s. 833 which prohibits the tethering (fastening, chaining, or restraining a dog to a stationary object) for more than 3 hours a day (or 6 hours a day on a trolley system). The bill also authorizes local governments to vary these regulations. We must be responsible stewards over God’s wonderful creation. Hunting, fishing, and taking animals for food are permissible, but mutilation and torture is unquestionably wrong. I will support just sentencing for crimes involving dog fights, hog dog rodeo, cockfighting and similar blood sports.
My daughter has a bichon frise (Sugar on the left) that is attached to a cable in our front yard a few times a day for potty breaks. Believe me Sugar gets better treatment than most children. That dog is spoiled rotten. Sugar sleeps in the bed with her! I’m not convinced that this legislation will affect many animals receiving good care or will not affect animals receiving bad care while not tethered.
I understand the intentions of the legislation: to crack down on animal cruelty, which I wholeheartedly support. But the specifics of this bill bring up many questions. How is it enforced? Do we provide law enforcement officers with measuring tapes and stop watches? Is the 3 hours a day cumulative measure? Although we currently have animal cruelty penalties in place, this bill will cause us to revisit these statutes. It may be a better approach to leave the specifics up to the law enforcement and courts, but maybe we should put these definitions in the statutes. I’d love your thoughts on this one.
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