PALM BEACH, FL – Animal rights activists in many parts of the country are
proving the adage that paranoia doesn’t necessarily mean dog owners are crazy.
Cities and counties that have enacted repressive ordinances targeting dog
owners are increasingly using volunteers as a major tool to enforce the law.
Not surprisingly, only animal rights activists are likely to be accepted as
volunteers. Many of these activists are opposed to the private ownership of
animals in any form, and most of them are willing to accept what they term animal
“guardianship” only under strict government regulation.
The vigilantes are coming!
That is true in Los Angeles, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston. It also is
true in several states where volunteer animal rights activists are routinely
sent undercover to investigate allegations of animal cruelty and even to check
out people who advertise a litter of puppies in local newspapers.
But Palm Beach County, Florida, has made vigilantism into an art form, and
Los Angeles may be preparing to carry it to the nth degree.
Volunteer activists in Palm Beach County have been sworn in, given badges
and uniforms, and granted the authority to enter private homes to check for
violations of a new mandatory spay/neuter ordinance, animal cruelty and other
possible dog law violations.
These members of the “Palm Beach County Citizen Animal Patrol” are
empowered to issue formal written warnings for noncompliance and turn in the
information to regular animal control officers for official investigation and
prosecution.
According to a county announcement of the program, search warrants are not
needed for these volunteers to inspect private homes or privately owned pets.
The county’s official position is that “The hobby breeders who have a permit
from the county have already given implied consent to these people to enter
their homes by signing the permit.”
That is the little known fine print of dog and kennel licenses in almost
every state: If you buy a license, you sign away your right to privacy. If you
don’t buy a license, of course, you are breaking the law and can get busted.
Catch 22!
In many other areas of civil law, such as with zoning and building permits,
obtaining a license has been viewed in court as prima facie permission for
government officials to inspect private property. This precedent is now being
extended to dog laws, and citizen patrols to “rat out” noncompliant neighbors
are being seen as important enforcement tools.
Spying on their neighbors and intimidating dog owners is only one part of
the job description of the Palm Beach County Citizen Animal Patrol. Other
duties include answering newspaper ads placed by people who advertise puppies for
sale, contacting dog clubs for breeder referrals, and even setting up
surveillance at dog shows.
If they see anything they consider suspicious or a possible violation of the
law, they are told to report the information to animal control to start a
full investigation.
In the world of crime, they would be called snitches. In the world of animal
law, they see themselves as on a mission to save helpless animals from
exploitation.
According to an article in the Palm Beach Post newspaper, citizen patrols
will help increase enforcement without adding to municipal costs.
Local officials stress the “public education” aspect of the citizen
patrols, but are noticeably quiet about the surveillance and enforcement aspects of
the volunteer positions.
This pattern is apparent in Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, which passed
draconian pet sterilization ordinances within the past year. Volunteers are
being actively recruited in those Texas cities to help “educate” people about
the new laws. As in most places, these citizens groups are comprised almost
entirely of animal rights activists, and each application must be approved by a
quasi-official advisory board that consists of animal rights activists.
People who advocate the right to own dogs need not apply.
Dog owners are convinced that these volunteers also will be used to find and
turn in people who do not follow the laws.
Los Angeles appears to be adding its own twist.
The Los Angeles Department of Animal Services, directed by animal rights
extremist Ed Boks, has set up a program of Directors of Animal Welfare,
nicknamed DAWs. The city has been divided into 86 different “neighborhoods,” and
thus far a reported 44 of the positions have been filled. According to an
announcement from Boks, some of these appointees do not live within the City of Los
Angeles.
The DAWs website profiles the backgrounds of many of the appointees, and
they read like a who’s who of the animal rights movement in Los Angeles. Many of
the profiles tout the appointees’ close ties to the radical Humane Society
of the United States (HSUS) and the ultra-radical People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals (PETA). Many of the profiles also tout radical vegetarian
activism, opposition to the use of animals in circuses and other darling causes
of the animal rights elite. Overall, it is clear that the vast majority of
these people oppose the private ownership of animals, and are totally opposed
to the right to breed dogs.
Please read some of the profiles for yourself: _http://www.dawprogram.org/_
(http://www.dawprogram.org/) .
The DAWS Board also has several committees, including an “Animals Are Not
Property Committee,” whose members are listed as Andrea Boyington, Adele
Langdon, Tina Reynolds and Patti Sugarman. Each of these people has published ties
to radical animal rights groups.
None of the profiles indicate that the appointees breed dogs, show dogs,
compete with dogs, or belong to any organization that works to protect the
rights of dog owners. Not one.
A very ominous sign is that DAWs has gone underground since Los Angeles
passed an exceedingly restrictive spay and neuter mandate this year. The DAWs
meetings used to be advertised on their website, agendas used to be published,
and minutes were displayed online.
Since August, all public accountability and openness have been removed from
the DAWs website.
In addition, the DAWs volunteer manual has been withdrawn for complete
revision, and is no longer available to the public.
An announcement from Boks called the DAWs appointees “the eyes and ears for
the animals in their areas.”
In other words, being snitches is one of their duties.
The DAWs mission statement says: “DAWs provide a voice and a form of
political representation for nonhuman animals.” That line is straight out of the
PETA textbook.
Perhaps the most common use of animal rights activists as volunteers has
been for undercover work and surveillance in animal cruelty investigations.
Because these volunteers have no official designation, the use of them is not
subject to constitutional protections against searches without warrants. They go
under cover as private citizens, and then file complaints with animal
cruelty police officers. They work with the officers, and their identities are not
revealed. The officers use these “complaints” as legal grounds to obtain a
search warrant.
The most famous use of undercover volunteers occurred at a California
slaughterhouse that was highly publicized this year and led to a complete overhaul
of federal and state inspections.
A large percentage of animal cruelty cases in several states rely on animal
rights activists to go undercover into private kennels and dog events, and
their observations and opinions are relayed as “semi-anonymous complaints” to
humane police officers in order to obtain search warrants. “Semi-anonymous”
means that these people’s identities are known to the officers and judge, but
are not revealed to the public or the person who is accused.
A common tactic is for these activists to pose as puppy buyers when
responding to advertisements in newspapers or online, or to appear at dog events as a
spectator. This tactic is so common that virtually anyone who advertises
puppies for sale in many areas of the country can expect to be visited by
undercover activists pretending to be looking for a puppy. Usually they are easy to
spot. They are mostly college-aged people who know little about the breed of
the puppies that are for sale.
Sometimes it gets much more organized. For example, the toll of animals from
Hurricane Katrina has led to the formation of many “disaster rescue groups.”
They raise money locally to rescue animals from disasters, and sometimes
get contributions of tax dollars.
Fortunately, disasters are rare in most places. But these programs allow a
well-funded team of animal rights activist/volunteers to perform organized
surveillance work. For example, a Venango County, PA, disaster rescue group
received newspaper coverage this year for playing the key undercover role that
led to the animal cruelty prosecution of a “puppy mill” in West Virginia.
Another Pennsylvania situation that we reported this year was how animal
rights activists have begun to take over local zoning boards, in order to
require people who seek a permit to build a kennel to meet impossible demands. In
one case that would be amusing if it hadn’t harmed a person who wanted to
build a kennel, these activists required an applicant for a kennel permit to
promise that none of his dogs would be mated naturally.
What can we do about it?
The first thing that dog owners must do is to understand that there is a
planned takeover of local boards and commissions by animal rights groups, and
that this has been happening behind the scenes for many years.
Thus, vigilance is the first step. Find out what official or quasi-official
groups have been created in your town and county that work on animal issues.
Animal shelter or animal control advisory boards are common examples.
Then, learn the names of the members of these boards and committees. These
names should be public records, and also may be found by looking up the group’
s website. Chances are an Internet search will yield many connections to
animal rights groups.
The next step is educating public officials about the real agenda of animal
rights groups such as HSUS and PETA, and, if possible, showing verified
connections to members of local boards. Letters to the editor of local newspapers
are another good approach, if you have documentation.
However, the most important thing you can do is to volunteer to serve on any
board, commission or committee in your town or county that deals with animal
issues. Let your elected officials know that you want to serve on these
boards, and volunteer to fill any current or future openings.
Our goal should be to have as many dog owners and people who support the
rights of dog owners as possible on any board, committee or commission. It is
vital for us to be able to begin to reverse the animal rights strategy of
taking over local boards.
The American Sporting Dog Alliance will assist local dog owners in any way
possible to accomplish this important goal.
The American Sporting Dog Alliance represents owners, breeders and
professionals who work with breeds of dogs that are used for hunting. We welcome
people who work with other breeds, too, as legislative issues affect all of us. We
are a grassroots movement working to protect the rights of dog owners, and
to assure that the traditional relationships between dogs and humans maintains
its rightful place in American society and life.
The American Sporting Dog Alliance also needs your help so that we can
continue to work to protect the rights of dog owners. Your membership,
participation and support are truly essential to the success of our mission. We are
funded solely by the donations of our members, and maintain strict independence.
Please visit us on the web at _http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org_
(http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org/) . Our email is _asda@csonline.net_
(mailto:asda@csonline.net) . Complete directions to join by mail or online
are found at the bottom left of each page.
PLEASE CROSS-POST AND FORWARD THIS REPORT TO YOUR FRIENDS
Have You Joined Yet?
The American Sporting Dog Alliance
_http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org_
(http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org
The vigilantes are coming....
-
Liz ODell
- Open Mouth
- Posts: 594
- Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:22 pm
- Location: First Nations
- Location: My peoples land...forever.
some more reading material
From a woman in Australia ...her true story !!!
Permission to Cross Post granted by the author, Anne.
Thank you Anne, for sharing this with us here in the U.S. Many of our people
are being subjected to similar circumstances. I hope this will help others
to believe....&n bsp;
On Mon, 9/15/08, anneagain wrote:
When I read your first sentence, my stomach tensed up. I do NOT blame you in
the least for how you felt and honestly, it is getting beyond a joke these
days and it is nothing short of harassment. I have been through it in the
worst possible way. Here is my story and what it taught me, but remember I
live in Australia.
For the first 25 years in dogs, I lived in suburbia. When I first started,
there were no dog limits, there was such a thing as freedom. Here, each
municipality is governed by what is known as a council. These councils, use
to be only responsible for land rates, rubbish removal, and road
maintenance. But, as the rules changed, society changed, AR lunatics got
into positions of power, these "councils" were also given a lot more power.
They then became the ones to issue such things as permits for structures to
just about everything! Then, compulsory registration of dogs became in force
and gradually, limiting the amount of PETS you were able to have on your OWN
property, for which YOU pay land rates for yearly. When the rules changed,
you were allowed only TWO dogs per household, TWO cats, etc. And all had to
be registered.
When I asked should I get a permit, I was advised, by "one of them" the
permit is not worth the paper it is written on because if a neighbour
complains, it can be revoked, and it opens you up to being inspected etc. If
you have had your dogs in peace, no complaints, just keep on doing what
you're doing and all should be well. That was 15 years before 2000...the
year my life changed, and hell on earth was what I l ived through for an
entire good twelve or more months. It has changed me completely.
I had been living next door to the same neighbours for 15 years, and had 15
dogs, made no secret about that nor that I bred them or exhibited them. All
was well. Then, my then husband and I decided it was time to do some home
renovations, so we took out a bank loan, and off we went. Next thing I know,
I have a knock at the door, it was a dog ranger (equivalent to your Animal
Control). He asked me if I bred dogs. I said, yes, I am a member of the
Victorian Canine Association and breed and exhibit, there is no law against
either. Okay, fine...he was cool with that, went away.
Two weeks later, I have another one show up, this time asking to do an
inspection. Now, I knew I was over the limit and only the two required were
registered, and I would have loved a dolla r for each breeder in the same
position...I would have been rich! BUT...there was and is, a $500 fine for
each and every dog over three months not registered. So, I said to him,
sorry...I can't allow you to do an inspection now, this time is not suitable
to me, you can come back at a suitable time. He insisted and then I told
him, excuse me, this is harassment. He left. He came back when I said, by
which time I had removed all but the two dogs.
So....that should have been that, right? NOT!!!! A few days later, my son's
best friend who worked for the council, called me and warned me, "they were
after me" and to be on guard. It gets worse! I stupidly didn't lock the
gate. I am having a shower come out with a towel wrapped around me and my
hair, and see two plain clothed men (suits) in my back yard, taking photos
of my dogs! I was ropable!
They t ried to settle me down, telling me someone had complained but due to
the "privacy act" they couldn't tell me who it was, but all I had to do was
get a permit and all would be well! I ordered them off my premises.
NOW...the fun begins.
A week later, I get a letter in the mail, from the council, telling me I am
in breech of this and that, and I have seven days in which to get rid of my
dogs, or they would take them away and I had to pay so much in fines! I saw
RED! And I was not prepared to go down without a fight! BUT...it cost me big
time. Apart from all the tears and anguish, what followed, cost me a 25 year
marriage, a lot of financial loss, and almost a nervous break down, for
which I am still on meds for!
I wrote back a letter and said, fine, you can issue me with a permit I am
not getting rid of my dogs. They said, okay...a planning permi t, (I didn't
even know what this was at the time.) I get another letter, claiming I am
running an illegal business of get this...illegal breeding, illegal
boarding, and illegal training, of dogs! I was beside myself! NONE of that
is illegal as they were all my dogs!
I get a call from my son's friend telling me exactly which neighbour it was
that complained, telling the council that I was running a business and
making millions of dollars from my dogs! And that, the manager of planning
was ropable because I went up and above his head and complained and was
walking around the office saying, "there has to be something I have to get
her on." Adam warned me, it was going to get ugly. And it did, not just for
me, but for my drug dealing neighbour whom my husband, son, and now
son-in-law were out to kill! Apparently, Adam told me the neighbour was
calling up to ten times a day, DEMANDING they do something about me! T hat
it wasn't fair our house should look better than his with illegal earnings!
So, the witch hunt began, and I fought back! I reached as high as
complaining to the Shadow Minister, all politicians, I had seen a lawyer, I
had the canine club on my side helping me to fight them, tons and tons of
emails from everyone that knew me flooding their email boxes with support of
me, all my neighbours supporting me, (bar one), I ended up on TV in a
current affair program, front page of the biggest newspaper here, all
because...IT WAS A CORRUPT COUNCIL...that they had been trying to expose for
years and never could...until now...see attached news paper clipping.
In the mean time, I was exposed to, inspections any time of the day and
night, unannounced, to catch me with more dogs so they could take them
away...but by this time, most dogs had been moved to my mothers place, and I
only had a few and I had been informed of my rights, so I fought them hard.
When inspections on them from higher up, due to my complaints were in
action, they could get NO incriminating evidence against them, because they
would shut books, threaten those that worked there if they spoke out, they
would lose their jobs, etc. Thankfully, apart from Adam, some of the
inspectors that could see the injustice, and some others from other
departments, were helping me out behind the scenes with tip offs as to when
they would be coming around etc. Also informing me of my rights.
I couldn't sue them, as I was told, because they were well padded by RATE
payers money! I had plenty to sue them for!
In the end, I resorte d to something that was totally out of character for
me, this is after they denied giving me a permit to bring my dogs back home,
unless it was a planning permit. Planning being I was running a business,
which I was NOT, and refused to lie just to get the permit. I was after a
policy permit which just meant I was allowed to keep my dogs. I emailed the
stupid CEO, and I said, I have had enough of all these months of harassment
and what I have had to endure, my life is not worth living, you have brought
me to my knees, and will have my blood on your hands! YES, that is how bad
it got!
Next morning, I had the police at my door. The CEO had no option but to call
them, show them the email, and was he in trouble! BIG TIME! The police left
my place after getting my story, and went to address him! Plus said, there
are not to be anymore inspections or anyone coming to this place, without US
present!
One more inspection followed, with the police, the stupid inspector wanted
to get some evidence that I had more dogs there in the past and wanted to
search my kennel area. I refused, swore at him (something I normally do not
do) and told him he had no right to enter buildings without a permit. So,
the police officer volunteered to do the search with my permission, saw the
fifteen dog compartments there, told the inspector, there is nothing in that
room, it is empty.
Now, I better round up this book! Way too long! When the neighbour could not
get me through the council, he then tried to burn our house down with us in
it. Even though there was an eye witness, the police advised that although
he could be prosecuted and go to prison, what would happen when he got out?
They advised us to move. So...as my ex refused to move out of principal, I,
and my adult children, left him!
I couldn't stay there not after everything that happened, I couldn't keep my
dogs there for more than one reason, and to top things off, I also lost 10
of my top Poms to a so called friend (breeder) who took advantage of my
vulnerability.
Now, for what I learned of my rights is as follows:
Private property, does not allow for anyone to enter without permission from
the owner, it is considered trespassing.
A locked gate, instantly refrains access.
Houses and outer buildings are not open for inspection without a search
warrant.
In order to get a search warrant, a judge has to have good reasons to issue
it, such as criminal activity with proven facts, cases of child or animal
cruelty with solid proof etc.
You have the right to say, "kindly leave from the nearest exit, you are
trespassing".
If all dogs are registered with the council, regardless of if you have a
permit or not, they can't take them away from you.
There is no rules forbidding you to keep other people's dogs on your
premises. So, for instance, if you say, I am looking after these dogs for
exhibition purposes and they will be returned to their owners when
exhibition is completed, they can't do anything.
You have the right to ask for ID , take names, notes, and ask on what
grounds they are there...without disclosure, you have the right to turn them
away.
NEVER reveal your address to any puppy buyers.
Now, I live in the country, with no close neighbours, I have a PO Box for
all mail such as contracts etc. to be mailed to me, I disclose my address to
NO ONE, only friends and family...no buyers are allowed to come here. Vets
know not to disclose my address even on Health Certificates issued. My dogs
are very secluded and no one knows my business at all! There is a padlock on
the gates and a sign which clearly states, "Beyond the boundary of this
fence, is trespassing. If you are here without an invitation or prior
appointment, kindly remove yourself immediately or face prosecution."
Now, five years later, and I am still nervous when a strange car drives and
stops here.
Long gone are the days where you could be open about what you do, what you
keep, and how you live your life.
I apologise for the length of this email. The thread caused me to relive my
nightmare, but hopefully it can help someone from going through one of their
own.
Hugs,
Anne
Pomeranians, Japanese Chins & Shih Tzus
Australia
Author of the book
"Let's Talk Dogs"
www.cupidtownshowdogs.net
Permission to Cross Post granted by the author, Anne.
Thank you Anne, for sharing this with us here in the U.S. Many of our people
are being subjected to similar circumstances. I hope this will help others
to believe....&n bsp;
On Mon, 9/15/08, anneagain wrote:
When I read your first sentence, my stomach tensed up. I do NOT blame you in
the least for how you felt and honestly, it is getting beyond a joke these
days and it is nothing short of harassment. I have been through it in the
worst possible way. Here is my story and what it taught me, but remember I
live in Australia.
For the first 25 years in dogs, I lived in suburbia. When I first started,
there were no dog limits, there was such a thing as freedom. Here, each
municipality is governed by what is known as a council. These councils, use
to be only responsible for land rates, rubbish removal, and road
maintenance. But, as the rules changed, society changed, AR lunatics got
into positions of power, these "councils" were also given a lot more power.
They then became the ones to issue such things as permits for structures to
just about everything! Then, compulsory registration of dogs became in force
and gradually, limiting the amount of PETS you were able to have on your OWN
property, for which YOU pay land rates for yearly. When the rules changed,
you were allowed only TWO dogs per household, TWO cats, etc. And all had to
be registered.
When I asked should I get a permit, I was advised, by "one of them" the
permit is not worth the paper it is written on because if a neighbour
complains, it can be revoked, and it opens you up to being inspected etc. If
you have had your dogs in peace, no complaints, just keep on doing what
you're doing and all should be well. That was 15 years before 2000...the
year my life changed, and hell on earth was what I l ived through for an
entire good twelve or more months. It has changed me completely.
I had been living next door to the same neighbours for 15 years, and had 15
dogs, made no secret about that nor that I bred them or exhibited them. All
was well. Then, my then husband and I decided it was time to do some home
renovations, so we took out a bank loan, and off we went. Next thing I know,
I have a knock at the door, it was a dog ranger (equivalent to your Animal
Control). He asked me if I bred dogs. I said, yes, I am a member of the
Victorian Canine Association and breed and exhibit, there is no law against
either. Okay, fine...he was cool with that, went away.
Two weeks later, I have another one show up, this time asking to do an
inspection. Now, I knew I was over the limit and only the two required were
registered, and I would have loved a dolla r for each breeder in the same
position...I would have been rich! BUT...there was and is, a $500 fine for
each and every dog over three months not registered. So, I said to him,
sorry...I can't allow you to do an inspection now, this time is not suitable
to me, you can come back at a suitable time. He insisted and then I told
him, excuse me, this is harassment. He left. He came back when I said, by
which time I had removed all but the two dogs.
So....that should have been that, right? NOT!!!! A few days later, my son's
best friend who worked for the council, called me and warned me, "they were
after me" and to be on guard. It gets worse! I stupidly didn't lock the
gate. I am having a shower come out with a towel wrapped around me and my
hair, and see two plain clothed men (suits) in my back yard, taking photos
of my dogs! I was ropable!
They t ried to settle me down, telling me someone had complained but due to
the "privacy act" they couldn't tell me who it was, but all I had to do was
get a permit and all would be well! I ordered them off my premises.
NOW...the fun begins.
A week later, I get a letter in the mail, from the council, telling me I am
in breech of this and that, and I have seven days in which to get rid of my
dogs, or they would take them away and I had to pay so much in fines! I saw
RED! And I was not prepared to go down without a fight! BUT...it cost me big
time. Apart from all the tears and anguish, what followed, cost me a 25 year
marriage, a lot of financial loss, and almost a nervous break down, for
which I am still on meds for!
I wrote back a letter and said, fine, you can issue me with a permit I am
not getting rid of my dogs. They said, okay...a planning permi t, (I didn't
even know what this was at the time.) I get another letter, claiming I am
running an illegal business of get this...illegal breeding, illegal
boarding, and illegal training, of dogs! I was beside myself! NONE of that
is illegal as they were all my dogs!
I get a call from my son's friend telling me exactly which neighbour it was
that complained, telling the council that I was running a business and
making millions of dollars from my dogs! And that, the manager of planning
was ropable because I went up and above his head and complained and was
walking around the office saying, "there has to be something I have to get
her on." Adam warned me, it was going to get ugly. And it did, not just for
me, but for my drug dealing neighbour whom my husband, son, and now
son-in-law were out to kill! Apparently, Adam told me the neighbour was
calling up to ten times a day, DEMANDING they do something about me! T hat
it wasn't fair our house should look better than his with illegal earnings!
So, the witch hunt began, and I fought back! I reached as high as
complaining to the Shadow Minister, all politicians, I had seen a lawyer, I
had the canine club on my side helping me to fight them, tons and tons of
emails from everyone that knew me flooding their email boxes with support of
me, all my neighbours supporting me, (bar one), I ended up on TV in a
current affair program, front page of the biggest newspaper here, all
because...IT WAS A CORRUPT COUNCIL...that they had been trying to expose for
years and never could...until now...see attached news paper clipping.
In the mean time, I was exposed to, inspections any time of the day and
night, unannounced, to catch me with more dogs so they could take them
away...but by this time, most dogs had been moved to my mothers place, and I
only had a few and I had been informed of my rights, so I fought them hard.
When inspections on them from higher up, due to my complaints were in
action, they could get NO incriminating evidence against them, because they
would shut books, threaten those that worked there if they spoke out, they
would lose their jobs, etc. Thankfully, apart from Adam, some of the
inspectors that could see the injustice, and some others from other
departments, were helping me out behind the scenes with tip offs as to when
they would be coming around etc. Also informing me of my rights.
I couldn't sue them, as I was told, because they were well padded by RATE
payers money! I had plenty to sue them for!
In the end, I resorte d to something that was totally out of character for
me, this is after they denied giving me a permit to bring my dogs back home,
unless it was a planning permit. Planning being I was running a business,
which I was NOT, and refused to lie just to get the permit. I was after a
policy permit which just meant I was allowed to keep my dogs. I emailed the
stupid CEO, and I said, I have had enough of all these months of harassment
and what I have had to endure, my life is not worth living, you have brought
me to my knees, and will have my blood on your hands! YES, that is how bad
it got!
Next morning, I had the police at my door. The CEO had no option but to call
them, show them the email, and was he in trouble! BIG TIME! The police left
my place after getting my story, and went to address him! Plus said, there
are not to be anymore inspections or anyone coming to this place, without US
present!
One more inspection followed, with the police, the stupid inspector wanted
to get some evidence that I had more dogs there in the past and wanted to
search my kennel area. I refused, swore at him (something I normally do not
do) and told him he had no right to enter buildings without a permit. So,
the police officer volunteered to do the search with my permission, saw the
fifteen dog compartments there, told the inspector, there is nothing in that
room, it is empty.
Now, I better round up this book! Way too long! When the neighbour could not
get me through the council, he then tried to burn our house down with us in
it. Even though there was an eye witness, the police advised that although
he could be prosecuted and go to prison, what would happen when he got out?
They advised us to move. So...as my ex refused to move out of principal, I,
and my adult children, left him!
I couldn't stay there not after everything that happened, I couldn't keep my
dogs there for more than one reason, and to top things off, I also lost 10
of my top Poms to a so called friend (breeder) who took advantage of my
vulnerability.
Now, for what I learned of my rights is as follows:
Private property, does not allow for anyone to enter without permission from
the owner, it is considered trespassing.
A locked gate, instantly refrains access.
Houses and outer buildings are not open for inspection without a search
warrant.
In order to get a search warrant, a judge has to have good reasons to issue
it, such as criminal activity with proven facts, cases of child or animal
cruelty with solid proof etc.
You have the right to say, "kindly leave from the nearest exit, you are
trespassing".
If all dogs are registered with the council, regardless of if you have a
permit or not, they can't take them away from you.
There is no rules forbidding you to keep other people's dogs on your
premises. So, for instance, if you say, I am looking after these dogs for
exhibition purposes and they will be returned to their owners when
exhibition is completed, they can't do anything.
You have the right to ask for ID , take names, notes, and ask on what
grounds they are there...without disclosure, you have the right to turn them
away.
NEVER reveal your address to any puppy buyers.
Now, I live in the country, with no close neighbours, I have a PO Box for
all mail such as contracts etc. to be mailed to me, I disclose my address to
NO ONE, only friends and family...no buyers are allowed to come here. Vets
know not to disclose my address even on Health Certificates issued. My dogs
are very secluded and no one knows my business at all! There is a padlock on
the gates and a sign which clearly states, "Beyond the boundary of this
fence, is trespassing. If you are here without an invitation or prior
appointment, kindly remove yourself immediately or face prosecution."
Now, five years later, and I am still nervous when a strange car drives and
stops here.
Long gone are the days where you could be open about what you do, what you
keep, and how you live your life.
I apologise for the length of this email. The thread caused me to relive my
nightmare, but hopefully it can help someone from going through one of their
own.
Hugs,
Anne
Pomeranians, Japanese Chins & Shih Tzus
Australia
Author of the book
"Let's Talk Dogs"
www.cupidtownshowdogs.net
-
Liz ODell
- Open Mouth
- Posts: 594
- Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:22 pm
- Location: First Nations
- Location: My peoples land...forever.
and some more...
BY THE WAY PLEASE FEEL FREE TO FOWARD ANY OF THESE ARTICLES I POSTED...
ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISM IS ALIVE AND WELL IN THE UNITED STATES
By Sylvia Panetta
The September 11, 2001 World Trade Center / Pentagon /
demise-of-passengers-on-four-American-jetliners tragedy has brought the word
"terrorism " out to the forefront of media all over the world.
The American Heritage School Dictionary defines terrorism as "The use of
terror, violence and intimidation to frighten people into submission". What
the dictionary does not elaborate on is that there are various "causes" for
which groups of terrorists and their cells become active. One of these
causes is animal rights.
I would like to take this opportunity to briefly discuss the animal rights
mentality and then describe how a few of these fanatics created havoc with
my once-peaceful life.
The Animal Rights Agenda (which lists twelve goals for the abolishment of
our relationship and involvement with animals) appeared originally in
Animals' Agenda magazine in November, 1987, and was reprinted in The
Hijacking of the Humane Movement: Animal Extremism _by Rod and Patti Strand
[*] (Doral Publishing -1993). They are taken in part as follows:
1. We are firmly committed to the eventual abolition by law of animal
research, and call for an immediate prohibition of painful experiments and
tests.
2. The use of animals for cosmetics and household product testing, tobacco
and alcohol testing, psychological testing, classroom demonstrations and
dissection, and in weapons development or other warfare programs must be
outlawed immediately.
3. We encourage vegetarianism/or ethical, ecological, and health reasons.
4. Steps should be taken to begin phasing out intensive confinement systems
of livestock production, also called factory farming, which causes severe
physical and psychological suffering for the animals kept in overcrowded and
unnatural conditions.
5. The use of herbicides, pesticides, and other toxic agricultural chemicals
should be phased out.
6. Responsibility for enforcement of animal welfare legislation must be
transferred from the Department of Agriculture to an agency created for the
purpose of protecting animals and the environment.
7. Commercial trapping and fur ranching should be eliminated.
8. Hunting, trapping, and fishing for sport should be prohibited.
9. Internationally, steps should be taken by the US government to prevent
further destruction of rain forests.
10. We strongly discourage any further breeding of companion animals,
including pedigreed or purebred dogs and cats.
11. We call for an end to the use of animals in entertainment and sports
such as dog racing, dog and cock fighting, fox hunting, hare coursing,
rodeos, circuses, and other spectacles and a critical reappraisal of the use
of animals in quasi-educational institutions such as zoos and aquariums.
12. Advances in biotechnology are posing a threat to the integrity of
species, which may ultimately reduce all living beings to the level of
patentable commodities.
Although their desired results call for the outlawing and removal of our
personal and professional relationship with animals, the one that we must
concern ourselves with for the moment is the statement that is listed as:
"10. We strongly discourage any further breeding of companion animals,
including pedigreed or purebred dogs and cats."
The strategy for which these fanatics pursue the destruction of dog breeders
in the United States is very simple. Most people, when purchasing purebred
dogs, want the accompanying registration papers.
Remember, there are three major reasons that papers are required:
(I) to show the dog in registry sanctioned shows
(2) to register the offspring of the registered PARENTS
(3) personal prestige
Although there are many registry organizations in the United States, I will
discuss the American Kennel Club (AKC), for which my dogs are registered.
Somewhere in their list of regulations, they have a rule that states if
anyone is convicted in a court of law of being guilty of "animal cruelty",
their privileges are automatically revoked. This means that that particular
breeder is no longer allowed to, among other things, register their dogs or
any progeny that are produced.
The answer to the animal rights activists' prayers. VOILA!
This makes the rest simplified for these extremists. They merely have to
choose their next victim and through various methods, including, but not
limited to, total fabrications, distortions, and altered photographs and
video tapes, gain a victory by succeeding in obtaining a court conviction.
The breeders are usually too traumatized or are unable to fight back due to
the inability to retain legal representation. Most attorneys do not perceive
this type of incident as being serious and worthwhile, or they will charge
extremely high fees of which the victim is unable to afford. And those
lawyers that do accept the challenge, usually are not familiar with animals
or animal law .The representation of their client is weak.
I became one of those victims. ..and appropriately nicknamed the "Poster
Child of the Animal Rights Movement" on one of the Internet websiteforums.
Read on, and you will understand why. Please keep in mind what I stated
above. The AKC will revoke privileges if you are convicted of animal
cruelty. The operative word is "animal". ..it doesn't have to be a breeding
dog.
I will capsulize the incidents:
1992: (February) A neighbor, new at being an animal activist, had a personal
grudge against me. In trying to make a name for herself, she filed a
complaint with the police stating that one of my aged horses (40 years old)
was being starved and was dying. At a ratio of three years to one, she was
120 years old in human years. The average lifespan of a
horse is 25 years.
Allow me, please, to set the scene. I had six horses at the time, five of
which I had rescued from an auction, doomed to go to the slaughterhouse.
They were all healthy. ..and roamed a ten acre pasture. They were free-fed
hay from a 200 pound round bale, given grain daily and had access to water
24 hours a day.
Although I live on a small, quiet country road, three police cars responded
to her complaint, two of which formed a road block! I was verbally abused,
temporarily held against my will without an arrest warrant, threatened with
arrest, and was victim to an illegal search of my property .
Her veterinarian was called to the scene. He examined the horse and advised
the police she was fine -just a very old senior citizen. They left without
the courtesy of an apology.
The woman was advised by my attorney to cease the harassment.
1995: (May) Knowing she had been warned to stay away, she solicited another
activist that lived three hours from here to come here and participate in
her place. He went to their activist friends from an SPCA from another
county with a totally fabricated written complaint and altered and phony
photographs. The SPCA obtained a search warrant and seized my only horse.
(They also did an illegal search of the dogs, even though the judge crossed
it OFF the search warrant application, and then foolishly admitted in
writing that they did so.)
Unfortunately, it didn't work out as they planned because I came out with my
camera and took pictures of the horse before they took her away. Also, my
veterinarian drove /140/ /miles /to their facility to examine the horse. Two
things they didn't count on to dispel their claims.
The animal cruelty charges were dismissed in the beginning at the
arraignment level. The case never went to trial.
1997: (May) I caught the disgruntled neighbor/activist in the field with my
horse! She ran as fast as she could to get to her vehicle and drove away.
I pressed charges of TRESPASSING against her.
1998: (April 17) I was falsely arrested for animal cruelty, physically
assaulted twice, sexually assaulted (touched inappropriately), and tortured
by two NYS troopers (police). I sustained serious injuries, including spinal
injuries (cord compression, thecal sac compression with one level being
totally cut off, and nerve root compression) which requires six operations
with possible steel plate insertion. I also need bowel surgery, knee surgery
and wrist surgery .
The complaint was again filed by the activist that lived three hours away.
It was totally fabricated, including his personal resume, as in 1995. This
time, not only did he use the horse to establish "probable cause" to get a
search warrant for the horse, he also fabricated a story about the dogs,
even though he never saw any of my dogs!
1998: (April 18) The trooper submitted false information to obtain a search
warrant. In doing so, many people, including the SPCA animal activist
veterinarian, arrived to execute the warrant. (This happened to be the same
veterinarian that lied in the 1995 case). They brought in a deadly airborne
virus which over a period of eighteen months, killed off almost all of my
breeding stock, including many European imports and several litters of
puppies. I lost an irreplaceable genetic pool that I developed over many
years. The financial loss was a few hundred thousand dollars.
The horse was not seized. No dogs were seized.
1998: (July 17/18) During the late evening/early morning hours, a person or
persons trespassed and penetrated my property and began liberating and
stealing my dogs. I interrupted the theft, although I wasn't aware there
were people out there. Four dogs, however, were stolen.
NOTE: The April 17, 1998 charge of animal cruelty was again dismissed at the
arraignment level never went to trial.
In my quest for justice, as the plaintiff, I then proceeded to start a new
trial in Federal Court. On July 6, 2001, NYS Trooper Thomas Crowley was
found guilty of false arrest. The charges of excessive force, submitting
false information to obtain a search warrant and malicious prosecution /were
dropped. /I am still in a state of shock regarding the verdict.
I continue to pursue it in hopes an investigation will be initiated
regarding the incident itself as well as the perjury at the Federal trial.
If they proceed with an honest investigation, I presume there will be stiff
penalties. ..hopefully jail sentences.
I will never recover from what has been done to me. But perhaps reiterating
the experience will be enough to make you think twice about the animal
rights movement and how it can effect you.
Please do not think it could never happen to you. You must be prepared.
Always have a camera or camcorder handy with fresh batteries and film. You
must be able to prove what your animals looked like, because their real
appearance and what you will be accused of are two entirely different
descriptions.
You are not immune to terrorism. Terrorism has no boundaries.
September 11, 2001 proved that.
p008 7:38 AM
ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISM IS ALIVE AND WELL IN THE UNITED STATES
By Sylvia Panetta
The September 11, 2001 World Trade Center / Pentagon /
demise-of-passengers-on-four-American-jetliners tragedy has brought the word
"terrorism " out to the forefront of media all over the world.
The American Heritage School Dictionary defines terrorism as "The use of
terror, violence and intimidation to frighten people into submission". What
the dictionary does not elaborate on is that there are various "causes" for
which groups of terrorists and their cells become active. One of these
causes is animal rights.
I would like to take this opportunity to briefly discuss the animal rights
mentality and then describe how a few of these fanatics created havoc with
my once-peaceful life.
The Animal Rights Agenda (which lists twelve goals for the abolishment of
our relationship and involvement with animals) appeared originally in
Animals' Agenda magazine in November, 1987, and was reprinted in The
Hijacking of the Humane Movement: Animal Extremism _by Rod and Patti Strand
[*] (Doral Publishing -1993). They are taken in part as follows:
1. We are firmly committed to the eventual abolition by law of animal
research, and call for an immediate prohibition of painful experiments and
tests.
2. The use of animals for cosmetics and household product testing, tobacco
and alcohol testing, psychological testing, classroom demonstrations and
dissection, and in weapons development or other warfare programs must be
outlawed immediately.
3. We encourage vegetarianism/or ethical, ecological, and health reasons.
4. Steps should be taken to begin phasing out intensive confinement systems
of livestock production, also called factory farming, which causes severe
physical and psychological suffering for the animals kept in overcrowded and
unnatural conditions.
5. The use of herbicides, pesticides, and other toxic agricultural chemicals
should be phased out.
6. Responsibility for enforcement of animal welfare legislation must be
transferred from the Department of Agriculture to an agency created for the
purpose of protecting animals and the environment.
7. Commercial trapping and fur ranching should be eliminated.
8. Hunting, trapping, and fishing for sport should be prohibited.
9. Internationally, steps should be taken by the US government to prevent
further destruction of rain forests.
10. We strongly discourage any further breeding of companion animals,
including pedigreed or purebred dogs and cats.
11. We call for an end to the use of animals in entertainment and sports
such as dog racing, dog and cock fighting, fox hunting, hare coursing,
rodeos, circuses, and other spectacles and a critical reappraisal of the use
of animals in quasi-educational institutions such as zoos and aquariums.
12. Advances in biotechnology are posing a threat to the integrity of
species, which may ultimately reduce all living beings to the level of
patentable commodities.
Although their desired results call for the outlawing and removal of our
personal and professional relationship with animals, the one that we must
concern ourselves with for the moment is the statement that is listed as:
"10. We strongly discourage any further breeding of companion animals,
including pedigreed or purebred dogs and cats."
The strategy for which these fanatics pursue the destruction of dog breeders
in the United States is very simple. Most people, when purchasing purebred
dogs, want the accompanying registration papers.
Remember, there are three major reasons that papers are required:
(I) to show the dog in registry sanctioned shows
(2) to register the offspring of the registered PARENTS
(3) personal prestige
Although there are many registry organizations in the United States, I will
discuss the American Kennel Club (AKC), for which my dogs are registered.
Somewhere in their list of regulations, they have a rule that states if
anyone is convicted in a court of law of being guilty of "animal cruelty",
their privileges are automatically revoked. This means that that particular
breeder is no longer allowed to, among other things, register their dogs or
any progeny that are produced.
The answer to the animal rights activists' prayers. VOILA!
This makes the rest simplified for these extremists. They merely have to
choose their next victim and through various methods, including, but not
limited to, total fabrications, distortions, and altered photographs and
video tapes, gain a victory by succeeding in obtaining a court conviction.
The breeders are usually too traumatized or are unable to fight back due to
the inability to retain legal representation. Most attorneys do not perceive
this type of incident as being serious and worthwhile, or they will charge
extremely high fees of which the victim is unable to afford. And those
lawyers that do accept the challenge, usually are not familiar with animals
or animal law .The representation of their client is weak.
I became one of those victims. ..and appropriately nicknamed the "Poster
Child of the Animal Rights Movement" on one of the Internet websiteforums.
Read on, and you will understand why. Please keep in mind what I stated
above. The AKC will revoke privileges if you are convicted of animal
cruelty. The operative word is "animal". ..it doesn't have to be a breeding
dog.
I will capsulize the incidents:
1992: (February) A neighbor, new at being an animal activist, had a personal
grudge against me. In trying to make a name for herself, she filed a
complaint with the police stating that one of my aged horses (40 years old)
was being starved and was dying. At a ratio of three years to one, she was
120 years old in human years. The average lifespan of a
horse is 25 years.
Allow me, please, to set the scene. I had six horses at the time, five of
which I had rescued from an auction, doomed to go to the slaughterhouse.
They were all healthy. ..and roamed a ten acre pasture. They were free-fed
hay from a 200 pound round bale, given grain daily and had access to water
24 hours a day.
Although I live on a small, quiet country road, three police cars responded
to her complaint, two of which formed a road block! I was verbally abused,
temporarily held against my will without an arrest warrant, threatened with
arrest, and was victim to an illegal search of my property .
Her veterinarian was called to the scene. He examined the horse and advised
the police she was fine -just a very old senior citizen. They left without
the courtesy of an apology.
The woman was advised by my attorney to cease the harassment.
1995: (May) Knowing she had been warned to stay away, she solicited another
activist that lived three hours from here to come here and participate in
her place. He went to their activist friends from an SPCA from another
county with a totally fabricated written complaint and altered and phony
photographs. The SPCA obtained a search warrant and seized my only horse.
(They also did an illegal search of the dogs, even though the judge crossed
it OFF the search warrant application, and then foolishly admitted in
writing that they did so.)
Unfortunately, it didn't work out as they planned because I came out with my
camera and took pictures of the horse before they took her away. Also, my
veterinarian drove /140/ /miles /to their facility to examine the horse. Two
things they didn't count on to dispel their claims.
The animal cruelty charges were dismissed in the beginning at the
arraignment level. The case never went to trial.
1997: (May) I caught the disgruntled neighbor/activist in the field with my
horse! She ran as fast as she could to get to her vehicle and drove away.
I pressed charges of TRESPASSING against her.
1998: (April 17) I was falsely arrested for animal cruelty, physically
assaulted twice, sexually assaulted (touched inappropriately), and tortured
by two NYS troopers (police). I sustained serious injuries, including spinal
injuries (cord compression, thecal sac compression with one level being
totally cut off, and nerve root compression) which requires six operations
with possible steel plate insertion. I also need bowel surgery, knee surgery
and wrist surgery .
The complaint was again filed by the activist that lived three hours away.
It was totally fabricated, including his personal resume, as in 1995. This
time, not only did he use the horse to establish "probable cause" to get a
search warrant for the horse, he also fabricated a story about the dogs,
even though he never saw any of my dogs!
1998: (April 18) The trooper submitted false information to obtain a search
warrant. In doing so, many people, including the SPCA animal activist
veterinarian, arrived to execute the warrant. (This happened to be the same
veterinarian that lied in the 1995 case). They brought in a deadly airborne
virus which over a period of eighteen months, killed off almost all of my
breeding stock, including many European imports and several litters of
puppies. I lost an irreplaceable genetic pool that I developed over many
years. The financial loss was a few hundred thousand dollars.
The horse was not seized. No dogs were seized.
1998: (July 17/18) During the late evening/early morning hours, a person or
persons trespassed and penetrated my property and began liberating and
stealing my dogs. I interrupted the theft, although I wasn't aware there
were people out there. Four dogs, however, were stolen.
NOTE: The April 17, 1998 charge of animal cruelty was again dismissed at the
arraignment level never went to trial.
In my quest for justice, as the plaintiff, I then proceeded to start a new
trial in Federal Court. On July 6, 2001, NYS Trooper Thomas Crowley was
found guilty of false arrest. The charges of excessive force, submitting
false information to obtain a search warrant and malicious prosecution /were
dropped. /I am still in a state of shock regarding the verdict.
I continue to pursue it in hopes an investigation will be initiated
regarding the incident itself as well as the perjury at the Federal trial.
If they proceed with an honest investigation, I presume there will be stiff
penalties. ..hopefully jail sentences.
I will never recover from what has been done to me. But perhaps reiterating
the experience will be enough to make you think twice about the animal
rights movement and how it can effect you.
Please do not think it could never happen to you. You must be prepared.
Always have a camera or camcorder handy with fresh batteries and film. You
must be able to prove what your animals looked like, because their real
appearance and what you will be accused of are two entirely different
descriptions.
You are not immune to terrorism. Terrorism has no boundaries.
September 11, 2001 proved that.
p008 7:38 AM