Ohio Valley Dog Owners, Inc.

Protecting dogs, dog owners and our neighbors
through education and community service

Alert! Alert! Alert!

OVDO is tracking these bills, proposed regulations, and animal rights campaigns that affect dog owners, breeders, businesses, hunters, rescues, shelters, and others who want to keep dogs in our lives.

Items now under scrutiny in Ohio are:

Ohio House Bill 606 and Senate Bill 342: This pair of bills proposes to license kennels with more than eight dogs to finance an effort to close substandard kennels that may house dozens or hundreds of dogs.

Ohio House Bills 189 and 533: These bills eliminate breed-specific legislation from Ohio law and fix the dangerous dog law by adding due process for the owners of accused dogs.

Ohio House bill 63, a "puppy lemon law" that holds sellers responsible if the puppy develops a hereditary or congenital disease within 15 months of purchase. The bill requires that sellers disclose certain health information about the dog and exempts breeders who screen their breeding stock for inherited abnormalities. The bill also provides recourse for buyers if the seller misrepresents the potential for registration of the puppy as a purebred. HB 63 was introduced early in the 2005-06 legislative session and did not get a committee hearing.

The Ohio Supreme Court acceptance of an appeal in Toledo v Tellings. The appeals court determined that Ohio's pit bull restrictions are unconstitutional, and Toledo appealed. The Supreme Court has not heard the case.

Items of national interest are:

Senate Bill 1139 pending in the US Congress: Introduced by Senator Richard Santorum of Pennsylvania and supported by the Humane Society of the US and the American Kennel Club, this bill requires licenses for a large number of dog breeders unless they are already inspected by the AKC. For information, see the OVDO letter of opposition and "NAIA Trust opposes (PAWS) S 1139/H 2669, the Pet Animal Welfare Statute of 2005, which would federally regulate home breeders of dogs and cats" at http://www.naiatrust.org/NAIA_Trust_Opposes_PAWS_S1139.htm. Senator Santorum was not re-elected and the current session of Congress is winding down, but it is likely that the bill will be re-introduced in 2007.

The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act: Congress has passed and the President has signed this bill that increases penalties and expands the definition of domestic terrorism against radical activists who commit crimes against people who own and use animals and people who do business with animal owners. The law was passed to target criminals, not those who indulge in legitimate protest or informatinal demonstrations. For details, see AKC Endorses the 'Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act,' http://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm?article_id=3057 and "The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act," http://www.house.gov/petri/aeta_moreinfo.htm.

Some shelters are importing dogs from foreign countries and offshore islands to fill empty runs and encourage people to adopt a pet, not buy a purebred from a responsible breeder. Stories can be found at "More animal shelters trade responsible conduct for media limelight by importing foreign strays for adoption," http://www.naiatrust.org/resources/foreign_strays.htm and "Thriving animal shelter businesses assure more rabies in American pets," http://www.naiaonline.org/body/frommexicowithrabies.htm.

Membership information

OVDO home page Contact Ohio Valley Dog Owners at ovdog01@canismajor.com

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