May 15, 2008 8:12 am US/Eastern
Dog Lovers Push For Pa. Puppy Mill Laws
HARRISBURG,
Pa. (AP) -- When Carly the
Pomeranian tries to bark, she doesn't emit a full-throated "ruff" or a
high-pitched "yip." It's more like a hoarse squeak.
For owner Deb Haney, Carly's bark is an
unfortunate reminder of a commercial Lancaster
County dog-breeding
facility that was Carly's previous home until her October 2005 adoption. Carly's
vocal cords were damaged to lower the volume of her bark in a practice known as
"debarking."
"She was the gentlest little dog ... a pitiful
little thing when they handed her over to us," said Haney, of Mount Gretna.
Haney was among about 100 advocates who
gathered outside the Capitol on Wednesday with their four-legged friends to
support a package of bills intended to impose tougher health and safety standards
on large breeding operations.
Haney is president of A Tail To Tell, an
organization devoted to rescuing dogs from so-called "puppy mills," which house
large numbers of neglected and abused dogs in cramped, unsanitary cages.
One of the bills would define a commercial
kennel as one that sell dogs to dealers or pet shops or one that sells or
transfers more than 60 dogs a year. It would double the minimum floor space for
cages and require annual veterinary examinations and regular cage cleanings,
among other things.
"If you're a breeder that doesn't give a dog
adequate water every day, doesn't give it food free from toxins, and doesn't
take the dog out of the cage to clean the cage ... we're coming after you
today," said Rep. James Casorio Jr., D-Westmoreland, the bill's prime sponsor.
Other measures would increase animal cruelty
fines and require owners of seized dogs to pay the cost of keeping them in shelters.
Gov. Ed Rendell, who owns two rescued golden
retrievers, has spent the past two years pushing for tougher enforcement of Pennsylvania's
dog law.
His administration proposed broad regulatory
changes last year to accomplish that goal, but abandoned the effort amid
criticism that the projected cost of compliance -- $5,000 to $20,000 per kennel—could
put some breeders, kennels and animal shelters out of business.
Jessie Smith, the state's special deputy secretary
for dog law enforcement, said the legislation would target about 650 large-scale
commercial breeders, roughly one-fifth of the state's 2,771 licensed kennels.
"The only way to not do one-size-fits-all is to
change the actual law," Smith said.
Kenneth Brandt, a lobbyist for the Pennsylvania
Professional Dog Breeders Association, which represents more than 300 breeders,
did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on the legislation.
On the Net:
Dog law legislation: http://www.doglawaction.com
