Fwd: UPDATE: H.B. 446

[Guest guest]

 

 

Dear Companion Pet Lovers ~

 

Gongwer News Service reported yesterday that "despite numerous hearings featuring extensive testimony on both sides of the issue, a proposed update of animal control laws designed to, among other things, clamp down on so-called 'puppy mills' with new kennel licensing requirements and other restrictions (HB 446), never made it back to the House."

 

Sponsor Rep. Shawn Webster (R-Millville) said "a letter of opposition from the National Rifle Association swayed too many Senators against the bill."

 

Mary

 

 

 

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UPDATE: Ohio H.B. 446

Mary O'Connor-Shaver <mshaver_0462

Tue, May 27, 2008 2:43 pm

info

 

Dear Companion Pet Lovers ~

 

The Ohio House of Representatives may vote Wednesday on H.B. 446 - http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=127_HB_446, which will change the animal control law and affect all canine companion owners. A vote is not on the agenda and the bill has not yet cleared the House Local and Municipal Government and Urban Revitalization Committee, however it's my understanding that an attempt MAY be made to present the bill onto the House floor for a

vote.

 

If you have not done so already, I highly recommend you contact your state elected officials and voice your opinion on this important

piece of legislation - http://www.house.state.oh.us/jsps/Representatives.jsp.

 

Thanks in advance for your kind consideration.

 

P.S. One important update to the recap below. Although Representative Webster did not refute Norma Bennett Woolf's interpretation of the provision affecting euthanasia of vicious dogs, further examination of the bill showed that pit bulls are NOT included in the ban on transfer of vicious dogs except for euthanasia. Her testimony to the committee has been corrected to reflect this new understanding of the bill's language.

 

 

Mary O'Connor-Shaver

Cell: 614-271-8248

Columbus Top Dogs (Shure Pets)

http://www.columbustopdogs.com/

http://www.banohiodogauctions.com/

 

I donate ALL profits from the sale of our premium products and accessories to local animal protection groups!

 

P.S. You or someone you know has requested you be added to the Columbus Top Dogs email list. If you do not want to receive emails from columbustopdogs.com, please reply and put "remove from list" in subject. Thank you!

 

 

 

 

At 02:27 PM 3/18/2008, you wrote:

 

 

 

Dear Companion Pet Lovers ~

For those of you who missed hearing proponent testimony for H.B. 446 last week, below is a recap. Ironically,=2

0this proposed piece of legislation may be one area where the breeding and rescue communities share common ground....

Here is the link to the bill - > http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=127_HB_446.

 

 

Mary O'Connor-Shaver

 

Cell: 614-271-8248

 

Columbus Top Dogs (Shure Pets)

 

http://www.columbustopdogs.com/

http://www.banohiodogauctions.com/

Click here to read updates about the Dayton, OH "Magnificent 7" - > http://columbustopdogs.com/wst_page9.php

 

There are 45 cats and dogs for every person born. Only 1 out of 10 dogs born ever get a home. Only 1 out of 12 cats born ever find a home. 800 dogs & cats are KILLED each HOUR in the U.S, because there are not enough homes for them. Opt to adopt. Don't buy from a pet store!

 

 

I donate ALL profits from the sale of our premium products and accessories to local animal protection groups!

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Wednesday March 12 at the Statehouse

 

Tue, March 18, 2008 2:08 pm

 

 

HB 446 ANIMAL CONTROL (Webster) To revise the statutes governing animal control. (3rd Hearing-All testimony)

 

 

Brad Cole, senior policy analyst with the County Commissioners Association of Ohio, offered interested party testimony. Commissioners appoint the dog warden, who enforces dog laws20through funding from the sale of dog and kennel licenses, he said. In most counties this is the sole funding source for the department, he added. "There are a number of counties where the dog and kennel fund is somewhat stressed."

 

 

Because the bill is so far-reaching, CCAO hasn't taken a position, opting to work with the sponsor to address concerns, while retaining provisions that would benefit dog warden departments, he said.

 

 

Duane Sanning, Darke County dog warden, expressed concern that the bill would require shelters to accept cats. While his county charges a fee to take in cats, many counties won't accept them at all, he said, noting there's no funding source for handling felines.

 

 

Rep. Webster said his intention was to "legitimize shelters that do take in cats," but not to require them to do so.

 

 

Matthew Verbsky, president of the Ohio Veterinary Medical Association, spoke in support of the proposal to require rabies vaccinations for dogs, cats and ferrets. Because OVMA hadn't reviewed the entire bill yet, he withheld comment on other provisions.

 

 

There are currently no statewide requirements for rabies vaccinations and local governments determine the policy, he said. "A zero-tolerance approach, as pro

vided by House Bill 446, should be enacted to best protect Ohioans from this public health threat."

 

 

The panel also heard numerous witnesses representing dog breeders testify in opposition to the bill.

 

 

Representing the Ohio Professional Dog Breeders Association, Ervin Raber said the proposed increase in fees for licenses would "hurt our industry and put a large number of us out of business." While he now pays about $285 annually for dog tags, the price would rise to $8,000 if the measure were enacted.

 

 

He also criticized a provision that would require putting tags on very young puppies, saying they could get tangled and strangle the pups.

 

 

Joshua Codner, speaking on behalf of the Ohio Game Fowl Breeders Association and the Ohio Sportsmen & Sporting Dog Association, blasted the proposal to remove an exemption for hunting dogs from animal cruelty laws. He said the language was vague and would leave the interpretation up to individual animal control officers.

 

 

"We feel this could lead to unjust charges of animal cruelty, considering members have been confronted in the past and hunters in general are seeing a large increase in animal rights opposition to all forms of hunting, especially with dogs," he said. Ideas of anima

l cruelty are subjective and vary depending on geography. "We have a difference of opinion here - rural versus urban."

 

 

Norma Bennett Woolf, representing Ohio Valley Dog Owners Inc., said the bill would "broaden the distrust that exists between dog owners and animal control agencies, drive owners and breeders underground, and result in more dog deaths in shelters."

 

 

She cited several specific concerns about provisions that would: reduce the age for licensing puppies from three to two months; prohibit the transfer, except for euthanasia, of pit bulls; increase licensing fees; and boost penalties for failure to surrender stray dogs and register puppies.

 

 

"By raising licensing fees, House Bill 446 targets those who already comply with the law to boost animal control budgets," she said. "Since national studies estimate that only about 30% of dogs are licensed, this places the entire burden for animal control on less than one-third of dog owners because they are law-abiding and are therefore easily found."