Dog Encyclopedia: Advocacy & Legislation
As dog owners and people who care deeply for animals and
wildlife, we wanted our Dog Encyclopedia to be a website that could
empower pet owners to create the most positive, loving
environment for their dogs. Dog Encyclopedia realizes that owning a
dog is like adding a new member to your family.
You can help provide a better life for dogs in need. Find out how to
support canine rights and welfare. The United States is one of the
wealthiest countries in the world, but our stray and feral animal
overpopulation problem, in many areas of this country rivals that of
some of the poorest countries of the world. The saddest fact is that the
“pet overpopulation” problem is not one of money, it is one of
education. Research has been conducted by many experts around the world
that proves effective methods of animal control exist that are both
cost-efficient and humane. Yet we continue to spend hundreds of
millions of dollars a year on animal control that is not working. The
vicious cycle of continually funding “trap and kill” programs cannot be
broken without education with the goal of adopting proper policies,
programs and legislation. As pet lovers, our number one priority must
be education with the goal of changing our current thinking, policies
and laws on companion animal rights and population control.
The first and foremost problem of “pet overpopulation” is our own
education. Pet education is the key to changing attitudes toward
homeless companion animals. Legislation is the tool we have to ensure
human accountability for the “overpopulation problem” we have created.
Dog and Pet lovers need legislation that supports the humane and
cost-effective methods of homeless companion animal population control.
Dog advocates need legislation and enforcement that support serious
repercussions for those that continue to contribute to the problem. We
need a tax structure and properly structured licensing laws that
incentivize pet owners to spay and neuter our dogs and
cats. As dog
advocates, we need to educate ourselves, our communities, and our
community leaders in order to use our laws and policies to implement the
changes needed to stop the cycle of homeless animal procreation. In
addition, we must ensure that the homeless animals are not allowed to be
victims of the violent people in society, that they are not “easy prey”
because they are not owned.
While education is the key in changing attitudes toward homeless
companion animals, legislation is the only real way to ensure that
everyone is held accountable for the animals. At this point in time,
animals are not granted rights. Government funded shelter (public
shelters or pounds) laws seem to be not much more than an administrative
matter. Shelters are more often than not seriously under-funded which
results in sub-standard conditions for the animals and millions of
euthanasia's of healthy animals per year. Compound the lack of funding
and lack of priority in state and local budgets with the uneducated
public who don’t see the urgent need to spay and neuter their pets and
the many people who see animals as disposable commodities, and it is no
wonder that there are many apathetic people caught in the system. It
becomes is easy and even necessary to close your heart when you have to
see loving animals killed every day because of uneducated and uncaring
people.
The
International Society for Animal Rights (ISAR) was founded in
1959 to expose and end the injustice and exploitation of animals and the
suffering inflicted on them. Since that time ISAR has become a leader in
the fight for Animal Rights, living up to the commitment in its name.
ISAR's philosophical foundation is unique from other animal welfare
organizations because ISAR believes that animals have rights just as
humans do and ISAR is 100% dedicated to defending them.
In the American political structure, there are essentially two levels
of government, the federal and the state.
The Constitution of the
United States delegates specific
powers to the federal government, and the
Tenth Amendment provides that all other powers remain in the
states, which includes counties,
cities, towns and, villages. Get the names and
contact
information for federal and state legislators. ISAR has long been
active on the legislative front.
Learn More About Lobbying!
At the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
What Is a Puppy Mill?
The ASPCA defines a puppy mill as a large-scale
commercial dog breeding operation where profit is given priority over
the well-being of the dogs. Unlike responsible breeders, who place the
utmost importance on careful husbandry for the integrity of their
litters, breeding at puppy mills is performed without consideration of
genetic quality. This results in generations of dogs with unchecked
hereditary defects. Puppy mill puppies are typically sold through pet
shops and marketed as young as eight weeks of age. The accuracy of their
pedigree and purebred status is often questionable. Illnesses, diseases,
fearful behavior and lack of socialization with humans and other animals
are not uncommon characteristics of dogs from puppy mills. The ASPCA is
not opposed to dog breeding when it is done humanely and responsibly.
One hallmark of responsible breeders is that they assume lifetime
accountability for the animals they have bred. For more information,
please see the ASPCA
Position Statement on Criteria for Responsible
Breeding.