Just days after a majority of Missouri voters approved Proposition B to crack down on puppy mill abuses in the nation’s largest puppy mill state and while provisional ballots are still being counted, a few Missouri politicians have pledged to work to overturn the initiative and to substitute their own judgment for the wisdom of the people. There is talk of a flurry of bills to be introduced in January to repeal the law.
In less than 24 hours, voters will head to their polling precincts and cast their ballots on candidates and issues across the country. There is much at stake for animal protection in tomorrow’s contests, including whether some of our leading animal advocates in Congress will return to Washington in 2011, and whether voters will decide to ban canned hunts and crack down on puppy mill abuses.
This week the Humane Society Legislative Fund launched a TV ad campaign in North Dakota, featuring North Dakota hunters who support Measure 2, a ballot initiative seeking to ban the unfair and unsporting practice of shooting tame deer and elk in fenced enclosures.
The readers of more than 700 newspapers in 20 countries this weekend were given a special treat with their Sunday comics: Patrick McDonnell’s popular MUTTS strip is spreading the word about Missouri’s puppy mills and calling on readers to take action to save dogs.
Missouri’s two largest newspapers, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Kansas City Star, today offered resounding endorsements of Proposition B, and urged Missouri citizens to vote Yes on this measure to stop puppy mill abuses by establishing common-sense standards for the care of dogs.
Meet Lucky. Lucky was rescued from a Missouri puppy mill last year. Ellen Lucas, a dog breeder and breed rescue coordinator who bought Lucky from a Missouri dog auction for a token amount of money, says, "When I got him he smelled, was covered in mats, could not eat from a bowl, did not know what a biscuit was, had never seen a toy, had never been on a leash, and had lived in a two-by-two-foot cage his entire one-and-a-half years. He is adorable now and Velcroed to my hip."
The midterm elections are just two weeks away, and there are dozens of competitive races around the country that will have an impact on animal protection. The Humane Society Legislative Fund has endorsed more than 300 candidates in the upcoming contests, and today launched four television ad campaigns supporting congressional champions for the humane treatment of animals in key districts from the Inland Empire to the Great Lakes to the Bayou.
The Arizona politicians in the pocket of the NRA are trying to pull one over on Arizona voters. They placed Proposition 109 on the ballot, which would amend the state constitution regarding the “right to hunt,” but it would do much more than that. It’s a power grab by politicians and special interests to take away the citizens’ right to vote on wildlife issues.
Many reputable dog breeders wholeheartedly support cracking down on large-scale puppy mills, cruel mass-breeding facilities that draw funds and attention away from good breeders and give the business a black eye. Good breeders know that stronger humane regulations can only lead to happier and healthier generations of dogs.
