WV-HSUS hopes to regulate puppy mills and make cockfighting a felony

Published: December 13, 2009 09:44 pm

Humane society seeks new legislation

National group hopes to regulate puppy mills and make cockfighting a felony
By Courtney D. Clark
REGISTER-HERALD REPORTER

While cockfighting is now illegal in all 50 states and considered a felony in most, it remains a misdemeanor offense in West Virginia.

“We want the cockfighting law to be consistent with the state’s dogfighting law,” said John Goodwin, manager of Animal Fighting Issues for the Humane Society of the United States.

“We want it to also be consistent with neighboring states like Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, because people go jurisdiction shopping and move into states with the weakest penalties so they can commit their crimes there.”

Goodwin says the HSUS is going to have legislation introduced and moving in the 2010 session to make cockfighting a felony in West Virginia as well.

“If you could win $10,000, a $100 fine is just the cost of doing business, so there’s no deterrent,” he explained. “When it is a misdemeanor penalty and the gambling winnings are far in excess of the maximum fine, they break the law and just don’t care.”

They also inject the birds with an adrenaline-boosting agent to stimulate the heart, Goodwin says.

“Besides the fact that cockfighting is pretty serious animal cruelty, I’ve picked up these birds that have been fought with their intestines hanging out and their lungs exposed,” he said. “They’re still alive and suffering.

“They’re just drugged-up birds with knives on their legs that fight to the death for gambling, yet there is a very organized and vocal contingency of cockfighters even though it’s illegal. They have the ear of some legislators.

“That said, I know for a fact, from poll after poll around the country, that the overwhelming majority of citizens oppose cockfighting. It’s animal cruelty for gambling purposes and nothing more.”

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, the Mexican Gulf Cartel was found to be moving narcotics through all the cockfighting pits in central Tennessee.

“So a case can be made that not only is a weak penalty for cockfighting a magnet for people that abuse these birds, it’s a magnet for people that are involved in a range of other illegal activities as well,” Goodwin said. “It’s just good public policy to turn that magnet off and keep these criminals out of West Virginia.”

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Summer Wyatt, West Virginia state director for the HSUS, says she will be lobbying for the cockfighting legislation, along with a puppy mill bill the organization plans to introduce in January.

“A puppy mill is a breeding facility that has dogs simply for the purpose of breeding and making money off of the puppies,” Wyatt explained. “These dogs are not home pets. They’re not socialized or brought into the homes most of the time or given ventilation from the fumes of their own feces.”

Wyatt said the dogs are often crammed together and bred continually, a lot of times without veterinary care.

“We’re talking about breeders who have 20 or more unsterilized dogs on their premises,” she explained, “not someone who breeds a litter every year out of their home.”

According to Wyatt, the legislation would regulate commercial breeders who sell puppies in local newspapers, traders and also on the Internet in West Virginia.

“We had a puppy mill raided in Parkersburg last year and over 1,000 adult breeding dogs and puppies were living under extremely terrible conditions,” Wyatt added. “We don’t want this happening in West Virginia, or anywhere in the country anymore, so we’re introducing this legislation that is just asking for regulations of minimum care.

“These animals are not let out to exercise or socialize with people because they’re used for breeding stock,” she continued. “What we’re asking is that these breeders register with the state and the county and pay sales tax so that we know they’re there and have their information. Then a local animal control or sheriff’s office can go in and inspect every now and then to make sure that the law is being carried out.”

When the puppy mill was raided in Parkersburg, the Wood County Animal Shelter spent thousands of dollars on veterinary care for the animals, adopting them out, feeding them, cleaning them up and actually performing the raid, Wyatt says.

“When things like this happen in West Virginia, it’s a drain on our resources,” she said. “The HSUS will have sponsors for these two bills to be introduced in January.

“I hope that people will be aware of them, know what’s going on in their Legislature, and if it’s something that’s near and dear to them, they can speak to their delegate and let them know.”

Additional information can be found at The Humane Society of the United States : The Humane Society of the United States .

The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia - Humane society seeks new legislation