My name is Jackie Keeney. I am an animal advocate in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania representing an organization UAPM, United Against Puppy Mills. There is a House Bill 1476 presently in Harrisburg which is important for dogs in Pennsylvania. We need to ACT NOW to make an impact to get this vital bill passed. The bill is described as follows:

An Act amending the act of December 7, 1982, known as the Dog Law, further providing for revocation suspension or refusal of kennel license. Changing of the word "may" to "shall" is VITAL to the protection of dogs imprisoned in Pennsylvania's Puppy-Mills!.. By changing the word to "shall" the Secretary shall suspend, revoke, or refuse a kennel license. The word "may" as it is now in the current Dog Law leaves too much uncertainty. This is one more step in the right direction to protect the dogs in Pennsylvania. We urge everyone to contact their State Representatives and also every Representative on the Consumer Affairs Committee because they are the people who will be passing or NOT passing this bill. Support HB 1476, to require the secretary to revoke, suspend or refuse a kennel license based on violations of rules regarding humane handling, transportation, veterinary care, housing, breeding, socialization, feeding watering or other humane treatment of animals. 

FIRST, it is imperative to send a letter to your own State Representative.  The link to determine who your state rep is http://www.legis.state.pa.us (Pennsylvania General Assembly website). Enter your zip code in the upper right hand corner.  Click here for a support letter for your use or feel free to make your own letter. 

SECOND, we need you to send a letter to every Representative on the Consumer Affairs Committee. This is the committee who decides if the bill is passed or thrown out. Click here for a set of the 27 letters, all you have to do is print them, sign them with your name and address. Also if you don't want to pay the cost of every individual letter, feel free to mail all 27 completed letters to me in one bulk letter and I will mail them for you. You can even get sets of them signed by neighbors, friends etc. and mass mail them all to me. Please pass this on to every dog lover, animal lover, friend, vet, rescues etc. you know. We need a mass of letters to inundate these Representatives to know how important this bill is for the welfare of the animals. If we all stick together we can make things happen and hopefully provide a Happy New Year for these animals. 

Any questions, feel free to email me at jkeeney60@hotmail.com with your email or phone number and I will get back to you ASAP, we need these letters out now. I am ready to assist you in any way I can. If mailing to me,

Jackie Keeney
503 Dead End Road
Lititz, PA 17543

Sincerely,
Jackie Keeney

HB1911 Needs Help from PA Residents
Proposed Legislation will limit the number of hours a dog can spend chained:

This is Bear, rescued last month from a rural PA home, a sweet dog now looking for a forever home. Sadly, many more Pennsylvania dogs live as Bear was living. There is nothing so sad as the sight of a perpetually tethered, neglected animal who swelters in the summer and freezes in the winter. Too many times humane agents have had the terrible experience of being called--too late--to save such dogs. Some freeze to death, others starve and still others have their windpipes severed by collars or chains long since outgrown. These forgotten dogs are rarely given even the minimal vaccinations and veterinary care required by law.

Please help by completing & sending this form:

PA Legislation to limit the number of hours a dog can spend chained plus other humane improvements is currently sitting in committee. We NEED the help of all PA residents to move this bill from committee out to the floor for a vote! The website Dogs Deserve Better now has an incredibly simple form for you to click on to send a letter to every targeted committee member. Please do so ASAP, and pass along to any and all PA contacts you have who may be supportive of helping get these dogs into the home and family! (Click Bear's Photo to go to the form.) 

Click this link to see the text of the House Bill 1911:   http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/BI/BT/2005/0/HB1911P2616.HTM

Phase One of getting this bill passed is to get it through the Judiciary Committee. Of the 28 members, five are already co-sponsors of the bill. In order for it to pass, we need 15 votes. To follow are names and addresses of ten committee members we have chosen to request support. ANY PENNSYLVANIA RESIDENT CAN WRITE TO ANY OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS LISTED. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHOSE DISTRICT YOU ARE IN.

Here is how/what you need to know to help:

1. Write a letter to at least one of the Judiciary Committee members shown on the list below. 

2. Handwritten letters are best. The message can be as simple as: "As a Pennsylvania constituent, I am asking you to support HB-1911 because of its important contribution to the animal cruelty statutes."

3. It is perfectly fine to send whatever you write via fax. Calling the representative's office to request support is also a very good idea. Just tell them you would like to go on record with your request.

4. You can also call, fax, e-mail or write your PA rep. and let them know you support PA House Bill 1911 and ask them to co-sponsor this bill. The link to determine who your state rep is http://www.legis.state.pa.us (Pennsylvania General Assembly website). Enter your zip code in the upper right hand corner.

Here is the list of the Judiciary Committee members:

 Please remember this bill has no chance to become a reality if each of us won't take a few minutes to write a note of support.
 It really only takes a few minutes to send a powerful message!!!!!

HR2669 FEDERAL legislation - Pet Animal Welfare Statute

Federal legislation was recently introduced by Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) that considerably strengthens federal oversight of commercial breeding operations without imposing onerous restrictions on true "hobby" breeders. Because direct internet sales have allowed many puppy mills to circumvent existing Animal Welfare Act rules, the new Pet Animal Welfare Statute of 2005 gives the US Dept. of Agriculture additional authority to deal with inhumane breeding operations.

We urge you to contact your representatives in Congress and express your support. An example of a letter of support is shown below. You can cut and paste this text into Word, Wordpad or Notepad to create & print your own letter:

The Honorable Joseph R. Pitts 
221 Cannon House Office Building 
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Congressman Pitts:

I am writing to you today to request that you support legislation recently introduced in Congress that would close several loopholes in the Animal Welfare Act that allow puppy mills to flourish not only in Lancaster County but throughout the country as well.

Referred to as the Pet Animal Welfare Statute of 2005, this legislation was introduced on May 26 in the House as HR 2669 by Representative Jim Gerlach and in the Senate by Senator Rick Santorum as SR 1139. Under existing law, wholesale dog and cat breeders who sell animals to pet stores are licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and regulated by the agency's Animal Welfare Act. However, there are many commercial breeders and brokers that legally bypass USDA regulations dealing with the humane handling and treatment of these animals by selling directly to consumers through the Internet or sales at their kennels.

This legislation is designed to close those loopholes for commercial breeders, while not affecting people who breed dogs or cats as a hobby. If passed, commercial breeders of seven or more litters of dogs or cats per year would have to be licensed by the USDA and would also affect dealers that import animals to sell, Internet sellers and other dealers that do not breed but sell more than 25 dogs or cats in a year. The legislation also would strengthen USDA's enforcement authority by forcing retail pet stores to show records indicating where they obtained animals to sell, giving the USDA a mechanism to identify breeders who should be licensed.

As a supporter of the Lancaster-based group, United Against Puppy Mills, I would respectfully request that you support this legislation.

Sincerely,

(Name) ___________________________________

(Address) _________________________________

__________________________________________

__________________________________________

(Date) ___________________________________

Or, click on the banner link at upper right to go to the Humane Society of the United States online form letter. 

Pennsylvania General Assembly

PA House of Representatives 
& Judiciary

Breed Specific Legislation

PA  Dog Bite Law

PA Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement

PETA's "Un-chain a Dog Pack"  (literature)

Animal Welfare Federation of NJ

These wonderful site teaches us about life at the end of a chain... and what we can do to help dogs 'sentenced' to live this way.  Please click on the links above & learn why you should Unchain Your Dog, and how you can help others learn to do so too.