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RNZ News
21-07-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Two MPI beagles need new homes after not making the grade
Beagles Bernard and Ozzy didn't make the grade as sniffer dogs so are now looking for new homes. Photo: Supplied A pair of Auckland sniffer dogs who could not pass their training have had dozens of offers for new homes. The Ministry for Primary Industries says beagles Bernard and Ozzy are better suited for a life of leisure than the high pressure world of border control. But they are in high demand, with 50 households inquiring for adoption in just 24 hours after the ministry said they were available. Biosecurity NZ commissioner for the North Island Mike Inglis said sniffer dogs needed to work fast and be resilient. "From time to time, some dogs just aren't cut out or suitable for that type of work," he explained. "There's a variety of reasons, but sometimes the work is very quick. They need to work in different environments, airport, on the ports. The biggest thing, they do need to be able to work in quite loud environments over a particular period of time." Inglis said the biosecurity training programme had a pass rate of about 85 percent, and the two beagles could not quite make the cut. He said Bernard's cruisy personality did not fit the fast-paced environment. "Bernard's a typical beagle. He loves to take life easy and relaxed, and for a working dog that's not always the best," he said. "He did the job well, but he was too slow and wasn't able to keep up with that nature of it. He also had a little bit of naughtiness, which is a classic beagle trait." Meanwhile, Ozzy's independent streak made him a troublesome employee. "Ozzy is a very independent dog with a lot of personality. He loves a good adventure and is very, very cute, and he's got one of the softest coats around, which will make him a great buddy for particularly families with children." Inglis said that despite their quirks, the dogs were in high demand, with emails from dozens of interested households flooding the Ministry's inbox. "We tend to always be successful with rehoming these dogs, irrespective of whether they made it as working dogs," he said. "We train them very well, obedience-wise, and we also provide support [for their new owners], so we always get a good response. So we've already had 50 enquiries." That was no surprise for dog trainer and animal behaviourist Mark Vette. He said dogs trained by Biosecurity NZ were very well behaved and made for great pets. "You know, most people will take the easy road, and any of those, whether it's guide dogs, MPI or whatever it is, you've normally got a pretty good head start if you've got one of their dogs." But Vette said there were plenty more dogs out there that needed a home. He said training them might take a little bit more work, but they were worth it. "There's a lot of people that do rescue dogs, which is wonderful. But I'd like to see more," Vette said. "There's a lot of dogs out there that need good homes, and cats. It's one of those things that we encourage anyone to grow their skills a little bit more, and anyone can do it, but it does take some effort sometimes." Vette said rescue dogs were among the most loyal and loving pets around. He hoped more people would be willing to put in that extra bit of effort to find a diamond in the "ruff." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
05-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Ministry for Primary Industries to review controls for tomato virus
Tomato brown rugose fruit virus. Photo: Tomatoes NZ Ministry for Primary Industries says it will review its current controls after Australia changed its strategy to deal with a highly contagious virus affecting tomatoes, capsicums and chillies. Across the Tasman , biosecurity experts and industry representatives have declared tomato brown rugose virus not technically feasible to eradicate and moved to a management strategy. 'Tomato virus' was first detected in South Australia last August and has also been found on a farm in Victoria. It is not harmful to humans but infected fruit can ripen irregularly or be deformed. It can also reduce crop yields by 70 percent. Biosecurity New Zealand deputy director-general Stuart Anderson said MPI had controls in place that were "working well for New Zealand and prevented any issues for our tomato growers after the discovery of tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) at sites in South Australia last August". He said a ban on all Australian tomato imports remained in place, even though only Australian tomatoes from Queensland, an area free from the virus, were imported here. "We made the decision to suspend imports from all Australian states out of an abundance of caution. As part of the actions we took, tomato and capsicum seeds from Australia require testing for the virus prior to arrival in New Zealand, a requirement already in place for other countries where the virus is present. That requirement remains. "Although Australia has announced they will no longer be pursuing eradication, all of the controls that have been in place to limit spread of the virus remain." There was nothing to suggest the virus was here but MPI's chief biosecurity officer would conduct a review of what Australia has in place to manage the risk, and New Zealand's import rules "to ensure that our settings remain reasonable", he said. "New Zealand imports Australian capsicums from Queensland. ToBRFV has not been reported in any parts of Australia in capsicums and has not been detected in Queensland. We are closely monitoring the situation in Australia and if there is any significant change in distribution, or which crops it is affecting, we will review the current import rules. "We continue to work closely with New Zealand's tomato sector. We have asked New Zealand industry representatives to assist by sharing any information they have that may inform our decision-making. We also meet regularly with Australian officials to maintain a continued understanding of the situation." MPI said growers should continue to check their biosecurity practices. "As always... be vigilant and contact us on our pests and diseases hotline (0800 80 99 66) if [you] notice problems with [your] tomatoes". Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
