One man’s meat…
Detail:
Right. Brace yourself. Mrs Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice, has jumped on to the Hollywood bandwagon and applied claw caps to the family’s British bulldog’s nails.
Coco was snapped by photographers recently wearing the pink caps, which are said to stop her getting her sharp claws stuck in furniture.
This latest craze is all the rage in Hollywood, and the caps come in colours including natural, blue, purple and red. They have to be glued on to the pet’s nails and claim to be “the safe and humane solution to cat and dog scratching in the home”.
Even US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton is said to be a fan and has used them on her cat, Socks.
One version, Soft Claws, is said to have been developed by an American vet and claimed to be so soft and comfortable that most cats and dogs don’t even notice they are wearing them. They are branded as the “the safe and humane solution to cat and dog scratching in the home” and as an alternative to declawing.
Needless to say, I am fully expecting the usual host of celebrity watchers and wannabees to follow suit and adorn their pets with these claw contraptions. And, as you may well have guessed, I am personally not a fan of these. In fact, I think they are downright hideous. And I think they are hideous along the same lines as child beauty pageants and some pieces that Tracey Emin calls art. Some things are just not meant to be.
I am also uncomfortable with the obvious fact that they will interfere with an animal’s normal behaviour – let’s face it, cats scratch. Indeed, on its use on cats, an RSPCA spokesman told me: “The RSPCA has concerns about the use of such products as it could limit a cat from expressing its natural behaviour. Cats have a basic need to scratch and it is essential that they are able to do so. The RSPCA always recommends that owners provide suitable sturdy scratch posts, tall enough for a cat use fully stretched, to enable them to scratch.”
Which brings me to the retailer. There are a number of products out there that really should not be sold but are in themselves not illegal. That decision to stock and sell such products then ultimately comes down to common sense and individual judgment. For instance, as a retailer in England, will you sell electric collars? After all, only in Wales are they illegal.
What about small rabbit hutches? One large non-pet retailer sells a rabbit hutch with an internal length of 77cm, that is described as being suitable for one rabbit, allowing the animal to stretch up on hind legs and run freely. Never mind that rabbits should be kept in pairs, and that the PDSA and Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund recommend a minimum 6ft length, which is 182cm.
It is this grey area which is tricky, but which can win a retailer more loyal customers. I know of several very successful independents who will stock only the largest hutches and cages, and this stance on animal welfare has earned them a strong following.
Do you, as a retailer, stock whatever sells, whenever it sells, in order to capitalise on the latest fad? Or do you assess carefully every product, and measure its value and benefit to the animal and, therefore, refuse to stock certain products simply because you do not believe in them?
In the long term, which will win you more customers?
Coco was snapped by photographers recently wearing the pink caps, which are said to stop her getting her sharp claws stuck in furniture.
This latest craze is all the rage in Hollywood, and the caps come in colours including natural, blue, purple and red. They have to be glued on to the pet’s nails and claim to be “the safe and humane solution to cat and dog scratching in the home”.
Even US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton is said to be a fan and has used them on her cat, Socks.
One version, Soft Claws, is said to have been developed by an American vet and claimed to be so soft and comfortable that most cats and dogs don’t even notice they are wearing them. They are branded as the “the safe and humane solution to cat and dog scratching in the home” and as an alternative to declawing.
Needless to say, I am fully expecting the usual host of celebrity watchers and wannabees to follow suit and adorn their pets with these claw contraptions. And, as you may well have guessed, I am personally not a fan of these. In fact, I think they are downright hideous. And I think they are hideous along the same lines as child beauty pageants and some pieces that Tracey Emin calls art. Some things are just not meant to be.
I am also uncomfortable with the obvious fact that they will interfere with an animal’s normal behaviour – let’s face it, cats scratch. Indeed, on its use on cats, an RSPCA spokesman told me: “The RSPCA has concerns about the use of such products as it could limit a cat from expressing its natural behaviour. Cats have a basic need to scratch and it is essential that they are able to do so. The RSPCA always recommends that owners provide suitable sturdy scratch posts, tall enough for a cat use fully stretched, to enable them to scratch.”
Which brings me to the retailer. There are a number of products out there that really should not be sold but are in themselves not illegal. That decision to stock and sell such products then ultimately comes down to common sense and individual judgment. For instance, as a retailer in England, will you sell electric collars? After all, only in Wales are they illegal.
What about small rabbit hutches? One large non-pet retailer sells a rabbit hutch with an internal length of 77cm, that is described as being suitable for one rabbit, allowing the animal to stretch up on hind legs and run freely. Never mind that rabbits should be kept in pairs, and that the PDSA and Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund recommend a minimum 6ft length, which is 182cm.
It is this grey area which is tricky, but which can win a retailer more loyal customers. I know of several very successful independents who will stock only the largest hutches and cages, and this stance on animal welfare has earned them a strong following.
Do you, as a retailer, stock whatever sells, whenever it sells, in order to capitalise on the latest fad? Or do you assess carefully every product, and measure its value and benefit to the animal and, therefore, refuse to stock certain products simply because you do not believe in them?
In the long term, which will win you more customers?
By:
Sandra
Date/time :
24/05/2010
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