This week’s “Bill of the Week” is Hawaii Senate Bill 2504 which places additional requirements on pet sellers. A pet seller is defined as “any person, partnership entity, or corporation who sells pets to the public or to a retail pet store.” According to the bill, a pet seller, prior to selling a cat or dog, must [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Canine, Companion Animals, Feline, State Legislative Issues
Congress is back and the issue of whether veterinarians should be required by legislative mandate to write a prescription at the time of prescribing for small animals, regardless of whether or not you would also dispense the product to your client, continues to be discussed in House and Senate offices. But are congressional members and [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Companion Animals
The second session of the 112th Congress has begun. This year will be very interesting as the political parties jockey for first place in the November 2012 election. The new year is a good time to evaluate advocacy strategies and resolve to become more engaged in the political process. Last December, I had the opportunity to [...]
Colorado HB 1087 was rejected by lawmakers on Monday. The bill would have created, within the Department of Public Safety, an on-line animal abusers registry. The bill would have required adults convicted of cruelty to animals to register with the department and the list would have been made available to the general public on an [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Animal Welfare, Companion Animals, State Legislative Issues
On January 7, the AVMA House of Delegates approved several revisions to the association’s Model Veterinary Practice Act, a document routinely used by state legislators and regulatory bodies for guidance on appropriate oversight of veterinary medicine. A special task force reviewed extensive comments from veterinarians, the public and AVMA entities before recommending the changes to [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Companion Animals, Disaster Preparedness, Drugs and Vaccines, Exotic Species, Fish, Food Animals, General, Horses, Policies and Governance, State Legislative Issues, Veterinary Technicians
Recently members of the AVMA Governmental Relations Division staff attended U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments concerning a California state law dealing with non-ambulatory livestock. (National Meat Association vs. Harris). At issue is whether the Federal Meat Inspection Act pre-empts a California state statute that requires all non-ambulatory animals at packing plants be immediately euthanized. The [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Food Animals
You may have heard about an unusual recent Texas court of appeals opinion in the case of Medlen v. Strickland, http://www.law.com/jsp/tx/LawDecisionTX.jsp?id=1202529741831&slreturn=1, allowing the award of “sentimental” or “intrinsic” damages for loss of a dog. The facts of the case are certainly tragic, involving the unfortunate and mistaken euthanasia of a dog by a city animal shelter. What’s puzzling [...]
Categories: Advocacy, Animal Welfare, Companion Animals, General, State Legislative Issues
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