It has passed in Indiana all, we need to all stand together and appeal this,
Indiana
House Bill 1468 was snuck into the House Courts and Criminal Code Committee last week as an unannounced amendment to an animal cruelty bill relating to convicted felons. This kind of political dirty trick is used to eliminate opposition to controversial measures, by denying opponents the opportunity to read the legislation, contact elected officials and testify at the hearing.
Dog owners thus were robbed of the opportunity to participate in the process, and not given a chance to try to convince the legislators to vote against this amendment.
The amended legislation was approved by the committee by an 11-1 vote, and sent to the full House of Representatives with a recommendation for passage.
It is IMPERATIVE for every Indiana dog owners to immediately contact their legislators and explain your reasons for asking him or her to vote against HB 1468. Without a very strong response from dog owners, we expect this measure to be approved and sent to the Senate, which will be our last chance to stop it.
Rep. Ralph Foley (R-47) of Martinsville, IN, was the only committee member to vote against this legislation. Please take the time to contact Rep. Foley and express your gratitude for his support of the rights of dog owners, and his opposition to the animal rights agenda. Also, please ask him for his continued support. Here is a link to his email contact form: http://www.in.gov/cgi-bin/legislative/contact/contact-2-5.pl?data=h047 .
Here is a summary of the impact HB 1468 will have on dog owners:
· It will destroy the rescue network in Indiana. While rescue groups are exempt, a person or organization that breeds dogs cannot qualify for this exemption. People who raise dogs began the rescue movement decades ago, and remain at its heart today. Almost all rescue groups for specific breeds rely on people who raise that breed of dogs to foster homeless animals. In addition, many of the highest quality breeders of dogs for show and performance take a very active leadership role in the rescue community.
· Anyone who sells five or more dogs to the public in a year will be classified as a pet dealer. Thus, in many cases, even having a single litter of puppies will require extensive record-keeping of all dogs sold and all veterinary records, and require the dog owner to make that information available to law enforcement officials and potential pet buyers. This provision also will allow animal rights activists to go on legal fishing expeditions by posing as puppy buyers.
· The definition of commercial dog breeder will entrap many serious hobbyists who are working hard to improve the breed of dogs they own. Anyone who produces 10 or more litters of puppies will fall under this category. It also will be illegal for anyone to possess more than 30 dogs that have not been spayed or neutered. Many serious breeders keep all of their retired dogs for the rest of their lives, and also are working with and evaluating several young dogs. Having 30 dogs does not indicate that a kennel is commercial. These breeders would be required to microchip all dogs and puppies, and to obtain veterinary certification before breeding a dog. The legislation also would create a strict puppy lemon law.
· Outdoor housing will be banned for these kennels, which is hazardous for dogs that are used for hunting, herding and other activities. The bill requires temperatures between 65 and 78 degrees at all times. Most human homes in Indiana could not meet that requirement! Working dogs do their jobs in all kinds of weather, and it is dangerous for them if they are not acclimated to the conditions they will face. It is cruel, absurd and reckless to pass a law that forces people to keep sled dogs, hunting dogs or herding dogs in a heated environment, when those dogs will face winter weather extremes.
· And the legislation specifically allows municipalities to pass laws that are more strict or detailed than the state law.
Here is a link to the text of HB 1468: http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2009/HB/HB1468.1.html . This is the amended version that passed the committee. Earlier versions may not contain the amendment.
The American Sporting Dog Alliance is urging every Indiana dog owner to immediately contact his or her representative, and as many other representatives as you can. This is urgent, because this legislation can be brought up for a vote in the House at any time.
Because time is of the essence, please email, phone or fax the representatives now to express your opposition and to ask them to oppose HB 1468. Then, please follow-up with a letter through the mail or by fax.
Here are the representatives email contact information: http://www.in.gov/cgi-bin/legislative/contact/contact.pl .
This link will lead to each representatives home page, which contains full contact information: http://www.in.gov/cgi-bin/legislative/li....