Massachusetts Governor Paves Humane Way with Ground Breaking Legislation

Aug. 4, 2012 - PRLog -- “This bill is a huge step forward for humane animal husbandry, and a huge coup for those who understand that breed-specific legislation fails both the animal and the community,” said Niki Tudge, Executive Director of the Pet Professional Guild, whose charter is to provide educational resources to pet care providers and the public coupled with an emphasis on building collaboration among force-free pet trainers and professional pet care providers. Specifically, the legislation strengthens Massachusetts' animal legislation by doing the following:

•   Creating the Homeless Animal Prevention and Care Fund which is funded by donations from grants and charities, and by individual donations offered by taxpayers checking off a box on their annual tax return. The fund will be for vaccinating, spaying/neutering of homeless dogs and cats, to offset costs associated with the vaccination, spaying/neutering of dogs and cats owned by low-income residents of the commonwealth and to assist with the training of animal control officers.

•   Mandating that dogs or cats shipped to Massachusetts for sale or resale must be at least 8 weeks of age and have an official health certificate issued by an accredited veterinarian establishing health, vaccinations, breed, sex and age. It also prohibits establishments from selling “devocalized” pets without first giving notice to prospective buyers.

•   Redefining “Dangerous dog” so that a dog may not be considered dangerous based solely upon breed, growling or barking behavior, or if the dog aggresses when protecting itself, its offspring, another domestic animal or human. It also specifically prohibits a dangerous dog designation when the person who was attacked or threatened by the dog was committing a crime upon the person or property of the owner or keeper of such dog or the person attacked or threatened by the dog was engaged in teasing, tormenting, battering, assaulting, injuring or otherwise provoking such dog, or when the person or animal attacked or threatened breaches an enclosure or structure in which the dog was kept apart from the public and such person or without permission of the property owner.

•   Requiring the owner or keeper of any dog older than six months to obtain a license for the dog, and a veterinarian’s certificate that it has been vaccinated, but waives the fee for any dog owner over the age of 70 and for services animals as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

•   Requiring local licensing authorities to issue a kennel license without charge to a domestic charitable corporation incorporated exclusively for the purpose of protecting animals from cruelty, neglect or abuse or for the relief of suffering, creating categories for kennel licensing ranging from residential to commercial, and defining a specific grievance process for "nuisance dogs."

•   Prohibits animal control officer from acting as licensed animal dealer registered with the United States Department of Agriculture and cities from giving, selling or turning over any animal which may come into its custody to any business or institution licensed or registered as a research facility or animal dealer with the United States Department of Agriculture.

•   Requires Animal Control Officers to complete a training course within one year of hire.

•   Including pets in restraining orders to protect both people and animals from domestic violence in the hopes of encouraging victims of abuse to seek help without having to worry about leaving a pet behind.
•   Increasing from two to five years the time during which a person convicted of cruelty to animals cannot license a dog (and therefore own a dog).

•   Mandating that euthanization be executed through the administration of barbiturates in a manner deemed acceptable by the American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines on Euthanasia, except by gunshot in case of emergency.

•   Increasing from $20 to $250 the amount a veterinarian can receive when treating a stray dog or cat injured on a public way.

“This bill will standardize the level of care of animals in Massachusetts, and give pets and owners a fair hearing and humane treatment when dealing with their local governments,” Tudge said.  Massachusetts legislators and Gov. Patrick have created excellent legislation with this bill.

The Pet Professional Guild advocates for mutually-agreed guiding principles for the pet care industry. The Pet Professional Guild partners, members and affiliates focus on each pet’s physical, mental, environmental and nutritional well-being, a holistic approach to the care and training of family pets.