Florida law bans breed discrimination, with the exception of Miami-Dade County, which has a ban on pitt bull-type dogs. However, bills have been introduced that would allow local governments to ban the possession of Pit bulls, Rottweilers, German Shepherds and other breeds.
The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida says:
You Can Help
1. Contact Rep. Thurston and Sen. Hill and ask them to withdraw their bills. Please be polite!
Contact:
• Senator Anthony C. "Tony" Hill, Sr.
E-mail: hill.tony.web@flsenate.gov; phone: (866) 867-0289
• Representative Perry E. Thurston, Jr.
E-mail: click here; phone: (954) 762-3746Remind them that local governments in Florida are already free to adopt regulations for so-called "dangerous dogs". Banning a specific breed does not effectively address the problem of dangerous dogs and penalizes responsible dog guardians. There are more appropriate methods of curbing dangerous dog behavior, such as stopping the breeding of dogs for fighting and restricting the chaining of dogs.
2. Write or call your state legislators and ask them to vote NO on House Bill 189 and Senate Bill 922.
Find your state Senator here.
Find you state Representative here.
(9-digit ZIP Code required)
Also, believe it or not, Florida doesn't have a law against bestiality. "Sexual Activities Involving Animals" has been introduced (HB 273 and SB 448). If it passes animals it would, at least on the books, make animals safe from sexual predation by humans . . . and it would make me less embarrassed to live here.
Senator Nan Rich has introduced the bill in the Florida Senate, and Representative William Snyder will be sponsoring the House version. (The 2009 Legislative Session begins March 3, 2009.)
What You Can Do
Please contact your state Senator and Representative and urge them to support this important bill by signing-on as a co-sponsor. A simple and brief message can be effective, such as, "As your constituent, I ask that you co-sponsor the bill ’Sexual Activities Involving Animals.’” Don’t forget to sign your letter with your full name and address so your legislators can confirm that you are a constituent and respond to you.
And finally, I meant to research this but haven't had time, so if anyone knows the answer, please comment. Raina e-mailed:
I was told an interesting thing today by my local ACO [I'm assuming that's Animal Control Officer]. He told me that if an animal is spayed or neutered, the researchers do not want the animal. They only want to purchase “intact” animals, as they call it. I do not know if this is true but he said they used to have labs contact the pound and ask if they had any dogs, especially hound breeds that were intact that they might like to get rid of. The never wanted spayed or neutered animals. He was deeply offended and knew just what they were up to and never let them get any of the animals.
Anyone?
In re to research dogs: neuter/spay has no bearing here, only the physical parameters that have bearing on the research. Usually wgt/kgs, sometimes height.
Posted by: Bev | January 30, 2009 at 01:12 AM
re dog research: if only physical parameters matter, then maybe those labs the officer knew of were researching something related to reproduction?
re animal research in general: To state the obvious and known: Conducting research on animals is abhorrent. But I also know that a lot of initial safety tests for various chemicals (eg pharmaceuticals) will never be conducted on humans -- it isn't safe (much of the research is for basic safety data) and would be considered unethical (yes, I know that double standard's not right). So, I believe the European Union is banning animal research but still wants safety data on all chemicals and scientists were working on developing computer models of cells to use instead. My question is, how is this research coming in the EU and what do you know about it in the US? Also, what do you think of these models?
Posted by: Morganna | January 31, 2009 at 12:25 AM