LINKS
Animal and Ecological Terrorism in America
Linked with Permission of American Legislative Exchange Council
NAIA Trust
NAIA
Pet-Law.com
(SAOVA) Sportsmen's and Animal Owners' Voting Alliance
(CFA) Cat Fanciers Association
Successful Lobbying
Elements of Successful Lobbying
Communicating with Members of Congress
Guidelines to Effective Lobbying
How To Kill A Bill
State Pet Law Groups
Find a Pet Law Group in your state
State Federations & Organizations
The Animal Council
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California Federation of Dog Owners
Connecticut Dog Federation
Dog Federation of Wisconsin
Florida Animal Owners Alliance
Alliance of Responsible Pet Owners of NE Florida
Illinois Dog Clubs and Breeders Association
Iowa Alliance for Responsible Dog Ownership
Massachusetts Federation of Dog Clubs and Responsible Owners
Maryland Dog Federation
Michigan Association for Purebred Dogs
Minnesota Responsible Animal Owners Alliance
Mississippi Canine Coalition
Missouri Federation of Animal Owners
New Jersey Federation of Dog Clubs
Pennsylvania Federation of Dog Clubs
Ohio Valley Dog Owners
Responsible Dog Owners of Illinois
Responsible Pet Owners Alliance (Texas)
Sacramento Council of Dog Clubs
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June 23 Iredell County animal ordinance revisions. Iredell County has drafted changes to its ordinance which will include definitions and standards for commercial and non-commercial kennels. The excessive commercial standards would require owners of 20 or more animals AND ANYONE WHO BREEDS dogs, cats, any small animal, or birds, to have expensive buildings, impervious surfaces for cleaning, temperature control, and restrooms for staff and more. However, these conditions as set are a mute point since the proposed ordinances revision also includes the requirement for commercial kennels to have licensing from North Carolina Department of Agriculture (NCDA). The owner of 20 animals for personal use and/or selling retail is NOT covered by existing NCDA regulations. Therefore, no license can be obtained and owning 20 or more animals would be illegal in Iredell County. In short, the proposed ordinance is a LIMIT LAW AND ANTI-BREEDING LAW for Iredell County where the maximum number of owned animals of one species would be 19 for purposes of show, competition, hunting or sport, but not for breeding.
*Proposed Definitions*
*Kennels - Commercial means any person maintaining an establishment where animals of any species, excluding domesticated livestock, kept for the purpose of breeding, buying, selling or boarding such animals or engaged in the training of dogs for guard or sentry purposes, and which establishment is so constructed that the animals cannot stray from the establishment; or any person owning or keeping twenty (20) or more animals, excluding domesticated livestock, each of which is four months of age or older. Kennel owners must have proper licensing from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture.
Kennels - Noncommercial means any person maintaining an establishment where animals of any species, excluding domesticated livestock, are kept for the purpose of showing, competition, hunting or sport, and which establishment is so constructed that the animals cannot stray from the establishment, and which maintains no more than nineteen (19) animals.*
Additionally an animal deemed a public nuisance is required to be spay/neutered within 45 days. Animal Control officers are solely responsible for this determination and there is no appeal process.
*Upon determining that an animal is a public nuisance, the animal control officer shall make a good faith attempt to notify the owner in writing of such determination, and also make a good faith attempt to obtain the owner’s written acknowledgement of such determination. However, such acknowledgement shall not constitute a necessary element for a violation by the owner of this section.
The determination by an animal control officer that an animal is a public nuisance shall be final.
The owner shall submit proof of spay/neuter within forty-five days (45) as required by Section 3-20 of this ordinance. *
View the full proposed ordinance with kennel standards.
View existing animal control ordinance available on municode
Iredell County has requested formal, written letters of opposition. Letters must be received no later than Noon, July 9th, 2008. A public hearing is proposed for the last Board of Commissioner's Meeting in August (the 19th).
Send letters to:
Mr. Tracy Jackson,Assistant County Manager
Iredell County Government Ctr.
200 S. Center St.
P.O. Box 788
Statesville, NC 28687-0788
Fax: (704) 878-5355
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UPDATE 6/4/08: After an overwhelming turnout to oppose the ordinance change, Orange County Commissioners have delayed further action until September.
5/19/08: Orange County public hearing on tethering. May 20 at 7:30 PM Southern Human Services Center,
2501 Homestead Rd, Chapel Hill NC. Orange County proposes to limit the time a dog can be tethered to 3 hours out of a 24-hour period. In addition, the county is regulating kennel sizes; 1-35 pound dog must have 80 sq.ft. PER DOG; 36-75 pounds must have 100 sq.ft. PER DOG; 76 pounds and up 120 sq.ft. PER DOG. In order to keep a second dog in the kennel, an additional 50 percent of space must be added.
Please attend the meeting if at all possible. If you cannot attend the meeting SEND AN EMAIL TO COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AND OFFICIALS
TALKING POINTS TO CUT & PASTE INTO THE EMAIL
• Tethering & Pen Confinement: A Cornell University study entitled 'A
Comparison of Tethering and Pen Confinement of Dogs' to determine whether
tethering was detrimental to the dog’s welfare compared general activity and
specific behaviors and concluded there was no improvement in welfare in pens vs tethers.
• Limiting tethering time will not change the mindset of any person who has such disregard for his dog that he will ignore or abuse it. Local animal control can and should address these cases of abuse within the current existing cruelty statute.
• Tethering can be the safest method of controlling a hard to contain animal. There are dogs that can escape from anything. They can chew through fencing and even chain link, break out windows, open doors, climb or dig under fences, and destroy wire and plastic shipping crates in seconds. These dogs can only be contained securely (and humanely) with a well thought out tether system.
• Setting time limits for tethering is unenforceable without stakeout and surveillance of owner’s property. Time limits will be used to antagonize dog owners by spiteful neighbors.
• Setting time limits for tethering discriminates against owners, i.e. renters, low or fixed income people, who cannot install fencing or kennel runs as an alternative.
• Setting time limits discriminates against people who work and prefer to leave the dog outside; and denies their animal access to the outdoors for the work day.
• A dog in a 10 X 10 ft kennel has 100 feet of play room. A dog on a 10 ft tether has 360 ft of play room; a dog on a 20 ft tether has 1256 ft of play room.
• Responsibility cannot be legislated. Responsible owners already care for their animals, and irresponsible owners are not going to follow the law, no matter how many new ones are enacted.
• American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interaction did NOT issue a position statement opposing tethering. The 18-page report mentions tethering one time, as a circumstance that needs further investigation.
• There is no reason why two average sized dogs cannot share a kennel. Many people with hunting and/or breeding kennels would have to spend thousands of dollars to add additional kennels to satisfy the whim of the county and those who believe all dogs should live indoors.
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UPDATE 12/11/07 The PAWS threat introduced by Senator Durbin (IL) as a rider on the Farm Bill HR 2417 has been pulled. Information on this issue can be found at Stop SA 3723
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HENDERSON COUNTY NC:
December 2007. The mandatory spay neuter ordinance has been defeated.
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UPDATE 10/16/07: Duplin County proposal pulled from consideration.
County Commissioners voted to table the proposal and are in the process of forming an animal advisory committee to draft an ordinance for future consideration.
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Update 9/20/07: Guilford County differential licensing tabled for now. |
DAVIDSON COUNTY, NC Update 02-13-2007 Proposed Mandatory Spay Neuter or $100 intact fee addition to the current ordinance - DEFEATED 5-2-07.
Thank you to all who worked to defeat this ill-conceived proposal. A better plan is enforcement of the current ordinance to reduce the numbers of at large animals and public education about the responsibilities of dog and cat ownership. Spay/neuter programs should be enacted and encouraged on a *voluntary basis*, not through mandated and coercive legislation. |
DEFEATED in committee. SB 1477 INHERENTLY DANGEROUS ANIMALS introduced by Sen. Jones.
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SB 684 SPAY/NEUTER FUNDING introduced by Sen. Kinnaird - passed.
Senate Finance Committee substitute adopted. Adds 20 cents to the cost of rabies tags purchased thru the State (not 50 cents as originally proposed); money collected to be used for the State spay/neuter fund. All reference to *registered dog breeder* has been removed from the bill.
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4/19/07 SB 1172 Restraining of Dogs [restrictions on tethering] has been WITHDRAWN. Senator Janet Cowell (Wake County) has withdrawn her tethering bill. MANY thanks to all dog fanciers, hunters, stockdog owners, and to the NC Sporting Dog Association for their emails, phone calls and strong opposition to this ill-conceived bill. Joining together to fight makes a difference!
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PENNSYLVANIA ALERT: The Independent Regulatory Review Commission effectively sent the proposed regulation changes from the Dept. of Agriculture, Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement back to the drawing board. The Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement has 2 years to start again and draft a revision.
House bills HB 365 bears monitoring, although it may be stalled due to failure of the proposed dog law revisions.
PA House bill 365 which requires 30 day suspension of kennel license for any infraction; HB 365 inserts breeding and socialization among the list of animal care items. There are no current references or requirements for breeding practices or socialization standards in PA law. If HB 365 passes, the Dept. of Agriculture, Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement will have to write these standards. Contact the PA House Committee on Agriculture and Rural Affairs .
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NATIONAL ANIMAL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (NAIS)
Controversial issue all North Carolina Citizens should learn about
June, 2008 Cattlenetwork: Court Suspends USDA's Efforts To Establish A Privacy Act System Of Records For NAIS
May, 2008 U.S. Cattlemen’s Association: Court Ruling Forces Release Of FSA Databases
May, 2008 LMA's Washington Discussions On NAIS, COOL 'At Nuts-And-Bolts' Level
October, 2007 Brasher: Animal ID program loses steam
October, 2006 The Hawkeye News. Iowa. Livestock ID program intended to track disease
September, 2006 Cattle Network: Five Minutes With Mary Zanoni, Director Of Farm For Life
August, 2006 Confidentiality is still the primary concern
July, 2006 USDA scales back mad-cow testing
June, 2006 U.S. slow to implement cattle-tracking system
May, 2006 New Booklet Outlines Effects of National ID System on Horse Industry
May 22, 2006 Congressman Opposes NAIS.
March 15, 2006 Horse Owners, Livestock Producers Take On NAIS.
American horse owners and livestock producers, especially those in "buy local" movements or those who keep livestock for their own food usage, are taking the US government to task with the NAIS. American horse owners and livestock producers, especially those in "buy local" movements or those who keep livestock for their own food usage, are taking the US government to task with the NAIS.
USA, March 15, 2006 (XTVWorld.Com) -- The National Animal Identification System, touted by the USDA as a means of tracking animals for disease prevention, seems more like just one more way that "Big Brother" can track and control the little guy. It is an unconstitutional infringement on the rights of the individual. It consists of microchipping animals, registering premises on which they reside - or might visit - and tracking this in a database.
The NAIS, once in full force, will affect virtually everybody, not just livestock owners, as pets will also be required to be microchipped, and both they and their premises registered. No movement on or off a premises will be allowed without tracking that movement. If a friend with a pet were to visit from out of town for a few hours, your premises would have to be registered, even if you yourself own no animals.
NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services FAQ on National Animal Identification System (NAIS)
NAIS participation is voluntary in North Carolina, as long as participation is voluntary on the federal level.
USDA/APHIS NAIS home Current information and releases from USDA
Why You Should Oppose the USDA's Mandatory Property and Animal Surveillance Program
by Mary Zanoni, Ph.D. (Cornell), J.D. (Yale), Executive Director of Farm for LifeTM
NoNAIS.org Protect Traditional Rights to Farm
News Observer. April 2, 2006. ID plan aims to track animals
County Courier, VT. April 13, 2006. Big Brother on the animal farm? Animal ID system raises Orwellian concerns for some
The Navasota Examiner. April 20, 2006. NAIS: (or how now, electric cow?) By Marc A. Levin
Cattle Network. April 20, 2006. Liberty Ark Coalition Forms To Fight Animal ID
CBS News. April 26, 2006. NH Leads Revolt Against Federal ID Rules
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