Animal Rights Anti-Breeder Legislation (NY)

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Animal Rights Anti-Breeder Legislation (NY)

Posted : 3/27/2009 12:17:50 PM

Commercial Breeder, Hobby Breeder or Dealer?	Take Action!
NY A 5507 Blurs the Lines
http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A05507&sh=t (link to legislation)
March 26, 2009 The New York Assembly could soon be considering a bill that is aimed at regulating commercial kennels but would impact most hobby breeders as written. A 5507, which has been dubbed “Charlemagne’s Law” is sponsored by Representative Ball and has been referred to the Assemble Committee on Agriculture. We support fair and reasonable laws to regulate commercial kennels, but by creating essentially four different classes of breeder, each accountable to different standards, this bill is convoluted, unfair and unnecessarily confusing. A summary of A 5507: Defines a “commercial kennel” as any kennel that sells or transfers more than 60 dogs, or transfers any dog to a pet dealer. Stipulates detailed quality of care and engineering standards and authorizes annual inspections by the Commissioner of Agriculture, police officers or peace officers. NOTE: a pet dealer, for the purposes of this provision, is defined as someone who sells more than 9 dogs per year, except for breeders who sell less than 25 home raised puppies per year. Changes the definition of ‘pet dealer’ to any person who in the ordinary course of business sells or offers more than 5 dogs/cats per year at wholesale or retail. This new definition expands the number of small breeders who must comply with New York’s pet lemon law and new unspecified standards of humane treatment, or may not “breed in excess.” Creates yet another, broadened definition of pet dealer to include people who sell or offer for sale more than 5 animals per year, except for breeders who sell directly to the public fewer than 10 home raised dogs/cats. This definition applies to requirements in the law for veterinary exams and disclosures to the buyer. Makes it illegal for a consumer, co-breeder, retail pet store, research operation or broker to buy or accept a dog or cat from an animal facility that is considered “inhumane” or that “breeds in excess” without sufficiently defining what that is. Empowers peace officers to enforce provisions related to pet dealers based on oral or written complaint. Increases civil Penalties from minimum $50 / maximum $300, to minimum $1000 / maximum $3000 for each violation. Allows the New York Department of Agriculture and Markets, at its discretion, to review the nature of such violations by pet dealers and seize any animals and place them in the care of a veterinarian or shelter, with reasonable expenses paid for by the owner. Authorizes veterinarians to practice law without a license by requiring any animal facility found in violation to obtain an affidavit from a veterinarian that the facility is in compliance with "all federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations the pertain to the humane treatment or condition of animals" in order to reopen. It would be impossible for most licensed attorneys to issue such an affidavit. Exempts incorporated humane societies from the definitions and requirements. Click here to read the bill. A 5507 creates 4 classes of breeders based primarily on numbers, and the rules apply differently depending on the number of animals you breed. Even small hobby breeders who sell 10 dogs/cats (raised on their residential premises) in a year are defined as pet dealers for the purposes of this law. The only breeders NOT considered pet dealers under this act are those who sell directly to the public 5 or fewer dogs/cats per year, or hobby breeders who sell less than 10 home raised dogs/cats per year. This threshold would subject breeders of large dogs who have only one litter to pet dealer regulations and we believe this is far too low to be reasonable. HOWEVER, all you have to do is sell or transfer ONE dog to another breeder who is considered a pet dealer and you would be considered a commercial kennel. This bill takes the unprecedented step of holding consumers legally responsible for determining whether the source of their pet is humane. This is completely unrealistic. While we strongly believe that steps should be taken to identify and eliminate substandard kennels, this bill stretches beyond that goal and targets all breeders, commercial and hobby, good and bad, large and small. Worse yet, it profiles and punishes responsible breeders who provide the best source of healthy pets to the community. There are more effective solutions available to help eliminate substandard facilities, from greater enforcement of existing anti-cruelty and nuisance laws to educating consumers about how to seek out responsible and humane sources of healthy pets. Click here to read our NAIA Guide to Dog Friendly Consumer Laws, which makes consumer education the key to ensuring that responsible sources of pets are rewarded and negligent sources are punished. Please use the talking points below to write an email to your Assembly Member today, educating them about this bill early in the process, before they are asked to consider this bill.

HoundMusic

Posted : 3/27/2009 12:22:15 PM

So far, 2009 has been an unprecedented year for animal rights legislation, and the National Animal Interest Alliance has been hard at work presenting the facts and arguments against it. The majority of the proposals we are tracking -- from mandatory spay/neuter to breed specific laws to anti-breeder measures -- have been brought to you by the Humane Society of the United States, (HSUS), and it is clear that they have been going state-to-state peddling one-size-fits all "solutions" to complex problems.

One of these bills has surfaced in New York in the form of A 5507, an anti-breeder bill that we alerted you to earlier this week. Click here to learn more about A 5507 and how you can help.

HSUS has orchestrated a series of lobby days at state capitols across the country to promote their agenda and legislation, and they will be in Albany on Monday, March 30th. We have observed that, immediately following these lobbying efforts, it is not uncommon to see animal rights bills scheduled for action.

If you haven't already written your Assembly Member with concerns about A 5507, now would be a great time to do that. Click here to write your Assembly Member. They will be hearing from the animal rights community tomorrow and it is critical that they understand there are two distinct perpectives on animal issues, and HSUS does not speak for a great number of their constituents.

Please forward this email to as many of your friends in New York as you can to get them signed up to receive our alerts, and encourage them to use our online lobbying tool. We must spread the word and ensure that the voice of reason is heard!

TO CONTACT NY ASSEMBLYMEN:

http://capwiz.com/naiatrust/issues/alert/?alertid=13005141&type=ST&show_alert=1