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March News

  Tacoma, WA becomes first city in Washington to ban cat declawing; Pennsylvania lawmaker proposes anti-declaw bill. In early December, the Tacoma City Council voted to ban non-therapeutic onychectomy, otherwise known as cat declawing through new Section 17.02.155. An onychectomy, or cat declawing, amputates the last bone in each toe of a cat, often causing a lifetime of pain and behavioral issues. Tacoma's ordinance goes into effect on March 1, 2024, and violation results in a civil infraction with a penalty of up to $250. In 2019, New York became the first state to ban declawing with Maryland following in 2022. In 2023, Washington, D.C. banned the practice (§ 22–1012.03). The City of West Hollywood, CA was the first city in the United States to ban cat declawing in 2003 and several cities have enacted similar bans since then. Curious to learn more about non-therapeutic procedures for companion animals? Check out our Topic Intro.

   New Hampshire considers ban on for-profit breeding of brachycephalic dogs. Brachycephalic dogs fall under some 24 registered breeds that have flat faces, wide skulls, and disproportionately longer lower jaws. These include two of the most popularly bred dogs, the Bulldog and French Bulldog, but also Affenpinscher, Brussels Griffon, Dogue de Bordeaux, Japanese Chin, Lhasa Apso, Brasileiro, and Pekingese. Brachycephalic breeds are at increased risk for numerous morbidities due to their inability to breathe normally. These dogs may develop brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) because of their shortened noses and skulls. New Hampshire HB 1102 adds a new section to RSA 644:8, the state’s primary anti-cruelty law, making it a crime for anyone who “[s]ells an animal that has a birth deformity that causes suffering, such as brachycephaly, or the intentional breeding with the intent to sell, 2 individual animals with the same birth deformity that causes suffering, such as brachycephaly.” The bill will be introduced January 3, 2024, and referred to the Environment and Agriculture committee.

   New Jersey enacts law to end cruel confinement of veal calves and pregnant pigs. On July 26th, New Jersey governor Phil Murphy signed A1970/S1298 into law. The bill prohibits the confinement of breeding pigs and calves raised for veal in a manner that unduly restricts movement or provides inadequate space. Violation of the bill’s prohibitions constitutes a disorderly persons offense and would also be a civil violation of the animal cruelty laws subject to a civil penalty of not less than $250 or more than $1,000. A gestation crate is a metal cage so small that a mother pig is unable to turn around or move freely for virtually her entire life. Veal crates are small, individual cages used to confine newborn calves prior to slaughter preventing almost any natural behavior and social interaction. According to the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), the bill's enactment reflects a 13-year campaign to lessen animal suffering and protect consumers from zoonotic disease potential linked to extreme confinement of farm animals.

News archives

Cases

Court rules Massachusetts' Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act has discriminatory effect on out-of-state pork processor. Triumph Foods, LLC v. Campbell, --- F.Supp.3d ----, 2024 WL 421994 (D. Mass. Feb. 5, 2024). This case was brought by a group of pork producers and farmers to challenge the Massachusetts' Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act on the grounds that it violates the dormant Commerce Clause by improperly regulating interstate commerce. The Act would require pork producers to phase out certain means of pig confinement in order to sell pork products in Massachusetts. In response, the state filed a motion to dismiss arguing that there is no causally connected harm to the pork producers, which the court denied. The court first evaluated the slaughterhouse exemption, which exempts sales from the requirement that they must take place within Massachusetts if the buyer takes physical possession of the pork while on the premises of an establishment inspected under the Federal Meat Inspection Act. Plaintiff argued that as an out-of-state pork processor, it could not take advantage of this exemption, even though it operates entirely federally inspected facilities, because it ships its product into Massachusetts from out-of-state and, its buyers do not take physical possession of its product while at its facilities. The court found that this exemption has a discriminatory effect, and vacated the order in part to allow the court to consider whether the Act with the slaughterhouse exemption severed is preempted by the Federal Meat Inspection Act.

While 3-month delay was not unreasonable to properly consider accommodation request to keep chickens as ESAs, members were not damaged by delay.  Lab. Comm'n v. FCS Cmty. Mgmt., 2024 UT App 14, --- P.3d ----, 2024 WL 370160. This case concerns the Utah Anti-discrimination and Labor Division's (UALD) determination that a homeowner's association's three-month delay in responding to a member's request for reasonable accommodation to keep chickens on their property as assistance animals for a child with anxiety and PTSD violated the Utah Fair Housing Act. The trial court found that this three month delay was a constructive denial of the request, because under the Utah Fair Housing Act a housing provider must participate in an interactive process to evaluate and discuss the request for accommodation, and no such interactive dialogue or interactive process took place. On appeal, the court found that the three month delay in responding to the request was not unreasonably long, especially considering that the HOA had to review the status of chickens as support animals, chicken waste runoff, and possibility of rodent complaints during this time. The court of appeals also found that members were not harmed by the HOA's alleged delay, since they were still allowed to keep the chickens at this time. The court of appeals then reversed the trial court's holding granting the members damages, fees, and other relief.

Animal abuse conviction affirmed where sufficient evidence included neighbor's testimony of observing defendant swinging small dog by leash and slamming dog's head against ground. State v. McIntosh, No. SD 37827, --- S.W.3d ----, 2024 WL 302430 (Mo. Ct. App. Jan. 26, 2024). This case is an appeal following the defendant's conviction of animal abuse and assault in the fourth degree. Defendant claimed that the trial court erred in convicting him of animal abuse due to insufficient evidence showing that he purposely caused suffering to the dog he allegedly abused. The event that led to defendant's conviction was witnessed by a neighbor, who saw the defendant in his backyard swinging a small dog through the air by its leash and collar. The neighbor also saw defendant climb on top of the dog to choke it and slam its head into the ground. The neighbor testified at trial about these events, and the trial court found defendant guilty of animal abuse and assault in the fourth degree. The court of appeals held that there was sufficient evidence, consisting of the neighbor's testimony, and affirmed the judgment of the trial court.

Case Archives

Articles

Examining the Veterinary Client-Patient Relationship in the United States: Why the Abolition of the In-Person Examination Requirement is Warranted, Jeffrey P. Feldmann, 56 Suffolk U. L. Rev. 91 (2023).

Derechos de los animales en Colombia: una lectura crítica en perspectiva ambiental, Carlos Lozano, State Law Magazine, 54 (Nov. 2022), 345–380.

Forgotten Victims of War: Animals and the International Law of Armed Conflict, Saba Pipia, 28 Animal L. 175 (2022).

From Factory Farming to A Sustainable Food System: A Legislative Approach, Michelle Johnson-Weider, 32 Geo. Envtl. L. Rev. 685 (2020).

When Fido is Family: How Landlord-Imposed Pet Bans Restrict Access to Housing, Kate O'Reilly-Jones, 52 Colum. J.L. & Soc. Probs. 427 (Spring, 2019).