Some Great Legislative Gains

Big Kudos to the State of Ohio for ditching their pitbull ban (with the help of Best Friends!) and to the City of Las Vegas for legalizing the proper management of cat colonies!!

Well done.

See the goods here and here.

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It's a Happy New Year For Dogs and Cats in Alabama

Because as of December 31st, they no longer use the gas chamber!

Sadly, animals in other states are not so lucky. See here for more information.


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Where to Lodge Dog Breeder Complaints in Missouri

The Attorney General in Missouri has an impressive page up on his site. Take a look. I like the ticker that numbers how many dogs have been rescued and of course the hotline.

Thanks, Chris Koster.



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New York State Makes Attending A Dog Fight A Crime

Thank you Governor Cuomo!

Once again, the Examiner has the goods, this time via Amy Rossi of the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Examiner.




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Help Get CAARA Passed in New York State

This is from an email alert I received Best Friends Animal Society:

Ask Senate to Support S 5363 CAARA

Dear Members and Friends in New York State:

CAARA, the Companion Animal Access and Rescue Act, is an important piece of life- saving legislation written to both improve the standards of care for shelter animals and provide needed access to shelters for qualified animal rescue organizations so they can save the lives of homeless shelter pets.

This month, the New York State Senate will address unfinished business from the 2011 legislative session, which officially ended June 30.

The bill was introduced by Assemblyman Micah Kellner, sponsored in the Senate by Senator Robach and co-sponsored by Senators Avella, Ball, Lanza and O’Mara.

Because of the critical importance of this legislation, Best Friends asks you to please write to your state senators and ask them to vote for CAARA in July. Click here to send a letter to your senators.

Thank you for caring and for everything you do to help animals. Together we can bring about a time of No More Homeless Pets.

Best wishes,

Jamie Lyn Rubin, Best Friends Animal Society New York Programs

P.S. – Please forward this e-mail to your animal-loving friends and family members, so they can help pets in New York, too.

If you have a question or concern about animal welfare please email Community Animal Assistance at animalhelp@bestfriends.org

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Way To Go Texas!

On Friday, June 17, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed into law the Commercial Dog and Cat Breeders Act (CDCBA), which establishes minimum standards for the humane handling, care, housing and transportation of dogs and cats kept by large-scale Texas breeders. Texas’s commercial dog and cat breeders have always operated free of state oversight, meaning the animals at most of these facilities are unprotected.

Lack of state inspections meant that Texas was becoming a haven for bad breeders—but once the new law goes into effect this September, many commercial breeding facilities will have to open their doors to inspectors for the first time.

Read the whole story at the ASPCA's website.

Thank you Governor Perry!



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Way To Go Ohio!

Welcome news.

TOLEDO, Ohio - Two of Ohio's largest cities have decided not to label dogs as dangerous simply because they're a certain type of canine, and a proposal being considered by Ohio lawmakers would make a similar change to state law.

Proponents of the changes say some types, such as those known under the general term "pit bulls," have been misrepresented and it's wrong to them single out, but supporters of existing regulations that do just that say it's better to be overly cautious.

The city council in Cleveland has decided to change its vicious dog rules so the animals are classified by their behavior, not because they're a specific breed or type of dog, The Blade in Toledo reported Sunday. Owners of dogs that attempt to or succeed in harming a person or another pet are required to follow strict regulations on how the dog is kept and how much liability insurance they must have.

...John Dinon, executive director of the Toledo Area Humane Society, favors that kind of legislation.

"This whole obsession with `pit bulls' I think is a distraction for truly effective public policy on dangerous dogs," Dinon said. "The fact that people are now looking at dog behavior and owner responsibility is a huge step toward making our communities and Ohio safer places."

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Missouri Compromise

As you know, the State of Missouri voted on Proposition B, which mandated greater protections of puppy mill dogs (dogs that eventually make it into puppy stores and which are usually bred under truly deplorable and inhumane conditions). Breeders objected and the Governor relented, basically taking the unprecedented step in nullifying a law voted on and approved by voters.

But then a public outcry happened and the governor had to deal once again.

A compromise came out of that dealing, and here is some commentary on the "Compromise Bill."

Of the additional protections in the original legislation, here is what remains:

-the animals must receive a yearly examination by a vet.
-they breeders must provide more space for their dogs.

I am in favor of compromise if only to get this work accomplished, but honestly, the Governor had no right to intervene in something the voters approved of. I'm sure somehow on the books (and apparentely so) it was legal, but voters in Missouri need to take that issue up with their legislature.


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Make Attending a Dog Fight in New York State a Felony

Some days I get Pollyanna (some days?) and say things like "it's getting better" or "this problem is being worked on." But anything having to do with creating legislation is a long and arduous process and it needs people's support throughout the process.

Yesterday an important bill passed the NY State Assembly, where, admittedly, it's a little easier to pass stuff because those in the Assembly know the Senate will be a stop-gap if people really hate the legislation on the table (think the US House of Representatives and the US Senate). But I don't think too many people are going to hate this.

At the moment, attending a dog fight in New York is a violation, which may even be less than a slap on the wrist. This law, advocated for by ASPCA, would make it a felony. Again, no mention of which class of felony, but at least it's moving in the right direction. Both New Jersey and Connecticut already make it a felony charge if you attend a dog fight.

Please visit the ASPCA Advocacy Center to learn what you can do and to share it on social media. Since this just passed the Assembly, the ASPCA does need to give further instructions on what else we can do, but please keep it on your radar because the legislative session ends this week.

Thanks for your help.



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Here's Why It Should Not Be Illegal To Film Meat Processing Plants Or Farms

This is difficult to watch.



There is no shortage of these kinds of examples, but since I posted about this twice in the last week (here and here), I thought I would share another tidbit that's made it to the public eye. This is precisely why my strong independent and pro business streak yields to greater scrutiny of farm and processing plant practices. There are just too many of these examples. It's no wonder they want to prevent the public from seeing what they do. People react viscerally to abuse and that's normal.

Mercy For Animals has the story.

During the undercover investigation at E6 Cattle Co. in Hart, Texas - a factory farm which rears nearly 10,000 calves for use on dairy farms - MFA's investigator documented:

•Workers bludgeoning calves in their skulls with pickaxes and hammers

•Beaten calves, still alive and conscious, thrown onto piles to slowly suffer and die

•Workers kicking sick or injured calves in the head, and standing on their necks and ribs

•Calves confined to squalid hutches, thick with manure and urine buildup, and barely large enough for the calves to turn around or fully extend their legs

•Gruesome injuries, including open sores, swollen joints and severed hooves

•Sick, injured and dying calves denied any medical care

Many have differing viewpoints on a vegan diet (absolutely no animal products) versus meat eating, occasional meat eating, or any animal product consumption. That's okay. You do not have to conform to the two book-ended examples out there (ie: no oversight of processing plants or totally vegan). I ate at a wonderful restaurant last night and they specialize in cured meats. Yes when I order my food from Freshdirect.com, like many NY'ers, I usually buy all vegetarian entrees -- because they are good and I like them (and they stay fresher longer in my fridge). I do not believe one has to conform to an all-vegetable diet in order to be against cruelty. Animals can be slaughtered humanely. Yes, they are being killed, but for consumption, and I personally do not have a problem with that. I want it done with the least amount of stress, fear, and pain, so I applaud the efforts of groups with whom I may not completely agree ideologically, but who work on behalf of those who have no voice.

Note that there was some felony abuse that was charged, and some misdemeanors, which of course carry less jail. The pretties in this case may not receive a lot of time in the slammer, but this case will be one more link in the chain towards better protection of animals, on or off of farms.
 
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Way To Go Ohio!

Folks, much legislative news this week. Thanks to those who care enough to see it through.

From the wonderful Toledo Blade (I love this paper and I live in New York!):

COLUMBUS -- A bill granting the "pit bull'' a reprieve from an Ohio law that automatically judges it to be a vicious dog won bipartisan support Wednesday on its way to the House floor.

The House Criminal Justice Committee voted 10-2 to send the bill to the full chamber, where it is expected to see a vote before the General Assembly recesses for the summer before the end of the month.

"This has been around the block a number of times,'' said the bill's sponsor, Rep. Barbara Sears (R., Monclova Township). "We've been through the painstaking process of getting due-process into the bill. It's there, and it's been very well vetted.''

And this part I really love because it shows that legislation takes negotiation and hard work and patience and perseverance and it's so good to be able to report a victory after all that...

The House approved a measure removing the breed-specific language from Ohio law last session only to see it die without a vote in the Senate. Ms. Sears hopes that recently added language creating new and revised classifications of dogs and spelling out the responsibilities of owners for each class will make the difference this time.

The changes have brought the Ohio Dog Wardens Association, who previously opposed the bill, on board.

Check out the full story.
 
 

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POS Alert

Jimmy Spears Jr.

Credits: WFMY.

This one got some good jail time.  He deserves it. He starved three dogs to death. They were found huddled together in one dog house. May he enjoy every moment of his incarceration; three consequetive sentences! Woot-woot! He'll serve three 19-23 month sentences.

Penny Eims at the Examiner has the goods.

North Carolina does still gas their animals to death in shelters, but they did pass Susie's Law in December 2010, making intentionally starving a dog a Class H felony. Formerly, it was a Class I felony and carried no jail time.

Susie's Law passed unanimously. Here are the people, and Susie, who helped get it done.

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NY State Will Be Voting On The Same Issue As Four States That Just Defeated It

via the ASPCA advocacy alert:

Dear New York Advocates,

We need your help to stop a terrible, anti-animal, anti-democracy bill under consideration in the New York State Senate. This legislation, S. 5172, would criminalize investigative efforts to expose institutional mistreatment of farmed animals. It is an attempt by New York-based agribusiness concerns to keep the public in the dark and uninformed about activities occurring on our state's factory farms.

Your state senator could vote on this dangerous bill at any time!

S. 5172 would criminalize simply taking a photograph of a farm animal without the farm owner’s written consent. Doing so would be considered "tampering with a farm animal," a misdemeanor offense punishable by up to a year in prison or a fine of up to $1,000.

Rather than stop cruel treatment of animals—and the related environmental and food-safety risks—S. 5172 would prevent the public from learning about it and punish those who hope to expose it. We need more transparency on our farms, not less.

Please contact your local legislators about this. See the ASPCA's site for info for your district if you don't already have it and for sample letters and how to send them.









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Good For Nevada!

Pawsitively Texas has the goods.

It is now a felony to unjustifiably multilate, torture, maim, or kill animals. The law was named after a three year old beagle that was brutally killed by her owner last year. At the time, the only penalty allowed by law was a misdemeanor.

We will get them; one POS at a time!

RIP Cooney.


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Legislation Aimed At Stopping Videos of Farm Animals Fails

The Washington Post has the goods.

I'm glad. I have seen enough videos to stop eating pork and start eating more vegetarian meals, but I am in no way a militant vegetarian. I'm not even a vegetarian! Suffering must be stopped, however.

“A well-managed farm has nothing to hide,” said Emily Vaughn, a program manager at New York-based Slow Food USA. “It’s something that people have the right to know.”

I'm not advocating for Slow Food USA, because I don't know enough about them, but I agree with the sentiment Ms. Vaughn shared.

Here's another quote, from a pig farmer, who rightly feels under seige and calls into question those who lie to get a job in slaughterhouses, just so they can get video tape.

In some instances, operators admitted the videos showed problems, but they said activists should have reported any mistreatment directly to farm managers rather than publicize the images.


“I don’t believe in people being hired under false pretenses to get access to these facilities to portray their side of the story,” said Cody McKinley, a public policy director for the Iowa Pork Producers Association.

The thing is, I don't believe that bringing the images to the attention of the owner of the farm would really improve anything.

There are many times when I feel government oversteps. I feel we are too regulated a country. But where the suffering of animals is concerned, even if those animals are destined to be dinner, I do want regulation and oversight. And accountability.

Another quote:

Bruce Berven, a lobbyist for the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, claimed activists had broader goals than ensuring farm animals were treated humanely.


“Their agenda is clear and basically anti-livestock,” Berven said. “They are basically just using this issue to promote their vegan-slash-vegetarian agenda. There’s a bigger war going on than this issue.”

I don't see that it matters that Slow Food's agenda is to be anti-livestock, as Mr. Berven suggests. He's probably right. Slow food is probably made up of people who eat no animal products, nor wear leather and certainly not fur. The whole country and the legislative process if made up of "bigger wars," as he says. The public gets to decide to take a little of this, leave a little of that, and bar some practices entirely. If you are neither farmer nor vegetarian, would it make sense to have to belong on one side of the fence or another?  I think people look at this proposed legislation to ban any video taping of farm animals and their treatment in slaughterhouses and say, "yeah, it stinks they lied to get jobs just to get in and video tape you, but your practices are inflicting pain and I don't like it."

A well-managed farm has nothing to worry about.

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Companion Animal Access and Rescue Act (CAARA)

From a New York Action Alert by Best Friends Animal Society:

CAARA would set minimum standards that would allow qualified rescue groups to recover animals from a shelter, spca, humane society or pound that are scheduled to be destroyed. Current New York law only allows for individuals to adopt form shelters, which gives the shelters the ability to deny qualified groups access to these pets.

Pets Alive Westchester also alerted me today. (They call CAARA "Oreo's Law").

Note from me: You may recall, there was a dog thrown from a roof in NYC, who ended up surviving but became extremely aggressive. ASPCA had custody of that dog, Oreo, and after a long while and many attempts at rehabilitating her, they felt it was best to euthanize her. I support ASPCA and I trust their decisions (more than the Humane Society of the United States, that's for sure), but I do think it wouldn't have been terrible for Oreo to go to a sanctuary. In rescue/shelter work, you often support groups who sometimes have strongly opposing views.

Back to Pets Alive Westchester's alert...

 WE NEED YOUR HELP!

http://www.petsalive.com/

Oreo's Law (now CAARA) WILL "die" without your calls and letters!

On Monday or Tuesday, Oreo’s Law (now known as CAARA - Companion Animal Adoption & Rescue Act ) will be voted on by the New York State Assembly Agriculture Committee. But it is not likely to pass without a large showing of community support between now and then. That is because the opposition has been lobbying strongly against the bill once again. We told them last year we would NOT allow this to happen again.

WE NEED YOU NOW.

"Where New York goes, SO GOES THE NATION."

CAARA would:

End “convenience” killing when there are empty cages and when animals can share kennels or be sent to foster care;

Require pounds to post strays, including photographs and descriptions, on the Internet so their families can search for them online;

Require transparency in operations by requiring shelters to make their statistics public ;

Require pounds to scan for microchips, maintain lost/found lists, and match lost with found animals in the shelter;

Require fresh food and water, environmental enrichment, clean living environments, as well as prompt and necessary veterinary care.

If CAARA is defeated, thousands upon thousands of cats, kittens, dogs, puppies, rabbits, and other animals will continue to be needlessly killed in NYS shelters every year—animals CAARA has the power to save.

A statewide survey of NYS rescue groups found that over 70% were being turned away because the shelters were hostile to rescue groups, and then those shelters turned around and killed the very animals the rescuers were willing to save. We have experienced this time and time again, right here in Orange County, in our own backyard. Time and again we offer to take in animals that other local shelters are about to kill and they turn us away. THIS HAS TO STOP!

WITHOUT YOU MAKING THESE CALLS AND SENDING THESE EMAILS - CAARA is dead - just like Oreo is today,

...even though Pets Alive offered to give her sanctuary.

Tragically, right doesn’t always defeat might. Sometimes the animals don't win. Sometimes they continue to get killed despite a readily available lifesaving and rescue alternative. Sometimes a feral kitten who a rescue group is willing to socialize and place in a loving home will instead get injected with poison from a bottle marked “fatal plus” and then dumped in a landfill. Sometimes a puppy who can go to rescue and be guaranteed a home will be killed instead. For their sake, please do not let this be one of those times. This may be the best chance we have as a generation to make a PURPOSEFUL POSITIVE impact for animals! We can change the world here folks - please. Help. This is critical. Time is of the essence. Don't think about it - take a few moments to send an email or make a call.

Please call & email Senator Ritchie & ask her to pass CAARA! ritchie@nysenate.gov 518-455-3438

Please post on your social media sites and ask your friends to do the same. You can find a sample letter here. (Please modify it into your own words). You can also cut and paste the following e-mails to your letter as well.

mageew@assembly.state.ny.us; amedoreg@assembly.state.ny.us; benedettom@assembly.state.ny.us; blankenbushk@assembly.state.ny.us; bronsonh@assembly.state.ny.us; butlerm@assembly.state.ny.us; crouchc@assembly.state.ny.us; finchg@assembly.state.ny.us; gunthera@assembly.state.ny.us; hawleys@assembly.state.ny.us; liftonb@assembly.state.ny.us; lopezp@assembly.state.ny.us; maisela@assembly.state.ny.us; markeym@assembly.state.ny.us; mcenenyj@assembly.state.ny.us; moyaf@assembly.state.ny.us; reillyr@assembly.state.ny.us; riveraj@assembly.state.ny.us; riverap@assembly.state.ny.us; russella@assembly.state.ny.us; rosenthall@assembly.state.ny.us; avella@nysenate.gov; gallivan@nysenate.gov; shuntley@nysenate.gov; kennedy@nysenate.gov; omara@nysenate.gov; ranz@senate.state.ny.us; ritchie@nysenate.gov; seward@nysenate.gov; valesky@senate.state.ny.us; cyoung@senate.state.ny.us;

Because without you, the animals don't stand a chance.

This is Oreo. She was killed even though Pets Alive offered her sanctuary.

Don't let this happen to another animals.

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Please Sign Petition To Establish National Animal Abuse Registry

Le'ts make Congress work for their money!

Go here and sign now.

People that abuse animals move on to abusing people before too long. Let's stop them in their tracks. Let's stop them because they animals need us to speak up for them!

Suffolk County, Long Island (NY) has been way ahead of the curve!



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Missouri Circumvents the Legislative Process

via the ASPCA's website. Very disappointing.

In an outrageous affront to the democratic process, on Wednesday, April 13, the Missouri House of Representatives voted 85-71 to reject the will of the state’s voters and eliminate all of the newly established humane improvements outlined in the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act (PMCPA). The PMCPA, which is scheduled to go into effect in November, was passed five months ago by popular vote as “Proposition B” to more tightly regulate conditions at the state’s thousands of commercial dog breeding facilities.

Missouri is the number-one puppy-producing state in the county, supplying pet stores from coast to coast with hundreds of thousands of dogs annually, and is notorious for its lax animal-care standards and proliferation of unlicensed breeders. Unless it is vetoed by Governor Jay Nixon, the bill the House just passed (SB 113) will not only supersede the PMCPA—which includes such humane provisions as increased cage size, prohibition on the use of wire flooring and restrictions on breeding frequency—it will make parts of the state’s commercial breeding law even weaker than they are now.

“In spite of decades of urging by the animal welfare community, the Missouri General Assembly remained silent on the issue of puppy mills until after the voters spoke. The failure of the General Assembly to address the problem is why we finally took this straight to the people,” says Cori Menkin, ASPCA Senior Director of Legislative Initiatives. “And as evidenced by the passage of Proposition B, Missourians care deeply about puppy mill reform. That state legislators are discarding Prop B and ignoring the will of the people they are supposed to represent is appalling, insulting and disrespectful.”

If the legislature succeeds in blocking implementation of the PMCPA, it could have consequences far beyond Missouri. States as close as Oklahoma, Texas and Nebraska and as distant as Hawaii are currently considering puppy mill-related measures of their own. Unfortunately, lawmakers in these states are regarding these developments in the Puppy Mill Capital of America as a bellwether of reform. If the PMCPA is gutted in Missouri, your state’s puppy mill law might be next.

The fate of millions of dogs now hangs on the decision of one man. The ASPCA implores all of our supporters to contact everyone you know in Missouri; ask them to call Governor Nixon to urge him to veto SB 113 (please do not call the governor if you live outside Missouri). You can also help by spreading the word about this injustice—please share this article via Facebook and Twitter.

And here is the story about Governor Jay Nixon signing the legislation today, which gutted Proposition B in Missouri, nevermind what the voters said.

ASPCA is right, it's an outrageous affront to the democratic process. More at another time on follow-up response from the animal protection community.






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Step in Right Direction in Mississippi

via the Clarion Ledger:

Mississippi does the right thing and formalizes the hierarchy of charges that can be brought against animal abusers. I do not think this new law goes nearly far enough, in that it only allows for a misdemeanor to be charged if someone abuses animals (even in severe ways) only once in five years, but it's a compromise and that's the soul of governance (and marriage, but that's another matter).

Now the animal protection community can set it's sights on reforming the new law. In the meantime, kudos to Mississippi (I say the whole thing as I type, letter by letter!) for moving forward.


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Way to Go Tallahassee!

I'm so glad to see things turning around for dogs used in fighting operations and for both sides of the political aisle realizing that dogs can be rehabilitated. A holocaust happens every year in our nation's shelters, and pitbulls suffer the brunt of it. They are inherently happy dogs, always wanting to please their owners, and they can be trained easily, which is how our society's low-lives take advantage of them.

Thanks to Tallahassee, Florida for putting thought behind legislation -- not a small thing! We need more of this from other municipalities.

Dolly, a pit bull terrier believed to have been used as a bait dog to get fighters ready for matches, was a docile participant at a noontime news conference. Three legislators posted big photos of her bloodied snout and scars in the Capitol rotunda. The legislators and attorney Ledy VanKavage of the Best Friends Animal Society said no breed is always dangerous and very few abused animals are beyond redemption.

"You can see what a wonderful animal this is," Sen. Jim Norman, R-Tampa, said of Dolly. "This is a dog that has been typified as a vicious type of animal but, as you can see, if dogs are treated right, they're man's best friend, ladies' best friend — just wonderful creatures."

Bill Cotterell of pnj has the full story.



xoxo