MO: Animal House
 

MO: Animal House
Animal House


Wednesday, Mar. 29 2006

It must be scary living in outstate Missouri. You never know when
tofu-slurping mobs of big-city animal nuts will take away your God-given right
to hunt and fish, secretly neuter your faithful bird dog and sneak onto your
property to snap pictures of your kennels.

Luckily, there's a place where rural residents can let their fears run wild:
the Missouri Legislature, which is considering three separate measures dealing
with these imaginary threats to the rural way of life.

— House Joint Resolution 43, which may reach the House floor this week, would
require a two-thirds vote for approval of any voter referendum dealing with
fishing, hunting or forestry. Such measures typically require only a simple
majority for passage.

Perhaps our rural friends are worried about ballot proposals last year in Maine
and Alaska that would have banned "bear baiting" -- hunting bears over baited
ground. But those proposals were voted down, and Missouri doesn't allow bear
hunting. Besides, no anti-hunting or anti-fishing petition drives of any kind
have been mounted here. Supporters say HJR 43 is still needed -- just in case.

— Senate Bill 711 would exempt hunting and herding breeds from the state law
requiring animal adoption agencies to neuter or spay dogs. If this were enacted
and you wanted to adopt a Chihuahua, you'd have to have it neutered or spayed.
But if you opted for a Labrador retriever or springer spaniel -- and promised
in writing that you were going to hunt over it -- you could take it home
unaltered. An agency that routinely sterilized hunting dogs before putting them
up for adoption -- as many responsible agencies do with all animals -- could be
fined $500.

— Senate Bill 615 is this year's version of the "Puppy Mill Protection Act."
Missouri leads the nation in unlicensed breeding facilities for dogs, many of
which keep the animals in squalid, cruel conditions. The state also has
large-scale facilities that breed dogs for scientific research, some of which
have been targets of animal rights groups.

SB 615 applies to vaguely defined "agricultural research and production"
facilities. In some circumstances, it would be a class D felony to enter or
photograph these places -- or even to donate money to groups that do.
Supporters say the bill would help control "agro-terrorism." In truth, the bill
is so broadly written that it may criminalize a stop by the side of the road to
take a picture of a cow.

Although some animal rights groups have gone over the top in some states, that
has not been the case in Missouri. Here, they have only highlighted the sorts
of abusive practices in which responsible farmers, ranchers and breeders don't
engage.

In these examples, it's the proposed legislation that goes over the top. HJR 43
and HB 615 may well be unconstitutional, and SB 711 would lead only to more
unwanted, unregistered animals. What is needed on both sides of the issue right
now is some common sense and a little cooperation.

http://www.stltoday.com/