Louisiana Alert: Impoundment and Euthanasia of Banned Breeds to Begin in Moreauville

AKC Press Release

Last month, the Board of Aldermen of Moreauville, Louisiana, a village of approximately 1,000 residents in Avoyelles Parish, passed a draconian breed-specific vicious dog law that bans the ownership of “pit bulls” and Rottweilers. No exceptions are provided to the ordinance,including for service, therapy, or emotional support dogs. Little public notice was provided when the ordinance was considered. Starting on December 1, town officials will enforce the ordinance by confiscating each dog of the targeted breeds and euthanizing them within 30 days regardless of whether or not a dog has previously exhibited any dangerous behavior. Furthermore, Moreauville officials recently approved to pay for city officials to be certified in using tranquilizer rifles to subdue targeted dogs. The American Kennel Club strongly opposes the Moreauville vicious dog ordinance, and encourages all concerned dog owners to call and email the Moreauville officials below and urge them to repeal this unnecessary and extreme law. 

AKC’S POSITION ON DANGEROUS DOG CONTROL LEGISLATION: The AKC supports reasonable, enforceable, non-discriminatory laws to govern the ownership of dogs. We support laws that: establish a fair process by which SPECIFIC dogs are identified as “dangerous” based on stated, measurable actions; impose appropriate penalties on irresponsible owners; and establish a well-defined method for dealing with dogs proven to be dangerous. The American Kennel Club strongly opposes any legislation that determines a dog to be “dangerous” based on specific breeds or phenotypic classes of dogs. 

A recent media report indicates that there have been no documented dog attacks in Moreauville. However, in the same report, one alderman indicated his willingness to reconsider the ordinance if a strong enough outcry to its severity is expressed. Therefore, it is vitally important that all concerned dog owners call and email the Moreauville officials (listed below) and respectfully urge them to repeal the village’s new drastic vicious dog ordinance. Click here for a sample letter to use when contacting elected officials to express opposition to breed-specific legislation.

Mayor Timmy Lemoine, along with Alderman Oscar P. Goody, Jr., Alderman Felix Benjamin, and Alderman Penn Lemoine, and Police Chief Scott Lemoine, may be reached at:

Moreauville City Hall
9898 Bayou Des Glaises St.
Moreauville, LA 71355
(318) 985-2338
villageofmoreauville@yahoo.com

The AKC Government Relations Department (AKC GR) will provide updates to this story as developments occur. AKC GR may be reached at (919) 816-3720, or via email atdoglaw@akc.org.

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Posted by chesliepickett on Nov 25 2014. Filed under Breaking News, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.