uk.rec.pets discussion document

This message was posted on 1st April 1997 and published in uk.net.news.announce a few days later. Discussion ran on uk.net.news.config

         RFD for unmoderated group: uk.rec.pets

Rationale:
        Many issues related to pets are best handled at a local level;
        for example, it is pointless trying to find a home for a kitten
        by global advertising, and in many cases it would be illegal to
        import or ship animals overseas, due to problems with
        quarantine, the CITES regulations (re. endangered species), etc.
        Similarly, discussion of problems with veterinary surgeons, pet
        shops, and pet products are largely irrelevant if the service or
        product is unavailable.

        At present the main Usenet forum for discussion of pets is the
        rec.pets hierarchy, consisting of sixteen newsgroups, mostly
        specialised, all experiencing heavy traffic. A sizeable
        proportion of this traffic consists of private "for sale" and
        "wanted" advertisements, which are usually only useful in the
        country of origin. While messages related to animal care and
        behaviour are sometimes applicable regardless of location, it is
        very difficult for UK users to find postings relevant to
        products and events in this country. Many of the UK-sourced
        messages on these newsgroups are of the "looking for a UK
        source for...." type, and often receive answers which are
        unhelpful or irrelevant to the UK.

        A non-specialised newsgroup for discussion of pets in the UK.
        would be a useful adjunct to the existing hierarchy, without
        supplanting it, and might encourage more UK pet owners to
        participate. Similar groups have been set up in other countries,
        such as Australia (aus.pets), Fiji (fj.rec.pets), etc.


CHARTER

Summary:
uk.rec.pets             Pet care and related issues in the UK

        Subjects for discussion:
        Pet-related activities, events, and products which are mainly of
        interest to pet owners in the UK. Examples could include:

        Availability of pets, supplies, and pet housing in the UK. Pet
        shows and events in the UK. Helpful vets etc. UK pet magazines,
        TV programmes, etc. Private advertising of pets etc. wanted or
        for sale.

        Postings relevant to animals in general, and not specifically to
        the UK scene, may best be handled by the existing rec.pets.*
        hierarchy. Political matters related to animals and their
        welfare in the UK may be more relevant to uk.politics.animals.
        The activities of wild animals are more suitable for
        uk.rec.birdwatching and/or the sci.bio hierarchy. Items related
        to horses and ponies etc. are likely to be most relevant to the
        uk.rec.equestrian newsgroup.

        Posters are asked to include a reference to the general class of
        animal involved, and the type of post, by including one or more
        of the following codes in the message title:

                [AQ]    Aquaria, Fish etc.
                [BIRD]  Birds etc.
                [CAT]   Cats etc.
                [DOG]   Dogs etc.
                [FS]    For sale.
                [HERP]  Herpetology; snakes, reptiles, amphibians, etc.
                [INV]   Invertebrates (insects etc.)
                [MAM]   Other mammals; Rats, mice, ferrets, etc.

        Short (less than 20 line) on-topic private advertisements and
        announcements of events relevant to readers are permitted, at
        intervals of at least a week; off-topic or commercial
        advertising is not, except as part of a signature.

        Binaries are not permitted on this group, however references to 
        on-topic FTP-able material and Web URL's are welcomed. 

        This group will not be moderated. 

Proponent 
        Marcus L. Rowland (mrowland@ffutures.demon.co.uk) 

Procedure:
        This RFD will be discussed in uk.net.news.config for 14 days. If
        there is a large degree of support for the group it will be
        fast-tracked otherwise a vote will be asked for.

-- 
Marcus L. Rowland
"Enjoy your drink, dude. Act sociable. Then, if we don't get what we want, we 
kill some customers and set fire to the place" (Illegal Aliens, Foglio/Pollotta)

This document contains some minor errors (most notably, .fj newsgroups are from Japan, not Fiji), and the request for a fast track procedure renamed the group as uk.rec.pets.misc