If you feel like you’re read about this issue before, you’re right, but please keep reading – we’ve got a simple, local request for animal lovers who want to do something to help pass laws that will benefit animals and their communities.

The animal control bill, Senate Bill 1033, would improve animal welfare and public safety.  Key provisions include creating a statewide fund through a $3 dog license fee that would help pay for low-cost spay/neuter surgeries and vaccinations, as well as provide animal control officers with training. The bill would also improve the law that requires animals who are adopted from shelters and animal control facilities to be spayed or neutered.  Communities would benefit from the section that improves the dangerous dog law (while preventing ineffective breed-specific ordinances) as well as through fewer costs incurred resulting from a reduction in the number of homeless animals.  The bill would also prohibit certain inhumane methods of euthanasia for dogs and cats and provide other meaningful updates to the state’s antiquated animal control laws. 

The MSPCA is opposed to wild animals in circuses and traveling wild animal acts because of the suffering they cause to the animals and because of the false picture given of the animals displayed. 

The inherent cruelty of extensive traveling, forced separation of herds and babies, being chained while not performing, restrictive caging, and coercive training methods are just a few of the reasons why the MSPCA opposes the use of wild animals in circuses.

Can you imagine choosing between your safety and your pets – or the safety of your pets?  Sadly, victims of domestic violence are often faced with these heartbreaking decisions.  Most shelters for human victims of domestic violence do not accept animals, so people must leave their pets to enter the shelter.  Often, victims instead choose to stay in a violent home to try to protect their pets. 

If you’re like a lot of people, you define summer, at least in part, by celebrations involving barbeques or cooking over campfires.  You might even include your pets in summer celebrations – some have their own wading pools, hiking/camping gear, life preservers for boat trips, etc.

Do you think, however, about the food you’re serving and consuming?  If you’ve got standard hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, you’re probably supporting intensive factory farming, which is extremely inhumane, treating animals as production units, not intelligent, sentient beings who suffer immensely when their needs are not met. 

House Bill 2326, An Act to Ensure Adequate Care of Animals in Cities and Towns, would clarify the parameters of the primary animal cruelty law in Massachusetts to better protect animals.

The bill is sponsored by Rep. Louis Kafka – a longtime champion of animal protection issues – and had a hearing in the Municipalities and Regional Government Committee on May 11.  It needs a favorable report to move forward.

While the wording varies from state to state, over twenty states have some kind of provision in their animal cruelty statutes mandating that pet owners and caregivers provide necessary veterinary care.  This is what H. 2326 would do. Specifically, it would prevent a person from knowingly and unjustifiably failing to provide an animal with veterinary care that results in unnecessary suffering.

Does this sound like déjà vu?  This legislative session is not starting out well for wildlife in Massachusetts – trapping is still a concern, and now hunting is, too.

We knew that hunting expansion would be debated at the State House this legislative session, and recently testified before the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee on a Sunday hunting bill, H.2399.  Two more Sunday hunting bills are pending in the Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Committee, H.1994 and H.3119.  For more information, see www.mspca.org/SundayHunting.

Spring is here, and wild animals are active!  This is a fantastic time of year for wildlife watching, but also a time to be vigilant to prevent conflicts with wild animals.

We knew that trapping would be a hot topic at the State House this legislative session, but we didn’t expect to have just a couple days notice for a hearing before the Environment committee on some extreme bills.  To make matters worse, an amended version of Chairwoman Gobi’s bill, an Act Regarding Our Natural Resources, H. 2001, was reported out during the executive session immediately following the hearing.