Puppy-Mill Bills Face Tough Going In Olympia

If Progressive Animal Welfare Society had a slogan for the '90s, it should be "Seize the Moment."

The opportunistic Lynnwood-based animal-welfare agency was a prime architect of the Pasado bill in 1994 and the greyhound-ban measure last year in the Washington State Legislature.

Now it's at bat again - this time with a puppy-mill bill - aimed at curbing abusive commercial breeding operations in which animals are not provided adequate housing, sustenance, care or treatment.

Both the Pasado and the greyhound legislation wagged the political tails of high-profile incidents involving grisly deaths of the subjects, plus the premature euthanasia of thousands of healthy four-legged athletes at race tracks nationwide.

Pasado was the Kelsey Creek Farm petting-zoo donkey that was beaten and strangled to death by several teens, leaving the entire community in shock and uproar. Its legacy became legislation that upgraded the most severe penalty for animal cruelty to a Class C felony, the first major improvement in the statute in 90 years.

A Spokane newspaper story detailing alleged animal cruelty and race fixing at Coeur d'Alene (Idaho) Greyhound Park, dwindling attendance there and a burgeoning numbers of dogs handled by dedicated and exasperated rescue groups were the trigger mechanisms that helped put Senate and House of Representatives measures on a fast track, resulting in the passage of a bill that made Washington the fourth state to ban the sport.

And now the puppy-mill bills - House Bill 1994 and Senate Bill 5964 - follow the highly publicized raid in Newport, Pend Oreille County, in January where sheriff's deputies confiscated 230 dogs - golden retrievers, bullmastiffs and bulldogs - from horrid conditions. Twenty-five dogs were euthanized and 15 were found dead. The owners of Mountain Top Kennels, Jeanette and Swen Bergman, have been charged with 27 counts of second-degree animal cruelty.

As one animal-control official said, "Sometimes you need to hang your bill on something. Let's face it, animal/pet issues don't usually attract the Legislature's attention. But when something like this happens, you must capture the momentum and go with it."

Both measures were written quickly, with PAWS' leashed guidance.

"Puppy mills have been with us for years," says Mitchell Fox, PAWS animal-advocacy director, who has burned up the phone lines with authorities in other states that have legislation in the books.

"Our bills are nonpartisan and attempt to close loopholes. They are not aimed at threatening conscientious and legitimate breeders. We welcome their input here, but time is of the essence."

Fox is seeking support of kennel clubs, rescue groups, the Washington State Veterinary Medical Association and the Federation of Animal Care and Control Agencies.

The salient centerpiece of both requires anyone breeding five or more litters of cats or dogs a year to be registered with the state Department of Health, which will be charged with establishing minimum standards for the animals' care and treatment and conducting inspections to ensure compliance.

Both have been kenneled in Olympia since their introduction in January and must pass through the respective House and Ecology Committee by Wednesday or backers will be faced with returning to the drawing board next year.

Members of the Animal Legislation Awareness Network encouraged those attending the Seattle Kennel Club Dog Show and Obedience Trial last weekend to contact their legislators and voice disapproval of the legislation.

Their information packet claims, "House Bill 1994 is generically known as the `puppy-mill bill' but it has nothing whatsoever to do with puppy mills. It has only two purposes:

"To eliminate breeders of purebred animals by making it so expensive and so oppressively regulated that breeders can no longer continue in their chosen field.

"To set up a state-level department and advisory committee on animal issues that is not under the Department of Agriculture.

"Why would an animal-care bill be under the Department of Health, the same department that licenses opticians, naturopaths, midwives, ocularists, dental hygienists, radiologists, dieticians . . . ? The health department should confine itself to human health-care issues. Animal care is an agriculture issue."

Bill Holbrook of Sequim, American Kennel Club field representative, labels the legislation "arbitrary and capricious. You can't fairly set a limit of four litters on breeders. Toy breeds such as Pomeranians and Chihuahuas sometimes produce only one or two per litter while St. Bernards and Newfoundlands may deliver 10 or more.

"What these measures say is that it is OK for one breeder to have up to 50 puppies a year while another would be limited to 10 or less. Is that fair?

"Should a bill pass, what's to say it can't be amended to three or two litters within a few years."

Fox counters, "There is absolutely no hidden agenda here. It's not a we-and-they or partisan issue. I know reputable breeders are concerned about puppy mills such as that in Newport. We need their support on this."

The bottom line, however, is that many breeders/kennel clubs simply do not trust PAWS' intentions. The two were polarized in 1992 when then King County Councilman Ron Sims introduced a breeding moratorium, backed by PAWS, resulting in the animal-welfare group divorcing itself from a coalition group and leaving a giant chasm in the already treacherous political landscape.

Greg Hanon, a lobbyist for the Washington State Veterinary Medical Association, adds, "We're interested in any bills that affect animals in this state. Our organization has some reservations about the so-called puppy-mill legislation in its present form."

According to Hanon, the WSVMA is concerned about inspection and registration falling into the hands of the Department of Health.

Should a bill emerge from the Legislature, its impact on Department of Health budgeting (i.e., staffing) is uncertain. Meanwhile, Gov. Gary Locke has asked state agencies to make a 5 percent budget cut for the next fiscal year.

Rep. Sandra Romero (D-Olympia), the No. 2 sponsor of the House measure behind Rep. Steve Van Luven (R-Bellevue), believes operational costs would be self-sufficient with licensing fees.

"The key," she emphasizes, "is protecting animals against tragedies like Pend Oreille. Present legislation exists to punish but not to prevent animal abuse. Federal laws (Animal Welfare Act) and county measures can too often be ineffectual, not enforced, not applicable or even nonexistent. Our bill provides for denial of registration for persons previously convicted of animal cruelty, which was the case with the operators of Mountain Top Kennels in Pend Oreille."

According to the American Kennel Club, 247 households in Washington state registered five or more litters last year. A total of 125 households registered seven or more litters, a marker which allows the AKC to inspect the premises for registration records, but issue no citations. The New York-based registry organization can, however, report any major violations to local authorities.

Look who's back!

Looking for a refreshing change of pace from that sociopath-of-the-week movie on television or that tired sitcom?

An all-time favorite, Lassie, returns today in a new series on Animal Planet at 5 o'clock.

The network will feature back-to-back, 30-minute offerings in the eighth on-screen renewal of author Eric Knight's canine hero. Twenty-four subsequent new episodes will air at 5 p.m. Saturdays this year.

The American cult hero's history dates to the 1940s when she starred in six films, followed by a three-year radio series. Her TV debut came on CBS in 1954, a series with three versions that continued for 17 years.