Building a Consensus on Animal Cruelty in North Dakota

There is disappointing news from North Dakota tonight, as Measure 5 appears to be going down to defeat. The opponents of this measure, mostly ranching and farming trade associations, were able to cast doubt among voters and tell them the proposed felony animal cruelty law was written by “outside” groups, as if the language morphs into something different depending on who backs it.

Trust the People, Not the Politicians

North Dakotans will vote next week on Measure 5, to make it a felony to maliciously and intentionally harm a dog, cat or horse. Lawmakers in neighboring states such as Montana and Minnesota adopted felony-level penalties for malicious cruelty years ago, and Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Oklahoma took action in the 19th century! In fact, 48 states have done it, and it’s embarrassing that North Dakota is such an outlier.

North Dakota: Vote YES! on Measure 5 to Stop Animal Cruelty

Just two decades ago, only seven states had felony-level penalties for animal cruelty (California, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin). Fortunately, there has been a steady drumbeat of lawmaking on this issue over the last 20 years, mostly led by The HSUS, HSLF, and state and local animal welfare groups, and now 48 states punish some forms of animal abuse as a felony offense, with Mississippi and Idaho being the most recent states to upgrade their anti-cruelty statutes.

Introducing the Animals & Politics Podcast

I'm pleased to introduce my new Animals & Politics podcast. Click on the player below to listen, or you can click here. I am grateful to my friend Patrick Ferrise for hosting the first podcast. From time to time in this forum, you’ll be hearing from me about proud accomplishments of our elected leaders and regulatory officials on behalf of animals. But today I want to draw your attention to a couple of stories about government’s abject failures.