Pet Legal Issues : July 2008 Archives

From Humane Society of the United States:

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee will hold a congressional hearing this Thursday, July 31, on two brand-new animal protection bills: one to stop the slaughter of horses for human consumption, and one to track animal-cruelty crimes. Your help is needed to gett these new bills started with a bang and build as much congressional support as possible, starting right now.

Please take action and urge your representative to track animal cruelty crimes and protect horses!

Similar to the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503/S. 311), the new Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2008 (H.R. 6598) will prohibit the sale and transport of horses to be slaughtered for human consumption, including horses exported over long distances to Mexico and Canada. Since this new bill was introduced by Judiciary Committee Chairman Conyers and specifically addresses the extreme cruelty inherent in horse slaughter, it has the potential to move quickly through the process if we can build up enough congressional support. H.R. 503, the anti-slaughter bill we've advocated for in the past, seems stalled, and H.R. 6598 has a better chance of being enacted. Please help us build support for our horses.

The Animal Cruelty Statistics Act of 2008 (H.R. 6597), also introduced by Chairman Conyers with Rep. Elton Gallegly, will require the Department of Justice to make the collection of data on all animal cruelty crimes a priority. Tracking animal abuse, which often is associated with family violence and other crimes, will boost efforts to interrupt the violence cycle. With this information, law enforcement and others can intervene earlier and more effectively to protect animals, children, and families.

TAKE ACTION

It is essential to gather as many co-sponsors as possible for these two bills. Please make a brief, polite phone call to your U.S. Representative, Todd Platts, at (202) 225-5836 before Thursday to ask Rep. Platts to co-sponsor the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act and the Animal Cruelty Statistics Act.

When you call, you will speak to a staff member who can pass your message along to your legislator. Please be polite and professional, and leave your name and address so it is clear that you are a constituent.

An example of what you might say:

"Hello, my name is [your name] and I live in [your town]. As a constituent, I'm calling to urge Representative Platts to co-sponsor two important new bills: H.R. 6598, the Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act, to prevent horses from being cruelly slaughtered for human consumption; and H.R. 6597, the Animal Cruelty Statistics Act, to require the Department of Justice to collect data on animal abuse crimes."

After making your call, send a follow-up e-mail to urge your Representative to protect horses.

Then, send a follow-up e-mail to urge your Representative to require tracking animal-cruelty crimes.

A staggering number of cats are killed in shelters each year, and the majority of these killings are off the record.

Only a few states require animal shelters to keep records and publicly report the number of cats they kill each year.

You have a right to know what is happening to the animals in your shelters, and how your tax dollars and donations are being spent.

Sign the pledge for change shelter practice and policy.

From The Associated Press:

Ferrets, like most other less conventional pets, may be subject to a range of laws regulating the ownership of exotic animals. Although it's legal to keep ferrets in most places, there are a few exceptions, such as New York City and California.

But David Gaines, director of the legislative and legal affairs committee for the American Ferret Association, says in recent years most places have made the pets legal.

"Minneapolis and Dallas have recently legalized them," he says. "I'm not aware of any major municipalities that have gone in the other direction."

Ferrets, members of the weasel family, have been domesticated for thousands of years. In the past, advocates had to convince legislators that ferrets shouldn't be regulated as wild animals, but "now it's more or less acknowledged," he says.

But animals are subject to a patchwork of laws at more local levels that which may not always be consistent with one another. For example, ferrets are legal in Salt Lake County, but that's overridden by a law that prohibits them in Salt Lake City. So you need to check carefully before acquiring a ferret, or before moving if you have one.

And don't assume that ferrets are legal in your area just because you see ferret food for sale in your local pet store. Gaines notes, "The ferret aisles in pet stores are getting bigger and bigger -- even in California."