New dog ordinance
 

El Paso has a new dog ordinance. All breeders and nonbreeders having puppies have to purchase a permit $75 per litter for nonbreeders and $100 per litter for breeders.

Also, no puppies are to be sold or given away before 8 weeks. Any puppies given away before 8 weeks have to be turned over to the humane society. This is fantastic cuz I've seen ads for pups 5 weeks and ready to go..makes me sick.

Puppies are no longer allowed to be sold for profit under 1 year of age.

Although I see this overall as a great thing to help put a stop to careless breeding practices, I also see this with mixed feelings. I dont think its going to stop puppy mills in our area. They'll just sell their pups outside city limits. Also, many puppies are brought over from mexico and sold in our city.

The reasons for the permits is to reduce the number of animals brought to the animal shelter. Half of our city doesnt have to comply because they are in another state. They arent even required to mircochip and many of those dogs are dumped at the shelter. Is this really gonna greatly reduce the numbers at animal shelters??

I dont see how rules only effecting half the city is gonna do much good. Microchipping is a law here thats been in effect for 5 years. Since half of the city doesnt have to microchip, it has not helped bring down numbers at the shelter.

It seems that El Paso has some real bad roadside stuff going on so maybe drastic measures needed to be taken there. It's sad.

Where to begin… Most legislators don’t know the first thing about effective and appropriate animal legislation. They pass these laws to show their constituents that they are doing “something.” They would rather pass bad laws than no laws at all. More concerning is that they are influenced by one of the strongest, most effective and well-funded lobbying groups in America. The political agenda of the HSUS is clear by their actions and accomplishments. They are quickly eroding the rights of pet owners and anyone who does not share their “animal rights” views through lobbying legislators to pass laws which restrict pet ownership and pet availability. The largely unsuspecting public thinks they are donating directly to shelters and “poor animals”. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is not an animal charity in the usual sense. If you look at their 2009 tax return, you find that they collected $101.6 million in revenue. They spent $6.7 million in services and grants and spent $74.1 million on “other expenses”. The other expenses are funds spent lobbying. In fact, they are under investigation by the IRS for misrepresenting themselves. Any other charity that spent a mere 7% of its revenue on services would be considered a miserable failure. These laws are not stopping any unethical people – the unethical breeders and abusers already ignore the law or move out of the jurisdiction. Studies have shown that education of the public changes behavior - not more restrictive laws. As responsible citizens and pet owners, it is incumbent upon each of us to educate ourselves on the issues affecting us and acting upon them. Contact your legislators and let them know how you feel on issues of importance to you. The AKC has a page with links to pending legislation in each state. Another helpful site is humanewatch dot org.
"My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government. Thomas Jefferson
Sorry, I will get down from my soapbox now…

It said...no pups are allowed to be sold for profit under a year of age...
Does it mean a breeder must only charge for actual expenses to produce the litter???

Yes...excluding food. The original proposal tried to put a complete ban on ALL sales of puppies PERIOD.

Well there you go. The city is well on it's way to doing what Animal Rights Activists want. No pet ownership. It has nothing to do with the pets ending up in shelters, or promoting reputable breeding practices.

Let me add that it amazes me beyond belief that a law such as this has been passed in a city right across the Mexican boarder and Juarez. I would think they would be doing more to stop the drug trafficing and murders associated with drugs.

Why go after drugs and crime when you can prosecute dangerous dog owners instead. :rolleyes:
In all seriousness, I agree with the assessment that this is all for show. How are they going to enforce it? Are they going to go from house to house to see if you have a litter that needs registering? Are the puppy police going to ask to see your records to see how much you've spent on that litter to know if you are making a profit? It's a knee jerk response.

More government is never the answer in my opinion. You cannot legislate people into being "good" to their own children much less their pets.

I had the same thoughts about Mexico.

Too bad, it always like some irresponsible people ruin it for all.

YES.......My sister told me some years back they went house to house to see if dogs were registered and up-to-date on vaccinations. They left a nasty gram on her door and she had to take in proof. Her neighbors told her what they saw that day...they literally went house-to-house.

Maybe there needs to be a breeding fee to have children. I bet unwanted/uncared for children cost the public a whole lot more than abandoned pets do. Seems to me that this type of law, like most regulatory laws just make it harder for the responsible, honest people and doesn't do much to help with the real problem.

How are they going to find out who has puppies? Require vets to report any newborn animals that they treat (like they do with rabies vaccinations in my area)? I bet that just causes fewer pets to get the veterinary care they need.

We're at the point that legislators should have to repeal two old laws before they can enact one new one.

Then the town has too much money. Holy cow, I could think of much better things to be spending tax money on!

Last summer the city where I live.....they did do a house to house to insure all dogs were licensed. All well and good and I understand, why? However, the Animal Control Officer informed my husband, that this was being done because at a time where local city, county and state governments are operating in the red.....it was their biggest revenue maker. They usually don't do this unless the coffers are empty.

omg!!!!

Yep! Talk about making money off of our dog's backs.....

It will bring more creative tax deductions/ expenses, mileage to get the puppy pads, time spent with prospective buyers, candles to make the air smell good and not "doggie" (that'll work with the scentsy post!!), etc.

Wow, I didn't know this about the HSUS!! I give them a monthly donation taken out of my checking account, I am going to have to investigate this further and maybe move my donation somewhere else!! How about the ASPCA?? Are they lobbyists too??

Who one decides to support is strictly a personal decision. My own opinion is that HSUS takes in way too much money to see so little actually help animals in need. A lot of people think that HSUS is somehow connected to local shelters. They are not and local shelters don't benefit from donations made to HSUS.

As for the ASPCA, I was kind of neutral about them until I came across this story, which is in this thread http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/ani...-new-york.html

I like these two national groups. They both do wonderful work, IMO.

No Kill Advocacy Home Page

Best Friends Animal Society Home Page

I donate to my local humane society (HSSM..Humane Society of South Mississipi). It's not a no-kill shelter, but they do a great job considering the scope of the problems here. I don't think you can go wrong in helping out the animals in your own area. In this economy, many local shelters are feeling the pinch and it's the animals that suffer from this.

Most ASPCA organizations are reliable and actually operate shelters which provide direct medical and rehabilitative care to animals. Check out one in your area and help support those efforts. Charity watch organizations provide information on how well they live up to their claims. Look into Charity Navigator for your state.

Thanks for the advice!! I do love Best Friends and already donate to them but I think I am going to move my money locally. I was giving to the HSUS because I thought they were using the money to help shut down puppymills and get stronger laws in force to close them.

The humane society in my area only gives a dog 3 days to be adopted..then they put them down. I dont mind helping a no-kill shelter but I dont want to help a place that has dogs on death row.

From my understanding, HSUS can claim to be no-kill but then get an influx of dogs and put them down.

The HSUS in a nearby town of about 40k population..isnt totally a no-kill. The put down wild cats and vicious dogs. They have very few dogs to adopt out. They only had about 7 dogs when I visited. They dont have a ban on breeding, but they do require breeders register their dogs as breeders and pay for an annual license. They also require all puppies to be thoroughly examined by a vet before being sold. That seems to work for them.

HAHAHA thats funny. I read that the expenses have to be reasonable, but they didnt give many details.

The HSUS is completely different than the local Humane Society. HSUS does not have a shelter.

Expenses would probably need to be reported to whoever is going to manage compliance, not to the Tax Man. Although, it could be to both; the tax man (they want the money) and whoever is going to oversee the new law.

It's wonderful that you care enough to support animals in need. Most local shelters appreciate not only cash donations, but also donations of food. I split my support between cash and food. So many people donate food, but it's often the lowest quality (cheapest) food they can find. Their hearts are in the right place, but the shelter workers here (and the animals) really appreciate it when they get some decent food. And nothing wrong with a big box of dog biscuits or training treats that the volunteer walkers can use for rewards.

If you make a food donation, don't forget the kitty cats. Most shelters have more cats than dogs at any given time.

Have a great day :)!!

I wouldn't say that the Humane Society of the United States is totally unconnected from local Humane Societies. While they don't give them any money, they do help educate them on how to start and operate a local facility.

Here are some of the things that The HSUS provides local animal shelters:

How is The HSUS Affiliated With Your Local Humane Society? : The Humane Society of the United States

I will add, I'm not the fan I once was, while I do still believe that they do support good breeders, when I heard they were selling a vegetarian dog food, I lost respect for them, and I saw them more as a business than as a humane society.

I would lose respect for this too!! Dogs are carnivores, why in the h*&^ would they need a vegetarian food???

And I wonder how did they ever survive an audit? That is underreporting at it's most egregious.

Let me clarify the reporting of income and expenses, must be categorized in meaningfull packets of informative reporting. Revenue IRS or RevCanada, does send out detailed tax reporting forms even if you are a NPO (NonProfit and or Charity Organization).

Other Expenses or Other Income on an Income and Expense Statement is usually between 5-10% of total Income or total Expense.

I guess for dog owners who were vegetarian, but is that really respecting the animal/dog? What an individual dog owner decides is one thing, but there are enough "businesses" that will cater to this. With this act, they did put themselves over the line as a moneymaker, rather than an organization who really had a respect for animals in my opinion. Not saying they are all bad, and we cannot judge a bill as good or bad just because they back it.