It appears the proposed regulations set forth by the panel of the Canine Health Board back in September at the Independent Regulatory Review Commission Meeting, in which I was in attendance, will move forward and the law will change to allow dogs live on wire flooring which is in direct opposition to our new Dog Law. This means dogs may be forced to live on wire flooring for up to eight months out of the year.
Back in September I wrote the following after the meeting:
Since the new law went into effect October 2008, PA had 303 licensed kennels. We now have 111 licensed commercial kennels. Notice, I said licensed. How many are still out there hidden in the countryside? Out of those 111 licensed kennels, 81 received waivers to extend their time to make the necessary changes for three years.
While that part of the revision concerning the ventilation, humidity and temperature was a positive outcome, what so many animal advocates objected to were the issues concerning wire flooring and no access to excercise areas for the mother dogs and her puppies. The law’s wire flooring loophole which allow adult nursing dogs to stay on wire flooring for months at a time will stay in effect.
What does this mean? The new dog law states that dogs over 12 weeks of age must live on slatted or solid flooring. The new law never stated the type of flooring a puppy under 12 weeks of age will be forced to use. There’s your loophole. What is even more distressing is that nursing mothers and her puppies will have no access to an exercise run as required by law.
If you take a closer look at this scenario you will find a mother dog will be stuck in a kennel for at least half a year. Some advocates say up to eight months a year. The reason puppymillers are in business is to make a profit by breeding dogs. It is the female dog who endures so much of the hardship during her lifetime in a kennel. She is there to breed for profit every heat cycle. The pupppymills are allowed to keep mother dogs on wire flooring for up to two weeks prior to having puppies as well.
At the meeting, animal advocates spoke to the commission and shared their disapproval to such regulation which now allow dog and puppies back on wiring flooring, possibly up to eight months out of the year.
What a sad commentary on those who have made this decision. The PA Dog Law is slowly being torn apart and reversing all the good we animal advocates worked so hard to get changed.
This is surely a defeat for so mamy who worked so hard to get the PA Dog Law in 2008, one of the toughest, if not the toughest dog law in the land at one time. But, that is not to be.
In the state of Missouri, Prop B ,which the people voted into law in the recent election is already seeing attacks by the breeders themselves. According to sources, legislators will be fighting for the breeders against parts of Missouri’s new law as well. The breeders think it is unfair to ask for the basic necessities for the dogs and puppies that are making them a hefty profit. Missouri is the number one state that has the most puppy mills.
In PA, there are over 100 commercial kennels remaining with 12,000 dogs living (if you call it that) inside of these horrific places. And now they will continue to live on wire flooring.
Where’s the justice? How can this possibly be legal? I believe the answer to that is, it isn’t.