North Carolina HB 930 Invokes AKC Care and Conditions Policy Language as Best Standards of Care for Dogs

The American Kennel Club, leading experts in the breeding, care and well-being of dogs for more than 128 years, is pleased that the sponsors and humane organizations supporting recently introduced North Carolina HB 930 agree that the AKC Care and Conditions of Dogs Policy offers the best standards of care for all dogs and are using them as the basis for this bill.

“It’s encouraging to see language from the AKC Care and Conditions of Dogs Policy, which is the foundation of our inspections program, used in the North Carolina bill as a model for best standards of care,” said AKC Spokesperson Lisa Peterson.  “But we are disappointed, and even puzzled, why they would not include several of the basic standards of care from our policy, such as socialization and grooming, when describing canine health and well-being.”

In addition, HB 930, characterized as a “law enforcement tool” to prevent cruelty, is an arbitrary law that only applies to “large commercial dog breeders,” defined as those with 10 or more breeding females. It also purports to exclude dogs used for hunting, sport, field or show. AKC believes that animal cruelty statutes should cover all dogs regardless of the number or reason owned.

While the AKC Care and Conditions of Dogs Policy language included in the bill includes important standards for care of dogs, housing, and operations, the bill fails to include other important standards of care for socialization, grooming, disaster preparedness, and adequate oversight to care for the animals, among others. Unlike the bill, AKC’s policy includes a mechanism to alert governmental agencies when substandard conditions are discovered, stating, “all unhealthy and/or unsanitary conditions” and “conditions that place [dogs] in immediate danger” will be reported immediately to the appropriate federal, state, and local agencies.

AKC’s Government Relations department will be monitoring the progress of this bill.

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Posted by Geoff on Apr 15 2013. Filed under The Buzz. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.