shall investigate the complaint,
including but not limited to, contacting the
accused and the complaining party.
- Upon completion of the investigation and after
consideration of the facts developed, the
committee will report its finding and
recommendations to the HOGPC Board within 60
days.
- The entire Board will vote upon the action to be
taken.
- Penalties:
a. In the case of a first offense members shall
be given one month in which to correct the
violation in keeping with the recommendation of
the investigating committee and proof of such
correction shall be submitted to the committee.
Further, the Secretary shall be directed to
remove the name of the member from the
information and referral list for a period of 6
months.
b. In the case of repeated or flagrant
violations, the committee may recommend that the
case be submitted to the Board for action on
suspension or expulsion.
c. In all cases of repeat or flagrant violation
the names of the member, the nature of the
violation and the conditions of discipline shall
be published in the HOGPC Bulletin.
d. Lack of compliance with the terms of
discipline shall be considered a flagrant
violation and shall be submitted to the Board.
- The President or the Secretary will notify in
writing both parties to the complaint, as to the
results of the Board's action.
- Nothing in this implementation section shall in
anyway preclude the Board or any individual
member from taking stronger action as provided by
the Bylaws on discipline.
EXCEPTIONS
The Board of Directors or the
membership as a whole may, upon sufficient evidence and
under certain stipulations, where the good of the breed
is protected, waive any of the foregoing provisions.
Members are urged to bring to the Board any problems that
confront them in their efforts to comply with the code.
The President may appoint a committee as is designated
under "implementation" to consult with and
assist the member and make recommendations to the Board.