• Homeowners Insurance for Pet Owners

• Resources on Exposing Animal Rights Extremists

• Print (book) Pet Legislation Resources

Disclaimer:

Links to websites and book citations are provided for convenience and informational purposes only. Rand Park Dog Training Club Inc. (RPDTC) assumes no responsibility for the quality of information provided on outside sites, and viewpoints expressed thereon do not necessarily represent those of RPDTC, its Directors, Officers, or Members. Please respect the copyright and reprint policies on these other sites for which a link has been provided.

Pet Law Legislation Organizations

American Kennel ClubCanine Legislation Position Statements:      http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/position_statements.cfm

AKC Federation of Dog Clubs:     http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/federations.cfm

AKC Canine Legislation Department email:       doglaw@akc.org

AKC’s Useful Brochures (topics include: Animal Limit Laws: Better Alternatives; Deed Not Breed!; Lobbying for Purebred Dogs; Preserve Your Rights as a Dog Owner; and Establishing a Dog Park in Your Community     http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/brochures.cfm:     

Pet-law.com – (quote from their website) “Defending the Freedom to Own Pets”:     http://pet-law.com/

Dog Federation of Wisconsin – (quote from their website)  “Protecting and Promoting Responsible Pet Ownership”     http://www.dfow.org/

North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners Alliance (NCRAOA) – (quote from their website) “Our mission is to become North Carolina’s leading voice for responsible animal ownership and preservation of the human-animal bond.”      http://www.ncraoa.com/

The Animal Council – (quote from their website)  “TAC’s goal is to seek positive, humane solutions to the challenges of animal rights activists through study, analysis and application of animal husbandry, statistics and law, and at the same time preserve human benefit from all species, breeds and registries.”          http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/index.html   

National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA) – (quote from their website)  “The National Animal Interest Alliance is an association of business, agricultural, scientific, and recreational interests dedicated to promoting animal welfare, supporting responsible animal use and strengthening the bond between humans and animals.”     http://www.naiaonline.org/about/index.htm

American Canine Foundation (ACF) – (quote from their website) “The American Canine Foundation (formerly Washington Animal Foundation) is a non-profit organization founded in 2001 to stop irresponsible dog ownership and abuse to canines. We protect dog owners’ rights and promote responsible dog ownership through education and legislation.”     http://americancaninefoudationlaw.com/

Sportsmen’s and Animal Owners Voting Alliance (SAOVA) – (quote from their website)  “The Sportsmen's and Animal Owners' Voting Alliance (SAOVA) is a nationwide, nonpartisan group of volunteers seeking to elect politicians who will oppose the "Animal Rightist" (AR) threat to our rights as Americans. It is the only national group working to protect both sportsmen and animal owners, natural allies, in the legislative and political arenas.”     http://saova.org/

 American Dog Owners’ Association (ADOA) – (quote from their website)  “Since 1970, the ADOA has been the voice of responsible dog owners and member dog organizations from across the United States, advocating for the protection of the public health and safety, the protection of dogs and the right to own, keep and enjoy dogs.”     http://www.adoa.org/

Responsible Dog Owners of the Western States (RDOWS) – (quote from their website) “RDOWS promotes the responsible ownership, care and treatment of dogs.  We actively fight legislation that undermines the right to own, show, hunt with our breed dogs, including breeding bans, mandatory spay/neuter, & breed specific codes or ordinances.”     http://www.povn.com/rdows/index.html

Find and Contact Your Elected Officials (State and Federal)

Find your State and Federal Elected Officials (Using your 9-digit Zip Code), including contact links:     http://www.vote-smart.org/index.htm

AKC – “Make Your Contact Count! How to Write, Meet, and Call Government Officials with Maximum Effect”     http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/gileg197.cfm

AKC – “9 Tips for expressing differences of opinion in the public policy arena”     http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/gileg2.cfm

AKC – “Preparing for Action - Tips for Successful Involvement in Canine Legislation”      http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/gileg3.cfm

Look Up Bills and Laws (State and Federal)

Look up pending bills in Illinois – Illinois General Assembly (Senate and House bills and resolutions):    http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/default.asp

Research Illinois law – “Illinois Compiled Statutes”     http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs.asp

Library of Congress – look up federal bills, resolutions, and US Code:     http://thomas.loc.gov/

US House of Representatives     http://www.house.gov/

US Senate     http://www.senate.gov/

See how your US Congressman or Senator has voted!  Check progress of pending bills in the US House and US Senate.

GovTrack.us – (quote from their website) “GovTrack.us is a nexus of information about the United States Congress. Bringing together information on the status of federal legislation, voting records, and other congressional data from official sources, and turning it into an understandable and trackable free information resource for everyday citizens, GovTrack aims to narrow the divide between the public and our government.” (“GovTrack is not affiliated with the U.S. government or any other group.”)     http://www.govtrack.us/congress/legislation.xpd

Read Model Animal Laws and Help Write Better Laws

National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA) – “A Guide to Constructing Successful Pet Friendly Ordinances”         http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/PetFriendlyGuide.pdf

Responsible Dog Owners of the Western States (RDOWS) – “Responsible Dog Owners Of The Western States Model Dog Owner Regulations”     http://www.povn.com/rdows/modelregulations.html

National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA) – “Model Animal Control Law”     http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/NAIA%20Model%20Animal%20Control%20Law%20Final.pdf

Stay Informed! Receive Newsletters or Join a Group

AKC Taking Command (monthly newsletter)      http://www.akc.org/canine_legislation/taking_command.cfm

Pet-Law (a Yahoo group) – (quote from their webpage) “Animal rights legislation is spreading. Defend your right to own pets! Pet Law is a high-traffic list, moderated for flames, trolls, off-topic posts. We discuss how to fight bills or laws negatively affecting pet ownership: dogs, cats, birds, small mammals, reptiles, others.”     http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/pet-law/

IL-Pet-Law (a Yahoo group) – (quote from their webpage) “Defend your right to own, breed and rescue! We'll talk mainly about state and local legislation, lawmaking and law-fighting practices and methods and such ideas as breed bans, mandatory spay and neuter, breeder registration, and licensing.” (Focus on Illinois laws and events)       http://groups.yahoo.com/group/il-pet-law/

BSL Updates (a Yahoo group) – (quote from their webpage) “Announcements only regarding legislation that may restrict or prohibit any dogs based on breed. Announcement may be made by authorized individuals only. This is not a forum for email exchange.”     http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/BSL-UPDATES/

Stay Informed! Be Aware of Pending Laws

The Animal Council – “Current Legislative Materials” (Pending State and Local laws, note: newest laws at bottom of each state’s law list)     http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/CurrentLegislativeMaterial.html

The Animal Council – “Selected Federal Issues”     http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/Fed-Iss.html

AKC – “Legislative Alerts”     http://www.akc.org/news/sections/legislative_alerts.cfm

US Sportsmen’s Alliance—“Search Bill Tracker” (search State and Federal pending legislation, much of which affects dogs on public lands for hunting and other purposes)     http://www.ussportsmen.org/State.cfm

Cat Fanciers’ Association Inc. (CFA) Legislative Alerts – This organization is not just involved with legislation involving cats, but also dogs. The CFA has become perhaps the most politically active of any purebred animal registry. In addition to legislative updates, resources for information topics such as guardianship, “pet overpopulation”, and mandatory spay/neuter laws are provided.        http://www.cfa.org/exhibitors/alerts.html

Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) Information Centers

Animal Legal and Historical Center – Breed-Specific Legislation in the United States     http://www.animallaw.info/articles/aruslweiss2001.htm

The Animal Council – “Breed Specific Laws: A Basic Primer”     http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/BreedSpecificLaw.html

American Canine Foundation – “Breed Specific Legislation”     http://americancaninefoudationlaw.com/breedspecificlegislation.html

Under-Stand-A-Bull.com – “Punish the Deed, not the Breed!”      http://www.understand-a-bull.com/

NoPitBullBans.com – (quote from website) “NoPitBullBans.com was founded in 2003 as a result of breed-specific legislation (BSL) being proposed in Chicago and surrounding areas. While Illinois and the Chicago area are our immediate focus, we have helped other cities and states when asked. We are dedicated to educating the public and municipal and state governments about the inefficacy and unconstitutionality of BSL, mandatory spay/neuter, microchipping and guardianship laws.”     http://www.nopitbullbans.com/

DogWatch.net – (quote from their website) “your source for information on breed specific legislation (bsl)”      http://www.dogwatch.net/index.html

Oppose Guardianship

The Animal Council – “Property Status of Animals”         http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/Property.html

North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners Alliance (NCRAOA) – “Guardianship, Property, and Legal Status” – a collection of articles on guardianship and related issues    http://www.ncraoa.com/Guardians.html

American Veterinary Medical Law Association – “Ownership of Animals vs. Guardianship of Animals: The Effect of a Change in the law on Veterinarians in California” (This article focuses on both effects of a proposed 2004 law changes for owners and veterinarians.)     http://www.ncraoa.com/articles/AR/AVMLAWhitePaper.pdf

Journal of the American Veterinary Association – “AVMA opposes 'pet guardianship'     No evidence 'guardianship' enhances relationship between owner and pet” (July 1 2003)      http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/jul03/030701i.asp

General Animal Legal Information Centers (Informational Purposes Only)

Michigan State University College of Law – Animal Legal & Historical Web Center (comment: this website is very useful for historic information, however, some of their written policies have a decidedly “Animal Rights” slant.)     http://www.animallaw.info/

American Veterinary Medical Association – “State Legislative Resources”        http://www.avma.org/advocacy/state/issues/default.asp

National Association for Biomedical Research – “Animal Law Section”     http://www.nabr.org/animallaw/index.htm

Limit Laws Information

The Animal Council – “Limit Laws”     http://www.theanimalcouncil.com/LimitLaws.html

No-Kill Advocacy Center – “Pet Limit Laws”     http://nokilladvocacycenter.org/pdf/PetLimitLaws.pdf

Accurate Fatal Dog Attacks Information

American Canine Foundation – “Fatal Dog Attacks”       http://americancaninefoudationlaw.com/fataldogattacks.html

National Canine Research Council – “The National Canine Research Council is an organization comprised of canine experts created to present accurate statistics and to provide detailed information on the human and canine behaviors which have contributed to cases of severe and fatal dog attacks.”     http://www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/default.asp

Oppose Mandatory Spay/Neuter

NAIA – “Long-Term Health Risks and Benefits Associated with Spay / Neuter in Dogs” by Laura J. Sanborn, M.S.     http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

SaveOurDogs.net – “a grassroots effort to save working dogs from AB 1634, mandatory spay/neuter”     http://saveourdogs.net/index.html

Chris Zink DVM, PhD, DACVP – “Early Spay-Neuter Considerations for the Canine Athlete: One Veterinarian's Opinion”     http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html

No-Kill Advocacy – “The Dark Side of Mandatory Licensing and Neutering Laws: Why Punitive Legislation Fails”     http://nokilladvocacycenter.org/pdf/mandatorylaws.pdf

Homeowners Insurance Information for Pet Owners

American Kennel Club – Homeowners’ Resource Insurance Center     http://www.akc.org/insurance/homeowners_inscenter.cfm

Larry Cunningham – “The Case Against Dog Breed Discrimination By Homeowner's Insurance Company” (article posted on Animal Legal and Historical Center website)       http://www.animallaw.info/articles/aruscunningham2005.htm

The No-Kill Movement

The No-Kill Advocacy Center – (quote from their website) “If every animal shelter in the United States embraced the No Kill philosophy and the programs and services that make it a reality, we would save over four million dogs and cats who are scheduled to die in shelters this year, and the year after that. It is not an impossible dream.”     http://nokilladvocacycenter.org/index.html

Resources on Exposing Animal Rights Extremists

Internal Revenue Service – “Request for Public Inspection or Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form (Rev. August 2003)” – All 501-C organizations are required to file a 990 (Annual Income Tax) form yearly with the IRS, and make this information readily available to anyone who would like to view it. If you cannot get copies from the organization you are investigating (this may or may not be the same as financial information they publicly disclose in their literature!), you can get them directly from the IRS for free (if you are a non-commercial end user). You can request multiple tax years, if desired. Directions are on the downloadable IRS form.      http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f4506a.pdf

Pet-law.com – “The Future of Dogs”. Chapters pertaining to the AR movement in this free online book include “What is Animal Rights”, “Introducing HSUS”, and “How Animal Rights Laws Work”     http://www.pet-law.com/future/foreword.html

SaveOurDogs.net – “Animal Rights Organizations”        http://saveourdogs.net/animalrights.html

AnimalScam.com – “The truth about PETA and other Animal Rights extremists”     http://www.animalscam.com/

NAIA – “Quotes from the Leaders of the Animal Rights Movement”     http://www.naiaonline.org/articles/archives/animalrightsquote.htm

The Center for Consumer Freedom Animal Rights page         http://www.consumerfreedom.com/issuepage.cfm/topic/8

ActivistCash.com     http://www.activistcash.com/

PETAKillsAnimals.com     http://www.petakillsanimals.com/

North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners Alliance (NCRAOA) – “Animal Rights vs. Animal Welfare: What You Should Know”         http://www.ncraoa.com/AR_AW_WhatYouShouldKnow.html

Pit Archive: The Online Pit Bull Museum – “Response of Nathan Winograd to USA Today Article on No Kill”      http://www.pitarchive.org/?q=node/1688

Print Pet Legislation Resources

Bradley, Janis. Dogs Bite: But Balloons and Slippers are More Dangerous. James and Kenneth Publishers, Berkeley, CA: 2005. (book)

Delise, Karen. Fatal Dog Attacks: The Stories Behind the Statistics. Anubis Press, Manorville, NY: 2002. (book)

Delise, Karen. The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media, Myths, and Politics of Canine Aggression. Anubis Press, Manorville, NY: 2007.

Hearne, Vicki. Bandit: The Heart-warming True Story of One Dog’s Rescue from Death Row. Sky Horse Publishing, New York: 2007. (First edition 1992.)          

Winograd, Nathan J. Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation, and the No Kill Revolution in America. Almaden Books, Los Angeles, CA: 2007.