Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon announced yesterday that he'd reached a compromise on the contentious puppy-mill law, which he called a "Missouri solution."
Nixon said in a statement that he worked with animal-welfare activists and commercial dog breeders as well as lawmakers to broker a deal to keep a few of Proposition B's provisions, namely bigger cages for dogs, while also throwing dog breeders a bone -- allowing said cages to remain stacked on top of each other and allowing the dogs on the bottom to get shit on, as our friends at the Riverfront Times pointed out. Of course, the real losers are still the dogs in the bottom cage, but Gov. Jay is OK with that.
"The agreement that was signed today upholds the intent of the voters, protects dogs and ensures that Missouri agriculture will continue to grow," Nixon said. "I look forward to continuing to work with these leaders as we move this proposal through the legislative process as swiftly and efficiently as possible."
Upholds the intent, huh? The Humane Society of the United States disagrees. (However, the Humane
Society's Missouri chapter is cool with Nixon's deal.) The national organization's president, Wayne Pacelle, told
the Star's Barb Shelly that Nixon's solution "falls short of
Proposition
B."
On top of the stacked cages, the Nixon deal doesn't require rest between breeding cycles or limit the number of breeding dogs. This sounds like a weak compromise by someone who could just as easily have sacked up and vetoed the bill -- honoring the voters' will -- as cut a deal to look good to the ag lobby.
Showing 1-14 of 14
Spoken like a true uneducated hick... Thank you for sharing your logic, which has been validated by both you and your wife/sister, with all of us.....
ptbamdb...let's check your facts too.
"...thousands of job losses, over a thousand small businesses to be destroyed, hundreds of foreclosures, countless bankruptcies, and displacement (and probably death) of tens of thousands of dogs?" Now you are making things up. I call this a lie as well. Maybe you might want to spend some time at one of these fine Missouri breeding establishments before you make your decision about what is right and wrong. Would you want to adopt a pet from one of these places? Do you even have any idea what they are like or the atrocities placed on the poor animals who suffer there? Try leaving your couch once in a while and open your eyes. The people of Missouri spoke and voted for Prop B. If those who run these breeding kennels don't like the new law, then maybe they need to review their business practices. What sickens me most is a governor wielding his power to overturn the will of the people and then trying to sell it back to voters as a good thing...or even a compromise. It's government at its worst - putting the will of big corporate money ahead of the voters.
Liz -- the "compromise" does allow for unfettered outside access (the size of the outdoor space is not designated in the law, but can be later when the rules are written).
Otherwise, you're right, it does lose many of those requirements -- but in exchange, gives the Attorney General more power to close down frequent offenders instead of relying on local law enforcement, and calls for increased funding for more inspections officers (which is sorely needed).
You can feel free to hate the compromise -- but don't hate it for the reasons the Pitch tried to call out, without apparently even reading it.. As a media outlet they have a responsibility to at least get the basic facts straight, and they failed on that.
I really do not care about the job loses. Small businesses based on ruining the lives of animals should be closed bottom line. If you want to find out first hand to horrible conditions that these "breeders" cause, I implore you to go to a rescue. Go call MOGS, Wayside Waifs, Animal Haven, or any of the countless LOCAL organizations involved in picking up the pieces that these small business owners leave behind. Better yet come to my house and meet my rescue. After you meet her you tell me if she had a good life. Yeah I bet she loved producing litter after litter of puppies. Living in a cage for the 24 hours a day shitting and pissing herself over and over until she thought it was expected. You trying eating just enough food so that you could stay alive and losing teeth trying to escape the hell that is your life. Dogs are companion animals, they need human contact to survive, 24 hours in a cage is not living. The next time one of these "breeders" calls us to collect their "inventory" can we call you? How many puppies can you house, how many 75 lbs females and 85 lbs males does your house hold. I am guessing the answer is none.
The compromise does call for impervious barriers between stacked cages-- however, it also calls for removing the requirement that dogs get rest between breeding cycles, weakening the requirement that dogs get necessary vet care (commercial breeders don't have to provide vet care if they decide an injury or illness is not "serious," though the law doesn't define that term), essentially removing the requirement that dogs have access to an outdoor exercise area, weakening the penalties for violating the minimum standards, and allowing dogs to be kept in extreme heat and cold for up to 4 hours at a time.
Wow, is it right and moral to keep Prop B even though it would cause thousands of job losses, over a thousand small businesses to be destroyed, hundreds of foreclosures, countless bankruptcies, and displacement (and probably death) of tens of thousands of dogs?
To allow Prop B to stand would be moronic.
To Jay Nixon - thank you for NOT inviting HSUS and other out-of-state radical animal rights organizations to the discussion about a Missouri issue.
To allow Prop B to be repealed would be moronic. This is no compromise, not even close.
To Jay Nixon - "We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals"....and beyond that, "The greatness of a nation and it's nation moral progress can be judged by by the way its animal are treated." - Ganhdi.
I once admired you, but the more I see of men, the more I admire dogs. Shame on you if you do not make the right and moral decision.
Lol, You wouldn't like the other phrases I could use. Really, when I see a lie, I call it a LIE, no matter where it comes from. And what specific lie did Lucas Oil tell?
Oh, don't forget about the big lie Barbara Schmitz, HSUS, told about Dr. Foster (a respected veterinarian), accusing him of having a wife and 500 puppymill dogs. I imagine that if Babs' big lie hadn't been exposed on the radio, someone would be repeating that as well.
HSUS lied? That is absolutely the pot calling the kettle black. The Lucas Oil Co, through Lucas Cattle., funded a huge disinformation(lying) campaign.You sound a lot like a mill operator; a decent licensed kennel had nothing to worry about. Clueless "kool aid drinkers". can't you "intellectual types" find a better phrase than that hackneyed, meaningless phrase?
When HSUS tells those outrageous lies about stacked cages and urine/feces raining down on the lower dogs, those colorful lies seem to get repeated continually by clueless kool-aid drinkers who have no idea what a licensed dog kennel is like.
The Humane Society of Missouri is not associated with HSUS. There are many of us in Missouri who are not happy with this deal, either. And Best Friends Society and the ASPCA isn't happy with the deal.
As for that so-called "barrier", yeah right:
http://puppies.burningbird.net...
Did you even read the actual law?
Cages can be stacked, but dogs can't just be shit on. There is a requirement for an "impervious barrier" between levels of stacked cages. FWIW, rescues and shelters across the metro do this type of thing all the time and most of them really care about animals. Like or dislike the compromise solution, but don't dislike it because you think dogs are free to get shit on...and maybe read the proposed solution before commenting.
I agree - there was no decent compromise made here. Animals shouldn't be treated this way. I have three dogs and two happen to be purebred. Not because I think they are better or fancy but simply because the rescue groups made it so difficult to adopt from them with all their hoops that it was easier to buy a puppy. I however checked out the breeders and got several recommendations before choosing one. If I knew they breed constantly I would have found someone else. But these puppy mills and stacked cages are horrible. They can't expect anyone would want to adopt them when the puppies have no social skills as a result of the way they are raised.
like
dislike
