By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Update 12/29/22: President Biden has signed the fiscal year 2023 omnibus appropriations package into law—a big win for animals!
By Kitty Block and Sara Amundson
Summer is a time of rest and relaxation for many of us, but there has been no lull in our fight to end puppy mills. We have made real progress in our campaign to stop inhumane dog breeders who mass-produce puppies for sale through third party outlets like pet stores and online sites that allow their cruelty to remain hidden. Here’s a roundup of recent wins:
Today’s approval by the U.S. House of Representatives of a FY23 budget package, H.R. 8294, produced sweeping animal protection gains across a range of concerns. Countless animals will benefit from the additional protections and funds that the package directs. Getting those provisions into this draft federal budget and keeping them there is an absolute priority for us, and we could not be more excited at the results so far. That is why this cluster of six appropriations bills is such an important focus of our animal protection agenda in Congress.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
When you’re a passionate animal welfare advocate, you might sometimes feel like a bit of an outsider.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Duchess is a Havanese with a wardrobe of tiny, colorful dresses. Cooper is a senior golden retriever who still has a lot of spunk and likes to go on vacations with his family. Alis is a Weimaraner who jogs with her owner and loves to catch a ball.
These dogs are finally enjoying life, and the puppy mills from which they were rescued are no longer in operation. Before they closed, each one of those mills appeared in our annual Horrible Hundred reports identifying known problem breeders in the United States.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Update 3/15/2022: President Biden signed the appropriations package into law.
Humane advocates often look to the passage of animal-friendly legislation as the strongest measure of progress in our work at the federal level, and clearly, good laws are important. But a nation that cares for animals needs to prove that in its spending commitments, too. For that reason, we work to secure strong animal protection laws and to shape congressional funding priorities for key federal agencies.
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block
Accountability is critical to our work. Just as we are accountable to our supporters and the animals we seek to defend, we work to hold elected officials accountable for their track records and their commitment to animal protection legislation.
Today we have published our annual Humane Scorecard to track key votes, co-sponsorships and other actions by federal lawmakers in support of animal protection. We hope you find it a valuable tool, and we’re heartened that many legislators work hard to achieve a high score.
By Kitty Block and Sara Amundson
We begin our work in 2022 encouraged by the knowledge that a handful of significant animal protection laws at the state level have now taken effect across the country. That makes for a great start to a year in which we hope to extend the reach of our campaigns to help all animals.
