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Amendment 3723

Tue, 08 May 2012 13:59:28 +0100

Senate Amendment 3723

Regulation Of High-Volume Retailers And Importers

SA 3723, introduced by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) was an amendment to the Senate version of the 2007 Farm Bill (HR 2419). This amendment is nearly identical to the Pet Animal Welfare Act (PAWS) sponsored in 2005 by former Sen. Rick Santorum. The intent of SA 3723 is to amend the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) to regulate cat and dog breeders at the retail level.

The AWA currently regulates large-scale commercial breeders who sell pets at wholesale. SA 3723 would change the concept of the AWA as established, requiring federal licensing and inspection of the private homes of many hobby breeders. Presently no federal license is required to breed cats and dogs in a private residence and sell retail to the public. SA 3723 would require in-home breeders that fall within the proposed number limits to follow commercial standards. Compliance with commercial regulations would be difficult if not impossible for small, private cat and dog hobby breeders.

SA 3723 reverses a long-standing, court tested basis for commercial pet business licensing and regulation. Once this traditional retail/wholesale regulation barrier is broken it will be gone forever.

SA 3723 uses numbers to decide which sellers should be licensed. This is completely arbitrary and has no connection or correlation to levels of care or necessity for regulation. Either by design or by accident, it also exposes all buyers and sellers of dogs for hunting, security and breeding purposes to federal licensing and regulation.

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) claims this will stop puppy mills and has introduced multiple versions of this legislation since 2001 without success. Contrary to the HSUS claims, SA 3723 will have the greatest impact on the small and mid-size in-home breeders who cannot comply with commercial standards due to construction costs and existing zoning regulations, or who refuse to have their rights to privacy invaded by federal inspectors and simply give up their hobby.

SA 3723 includes a provision for "certified third-party inspector". This concept is an attempt to alleviate the otherwise impossible financial burden on USDA that the increased scope of breeder regulation would create. The third-party inspector can be a nonprofit organization certified by the Secretary of Agriculture. The nonprofit organization would apply to USDA for certification as breeding facility inspectors and establish their own inspection standards which USDA would have to approve. Most assuredly these inspections would be done for a fee paid by the breeder. For example, HSUS could establish another arm of their organization to be inspectors. Then HSUS would come into private homes to check compliance to the facility standards and send a report to USDA. The American Kennel Club [AKC] could also apply for certification. AKC supported the third-party inspection addition during previous PAWS negotiations citing their current inspection program which could be expanded in partnership with USDA and any newly enacted regulations.

It has been assumed by some that standards promulgated for third-party inspections would be performance based standards, as commercial (engineering) standards do not lend themselves to in-home small breeding facilities. One problem will lie in the fairness of two methods of regulation for the same activity. Additionally, performance standards are already being challenged by animal rights groups in favor of engineering standards. Lawsuits would seem to be inevitable as groups from all sides of the issue file suit against USDA.

Senate Amendment 3723 FAQ

Senate Amendment 3723 Integrated

Although SA 3723 was stripped from the Farm Bill by the conference committee, we must remain vigilent for the next attempt.

HR 838/S707 PUPS

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:05:00 +0100

HR 835 / S 707 PUPS

Bad for dogs, bad for shelters, bad for the economy

WHAT PUPS DOES:

Abandons traditional determination between wholesale and retail---so that

USDA can regulate home/hobby breeders who don't sell to pet stores.

Begins USDA regulation of anyone (with 1 intact female dog over 4 months of

age) who sells, places, or adopts out more than 50 dogs in a year ... to start.

Could easily be amended down to 10 ... to 2.

Takes away your right to privacy in your own home. USDA or their contractors

can without notice enter your home and inspect it if they SUSPECT you might

meet criteria for regulation.

Over-regulates responsible home breeders out of existence. Mandates nonporous

floors, kennel sizes, floor drains, and pages of requirements impossible

for most home breeders to follow.

Forces shelters, and home/hobby breeders to redesign their current facilities in

order to meet federal standards.

Establishes government controlled exercise standards that are not scientifically

proven.

Sets precedent with exercise standards for future rigid socialization and

breeding standards that would remove owner’s flexibility to use professional

judgment based on breed and purpose.

Reduces the ability of the American public to obtain healthy privately bred or

rescue dogs of their choosing.

Places an unfunded mandate on Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

(APHIS) and overextends their enforcement ability.

Fails to exempt sportsmen, sporting dog trainers, and hunting clubs from being

regulated alongside in-home sellers.

Adds more federal oversight and regulation into American’s daily lives.

Just Say NO to PUPS – HR 835/S 707

News from AKC

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:44:39 +0100

More big news from AKC.

Effective July 1, 2012 clubs must offering the 4-6 month puppy class. Apparently, puppies in this class will not compete for Championship points. Evidently, AKC will work out some sort of point schedule for this class that will result in the award of a Beginners Title or Certificate. I don’t have any details about the Beginners Title/Certificate or points schedule at this time.

Effective July 1, 2012 clubs must offering something called an “Open Show.” Again the details are sketchy. AKC plans to notify all new registered owners about the opportunity to participate in the Open Show. It is billed as a family event. Ostensibly, the show [read class] is for people who are new to conformation showing, i.e. Novice handlers. No professional handlers, whether or not they are owners, will be allowed to compete in the Open Show.

Excerpt from the December 16, 2011 AKC Delegates Meeting

Events introduced the four-to-six-month beginner puppy competition increase entries, attract

new exhibitors, socialize puppies with introduction to AKC Conformation games. On

average, clubs that offered this special attraction enjoyed a five percent increase in entries

of these puppies. Many of these were first-time exhibitors and potential new club members.

The Open Show is an upgrade from the currently approved Sanctioned Match and is more

receptive to exhibitors, FSS and miscellaneous breeds. An electronic invitation to new

owners was sent from AKC informing them of the educational training opportunities in both

the four-to-six-month puppy and the open show. It should be noted that no champions or

professional handlers are permitted in these events. It's truly targeting the new exhibitors.

Both of these special attractions are approved to become AKC-sanctioned events in July

2012 and to offer a beginner's title. That's the Certificate of Merit that's currently being

offered to competitors in the miscellaneous class.

Peggy

PUPS Bill

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:40:11 +0100

Hi Everyone,

Most of you have already received the call to action against the latest federal legislation called the “PUPS” bill. While on its face the bill may seem reasonable, closer scrutiny uncovers some large underlying problems with the bill.

Please look at AKC’s position on this bill. See below.

Contact your Senator and Congressperson and ask them to withhold support for this bill or encourage their colleagues not to support or vote for this bill.

This is especially important for those of us who are independents or democrats. Democratic legislators have tended to support this type of legislation. Democratic legislators need to understand that these bills do not help animals. If you are a democrat, it is very important for you to contact your democratic legislators and encourage them to vote against this bill.

Peggy

January 3, 2012

http://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm?article_id=4543

The American Kennel Club and our Washington, D.C.-based advocacy team continue to closely monitor the federal Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety (PUPS) legislation introduced last spring as Senate Bill 707 (S.707) and House Bill 835 (H.R. 835). Each of the bills has been assigned to the Agriculture Committees of their respective chambers. To date, no hearings have been scheduled and no formal action has been taken on this bill.

PUPS would purportedly require anyone who owns or co-owns dogs that produce 50 or more puppies offered for sale in a 12-month period to be regulated under existing USDA dog “dealer” regulations. These regulations are designed for high-volume commercial kennels that produce puppies for wholesale, and require a USDA commercial license, maintenance of specified commercial kennel engineering standards and regular inspections.

The AKC does not oppose the general concept of reasonable regulations for high volume breeder/retailers. However, the PUPS bill is misleading because such regulations would hurt responsible small breeders who raise only a few litters of puppies each year in their homes, while also reducing the availability of resources needed to enforce against abusive or negligent operations.

The AKC also has a number of serious concerns with the bill as introduced and does not support this measure. These concerns include:

Definition of “breeding female” as an intact female dog aged 4 months or older. This definition is misleading because female dogs are not sufficiently mature at 4 months of age to be bred. Additionally, such a definition should not be necessary if a “high volume retail breeder” is to be based on sales, rather than the number of dogs owned.

Definition of “high volume retail breeder” as someone with “an ownership interest in or custody of one or more breeding female dogs.” This definition is overly broad and does not take into account the tradition of co- and joint ownerships common among dog show participants, sporting dog trainers, hunting club members, and other hobbyists. Additionally, a reference to the number of dogs owned by a breeder is unnecessary and potentially misleading in legislation that does not limit ownership rights per se.

Current exercise language is overly vague and should be clarified to ensure that the daily exercise requirements do not preclude use of legitimate training or exercise equipment or other types of physical activity.

This legislation calls for exponentially expanding the numbers of breeders regulated and inspected by the Animal Care division of the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal, Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS). However, a May 2010 audit of this program by the USDA’s own Inspector General demonstrated that the existing inspections program is insufficient to carry out current responsibilities. The AKC believes these issues and full funding for the current program should be addressed before attempting to exponentially expand the program’s responsibilities and workload.

AKC Government Relations and our Washington-based advocates will continue to closely monitor the activities of key members of Congress, policy committees, and their staff for any developments regarding PUPS. We are committed to keeping our constituents updated via email and the AKC website. Updated information about PUPS and other legislation is available online at http://www.akc.org/news/sections/legislative_alerts.cfm or by clicking on “US Fed” on AKC’s online legislative tracking system.

The AKC encourages all responsible dog owners and breeders to stay active in your community as a role model for responsible dog ownership and breeding and to educate your legislators about potentially misleading legislation that could harm responsible dog owners and breeders.

Although PUPS is not actively being considered in Congress at this time, we encourage responsible dog owners and breeders to share their concerns about this measure with their federal representatives. Use the following links to find out the names and contact information of your member of Congress and your Senators. For more information on effectively communicating with your legislators and other tools and information to help you, please visit the AKC Government Relations Toolbox and AKC GR newsletters links on the AKC Government Relations webpage.

View AKC Policy on Responsible Breeding Practices

View AKC issue brief on responsible breeding practices

View AKC issue analysis: The Value of Responsible Dog Breeders

Caution About Chicken Jerky Products

Sat, 19 Nov 2011 01:48:54 +0100

FDA Continues to Caution Dog Owners About Chicken Jerky Products
November 18, 2011

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is again cautioning consumers that chicken jerky products for dogs (also sold as chicken tenders, strips or treats) may be associated with illness in dogs. In the last 12 months, FDA has seen an increase in the number of complaints it received of dog illnesses associated with consumption of chicken jerky products imported from China. These complaints have been reported to FDA by dog owners and veterinarians.

FDA issued a cautionary warning regarding chicken jerky products to consumers in September 2007 and a Preliminary Animal Health Notification in December of 2008. After seeing the number of complaints received drop off during the latter part of 2009 and most of 2010, the FDA is once again seeing the number of complaints rise to the levels of concern that prompted release of our earlier warnings.

Chicken jerky products should not be substituted for a balanced diet and are intended to be fed occasionally in small quantities.

FDA is advising consumers who choose to feed their dogs chicken jerky products to watch their dogs closely for any or all of the following signs that may occur within hours to days of feeding the products: decreased appetite; decreased activity; vomiting; diarrhea, sometimes with blood; increased water consumption and/or increased urination. If the dog shows any of these signs, stop feeding the chicken jerky product. Owners should consult their veterinarian if signs are severe or persist for more than 24 hours. Blood tests may indicate kidney failure (increased urea nitrogen and creatinine). Urine tests may indicate Fanconi syndrome (increased glucose). Although most dogs appear to recover, some reports to the FDA have involved dogs that have died.

FDA, in addition to several animal health diagnosti c laboratories in the U.S., is working to determine why these products are associated with illness in dogs. FDA’s Veterinary Laboratory Response Network (VLRN) is now available to support these animal health diagnostic laboratories. To date, scientists have not been able to determine a definitive cause for the reported illnesses. FDA continues extensive chemical and microbial testing but has not identified a contaminant.

The FDA continues to actively investigate the problem and its origin. Many of the illnesses reported may be the result of causes other than eating chicken jerky. Veterinarians and consumers alike should report cases of animal illness associated with pet foods to the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator in their state or go to http://www.fda.go v /petfoodcomplaints1.

-Additional Information
FDA Cautions Consumers about Chicken Jerky Products for Dogs2
Preliminary Animal Health Notification - Chicken Jerky Products for Dogs3
Caution to Dog Owners About Chicken Jerky Products4
- Contact UsIssued by: FDA, Center for Veterinary Medicine

240-276-9300
240-276-9115 FAX

Group Realignment Accepted

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 22:27:52 +0100

Tuesday, November 15, 2011]

The American Kennel Club Board of Directors voted to accept and approve the report of the Group Realignment Committee. The rule changes necessary to implement going from 7 to 11 groups will be read at the December, 2011 Delegate Meeting for a vote in March, 2012. The final decision on assigning breeds rests with the AKC Board, which will consider the input of the breed parent clubs. If adopted, these changes would become effective in 2015.

· Realignment Proposal

· Realignment Judging Procedure

· Realignment Suggested Breed List

· Realignment FAQ

The link to the four documents listed above is http://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm

Group Realignment

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 15:36:18 +0100

Memorandum for AKC BOD and AKC Delegates

Subject: Group Realignment - The time has come

Click here to read the proposal.

In October, 2007, the AKC Board of Directors appointed a committee to evaluate the existing alignment of breeds within the seven variety groups and determine if a different alignment would better serve the Sport.

In 2008, the committee reported its recommendations to expand the number of groups from seven to ten and to move breeds from the current groups to the new groups. The proposal was scheduled to be voted on at the March 2009 Delegate meeting.

At the March, 2009 Delegate meeting, the Committee recommended that the proposal be referred back to the BOD, as additional information had rendered a vote premature. The BOD subsequently referred the action back to a re-formed Realignment committee, which began its work in 2010.

In accomplishing its task the Realignment Committee met in person, via conference call and through email coordination. In its study, the committee considered the current groupings, the previous comments from all stakeholders, the development of AKC record keeping and event management software, the numbers of breeds in the recognition pipeline and AKC plans for streamlining the breed recognition process, and the parallel work of the AKC Judging Approval Process committee. A composite of Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers) which provide detail is included in this summary

Significant changes in the Groups include splitting the Working Group into three groups, the Hound Group into two groups and the Sporting Group into two groups. A listing of proposed Groups and their composition is included in this summary.

The committee recommends the addition of four groups to the listing currently in place (7 groups). This change which requires Delegate approval to amend Chapter 3, Sections 1, 15, 17, 18, 19 and 20, and Chapter 6, Section 3 of the Rules Applying to Dog Shows. Concurrently, the committee notes that it may be useful to remove the reference to the number of groups from all of the above sections, except Chapter 3, Section 1.

In addition, Chapter 2 of the Rules Applying to Registration and Discipline refers to the number of groups, and would require Delegate approval to amend.

The committee, by submission of this report, requests the Board of Directors of the American Kennel Club, in accordance with Article XX of the Bylaws of the American Kennel Club, propose and submit the necessary amendments to the Delegate body, to be read at the December, 2011 meeting of the Delegate Body, published in two issues of AKC Gazette, and voted upon at the March, 2012 meeting of the Delegate Body.

Respectfully submitted,

S/ Tom Davies, Chair

The PUPS Bill (HR 5434)

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 15:37:18 +0100

The PUPS bill (HR 5434) is coming up in the US congress. AKC opposes the current version of the bill which restricts ownership of dogs to ten (10) intact dogs of any age. Contact your Senators and Representatives and ask them to withhold support for this bill.

Learn more about the PUPS (HF 5434) bill by going to the following link: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h5434/show

You can get the contact information for your US Senators at the following link: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

You can get the contact information for your US Representatives at the following link: http://www.house.gov/representatives/

If you don’t know your representative’s name, scroll down the page and you will find a list of all US Representatives and the districts they represent.

Please contact your congressional member and senators!

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 15:37:38 +0100

Ask the to NOT sign on or if they have, please take their name off of the 2012-2013 Farm Bill. The PUPS bill has been added to the total package. The PUPS bill adds very restrictive numbers and conditions. AKC would prefer to support a bill that would regulate the people with poor standard conditions than restrict by the total of ten intact dogs of any age.

Welcome to the Cambridge Minnesota Kennel Club!

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:25:27 +0100

Welcome to the Cambridge Minnesota Kennel Club (CMKC).

We hope you find our site and upcoming Blogs informational and helpful to you.

The CMKC is a club that fosters an interest in all pure bred dogs.

In the future we will provide up to date current events, information and links on our blog page. If you have an AKC related event you would like to extend an invite to our club members please send an email to Wayne Harmon at wfharmon@aol.com.