Letter to Florida House Committee on Agribusiness Regarding Rep. Thurston’s HB 101 Which Would Overturn State Prohibition of BSL

RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS OF THE WESTERN STATES
P.O. Box 1406 Newport, WA 99156
Web Site http://www.povn.com/rdows E-mail US rdows@povn.com
Blog https://rdows.wordpress.com E-mail List http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rdows

Cherie Graves, Chairwoman, WA, (509) 447-2821
Judy Schreiber, Assistant to the Chair,
Director at Large, rdowsdirectoratlarge@chevalier-bullterriers.com
Elizabeth Pensgard, Executive Secretary, Illinois Director, bpensgard@yahoo.com
Hermine Stover, Media Liaison, Director at Large, CA, hermine@endangeredspecies.com
Mary Schaeffer, Finance Director, finedogs@hotmail.com
Arizona Director, John Bowen, johnalldogs@sprintmail.com
California Director, Jan Dykema, bestuvall@sbcglobal.net
Indiana Director, Charles Coffman, candkcoffman@comcast.net
Iowa Director, Leisa Boysen, rdows_iowa@yahoo.com
Mississippi Director, Dan Crutchfield, farmer1@telepak.net
Nevada Director, Ken Sondej, 4winds@viawest.net
Tennessee Director, Gina Cotton, ginacotton@msn.com
Texas Director, Alvin Crow, crobx@austin.rr.com

To:

Rep. Denise Grimsley, Chair
Rep. Bryan Nelson, Vice Chair
Rep. Debbie Boyd
Rep. Bill Galvano
Rep. Bill Heller
Rep. David Martin Kiar
Rep. Carlos Lopez-Cantera
Rep. Ralph Poppell
Rep. Juan C. Zapata

Dear Chairwoman Grimsley, Vice Chair Nelson, and esteemed members of the Agribusiness Committee:

It was with great disappointment that I first learned that the state of Florida is considering overturning its prohibition of breed-specific legislation per Rep. Thurston’s HB 101, a bill which is currently in the Agribusiness Committee. Allowing municipalities to pass breed-specific legislation in Florida is fraught with many complications and following are just a few of them:

Letter to Connecticut Reps Amann and Urban Regarding Formation of Task Force to Study Link Between Childhood Cruelty to Animals and Adult Violent Acts

RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS OF THE WESTERN STATES
P.O. Box 1406 Newport, WA 99156
Web Site http://www.povn.com/rdows E-mail US rdows@povn.com
Blog https://rdows.wordpress.com E-mail List http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rdowsCherie Graves, Chairwoman, WA, (509) 447-2821
Judy Schreiber, Assistant to the Chair,
Director at Large, rdowsdirectoratlarge@chevalier-bullterriers.com
Elizabeth Pensgard, Executive Secretary, Illinois Director, bpensgard@yahoo.com
Hermine Stover, Media Liaison, Director at Large, CA, hermine@endangeredspecies.com
Mary Schaeffer, Finance Director, finedogs@hotmail.com
Arizona Director, John Bowen, johnalldogs@sprintmail.com
California Director, Jan Dykema, bestuvall@sbcglobal.net
Indiana Director, Charles Coffman, candkcoffman@comcast.net
Iowa Director, Leisa Boysen, rdows_iowa@yahoo.com
Mississippi Director, Dan Crutchfield, farmer1@telepak.net
Nevada Director, Ken Sondej, 4winds@viawest.net
Tennessee Director, Gina Cotton, ginacotton@msn.com
Texas Director, Alvin Crow, crobx@austin.rr.com

March 8, 2008

Rep. James Amann, Speaker of the House
Rep. Diana Urban, Chair

Dear Mr. Speaker and Chairwoman Urban:

It was with great concern that I learned that you are in the process of forming a task force to study the link between cruelty to animals by children and violent acts by adults, particularly as there are only a handful of children under the age of 18 who are charged with animal cruelty offenses in Connecticut, and even fewer convictions. The American Sporting Dog Alliance (ASDA) fears that this task force “will have the unintended consequence of allowing extremist animal rights groups access to the state’s legal system, schools and children’s minds…” This is a legitimate concern since animal rights as a concept originated in Nazi Germany.

Letter to the Connecticut House Environment Committee Regarding HB 5827 “An Act Concerning Animal Shelters”

RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS OF THE WESTERN STATES
P.O. Box 1406 Newport, WA 99156
Web Site http://www.povn.com/rdows E-mail US rdows@povn.com
Blog https://rdows.wordpress.com E-mail List http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rdowsCherie Graves, Chairwoman, WA, (509) 447-2821
Judy Schreiber, Assistant to the Chair,
Director at Large, rdowsdirectoratlarge@chevalier-bullterriers.com
Elizabeth Pensgard, Executive Secretary, Illinois Director, bpensgard@yahoo.com
Hermine Stover, Media Liaison, Director at Large, CA, hermine@endangeredspecies.com
Mary Schaeffer, Finance Director, finedogs@hotmail.com
Arizona Director, John Bowen, johnalldogs@sprintmail.com
California Director, Jan Dykema, bestuvall@sbcglobal.net
Indiana Director, Charles Coffman, candkcoffman@comcast.net
Iowa Director, Leisa Boysen, rdows_iowa@yahoo.com
Mississippi Director, Dan Crutchfield, farmer1@telepak.net
Nevada Director, Ken Sondej, 4winds@viawest.net
Tennessee Director, Gina Cotton, ginacotton@msn.com
Texas Director, Alvin Crow, crobx@austin.rr.com

March 8, 2008

Dear esteemed members of the Environment Committee:

It was with great concern that I first learned of HB 5827. Particularly worrisome is the provision in this bill that would allow the Department of Agriculture to make warrantless inspections of any private home caring for ten or more rescued animals (of any species) over six months of age, at any time of day or night. Additionally, HB 5827 provides no clarity regarding standards of animal care to which rescuers would have to adhere, or what could constitute a violation, leaving rescuers wide open to arbitrary decision-making by the Department of Agriculture.

Letter to Kentucky Senate Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources Regarding SB206

RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS OF THE WESTERN STATES
P.O. Box 1406 Newport, WA 99156
Web Site http://www.povn.com/rdows E-mail US rdows@povn.com
Blog https://rdows.wordpress.com E-mail List http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rdows

Cherie Graves, Chairwoman, WA, (509) 447-2821
Judy Schreiber, Assistant to the Chair,
Director at Large, rdowsdirectoratlarge@chevalier-bullterriers.com
Elizabeth Pensgard, Executive Secretary, Illinois Director, bpensgard@yahoo.com
Hermine Stover, Media Liaison, Director at Large, CA, hermine@endangeredspecies.com
Mary Schaeffer, Finance Director, finedogs@hotmail.com
Arizona Director, John Bowen, johnalldogs@sprintmail.com
California Director, Jan Dykema, bestuvall@sbcglobal.net
Indiana Director, Charles Coffman, candkcoffman@comcast.net
Iowa Director, Leisa Boysen, rdows_iowa@yahoo.com
Mississippi Director, Dan Crutchfield, farmer1@telepak.net
Nevada Director, Ken Sondej, 4winds@viawest.net
Tennessee Director, Gina Cotton, ginacotton@msn.com
Texas Director, Alvin Crow, crobx@austin.rr.com

March 8, 2008

Sen. Tom Jensen, Chair
Sen. Vernie McGaha, Vice Chair
Sen. David E. Boswell
Sen. Ernie Harris
Sen. Dan Kelly
Sen. Bob Leeper
Sen. Joey Pendleton
Sen. Dorsey Ridley
Sen. Richie Sanders
Sen. Ernesto Scorsone
Sen. Brandon Smith
Sen. Damon Thayer

Dear Chairman Jensen, Vice Chairman McGaha, and esteemed members of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee:

It was with great concern that I learned of Sen. Buford’s bill SB206, which is now in the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. This bill would allow the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) to recommend three appointees to the Animal Control Advisory Board, two of which will sit on the board. As Rob Sexton, Vice President of government affairs for the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance observed of Sen. Buford’s bill, “Sportsmen should be outraged and must take action to prevent SB 206 from allowing HSUS to influence the Board with its animal rights views.” Mr. Sexton is right. It is unthinkable that Sen. Buford would propose such a bill when it is well known that the HSUS is an animal rights group which neither has human nor animals’ interests in mind. For instance, it was recently discovered that the HSUS for months withheld undercover footage showing downer cows at a California meat processing plant which were allowed into the food supply resulting in the largest beef recall in U.S. history. These downers cows, who may have been infected with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), also known as “mad cow disease,” could have been served to children via school lunches and yet the HSUS withheld this information from the public. 

Letter to Northwestern Law School and Alumni Association

RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS OF THE WESTERN STATES
P.O. Box 1406 Newport, WA 99156
Web Site http://www.povn.com/rdows E-mail US rdows@povn.com
Blog https://rdows.wordpress.com E-mail List http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rdows

Cherie Graves, Chairwoman, WA, (509) 447-2821
Judy Schreiber, Assistant to the Chair, Director at Large, GA, rdowsdirectoratlarge@gmail.com
Elizabeth Pensgard, Executive Secretary, Illinois Director, bpensgard@yahoo.com
Hermine Stover, Media Liaison, Director at Large, CA, hermine@endangeredspecies.com
Mary Schaeffer, Finance Director, finedogs@hotmail.com
Arizona Director, John Bowen, johnalldogs@sprintmail.com
California Director, Jan Dykema, bestuvall@sbcglobal.net
Indiana Director, Charles Coffman, candkcoffman@comcast.net
Iowa Director, Leisa Boysen, rdows_iowa@yahoo.com
Mississippi Director, Dan Crutchfield, farmer1@telepak.net
Nevada Director, Ken Sondej, 4winds@viawest.net
Ohio Director, Tiffany Skotnicky, ohdirrdows@yahoo.com
Oklahoma Director, Jade Harris, aadrlegislation@yahoo.com
Tennessee Director, Gina Cotton, ginacotton@msn.com
Texas Director, Alvin Crow, crobx@austin.rr.com

Northwestern Alumni Association
1800 Sheridan Road
Evanston, IL 60208

Greetings:

Over the past few years I have received several letters from the Northwestern Alumni Association requesting donations. This has on more than one occasion made me feel extremely guilty. You see I love Northwestern and had always wanted to give back as much as the institution had given me. Over the years, however, I have come to realize that not all gifts need be monetary ones, and that while I can’t write NU a substantial check or offer you any kind of endowment, my occupation may be as much a payback as any you’ll find in check form. You see I have the great privilege of belonging to or running organizations (Responsible Dog Owners of the Western States, Responsible Dog Owners Group of Illinois) that protect not only the ownership and use rights of pet owners, but the constitutional rights of Illinoisans and indeed all Americans. It is an honor to belong to or helm these organizations and to be able to give back to my community, my state, my nation, and via this letter, hopefully Northwestern.

Feeling as I do about my alma mater and given my occupation, you can understand then how I felt when I read in several articles that Northwestern Law School was in receipt of a grant from former game show host Bob Barker which allowed for the establishment of animal law courses at NU Law. Mr. Barker, you are undoubtedly aware, was instrumental in getting mandatory spay/neuter legislation through the California assembly last year that, with few exceptions, would have required dogs and cats 6 months of age and older in California to be spayed or neutered. The bill, AB1634, called the “California Healthy Pets Act,” or the “Pet Extinction Act” by those in the know, thankfully did not have enough support in the California Senate. Mr. Barker was also involved in getting Los Angeles’ recent mandatory spay/neuter ordinance passed.