[AndyKoh]

A win for the poor doggies in Pennsylvania!

Our government should conduct inspections in local puppy mills as well to ensure decent breeding conditions.


Source: http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opini...ppy_mills.html

Another similar case here: http://www.herald-coaster.com/articl...ews/news02.txt

Stopping Abuses In Puppy Mills
New regulations in Pa. would require safe, sanitary housing.

By Bryan R. Lentz

Recently, viewers of the Oprah Winfrey Show tuned into a widely publicized television show devoted to exposing horrific living conditions and abuses in puppy mills. Unfortunately, puppy mills in Pennsylvania played a major role in this broadcast.

Several Pennsylvania puppy mills, where there was widespread neglect and deplorable conditions, were toured. Small dogs were stuffed into rabbit hutches. Kennel operators dragged dogs by their front legs. Of the 20 dogs that were rescued, nearly all were suffering from dental disease. One ill puppy later died in a veterinary hospital.

Gov. Rendell, an adamant dog lover, has come out on offense against these abuses. He proposed several regulations to protect dogs from abusive treatment in puppy mills. These regulations, under the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, would provide new oversight and update Pennsylvania's Dog Law to address practices that were not common when the regulations were last revised in 1996.

One example of the inhumane treatment in these puppy mills is the practice of stacking dog cages to allow for keeping as many dogs as possible to breed. There have been instances of dog cages being stacked so high that dog wardens needed to climb ladders to see into them. Today, dogs in puppy mills are put into these cages and are never allowed out their entire lives.

These practices may comply with existing regulations and law, but they are not always in the best interest of the animals. Dog wardens regularly receive reports of dogs permanently housed in small cages with no exercise, dogs placed in the cold with no bedding, and dogs with no water for up to 18 hours.

The state legislature is taking aim at this problem. New legislation set to be introduced next May would improve the health and safety of dogs and raise minimum standards for people who own or work with dogs.

The legislation will call for commercial breeding kennels to maintain safe and sanitary housing with adequate space and comfortable temperatures, and for stricter enforceable vaccination standards. Puppies 12 weeks of age or older could be housed in cages with wire floors, but the flooring would have to be in good repair. Stacking of cages would be limited to two rows of cages and to 4.5 feet in height for inspection purposes during the first 12 weeks of life. Dogs in kennels would have to have an exercise plan, and minimum temperature standards would be implemented. Kennels would be required to have smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, and possibly sprinkler systems. Tethering would be eliminated, and there would be an increase in the availability of water.

The proposed legislation would also allow the state's dog wardens to enforce the cruelty provisions of the Dog Law; mandate that dog owners pay the costs of care for their dogs during appeals; issue civil penalties for violations of the Dog Law; strengthen criminal penalties in both the Dog Law and cruelty statutes; and cite unlicensed kennels and provide wardens with the ability to inspect unlicensed kennels. It would mandate the revocation of a kennel license for owners convicted of cruelty and provide other enforcement tools.

Additional legislative initiatives aimed at improving the nature of dog breeding in Pennsylvania include House Bill 365, which would allow for the suspension or refusal of kennel licenses for certain violations, including lying on kennel license applications; H.B. 2416, which would place reporting requirements on police officers when detaining dogs; and H.B. 1065, which would place restrictions on the tethering of dogs and introduce criminal sanctions for violations.

I support these efforts and will continue to monitor their progress as well as other Dog Law initiatives to improve the breeding and living conditions for dogs in Pennsylvania.

In the meantime, I will keep citizens' views in mind when these initiatives come before the legislature for a vote and share them with my colleagues in the General Assembly.

It is our responsibility to be a voice for the animals that cannot speak for themselves. We must protect defenseless animals from abuse and neglect, and ensure that the deplorable conditions exposed on national television are remedied.