INDIANA DOG BREEDING LICENSE BILL

[Keystone Kid]

---Subject: [evansvilledogowners] ALERT- INDIANA DOG BREEDING LICENSE BILL!
Date: Thursday, February 12, 2009, 1:37 PM

Indiana House Bill 1468 passed Committee vote on February 11, 2009 despite the opposition of two Committee members, one of whom accurately described the bill as "anti dog breeder."

H.B. 1468 now moves to the Indiana House floor and is reportedly up for reading and vote during the week of February 16th. We must act quickly to bombard our Representatives with requests to VOTE NO to H.B. 1468. Please call, write, fax and email your Representatives as soon as possible to inform them of your position on this bill.

The amended bill was introduced to the Committee in a manner that can only be described as underhanded. The original bill merely strengthened Indiana's current animal cruelty laws and was not particular offensive. The current amendment that is more concerning was added to the bill only after the Committee heard testimony from Humane Society of the United States representatives as well as the testimony of Indiana Representative Trent VanHaaften's (one of the co-authors of the original bill) wife who purchased a diseased puppy from a bad breeder. Those witnesses somehow "inspired" the Committee to amend the bill to include breeder licensing language. After dog breeders and fanciers heard that breeder licensing requirements were to be added to the bill, they were then informed that the Committee would not allow for further testimony on the bill. This is despite the fact that the contents of the bill were not disclosed until the morning of
February 11, 2009, the day of the Committee's vote. We need to say NO to the adding of breeding restrictions to this bill through the backdoor, without opportunity for comment or civil discourse.

You can read the bill at: http://www.in. gov/apps/ lsa/session/ billwatch/ billinfo? year=2009&session=1&request=getBill&docno=1468&doctype=HB
 As of this morning, the bill had not been updated with the amendments, so I am including the amendments as an attachment to this email.

The bill does not seem extreme at first glance. Many of you will think that it is harmless because "the licensing requirement won't apply to me because I would never breed enough litters a year." However, note that any person who sells 5 or more puppies a year is considered a "pet dealer" under the amended bill and will have to provide their name, contact information, and veterinary records to law enforcement officials. This is the case regardless of whether or not you will be required to obtain the commercial breeder license required for persons with more than 10 litters per year. If you have one litter a year and sell 5 puppies from that litter, the "pet dealer" portion of the law applies to you.

The Humane Society of the United States ("HSUS") is an Animal Rights organization, not a supporter of Animal Welfare. It is behind the introduction of this bill in Indiana. It wants to take away your right to breed dogs. Its method is one referred to as "incrementalism" -- taking very small steps to make small gains and establish new public policy precedents that can be exploited and expanded over time. This means that what applies to breeders of 10 litters today will be amended in subsequent years to apply to those that breed five litters, then 3 litters, then 1 litter. It is time to draw a line in the sand. Make no mistake; the ultimate goal of the HSUS is to stop breeders from breeding dogs. HSUS President and CEO Wayne Pacelle made this goal crystal clear when he said: "I don't have a hands-on fondness for animals...To this day, I don't feel bonded to any nonhuman animal. I like them and pet them and am kind to them, but there's no
special bond between me and other animals...In fact, I don't want to see another dog or cat born." For more information about the true nature of HSUS, please visit the website of the Sportsmen's & Animal Owners' Voting Alliance at http://saova.org/threat.html.

The HSUS has lobbyists in multiple states this legislative session, all of who are pushing legislation very similar to H.B 1468. In states it believes will be more friendly to its cause it requests harsher restrictions like the bill currently being considered in the Illinois legislature. That HSUS supported bill calls for licensing of all breeders who have three or more intact bitches and requires things such as indoor/outdoor runs for every dog in the household, with the consequences of non-compliance being that pets will be destroyed by local shelters or your own veterinarian. To view the Illinois bill, go tohttp://www.ilga. gov/legislation/ fulltext. asp?DocName=&SessionId=76&GA=96&DocTypeId=HB&DocNum=198&GAID=10&LegID=40220&SpecSess=&Session= In more conservative states such as Indiana, the HSUS initially requests less burdensome restrictions with the goal of gradually strengthening the restrictions over the course of several years. Do
not doubt that if H.B 1468 passes, the HSUS will be back at some point asking for legislation similar to what is being proposed in Illinois. Now is the time to stop the HSUS in Indiana. We cannot not wait until an aberration like what is being proposed in Illinois is proposed here.

I am not pro-puppy mill. I am not pro-pet shop. I am against cruelty to animals, whether the offender harms a single pet, breeds one litter, or owns 50 dogs and breeds 20 litters a year. Indiana already has harsh penalties for people who are cruel, abusive, or mistreat their pets. These penalties include jail time as well as confiscation and disposition of affected animals. If you know of a puppy mill situation, or if you know of an individual who abuses their pets, you need to report this information to your local law enforcement officials and/or local animal control officers so that they are aware of the problem and can use the tools already at their disposal to protect Indiana's pets.. If they are not responsive, contact your local prosecutor, mayor, commissioners, town manager, or council and demand that they use the arsenal Indiana lawmakers have already provided to stop animal abuse. If the breeder is someone that sells dogs to a
broker or directly to pet stores the federal Animal Welfare Act already controls them, and if they are in violation of that law their operation needs to be reported to the USDA so that it can enforce its regulations. None of us wants to see animals suffer, but H.B. 1468's breeder licensing requirements are redundant and unnecessary.

Please write your Representatives - email your Representatives - and call your Representatives ASAP. Phone calls and handwritten letters carry the most weight, but they will need to be sent out NOW in order to be received before the bill is brought before the House. If you don't know who your Representative is, go to
http://www.in. gov/apps/ sos/legislator/ search/index. jsp?currentPage= gotoIndex.
You can also get his or her email address from there. You can reach the offices of all Representatives at 800-382-9841 or 317-232-9600.

It is best to not use form letters, so write your letters in your own words and express what is important to you.

Remember in your letters and other interaction with your legislators: Be polite, be straightforward and be respectful. Also, keep in mind that the majority of legislators do not know what dog showing and dog breeding is about so you will need to provide an explanation. Here are some points you can use in your letters if you choose:

· Dogs are valuable to the economy. The basic annual expenses for maintaining a single dog including vet bills, food, boarding, grooming, vitamins/supplement s, treats and toys are in excess of $1500.00 per year.
· Dog shows are valuable to the economy
- There were 90 AKC conformation dog shows in Indiana last year.
- There were 393 AKC performance events in Indiana last year, including obedience trials, field trials, agility trials, rally trials, hunt tests, coonhound hunts, tracking trials, earthdog trials and lure coursing trials..
-Exhibitors spend average of $320 each per weekend.
-Three day dog show weekend can bring in between $300,000 to over $1 million to community hosting the show.
· We already have laws in place that if enforced would shut down so-called "puppy mills." This includes IC 35-46-3 et seq. that makes animal abuse and mistreatment a criminal offense that can require jail time as well as allowing for the confiscation and placement of the mistreated animals
· Breeder Licensing is bad for dog breeders. Such laws require breeders to pay for "privilege" of breeding animals and are designed to limit number of purebred dogs produced by home breeders. It will not affect irresponsible owners who are already ignoring leash laws allowing their pets to roam and breed at will.
· Dog limit laws are bad for dog breeders. Such laws limit the number of dogs/pets that may be owned by individual or household. Such laws have already found unconstitutional in 2 states (PA and GA). Limits can make it difficult to maintain a genetically responsible breeding program.
· Puppy Lemon Laws encourage consumers to buy from bad breeders with fewer consequences. These shift all risk of purchasing a dog to the seller under guise of consumer protection law, and punish breeders who openly acknowledge existence of health problems. They relieve a buyer of all risk and the responsibility to do their homework when purchasing a pet.

Protect your hobby. Contact your Representative with a polite but firm message of opposition and ask your fellow dog fanciers and breeders to do the same. Please cross post this wherever concerned dog breeders will read it.

To take your opinion a step farther and help a group of Indiana animal owners protect the sport and science of dog breeding in Indiana, please contact me for more information.

Stacy Newton
Wildcard Papillons
Home of multiple AKC CHs, UDs, and a very special CH/MACH/UD/RAE dog
Newburgh, Indiana

[S.R.Patch]

All they needed was a "foot in the door".
It's pretty much already over.
Once the law come into effect, the only thing needed is to change the definition and interpitation of what is necessary and what is abuse, that's what lawers are good for...we're skunked...

[Keystone Kid]

The bill passed it's second reading in the House in Indiana. It is now scheduled to be voted on as a new bill by or before this coming Friday February 20th.

[DoubleEagle]

Not sure what happened there with your links but here's the one for Indiana Legislators...

http://www.in.gov/apps/sos/legislator/search/

[Keystone Kid]

Indiana House Bill 1468 has now passed the House by an 80 to 14 vote, with 6 abstaining.

If you guys are wanting to field trial in Indiana anymore, or raise a litter of pups, you might as well forget it if this Bill passes the Senate.

[Keystone Kid]

Here is a link to the Bill

http://www.in.gov/apps/lsa/session/bill ... docno=1468

[Keystone Kid]

From information ive gotten HB 1468 will be heard in the Criminal and Civil Matters Committee due to the fact that part of it deals with imposing criminal penalites for shooting or poisionng an animal.

MEMEMBERS OF THE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL MATTERS COMMITTEE


Richard Bray (R) District 37 317-232-9466 email s37@in.gov
counties Clay, Johnson, Monroe, Morgan, Owens, and Putnam

Mike Delph (R) District 29 317-232-9488 email s29@in.gov
counties Hamilton and Marion

Randy Head (R) District 18 317-232-9488 email s18@in.gov
counties Cass Fulton, and Kosciusko

Lindel Hume (D) District 48 317-232-9523 email s48@in.gov
counties Davies, Dubois, Gibson, Green, Knox, Martin, Orange, and Pike

Tim Lanane (D) District 25 317-232-9534 email s25@in.gov
county Madison

Brent Steele (R) District 44 317-232-9418 email s44@in.gov ( chairman )
counties Jackson, Lawerence, Monroe, Orange, and Washington

Karen Tallian (D) District 4 317-232-9441 email s4@in.gov or ktallian@juno.com
counties Lake, and Porter

Greg Tayler (D) District 33 317-232-9847 email s33@in.gov or ggdrtayler@sbcglobal.cnet
county Marion

Brent Waltz (R) District 36 317-232-9814 email s36@in.gov
counties Johnson, and Marion

Michael Young (R) District 35 317-232-9517 email s35@in.gov
counties Johnson, Marion, and Morgan


as far as email addys are concerned its easy to see that if you know the senators district the addy small s their district number @in.gov.

We have a lot of differant ideas and actions planned all over the state. at this point I feel its best to screen your emails carefully, use the telephone or US Postal service. We want to get the most bang for the buck and dont need AR people knowing what we are doing.

[Farmerwells]

Any more info on the senate vote??

[Keystone Kid]

everything is OK for now

[Keystone Kid]

It passed...and the fight has only just begun! Be prepared. Linda Lawson will be back to lower the numbers and add other amendments that will be detrimental to all dog owners and breeders. You can NEVER compromise with Animal Rights Activists. "Compromise" means that both sides give up something to reach an agreement. HSUS has given up NOTHING...dog breeders have given up their right to conduct business without interference from AR groups. As you've all already heard, this DOES NOT satisfy Linda Lawson and HSUS. AND, it opens the door for any and all counties/cities/towns in Indiana to impose dog limits if they can accomplish it BEFORE January 1, 2010. Keep your eyes and ears open to what's happening in your local communities. (Lawson would LOVE to see the Ft. Wayne limit law imposed everywhere...a limit of 4 dogs.)
Permission to cross post.
Sheila

http://www.in.gov/apps/lsa/session/bill ... docno=1468
or
http://tinyurl.com/cp678z

[Keystone Kid]

I'm amazed that only one person has responded or expressed any understanding of what occurred in conference committee that has left dog breeders at greater risk than ever before, so I'm giving it one last try. Please review the following information and bear in mind that the change Lawson made to HB 1468 in conference committee puts show/hobby, sporting/hunting, service dog and police dog breeders in grave danger of losing any and all protections Sen. Steele tried to provide for us with his verstion of HB 1468. Further, commercial breeders could lose their businesses if the Lawson-amended version of HB 1468 is signed into law.

The Fort Wayne animal control ordinance is the most restrictive yet passed in Indiana. This is the ordinance that Lawson did not want to see invalidated by HB 1468. It is also the type of ordinance she wants to see enacted statewide. This is a summary of the restrictions in Fort Wayne:

How many dogs and cats may I keep in the city?
City ordinance limits the numbers of dogs and cats that may reside at a residential city property. At no time shall the number of dogs exceed five, number of cats exceed seven, or the total number of dogs and cats exceed seven at one property.

Must all my dogs and cats be altered?
City residents may keep one unaltered dog or one unaltered cat over five months old. Any person that owns more than one unaltered dog or one unaltered cat over five months old must apply for a kennel or cattery permit through Animal Care & Control. It is possible that a dog or cat will be exempt from altering due to its health. If so, present a letter of exemption from your veterinarian.

Dog and Cat Breeder Permits
Breeder permits are issued by Animal Care & Control in an effort to reduce euthanasia through breeding control. City law requires a permit regardless of whether the litter was intentional or unintentional.

Major Breeder - More than one litter per household in a 12 month period. $100 plus zoning approval.
Minor Breeder - One litter per household per 12 month period. If the breeding animal is spayed after the birth of the litter - $10 permit. If the animal is not spayed following the birth of the litter - $40 permit.

If someone lives in an unincorporated area that is later annexed by the city of Fort Wayne and owns more than the totall allowed dogs/cats (or more than 1 intact dog or cat), then they must apply to have their pets "grandfathered" in as follows:

When a new area is annexed into the city, pet owners are given a limited time to grandfather their current pets. To be considered exempt from the city ownership limits, dogs and cats owned or harbored and exceeding the ownership limits must be registered with Animal Care & Control during the time frame specified. Call 260-427-1244 and ask for the deadline date. If you fail to register within the time frame, your animals will not be exempt. To complete a Grandfather Registration, you will need proof of the spay or neuter surgery for each animal, a picture of each animal, and have purchased the annual or lifetime registration tag. If your pet cannot be altered because of the pet's health, you will need a letter of exemption from a licensed veterinarian.

With very few exceptions, the Fort Wayne ordinance is essentially a mandatory spay/neuter ordinance, with a strict limit of 5 dogs, 7 cats or a total of 7 cats/dogs combined per residence.

The above type ordinance is what Linda Lawson will be encouraging every city/county to adopt over the next 8 months, before HB 1468 takes effect on January 1, 2010. If Gov. Daniels signs HB 1468 into law, rest assured that every animal rights activist in the state will be immediately petitioning his/her city/county council to adopt an ordinance similar to that in Fort Wayne.

We defeated the HSUS at the federal level 5 years ago when they attempted to significantly change the USDA AWA regulations to target home/hobby breeders, and to change the regulations so that it would be nearly impossible for commercial breeders to comply. With that defeat, the HSUS chose a new path - to start attacking breeders at the state level. At last count, this year alone, there are 137 pending HSUS-backed anti-breeder bills in 34 states.

We need to kill this bill. Our very last chance to do so is to ask Gov. Daniels to veto it. If we fail, we'll immediately be innundated with very restrictive local ordinances that we'll have to fight to try to "protect" HB 1468.

This is the clause that Lawson got inserted during conference committee that poses such a threat to HB 1468:

"Prohibits a unit from adopting an ordinance imposing more stringent
requirements on commercial dog breeders after December 31, 2009, but permits
a unit to enforce a more stringent ordinance if the ordinance was adopted
before January 1, 2010."

The above clause gives Lawson, the HSUS and their minions a full 8 months to get local ordinances passed that will severely infringe on our rights that Sen. Steele tried to protect in HB 1468. Note that the prohibition against a city/county imposing stricter requirements than HB 1468, as amended by Lawson in conference committee, applies ONLY to commercial breeders! Any and all casual or hobby breeders are left totally unprotected from the passage of any new, more restrictive LOCAL ordinances, if those ordinances are enacted prior to January 1, 2010. A primary intent of Sen. Steele's version of HB 1468 was to ensure that State Law would supercede local law. Lawson's 11th hour change voided Sen. Steele's work in that regard.

Please, contact Gov. Daniels and urge him to veto HB 1468.

mdaniels@in.gov
317-232-4567

[SMytyk]

I'm against limiting the number of animals a person has, and I'll let the governor know my opinion as I'm thinking about moving back to Indiana. But I don't see anything in the bill that will immediately affect breeders of hunting dogs. The bill specifically states that people who "breeds sport dogs for hunting purposes" are exempt from the breeder licensing.

[Keystone Kid]

I just received the bellow email from Jack Hyden.



The last legislative session ended April 29Th, and yes I know how late I am letting you know what went on at the statehouse concerning HB1468, the infamous "puppymill bill". The essence of the long bitter fight with HSUS pawn Rep. Linda Lawson was, indeed, an up and down again, full circle, and at times comical scenario. What should have been a no brainer animal cruelty bill was destroyed when HSUS woman of the year Rep Lawson added about a dozen really stupid amendments that basically defined anyone who breeds and sells puppies as an animal abuser and puppymill. Lawson got the bill past the house of Representatives by using her powers to bring the bill to the floor without giving us an opportunity to speak. (she needs only 4 hour notice) she brought HB1468 to the house with only the radical animal extremists given a chance to speak. she then promised the house that she would work with anyone who opposed the bill to take into account their concerns. so with that promise the house passed the bill with a 96 to 14 vote. Once the committee hearings started however, Lawson once again used her powers to post hearings just before they were to start, and even shifted the dates so when we planned on being there on one day, the hearing was already over due to her changing the date to the day before and only giving us a few hours notice. ( you will notice that thru out this whole ordeal radical animal extremists pocket puppet Lawson pulled her antics over and over again. some of them becoming even childish....well most if not all of her actions were childish).

With the landslide hide and seek game in the house over, Lawsons luck began to run out. Her pet bill, excuse the pun, went to the committee headed by Republican Senator Brent Steele. Senator Steele had been keeping up on Lawsons antics and had pretty much decided not to even give it a hearing. The commercial breeders, show dog folks, and the sporting dog groups convinced him to make drastic changes to the bill and then let have its day. The animal cruelty portion of the bill was left in tact, however, the HSUS, and radical animal extremists portions were stripped out of the bill and HB1468 become the property of the majority of Indiana residents way of thinking. HSUS control was taken out and USDA standards were put in. The Board of Animal Health was added to oversee the commercial breeders operations, caps on the number of dogs that could be bred were removed, and a couple simple rules for large scale breeders was added. Lawson and HSUS funny girl Ann Sterling were fit to be tied. Not an hour went by that did not have Lawson trying to change the bill back to its original stupid start, each time she did Senator Steele and the newly formed Indiana Council for Canine Welfare prevailed and the extremist amendments were once again removed. Each and every hearing we were able to get people from all over the state to attend, while Lawson and Sterling's efforts were ignored by her groups. Lawson went to the extreme of calling a news conference 2pm one day and then posting a committee hearing for 3pm and only giving her usual 4 hour notice. Her thoughts here was that she would have her people there, the press there, and none of us would have time to show up. Sorry, Linda...... didn't work that way. We had over 60 people in attendance, and her people went home. The HSUS's temper tantrum Linda had only about three people in attendance and she wouldn't open the meeting for the public to speak because the press was there and her people were not. Each time she had a hearing, we were there in large numbers and her people were not. she finally stopped opening the hearings and merely sent draft after draft of HB1468 to Senator Steele. Each draft she put all of her oppressive amendments back in it, and each time Senator Steele rejected it. she attempted to put her stuff in SB0238 and was unsuccessful in getting that done also. At one point Rep. Lawson was getting so many calls asking her to accept Senators Steeles Version of HB1468 that she began transferring all her calls to Matt Doer, Senator Steeles liaison. that little childish antic lasted only a few short minutes, was detected and stopped. A very emotional and temper stricken Lawson actually stooped to yelling at me the last day of the session. She screamed that they were putting my amendment back into HB1468, "Jacks Amendment" she called it....lol. Lawson was referring the exemption for sporting dog breeders that are at least 75% sporting dogs. and then only if they have more than 30 in tact females over 12 months of age. in the waning hours of April 29,2009 Lawson and Sterling were running out of time for the bill and basically caved in on everything we wanted and needed, and their baby stroller poodle types were left wonder where they missed the dog bowl. In the end game States Attorney General contract employee, David Miller put his job on the line and sided with Lawson, Sterling, and the animal radicals in attempting to put the Attorney Generals office in charge of inspections instead of BOAH. that stratigy didnt work either. Its yet to be seen if miller will get his contract renewed again or if he will be beside so many other Indiana Residents in the unemployment line.

Hope you enjoyed the summary and history behind HB1468. everything i wrote comes to you first hand. I spent the last 8 weeks of the legislative session in the statehouse and experianced everything written here up close and personal.


Indiana Beaglers Alliance President
Jack Hyden