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October 12, 2009
View legislative update (PDF)
Livestock housing
The battle over livestock housing is being waged in the Midwest this year, in the aftermath of California Proposition 2 which passed in 2008. Ohio and Michigan are poised to take very different approaches on how animal care standards will be decided.
Expecting a ballot issue similar to those approved by voters in California, Arizona and Florida, the Ohio Farm Bureau and other agribusiness leaders approached state lawmakers earlier this year. Both the state House and Senate approved legislation to put an issue on the fall ballot. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) opposes the farm bureau bill—called Issue 2—and is still expected to pursue its own ballot initiative in 2010 to ban confinement of farm animals in a manner that does not allow them to turn around freely, lie down, stand up and fully extend their limbs.
Ohio voters will have the opportunity this November to pass Issue 2, which would set up the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board. This entity would have the authority to establish standards governing the care and well-being of livestock and poultry in this state, and consider factors such as agricultural best management practices, biosecurity, disease prevention, animal morbidity and mortality data, food safety practices, and the protection of local, affordable food supplies for consumers. The governor and legislature would appoint members, which would include a veterinarian, the State Veterinarian, family farmers, a food-safety expert, a representative of a local humane society, members of statewide farm organizations, the dean of an Ohio agriculture college, and two consumers.
In Michigan, the Governor signed a bill requiring that any pig during pregnancy, calf raised for veal, and egg-laying hen that is kept on a farm, must be housed so the animal can lie down, stand up and turn around freely. Exemptions include research, veterinary treatment, transportation, rodeos and state fairs, during slaughter and, in the case of pregnant sows, housing seven days before expected birth. Producers and farmers will have three years to comply with the veal calf restrictions and 10 years to comply with the rules for pregnant sows and egg-laying hens. The legislation is the result of extensive negotiations between the agriculture industry and HSUS, avoiding a ballot initiative that would have resulted in stronger penalties and a shorter time-frame for compliance.
Local government
On January 1, 2010, California SB 762 will go in effect, preventing cities and counties from adopting ordinances that ban medical procedures. However, ordinances adopted prior to that date will remain in effect, including West Hollywood's declawing ban. Santa Monica, Los Angeles and San Francisco are considering passing similar ordinances to ban declawing of cats, except in cases where it might be medically necessary, prior to the end of the year to take advantage of this "grandfathering" provision.
Court watch
A New Jersey Superior Court judge ordered a man and a woman to share ownership of their pug, ending a three-year legal fight over the dog. The couple, Eric Ware and Doreen Houseman, never married and spent 13 years together before ending their relationship in 2006. Living a few miles apart, they must start sharing the pet on a five-week cycle. Ware said he was still considering a possible appellate of the decision, which is believed to be one of the first of its kind. The case made legal news earlier this year when an appeals court ruled that a judge can decide who gets possession of pets based on their unique sentimental value, while refusing to adopt a best-interest-of-the-pet standard.
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