I’m glad to welcome 2010 for a bunch of reasons, but one that I had to be reminded of yesterday was that January 1st brings with it the implementation of Oregon’s House Bill 2470, the Puppy Mill Bill. Signed into law in June, this bill placed a cap on the number of breeding dogs people can own and more clearly defined standards of care for those dogs.
Last spring I was able to testify in front of the house and senate committees who worked on this bill. This was my first time getting involved with any kind of legislation, so when I was invited to participate, I was happy to speak up.
I was able to share the experiences I had while working at Heartland Humane Society when in 2007 we worked on a neglect case eventually involving over 100 dogs. Unfortunately this breeder had been in operation for years, during which time hundreds of dogs suffered in her care. Had this law been in place at the time, law enforcement would have been able to act much sooner to stop her and help the dogs.
This case is where we first met a scrappy little puppy who later became known as Julio, and even later, became a permanent part of our family.
Julio at about 10 weeks old, snuggling up with Romeo, also rescued from irresponsible breeders. Photo courtesy Trent B. Bingham
My puppy mill dogs are happy it is 2010 in Oregon!