Dear SAOVA Friends,
You don't have to be a lawyer to see that Maryland's HB673 clearly forbids use of a tether (stake-out) less five X the dog's body length, or 10 feet long, at any time. The penalty for a violation is IMPRISONMENT NOT EXCEEDING 90 DAYS OR A FINE NOT EXCEEDING $1,000 OR BOTH.
http://mlis.state.md.us/2007RS/bills/hb/hb0673f.pdf
New Jersey's pending and very likely to pass A2649, a 56 page revision of the state's animal cruelty code, makes it a crime to use a tether shorter than 15 feet. Regardless of the stake-out's length, it's also a crime to use one for more than 10 hours in 24.
http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2006/Bills/A3000/2649_R2.HTM
On the brighter side, two Virginia anti-tethering bills, HB2098 and HB2242, were defeated last month.
http://vhdoa.uplandbirddog.com/staterk.html
*Field trialers and others using tethers need to contact their legislators and tell them that tethering isn't harmful to dogs - it keeps them safe. Eliminating tethering will be very difficult to enforce and will cause many dogs to be put down. Tethering doesnt make a dog aggressive, as demonstrated by the Cornell Veterinary School's research. Most tethered dogs arent problems and in the few cases of mean dogs, the animal was aggressive BEFORE it was chained.*
Freely forward this message. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Bob Kane, President
Virginia Hunting Dog Owners' Association
http://vhdoa.uplandbirddog.com/
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