Federal Breeder Bill Advancing; Contact Congress Now

August 07, 2023

Members of Congress Need to hear Your Opposition to Anti-Breeder Legislation – Call or email TODAY!

Members of Congress are currently back in their home districts for the August recess. Many are getting heavy pressure from animal rights activists in their districts to advance bills that are harmful to small hobby breeders.

Your Member of Congress needs to hear from you TODAY! Scroll down for contact information.

Please let them know you are a constituent who cares about responsible dog ownership and breeding.

Ask them to not support the Puppy Protection Act (H.R. 1624) and Goldie's Act (H.R. 1788) and to not advance their harmful breeder mandates via the Farm Bill.

Read AKC's previous alert for more in-depth information on these bills.

This Impacts Many Small/Hobby Breeders:

Breeders who maintain more than 4 "breeding females" (a term that is undefined but is generally considered to mean an intact female) and transfer even one of the offspring "sight unseen" would be subject to these new USDA requirements. "Breeding females" include any combination of cats, dogs, or other small pet mammals such as hamsters, guinea pigs, etc. (Learn more.

Talking Points:

Ask them to oppose the Puppy Protection Act (H.R. 1624) and Goldies Act (H.R. 1788) because they undermine animal wellbeing and enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act. These bills are "feel good" proposals developed without the experience and scientific expertise of breeder experts.
One-size-fits-all requirements in the Puppy Protection Act fail to recognize the diversity of breeds of dogs impacted. It establishes arbitrary, non-scientific breeding prohibitions and government mandates that can undermine small specialty breeding programs, and harm some dogs.
Goldie's Act would allow for seizure or immediate euthanasia of dogs that an inspector deems to have experienced "psychological harm", a term the legislation does not define.
Explain you are a constituent. Respectfully share your experience and concerns as a dog owner/breeder/expert.
Ask them to not support advancing the Puppy Protection Act or Goldie's Act out of committee or in the Farm Bill. Tell them, despite claims being made by animal rights groups, these bills DO impact responsible small breeders.
Ask them to instead support additional financial resources for USDA so they can appropriately enforce the requirements they already have.

Additional Talking Points:

Proposal Would Undermine Animal Welfare, DC Journal, April 20, 2023

Breeder Expertise, Thoughtful Analysis Demonstrate Dangerous Flaws in 'Feel Good' Dog Law

How to Contact Your Member of Congress:

Visit AKC's Legislative Action Center and type your address in the "Find Your Elected Officials" box to find out who represents you and get their contact information. Please consider making a phone call or sending a private email directly to your lawmaker's office using the talking points above.

Compose and send an email using AKC talking points.

If possible, please let the AKC GR team (doglaw@akc.org) know you contacted your lawmakers and if you received any response.

For questions or more information, contact doglaw@akc.org, visit AKC's Legislative Action Center www.akcgr.org or contact 919-816-3720.

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