Dean Jacqui: Veterinarians Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Dean Jacqui: Veterinarians Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:628;Page:917] 
JACQUI DEAN (National—Otago) 
: 
 I too rise to speak to Part 3 “Complaints disciplinary hearings medical and competence assessments and conditions of practice”. While I have every sympathy for others I can share my own story of a pet who is now departed. 
Dr Jackie Blue 
: Oh no. Who’s that? 
JACQUI DEAN 
: Sally. 
Dr Jackie Blue 
: What was Sally? 
JACQUI DEAN 
: Sally was a dear pet of ours. She was a Jack Russell terrier a faithful family pet. Do members know what her favourite game was? 
Hon Members 
: What? 
JACQUI DEAN 
: We would chuck a tennis ball and the dear little thing would chase after it. My goodness we loved that little dog. She would catch it in her mouth the sweetheart. Her little teeth would pierce the tennis ball but that would not make her stop. She would continue to try to stuff it in her little mouth. She would get about half of it in and then burdened by that tennis ball—because she was only a wee Jack Russell with little legs—she would make her way back to us. It was so cute. [ 
Interruption 
] No we did not tape her paws. It looked like we taped her paws because she was just a wee dog. This poor wee dog Sally whom we loved very dearly one day developed a fatal attraction to State Highway 1. It was very sad. 
Hon David Carter 
: Don’t tell me it was the motorcade! Helen Clark again? 
JACQUI DEAN 
: There was a swish of air. The vehicle was going so fast that I saw just a figure in the back seat reading so I do not know who it was. But it was a very sad moment for our family. We picked Sally up off State Highway 1 and took her inside. 
Phil Heatley 
: Healed her up? 
JACQUI DEAN 
: I wish we could have. We had to take her to the vet. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: I am just curious to know what clause or clauses this matter is relevant to. 
JACQUI DEAN 
: I am addressing Part 3 because the point of the story is that Sally died. We left her with the vet we went home and we then had a phone call to say that Sally had died that night in the hands of the vet. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: OK. 
JACQUI DEAN 
: It was very important to us to know that Sally had been looked after because we have two children who cared about that dog very much. OK I jest but I think it is very important that if we had not felt that Sally had been in good hands we would have had recourse. Had we needed to make a complaint against the vet we as a family needed to know we had good recourse. I believe that there needs to be protection not only for ourselves as pet owners but also equally for the vet who has been delivered this poor little creature with a tennis ball in its mouth and on its last legs. It is very important that both sides have protection. 
This bill is not only about pets—and I know that members in this room are feeling a bit bruised because of all the sad stories. It is also about farm animals. In fact I am a farmer. I have 10 heifers on our property. I need to tell members—and this does have a point Mr Chairperson—[ 
Interruption 
] The member is right; there is a bit of bull involved in this story. My dear husband rang me last night to say: “A terrible thing has happened my love.” I said: “What my darling?”. He said: “You know those 10 2-year-old heifers we have down in the paddock?” and I said: “Yes darling.” He said: “Guess what the neighbour’s bulls have hopped the fence. Worse than that those neighbouring bulls have had their way with our tender little heifers.” So we were faced with a genuine farming emergency as members with an agricultural background will know—and the National Party is blessed with many members with an agricultural background.