New state legislation being opposed by AKC

[Leslie and Halas]

I apologize in advance for the length of this post. I've kept it as short as I can.

The AKC sent a letter to our kennel club asking people to oppose new proposed legislation in Illinois. I'm sure they'll oppose similar legislation in other states. The first law involves tougher standards for breeders. The second one involves ear cropping and tail docking.

Here's the text of the letter...

"Dear Illinois AKC Delegates, Club Officers, Judges and Breeders,

We are writing you today to update you about two pieces of legislation that are being proposed in the Illinois Legislature. Although we are currently waiting on amendments for both bills, the draft amendments that we have seen do not adequately address our concerns, protect responsible breeders or preserve the rights of owners and veterinarians to make decisions regarding an animal’s health care.

House Bill 198 and Senate Bill 53
These bills are supposedly an attempt to address "puppy mils" and irresponsible dog breeders in Illinois. However, these bills affect many small-scale hobby breeders and create unreasonable standards for commercial breeders who are in compliance with current state and federal laws. Their passage will not improve enforcement or the lives of animals in Illinois

The Illinois Department of Agriculture already has a licensing program in place which requires breeders with more than 5 intact females to be licensed. The ;puppy mills; that sparked the introduction of this bill was not licensed as current law required and it was being investigated by the Department of Agriculture.

Although draft amendments that have been circulating would allow the Department of Agriculture to administer the bill (current bill language establishes a new program in the Department of Financial and Professional Regulations), the provisions continue to be burdensome and will not improve animal welfare.

Enforcement of current laws is the most effective way to address animal care issues in Illinois.

Senate Bill 139
SB 139 seeks to severely limit the practices of tail docking and ear cropping in the state. Current Illinois statute allows ear cropping and tail docking done for any legitimate purpose. If SB 139 becomes law, ear cropping and tail docking would be considered "animal torture" under Illinois criminal law and would be allowed only for medical purposes. In effect, SB 139 seeks to fundamentally change many breeds
characteristics by severely limiting the valid practices of cropping and docking.

The American Kennel Club recognizes that ear cropping, tail docking, and dewclaw removal, as described in certain breed standards, are acceptable practices integral to defining and preserving breed character and/or enhancing good health. Appropriate veterinary care should be provided. "

Here's a little bit of House Bill 198

Creates the Dog Breeder License Act. Provides for the licensure of dog breeders with the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation beginning 6 months after the effective date of the Act. Sets forth powers and duties of the Department, licensure requirements, grounds for discipline, civil and criminal penalties for violation of the Act, and administrative procedure. Includes provisions concerning exemption from the Act. Provides that the Act does not limit the power of a unit of local government from regulating or licensing the practice of dog breeding in a stricter manner. Amends the Animal Welfare Act. Provides that pet shop operators must publicly disclose certain information regarding dogs for sale. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act to provide that a licensee who intentionally makes false or misleading statements in connection with the disclosures required by the Dog Breeder License Act and the Animal Welfare Act are violations of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Amends the Regulatory Sunset Act to set a repeal date of January 1, 2020 for the new Act. Effective immediately.

Here's a little bit of Senate Bill 139

Amends the Humane Care for Animals Act. Limits the situations when a person could dock an animal's tail or crop its ears without violating the Act's prohibition against "animal torture". Establishes that the following is not "animal torture": (i) tail docking performed by an Illinois licensed veterinarian for a medical reason (now, just "tail docking") or (ii) ear cropping performed by an Illinois licensed veterinarian for a medical reason (now, just "ear cropping"). Effective immediately.


Here are links to the full text of the legislation if you're interested in reading it. HB198 is too long to try to summarize:
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=&SessionId...
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=&SessionId...

I'm curious to hear people's thoughts on this, especially breeders' thoughts. We talked about it a little bit in another discussion. I don't know a lot about the current laws, so I don't know how much of a hardship the new breeder standards would be. I would think that a lot of reputable breeders are living up to these standards already. There may be a lot more documentation with the new standards, but I'm wondering if that's more of an inconvenience than a hardship. The idea with the new legislation would be to try to stop puppy mills, etc., but the AKC sounds like they're suggesting a lot of reputable breeders couldn't live up to these standards. I guess I'm wondering if that's true. Does anyone think that a reputable breeder that cares about their breed would stop breeding just because the standards became higher?

I know that enforcement is also a big part of the issue. I don't know how well the current laws are enforced, so I don't know how much good new laws will do.

Anyway, I just want to hear from others. I was a little surprised at first that the AKC would oppose these laws.

[Jennifer]

I think the law sounds like an improvement over the current laws, and the AKC should be exposed for the awful organization that they are. Really, tail docking and ear cropping are important in the preservation of the breed? The AKC should be ashamed of themselves, I'm glad they don't recognize the doodle.

[Leslie and Halas]

I'm with you. I've never been in favor of tail docking or ear cropping, and it's funny that they try to make you think it's for the health of the dog. I can see where there might be a health reason in very unusual circumstances (like a tail injury or infection or a bite out of the ear), but that is certainly not the norm. They say character and preservation of the breed, when all they really mean is the look of the breed. Which is kind of strange anyway, since most dogs look just fine (often better) with long tails and floppy ears.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I have also noticed a lot of "natural" ears lately at the dog shows on breeds that previously were always cropped...specifically Dobermans and schnauzers, so it appears that anti-cruelty is catching on, at least among some of the conformation show breeders. And those are the ones who have the most at stake here. I wonder why the AKC has a problem with it...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I would also like to add, for those who may not be aware of this, that certain breeds' ears just naturally stand up as the puppy ages; German shepherd pups, for example, are born with floppy ears, but at about 5 months, they start to stand. It is natural for them. So maybe the AKC ought to let nature dictate what a particular breed's ears and tails are supposed to look like.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

EARS IN TRANSITION, LOL:

HOW THEY'RE BORN:

THE FINISHED PRODUCT:

[April Cliber]

ADORABLE!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Leslie had brought up this issue in another discussion, recently, asking the same question about why the AKC would oppose regulations or laws that would limit the puppy mills and other disreputable breeders. (http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/does-anyone-have-a-rescued...)
Since we have somewhat gotten away from one of the original purposes of this discussion, i.e. the AKC's involvement in this, here's part of the previous discussion, regarding why the AKC is opposing Bill 198:

(posted by Leslie)
Apparently Illinois is trying to pass a couple of laws to help dogs. 1. To make it more difficult for puppy mills, backyard breeders, etc. to get licensed. 2. To make it illegal to crop ears and dock tails. The AKC sent a memo to our obedience club asking people to OPPOSE these new laws. I can understand the AKC wanting it to remain legal to crop ears and dock tails. But their opposition to tougher licensing requirements really surprises me. Off-topic, but I thought about it when I read your comment above. Illinois is trying to prevent more puppy mills and irresponsible breeders, and the AKC is going to lobby against that.

► Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Karen & Jack on March 10, 2009 at 12:49pm
The AKC gets money for registering the puppy mill dogs, and they have been known to "overlook" the accuracy of the paperwork. That's how the mills & BYB's sell the dogs to the pet stores, and the pet stores sell them to us..."AKC registered purebred poodle", etc. Imagine how much money the AKC makes from the mills. A top breeder registers maybe 1-2 dozen dogs a year...a mill registers 1-2 thousand. You do the math.

► Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Leslie on March 10, 2009 at 12:54pm
Follow the money. Their explanation is different, of course, but it sounded pretty flimsy to me.

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