Many animal welfare problems can be solved through innovation. It was the invention of the combustible engine and the automobile which made the horse-drawn carriage obsolete. It has been the development of warm and elegant faux fur fabrics that has given consumers and designers alternatives to animal fur in the marketplace. Immunocontraceptive vaccines can be used to manage wild populations of horses and elephants, obviating the need for round-ups and culling.
Tomorrow marks the 16th annual Spay Day, and all throughout February humane organizations, veterinarians and animal advocates are holding events to promote spaying and neutering of dogs and cats.
HSLF and HSUS have been focused on upgrading the penalties for staged animal combat, and in the last couple years we have helped pass 29 new laws to crack down on illegal animal fighting. But deterring bad behavior through law enforcement actions is just one piece of the puzzle. We also need to reach out to young men who are at risk for getting involved in animal fighting, and help to show them a better way before they head down this dead-end path.
It was a record breaking year in 2009 for animal protection lawmaking at the state level, with 121 new laws enacted for animals. And we’re already off to a strong start in 2010, with important policy reforms charging forward in key states.
The Missouri House Agriculture Policy Committee this morning held a hearing on two bills, HJR 86 and HB 1825, both of which would create an individual right for Missouri citizens to be free from any state law or regulation that imposes an “undue economic burden” on any type of animal husbandry. The legislation appears to be an overreach
A legislative committee in Israel this weekend advanced a bill that would ban the import and export of all furs, except for those used for religious purposes. The panel previously approved a ban on the sale of dog and cat fur, and Agriculture Minister Shalom Simhon is hoping to expand the law to include fur from any animal. The religious exemption would largely be used by the ultra-Orthodox community to manufacture shtreimels, a traditional fur hat.
All eyes have been on Haiti in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake that has killed at least 150,000 people in the western hemisphere’s poorest nation. As we saw during Hurricane Katrina and other natural disasters, the tragedy for people is coupled with a tragedy for animals—our fortunes are intertwined as animals are part of our daily lives in so many ways.
Before the holidays, I posted a preliminary version of the 2009 Humane Scorecard, and provided a look at the year in review for animals in Congress. We made progress for animal protection on a number of fronts, but also suffered some setbacks and left some important work unfinished.
I recently visited with my friends Christine Dorchak and Carey Theil, the leaders of the greyhound protection organization GREY2K USA, and we took stock of the state of dog racing in the country. Although greyhound racing emerged in the 1920s in America and peaked in popularity in the 1980s, it historically had not been a top priority for the animal protection movement, with the exception of a number of rescue groups working to adopt greyhounds discarded from the tracks.
This past weekend in Texas, the Parker County Sheriff’s Office, the USDA’s Office of Inspector General, and The Humane Society of the United States kicked off 2010 with a major cockfighting raid.
