The trouble with dog limits

Something for us all to think about, especially in these days of raids and
seizures. Permission to forward has been granted.

From: Walt Hutchens
Sent: Sunday, April 18, 2010 11:51 AM
To: VA-Pet-Law@yahoogroups.com


Pet limit laws are the most common reason for hiding a breeding
program. While they're usually passed with the intent to prevent
nuisances, their real effect is probably the reverse and they cause
other problems as well.

You can't have a real program with a three or four-pet limit, so when
such a law passes or a breeder accidentally moves his ten-dog program
to a place that has a limit, his reaction may be "Well, I'll just keep
most of them inside most of the time. They won't make any trouble,
they don't bark, so who will care?"

Part of hiding, however, is not allowing the general public to visit
his home to select a puppy and meet that puppy's parents. Instead the
breeder takes one or more puppies to some public area and the purchase
is done there. That itself is illegal in an increasing number of
places..

Then the breeder doesn't have other breeders in his home. Maybe he
meets them out front to go to shows together or maybe it's at the
local Wal-Mart parking lot.

Neighbors, of course, are not invited in.

And what's the result? The breeder, especially if he or she lives alone,
no longer has feedback on the conditions in his home and kennel area.
"I need to clean that up NOW" may become "after lunch," then
"when the weather is warmer," and ultimately "one of these days."
Hey, it doesn't bother ME and it doesn't hurt the animals, so what's the
big deal? A faint odor builds to a stench but the workings of our noses
are such that a constant smell is no longer noticed.

THEN -- one more thing happens: A plumber comes to fix a leaking pipe,
a puppy buyer gets mad, or the downwind neighbor CAN smell your place,
and animal control is called. Our laws were originally written to
protect animals but they are now often applied to cases of 'aggravated
bad housekeeping.' No animals are in immediate danger but you are not
meeting the standard of 'adequate shelter, adequately cleaned,' as
interpreted by the young ACO, who 'just loves animals.' The court won't
make any distinction: Your animals -- and your entire breeding program
-- are gone, along with some multiple of $10,000 of your money, your
reputation, and (often) the legal right to sell an animal, perhaps
even to own one, ever again.

Current enforcement of current animal laws rarely allows room for any
imperfection. Seriously bad housekeeping (with no animals harmed) that
probably should be handled with "I'm going to be back in a few days
and if this isn't cleaned up then I'm going to start writing
citations" may very well make you a former dog owner and a criminal,
and hand you a lifetime punishment.

If you are filing your federal taxes on the basis of your dogs being a
business, you are at even greater risk because in many states,
that declaration will trickle down to your county or city
and you may be required to get a business license. If you have a
business license (or it can be proven that you SHOULD have one) you
probably have to obey an even stricter set of laws with even less
protection for animal ownership.

For example, in Virginia, if animal control doesn't like the way you are
keeping your pets and you are a hobby breeder or a pet owner, they can
seize only dogs that are in immediate danger -- io such bad shape that they
might actually die soon. If you are running a pet-related business, they can
seize
ALL your dogs whether there's anything wrong with them or not.
All they have to do is say that the conditions were unsatisfactory.

That pet-limit law was intended to head off animal
nuisances, but the way it interacts with humans and the human
situation -- very few of us can afford to move to a remote area during
our working lifetimes -- tends to promote not just a nuisance, but a
human (and often, animal) tragedy.

While the problem is clear enough, I don't have a complete answer. One
partial answer is that hiding from the law is a very slippery slope
indeed and if you do it, you need to stay focused on exactly WHAT you
are hiding. Once it gets beyond 'too many dogs,' you and your dogs are
seriously at risk and in today's environment it's closer to 'when are
you going to get zapped,' than 'will you ...'

Take a look around: What is the WORST anyone could say or think about
conditions in your home/kennel right now? That IS what they'll say in
front of the judge, and he will believe THEM, not you.

Food for thought ...

Walt Hutchens
Timbreblue Whippets
www.timbreblue.com
Virginia