Pa. dog-law bill keeps teeth in Senate review

HARRISBURG - A bill to overhaul the state dog law survived a last-minute attempt to remove its key provisions before being unanimously approved late last night by the Senate Appropriations Committee.

House Bill 2525, raises standards for care in commercial dog-breeding kennels. It passed the state House of Representatives last month, and it will be considered by the full Senate today, a senior Senate aide said.

Because the bill was amended, it must go back to the House for a final vote. That vote could come as early as today or could be delayed until at least Nov. 12, when the House returns for the final three days of the legislative session.

Sen. Mike Brubaker (R., Lancaster) said that if the bill passed, the bar would be raised for dogs living in commercial kennels.

"My number-one objective was to shepherd it through the process, be open to amendments, and still protect the integrity of the bill," said Brubaker, who helped guide it through an intense 24-hour round of negotiations with Sen. Gib Armstrong (R., Lancaster), the Appropriations Committee chairman.

"I wanted to make sure a bill comes to the Senate floor that protects the health and welfare of dogs that live in commercial breeding kennels in Pennsylvania."

The bill, championed by Gov. Rendell and the subject of statewide debate for nearly a year, bans wire flooring, doubles the minimum area required for cages, and requires exercise and semiannual veterinary exams for breeding dogs in large commercial kennels.

The bill would apply to kennels that sell or transfer 60 dogs a year. Under the bill, kennel owners would have one year to make improvements unless they met conditions to receive a waiver from the Department of Agriculture for an additional two years.

Brubaker said he received 8,000 e-mails in the last 10 days, 95 percent of them supportive of the bill.

Animal-welfare advocates applauded the bill, saying it would help thousands of dogs who spend their lives in cages in kennels, while their puppies are sold to pet stores or through other outlets.

"I think it's a good bill, considering how it could have been amended," said Tom Hickey Sr., a member of the Dog Law Advisory Board. "The legislature heard Pennsylvanians and gave them what they demanded."

"This bill is going to do so much good for so many thousands of dogs," said Cori Menkin, senior director of legislative initiatives for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. "This will have an enormous impact for dogs in commercial kennels."

Attempts last night to reach representatives of the Professional Dog Breeders Association, which opposed the bill, were unsuccessful.