WISCONSIN HERPETOLOGICAL SOCIETY

7. Merely updating and making minor modifications in current laws seems to be as effective as PFL in reducing unwanted strays by increasing owner responsibility with small increases in fines for violations. DCHS modified the county animal control laws this way and reported that the results were a "major breakthrough in animal welfare" in Dane Co. This was in reference to Dane Co. Ch. 47:

http://www.co.dane.wi.us/pdfdocs/ordinances/ord047.pdf

as reported on in this article authored by DCHS humane officers:

Wisconsin State Journal :: OPINION :: A8 Saturday, July 5, 2003, Cheri Carr, Melissa Newby and Jacqi Fleissner
As representatives of the Dane County Human Society, we would like to clarify some of the animal control issues raised June 21 in the Wisconsin State Journal guest column by Faye Wollaeger. The amendment was drafted to empower Dane County's humane officers in their duties to protect abused or neglected animals. Prior to the revisions, Dane County had no animal cruelty ordinance. If a dog was not being fed regularly or had inadequate shelter, for example, the owner would receive a warning, but the animal would remain on the premises. Unless the situation was serious enough to pursue state criminal charges, humane officers had no official avenues to pursue. Under the modified amendment, humane officers are finally able to issue citations or orders of correction from the county to protect animals at risk or in danger from negligent or abusive owners. This change, which is at the heart of Chapter 47, is a major positive breakthrough in animal welfare. Copy this URL in your address bar for the complete article:
http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/madison.com/html/archive_files/wsj/2003/07/05/0307040269.php
These changes could be made on a statewide basis very easily without the controversy and opposition by PFL opponents, however it would not grow the state bureaucracy the way DATCP bureaucrats would prefer.

8. Allowing a radical element of county government like DCHS, under the leadership of a consummate state bureaucrat like Yvonne Bellay to initiate changes in state statutes to fit their malignant agenda while blatantly evading public process is very dangerous for the taxpayers of Wisconsin. DCHS has a history of animal rights extremism as documented by numerous articles in the Wisconsin State Journal since ~1990 which show that the organization had been through a series of coups in which former more moderate staff members had been driven out of the organization by militant AR zealots. Since then, these militant members of the humane officer staff have gotten a great deal of negative publicity for illegal and highly questionable animal confiscations (theft) from private taxpayers, resulting in lawsuits by owners that had their private property confiscated without due process, some of which was kept or sold by certain DCHS personnel for their personal benefit, in violation of state statutes:

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/madison.com/html/archive_files/wsj/1996/12/18/9612180094.php

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/madison.com/html/archive_files/wsj/1995/06/14/9506140121.php

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/madison.com/html/archive_files/wsj/1996/08/17/9608170157.php

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/madison.com/html/archive_files/wsj/1995/04/15/9504150130.php

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/tct/1994/05/14/9405140445.php

http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/tct/1996/08/19/9608190364.php

These articles clearly illustrate the danger that DCHS and DATCP currently pose to taxpayers that own animals. If they are allowed to manipulate the laws to further infringe on our rights to own, breed and sell animals, and to make it easier for them to steal from us for their own personal profit, we are in trouble. These people do not belong in government. They belong in prison for political graft and conspiracy to commit grand larceny. While I did attend the first meeting of this DCHS legislative committee and expressed interest working with the committee to change state animal laws, my steadfast opposition to PFL and subsequent distribution of this flyer, resulted in my being labeled a 'pet-industry infiltrator attempting to undermine the goals of the committee' and expelled from the committee and barred from DCHS premises, under threat of arrest and prosecution for trespass. This clearly demonstrates that DCHS is not interested in considering the viewpoints of animal owners in their initiatives. I would advise anyone interested in participating in this committee to contact DCHS and ask to be on the committee. Please don't buy into any propaganda that exotics fanciers can get around this awful legislation and let the cat and dog people go down the toilet. It just won't happen that way and, if any group tries it, they will lose their most important allies in the very long fight we are in against the AR freaks. This is just like the War on Terrorism, we had better be ready to fight long and hard and employ a new set of rules of engagement. Because even if we beat PFL this session these jerks will be back again next session. We need all the friends we can get. PFL will subject you to the potential of massive government involvement and intervention into your breeding policies, your facilities and your animal husbandry practices. You will be subject to new mandatory licensing fees, probably many inspection fees, will have to pay for a business license and all the associated costs of being a licensed business, including zoning issues, and will have to collect and bear the administrative costs of state sales tax. You won't have the time or money to raise animals.
If you have any additional questions on this matter, send an email to: aor@chorus.net
Permission to duplicate, distribute and cross-post is granted and encouraged.
Ed Stone, Wisconsin Herpetological Society.