***permission to forward***

CA AB 1634 has passed out of committee. It will now go on to the appropriations committee. If it passes there, the next stop is the full assembly for a vote into law. If it becomes law, there will effectively be no more breeding in California.

The people who believe we should "work with" the fanatics who want these bills passed should read The Future of Dogs at
http://www.pet-law.com/future/forward.html
It can also be ordered as a booklet from that site. These laws are not intended to lower euthanasia rate -- the DOG euthanasia rate has been dropping steadily for 30 years. They are intended to STOP BREEDING ALTOGETHER. Unless you understand the animal rights agenda, you will never be able to protect your rights.

When California develops a dog deficit, which is already happening in many parts of the state, when people cannot buy a quality purebred, guess where the puppies will come from? Over the border, as many are now. They are raised in uninspected, often filthy places that make the breeders we call "puppy mills" look like doggie heaven. Do you think the people who are already supplying puppies illegally ("Meet me in the Walmart parking lot at midnight. Bring cash.") are going to stop doing it when their market doubles and triples?

Since many of those pups will end up in shelters due to health or temperament problems, the ARS will be back in three or four years saying "The law isn't tough enough." And those Responsible Breeders who decided that since the laws would only apply to those Irresponsible Breeders, we should work on a compromise will find themselves caught in the web next. And guess who will NOT be there to help us? Remember those commercial breeders we threw to the lions??

The statistics cited as "horrific euthanasia rates" include:

1) Cats -- there is still a cat overpopulation problem, largely due to feral & "barn cats." Forcing purebred cat breeders to spay and neuter will not touch this problem. How many "excess euthanasias" do you think there are of, say, Abyssinians or even Persians? How many people with purebred cats allow them to roam and breed freely? Purebred cats account for one percent of the overall cat population.

2) Dogs brought to shelters FOR euthanasia. Many people cannot afford to have a vet euthanize an old, even very much loved, pet. Their only choice may be shelter euthanasia, where the perhaps 16-year-old chihuhahua is counted as "ANOTHER UNWANTED PET!!!!"

3) Dogs with no chance of being safe, happy or healthy pets. It's not true that there are no bad dogs, just bad owners. Just like some people, some dogs are just plain wired wrong. Yes, unfortunately they may bounce through a few homes before arriving at the shelter, but they too -- even though no one could call them pets -- are counted in the "SKYROCKETING EUTHANASIA NUMBERS."

If California goes mandatory spay/neuter, we will lose possibly ten percent of the gene pool of many of our breeds. What will that do for purebred dogs?

Folks, this is war. We are county by county and now state by state losing our right to not only breed, but to even OWN more than two or three dogs. Compromising is not the answer. Education is. I am amazed at the number of inquiries I get from people who already KNOW not to buy from pet ships, know what questions to ask, are prepared to pay a fair price for a good puppy. It will not help us to win the education war if we have meanwhile been legislated out of existence.

There will always be shelter euthanasia and it will always include some dogs that could have been good pets. There will also always be child abuse, homelessness, and cancer. It happens. Life is not perfect. Passing laws to wipe out breeding as an approach to shelter euthanasia is like limiting couples to two children to prevent child abuse. The issues are not even related except that they both involve children.

We do not have a pet overpopulation problem. We have a pet retention problem, and the answer to that is education. Help people KEEP their pets by offering support and being open to questions. Many people who turn their dogs in to shelters do so because they don't understand the basics of housetraining or dog behavior. And yes, they may turn in their next dog too unless there is intervention.

When your neighbor gripes about her Labradoodle peeing in the house, don't roll your eyes and preach about the folly of "designer dogs." Give her a copy of the housetraining paper you send home with puppies. Talk to her about what exactly is going on. Is he marking? Is he confined for too long and just can't hold it? Has he just never been housetrained?

As breeders, we have a responsibility to address the owner turn-in part of euthanasia, but it is not fulfilled by cutting back on breeding or supporting laws against "those other guys." It is hands-on, one-on-one education provided in a friendly -- not condescending and bossy, which we all excel in! -- manner. We need to be making friends in the community and doing something to fight the "snobby dog breeder" image we've built over the years.

Okay. Enough. Next time you see something about AB1634 or another bill in someone else's community, find out what you can do to help. Today it's California. Tomorrow it will be your state. You may not think you have time to help. You'd better make time or no one will be left to help you when it's your turn.

--
Sharyn

Timbreblue Whippets ~ www.timbreblue.com
Sharyn & Walt Hutchens
Virginia
Pet-Law: Protect Your Rights to Own and Breed Dogs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Pet-Law

CA AB 1634 has passed the commitee. I was there, and just arrived home.

There was sort of an impromptu meeting afterwards. There is going to be a website put up, by a new "corporation" called the "Concerned Dog Owners of California". The website will be something like, CDOCalifornia.net or .com or .org. This is supported/approved by AKC, in some way as well. It should be up in a few days' time. They call it the concerned dog owner of California, so that it is not just breeders/fanciers, but includes the pet owners too.
In the mean time Kathie Turner, kathie@sunbeamgoldens.com is a contact person, and she is accepting money via checks or Papal to fund this movement. Without funding, we are helpless against PETA, HSUS and the like that back Mr. Levine's bill. Another contact person for the Northern California region, is Jacky (Oh shoot, I can't remember her last name!!) her website is dr.jacky@prodigy.net There will be a Southern CA contact person also, but I did not get his/her name.
There was a lot of good information passed around, but the theme is that we all need to move quickly, because this goes to appropriations in a months' time.
This is really crappy news, I am not usually a political activist type person, but I figured that I couldn't complain later if I didn't try to do something about this, and since I live failry close to Sacramento, I have gone to both hearings. Actually today was a vote only meeting, and no one was allowed to speak, except for Mr. Levine.

Does it do any good to write when we don't live in the state where the legislation is being proposed? I've written letters before but I wonder if it puts any pressure on legislators. Do you have any stats on that Gina?

Can't hurt, Might help!!!!!!
We can change Stats to our advantage by participating.

Sure it helps. Remember the dog auction we killed. And all those emails were not just local. I can't wait for the website to go up. I for one have a few buck I can send to help with the fight.

" If it becomes law, there will effectively be no more breeding in California."

Sadly that is NOT true in the worst form. While responsible breeders, who are already currently complying with local/county regulations, will be the first to be targeted since they are on the books so to speak, the commercial breeders get a free ride on this one. All these breeders need to show is that they have a business license. That's it! The other provisions for responsible breeders are impossible to comply with.

Mr. Levine said the opposition did not want to work with them to help stop irresponsible breeding so there was no contribution from "US". What bull is that? When my county first wanted to instituted its "Hobby/breeder" permit, I was there for the meetings along with my fellow members of the dog community and kennel clubs to help write a law that was workable. It has been for the past 13 years! One of the provisions stated that all animals advertised for sale in a newspaper of $50 must have the permit number listed in the ad. Of the half a dozen or so ads each week in the papers, rarely does one have such a number listed. Our county does not even have the man power to enforce this law!

The irresponsible people (not real breeders) are the ones who do not currently follow the laws and do not abide by the leash laws currently in place. They allow their animals to roam free, to breed and have puppies and if they can't give them away to more irresponsible owners, they dump them at the pound. More often than not the puppies are taken in by people who see them in front of a super market and they have no reason to get them other than they are a cute puppy. Then they get rid of them (at the shelters). The dogs may or may not be spayed/neutered by then.

It will be a sad day in CA if this bill passes!

Dianne

I really belive that this new law will NOT pass!
It is rediculous and takes away our rights as
American Citizens!!

I talked with an Animal Control Officer today,
and he did not even know anything about this
new law????

I talk with pet people every day, you know the
ones, Labradoodles, Pugadoodlges, Gooldendoodles,
Maltipoos, 20lb Chi. Mix, Pekapoos etc.etc. etc.
They don't Care!!!! No Spay or Neutering my
dog! We can make a buck:) They are inside
dogs and no one will even see them:((

NO WAY THEN CAN INFORCE THIS...

"I really belive that this new law will NOT pass!"

Hope that will be the case but can we take a chance on assuming that it will not???

"It is rediculous and takes away our rights as
American Citizens!!"

For Sure!!!

This is what a friend of mine sent me when I sent her your message. She works on keeping us in Kansas City up to date on the dog "laws". You may have already seen this....

I just directed several people to an excellent web site, Dog Gone California:
http://www.doggonecalifornia.org/
The article by Dr. Houston on the home page has good information that can be applied outside of California regarding pet populations and shelter euthanasia.

Very interesting stuff there. Also, check out The Animal Council, also California based:
http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/

The Animal Council site has some interesting articles about the San Mateo ordinance, the first mandatory speutering ordinance.

The National Animal Interest Alliance website (NAIA) has good articles about shelter imports. This one is about rabies coming in to the country courtesy of Mexican imports:

http://www.naiaonline.org/body/frommexicowithrabies.htm

A shelter in Massachusetts had to destroy all of its animals several years ago due to a dog from Puerto Rico that was imported and had rabies. Massachusetts has NO adoptable animals in their shelters and the state had to issue an emergency order on animal import laws because they had such a problem:

http://www.naiaonline.org/body/MassEmergencyOrder.htm

The Ca Vets are behind this. Believe me if you take an intact dog to the vet *SOMEONE* will find out about it. Of course only the good visible breeders will be canned first. But there is a little provision in the amended version that says all intact permits will expire on Jan 1, 2009. Plus there is no exemption for dogs traveling there for shows etc.

I'm not trying to sound *mean or hurtful* here. We all know about the Ostrich with his head in the sand! I don't want to see some of the best dogs in the country get neutered and spayed because someone wasn't aware or didn't believe it would happen to them. In reality, yes it will be hard to enforce, but the AR faction is VERY wealthy and very strong in California (Hello! Hollywood?) and they are not afraid to sue government when non-enforcement is an issue.

From www.pet-law.com

— It won’t happen in your town/county/state?

Yes, it will. Seriously bad laws are being proposed from California to North Carolina, from New York to Texas. One of the worst proposals this year came from Oklahoma.

In Denver it is illegal to breed pets. No exceptions.

In Dallas, they’re enforcing zoning laws against home businesses to prevent breeders from selling their puppies and kittens.

Fauquier County, Virginia - (Where??) Yup. They've passed a county-wide dog limits thatis forcing some owners to get rid of pets or move.

In Louisville, KY, and Albuquerque, NM, the worst pet laws in the nation have just been passed. In a matter of months or years, there will be no home breeding in those cities. The governor of New Mexico is attempting to make the Albuquerque law a state law.

PETA or HSUS members don’t have to be a visible presence in your town for this to happen. Those organizations have websites, conferences, and literature teaching people how to get animal rights bills and laws passed.

All it takes is one burned out shelter worker who decides that all the problems of the world can be blamed on breeders.

Or one distraught mother who thinks that all (fill in the breed) should be banned because her child was bitten.

Or one applicant for a rescue animal who is turned down and decides rescuers ought to be regulated and licensed.

It’s not the big AR organizations who start these things. It’s your neighbors who see a perceived or actual problem and decide that the solution is in regulation of everyone rather than in enforcement of current laws...which nearly always would solve the problem. Once the action starts, the national organizations may well offer help and support to the people pushing these laws, but the main impetus is from local people.

So yes, it can happen in your neighborhood!

— You don’t know what to do, where to start, or even how to find out what’s going on.

That one’s easy. Here’s all the stuff you need to do. If you can’t do it all, do what you can. Everything counts.

Join the Pet-Law email list.

Find out what’s going on where you live. Join your state email list, attend city council meetings, get involved!.

Write letters.

Make phone calls.

Inform other people. Your vet, your groomer, your puppy (or kitten or bunny or bird or reptile) buyers, your rescue adopters, your other email lists, your neighbors, anyone who might possibly have an interest in preserving the right to own pets.

Meet with government representatives.

Vote.

And start reading here: What to Do When Activists Want to Pass a Law in Your Area

Where can I find info on the law that prohibits breeding pets in Denver??? Is this Denver "proper" or??? TIA.

Can someone post names and addresses so dog lovers and dog breeders can write to these people about responsible breeding and sensible laws that address the fundamental problems?

For California Residents go to www.ab1634.com There is a list of the assemblymembers and their contact info on the left side of the page. Email me privately fo COlorado information. I am trying to dig something up.

Here in California there must have been something on the local TV news about this awful bill because at work today I was approached by someone who asked if I had heard about this and how unbelievable it is!

I'm wondering if there are enough pet lovers out there who don't want their rights taken away that would join us in fighting this? I was just kinda surprised that the word is getting out to "Joe Blow" and the outrage I heard from someone with no interest in breeding whatsoever.

Contact all of your past and present (in state) puppy buyers and tell them that their choices in getting a purebred dog will be greatly diminished if this passes. Ask each of them to write their legislators.

posted from pet-law*

I spoke with CDOC directly to get the facts. Cathie Turner confirmed
that
CDOC plans to meet with Levine (re AB 1634) and Boks (re the LA
ordinance). Purpose would be to dialogue and to negotiate. I was asked
whether I would prefer AB 1634 or something less bad. My answer to
that is
that we can beat AB 1634 if we stick together, and meeting/
negotiating with
them increases the odds of AB 1634 passing. Levine will twist this
into a
claim that the breeders have worked with them to fix the bill for
breeders.

We have all seen what Levine's is about... he lies at the public
hearings,
and he surely lies in private. He has shown no willingness to date to
yield to any of the concerns about AB 1634. If the very influential
94,000
member California Farm Bureau Federation cannot get their concerns
about AB
1634 addressed, then nobody can.

I strongly encourage everyone to contact CDOC and let them know that you
don't support their plans to meet with Levine & Boks. If anyone has any
influence over them, please try to exert it. If you know anyone who
might
have influence over them, please ask them to help.

Also, I encourage those who support the AB 1634 opposition to send your
money elsewhere. An inclusive PAC that includes the interests of all dog
and cat owners in the opposition, and is dedicated to the outright
defeat
of AB 1634, will be announced within a few days.

Permission to cross post is granted.

Laura Sanborn
http://saveourdogs.net/

I COMPLETELY agree with what Laura has written. CDOC is attempting to
splinter our energy, money & opposition to this misguided bill! While
they may have dog show experience, they have no legislative
experience in this area. Please don't fall for this! An INCLUSIVE PAC
is the ONLY way to go!

Florence
cfodconline.org

http://www.cfodconline.org/

I recieved this in my email today...
Great News! The Pet Political Action Committee
(PetPAC) is up and running. So, who are we, what do
we plan to do, and how will we do it?
1) We are YOU. PetPAC will represent the dog fancy
(AKC and other purebred dog fancy) Cal Dog Federation,
if they agree to join with us) CDOGS, if they also
decide, local and regional purebred dog clubs, working
dog groups, (K9, Narcotic, Bomb, Farm, Hunting,
Herding,Coursing, Agility, Good Citizen, Service,
etc.), Mixed breed owners, individual dog owners; The
cat fancy, when they officially come on board, The Cat
Fanciers' Association, The International Cat
Association, when they are ready, individual cat clubs
in California, individual cat owners and anyone else
who refuses to give up their pet ownership rights,
their privacy and give in to government intervention
and control.
I am Bill Hemby, contracted as the Director of
Political Affairs for the California Organization of
Police and Sheriffs, COPS, and Kelley Moran, (Moran
and Associates), a political action firm specializing
in campaigns, elections, political information and
anything politics.
We both have represented COPS for years, Kelley for
10, me for 30. Both of us are ardent dog lovers,
Kelley with two German Shepherds, me with 7 Borzoi and
now 2 rescue Afghans, 1 cat and 2 horses. Dog
handler, dog club officer, legislative liaison from
Borzoi Club of America, legislative advocate for 25
years, one of the creators of COPS, one of the worker
bees for RDOGS, etc, etc.

PetPAC has hired a political action law firm to assist
in putting everything in place. We have hired an
accounting firm to oversee any $$$ donated.
2) What do we do? First of all we raise money, and
lots of it. If we do not raise dollars, the rest will
fail. We represent your interests, We talk with
legislators, we present the real facts, the
statistics, and the economic realities of life. WE DO
NOT NEGOTIATE ON AB1634, PERIOD, END OF DISCUSSION, we
raise money; we advise how to get the best political
advantage for the bucks, we attend with your
representatives political fund raisers, we talk with
legislators, we raise money, we set up grass roots
campaigns, we run full blown political campaigns, we
blanket districts with volunteers, we get OUR message
out to the dog and cat owning public, and the press,
we raise money, we talk with legislators, get the
picture?

3) How do we do this; We start by putting together a
Board of Advisors, that will be those of you who are
interested in helping. We start by attending fund
raisers and donating $$ to the leadership in both
political parties, we donate to movers and shakers in
the legislature, we donate to the Governor. We, with
your help, do a public information campaign, we put
you on talk shows, television, radio, internet, chat
rooms, blogs, signal fires if necessary.
We develop and distribute information to the dog
loving public. We slowly change the animal speak from
animal rights zealots to our side. "breeder
advocates", dog and cat rescue. Not spay and neuter,
but castration and ovariohysterectomy or something
shorter. Get the picture? We start a campaign now, to
be involved in next year's elections, we endorse
candidates, we work to elect our candidates, we put up
our candidates, we work to defeat candidates, we
select one district and "take out" someone defiently
opposed to us. and a host of other politically
oriented programs. In the short term we defeat
AB1634, in the long term we defeat those animal rights
crazies who are bent on our destruction and work with
those more logical, open and sympathetic. We remain
open to changing as situations present themselves. we
are not cast in concrete, but we are determined,
capable, legal and ethical.

I have spoken with a lot of you in the past few days.
What I have put down here is the overwhelming
consensus that has been given to me from all sides.
If you still believe in this approach and if you still
believe in me, then lets get the job done. Please join
with me and my partners and go in the same direction.


Now, the practical stuff: Donations to a PAC must be
voluntary. We cannot force anyone to donate or set up
conditions that force you to donate. You either
believe in this approach, or not. We will have to
collect your name, address, and telephone number
usually on your checks. This is required by the Fair
Political Practices Commission. This is to prove your
donation is voluntary if they ask. Your name and
information is not turned over to anyone. You do not
go on a "fund raising" list. For our data base we
want your email address-makes it easier and faster to
communicate.

So, write your checks or money orders to: PetPAC,
P.O. Box 1019, Sacramento, CA 95812. Tell your
friends to write their checks to: PetPAC, P.O.Box
1019, Sacramento, CA 95814. If you have any
reservations email me at whemby@yahoo.com

I thank you for all your hard and diligent work. I am
very confident we can defeat AB1634 and go on to
create one of the state's most powerful lobby. So, the
ball is in your court.

Bill Hemby

I will be their Wendsay.

Vincce.