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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. James E. Casorio, Jr. |
  
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House committee advances dog law legislation
HARRISBURG, June 25 – Legislation to ensure the humane treatment of dogs in large commercial breeding facilities in Pennsylvania was advanced by a state House committee today.
The House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee voted 17-12 to approve the bill, introduced by state Rep. James E. Casorio Jr., D-Westmoreland.
Casorio said the legislation is aimed at strengthening the state's dog law by introducing new requirements for the care and treatment of breeding dogs in commercial kennels that sell or transfer more than 60 dogs a year. The legislation includes provisions that set minimum cage size, exercise, heating and cooling, sanitation and other standards for these large commercial kennels.
The legislation also gives the state's dog law enforcement officers the authority to enforce the state's dog law with respect to non-licensed kennels.
Casorio said the legislation is not aimed at smaller kennels, sporting clubs, rescue shelters and individual pet owners.
"The owners and breeders who care for their animals and who protect their well-being will not be impacted by the changes to the dog law proposed in this legislation," Casorio said. "We're going after the small number of large-scale breeders in this state who treat dogs simply as an expendable commodity – who have demonstrated repeatedly that they do not care about the suffering of the dogs they warehouse or the quality of the dogs that they trade or sell to the public.
"The current dog law makes the state virtually powerless to prevent the abuse that takes place in these puppy mills," he said. "We have to change that."
Casorio said extensive meetings were held with sporting dog groups, small kennel owners, rescue and shelters groups, and others interested in the state's dog law and the humane treatment of dogs in Pennsylvania before the legislation was introduced. Since the introduction of the bill, the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee has also considered several amendments to address the concerns of these groups.
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