I just read the
speech that Senator Santorum made to the Senate. He makes this bill
sound like the best thing since sliced bread. The problem is that he
has not read his own bill. He is misinterpreting what it actually says.
Animal rights activists always tell you what they think you want to
hear, not what they are actually trying to put into practice. The USDA
will not be enforcing what Senator Santorum thinks the bill says but
what the actual words in the bill are and they are confusing at best.
The text of his message to the senate can be found in this pdf
document.
Click here to Link
to Paws (SB 1139/HB 2669) Language and Analysis.
PAWS Language
and Analysis
Some of MoFed's
concerns with PAWS:
Much
debate on various e-groups has centered around how many animals can
be sold, bred, traded, given away or bartered without requiring licensing
by USDA. How will co-ownerships of dogs or cats be counted? Numbers
as a requirement always create concerns for fairness. Small breeds generally
produce smaller litters; larger breeds generally produce larger litters.
To use the number of litters as a determining factor for licensing creates
an unfair balance of who should and who should not be licensed. Also,
the number of dogs a breeder can sell has been the subject of much debate
in the reading of the law. Differences of opinion among those who were
involved in the writing of the law leaves many unanswered questions
USDA
does not have the finances or the manpower to enforce more regulations.
If the bill is enacted into law as it is currently proposed there could
be authorization given by USDA to non-governmental organizations such
as HSUS, DDAL or AKC to carry out inspections. This would finally put
in place the sixth step of the Animal Rights agenda…to allow animal
rights groups to do inspections in the homes and facilities of breeders.
Many
states have laws regulating the breeding of dogs and cats within their
borders. If more breeders are brought into the Animal Welfare Act, many
states may have to enact more legislation because their state laws are
based on USDA regulations. It could create great financial strain on
those states at a time when some states are having trouble funding schools,
highways, welfare and health care programs.
If
this bill becomes law it will negatively impact breeders of pedigreed
cats and dogs with small/moderate sized breeding programs. When small/moderate
sized breeders stop breeding due to an unwillingness to allow inspectors
to tromp through their homes, then the only venue for supplying puppies
and kittens will be from Commercial breeders. Commercial breeders are
already licensed and are willing to house their animals in buildings
separate from their own living quarters. In Missouri, currently licensed
Commercial Breeders are used to meeting all the requirements of both
Missouri laws and USDA regulations. It is our concern that if current
licensed breeders are not able to maintain the desired supply of pets
then unlicensed substandard facilities will eventually spring up to
fill the gap.
MoFed stands for
the rights of animal owners and enthusiasts. We do not want more government
intrusion into our lives and our homes. The Animal Welfare Act is not
enforced uniformly across the nation currently. Missouri has nearly
half of the USDA inspectors nationally due to pressures from animal
rights activists to the Appropriations Committee in Washington D.C.
If the current AWA was enforced, there would be no need for further
laws and regulations concerning the breeding of dogs and cats. PAWS
is nothing more than additional government intervention.
The
scope of minimum humane care standards and penalties for breeders have
not yet been considered. It is a "come into my parlor said the
spider to the fly" syndrome in which Sen. Santorum, HSUS, DDAL
and AKC are luring breeders to trust them without detailing what that
trust involves. The law as it is introduced allows great opportunities
for massive changes as it works its way through the legislative process.
Those changes could prove even more harmful to all breeders.
Our
greatest concern with PAWS is the writing of the regulations after the
law would pass. Having been involved in the writing of regulations,
MoFed is acutely aware of changes that can be made that can severely
impact the original intent of the law. As an example, we have enclosed
a link to the Kitchen
Sink Docket(Click here). Fourteen pages of changes and additions
were made to the Animal Welfare Act recently without going through the
legislative process. The same can be done with PAWS. That reason alone
should be sufficient cause for every dog and cat owner in the United
States to work feverishly to defeat Santorum's bill!
Contacting
your legislators:
To
contact your Legislators put your zip code into the box link below
and click
"Go".
After reaching the NAIA Trust cap wiz site click on the Action Alert
for SB1139/HB2669. On the page that comes up you will need to put your
zip code into
the box and click "Go" again.
On the next page simply read and choose the points (on the left) that
you want to send to your Senators. After choosing your talking points
just click on the red arrows next to those talking points. Choose whether
you want to send your messages by mail or email and you are set to go.
Fill in your contact information and click send messages.