Posted on April 18, 2009 by: WayCoolDogs

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(continued from Part I  – Ugliness of Animal  Identity Theft)

REASONS FOR ANIMAL IDENTITY THEFT AND STOLEN DOGS

Over 100,000 animals are stolen every year with the majority ending up in biomedical research laboratories and research facilities, documentated as purchasing approximately 65,000 pets a year from Licensed Class B dealers, pounds and shelters. The fee obtained can range up to $700 with a preference for home pets as they are easier to work with, which accounts for many house animals being stolen. Unfortunately, irresponsible dog owners who leave pets unsupervised, left in automobiles, or allowed to run loose account for some of the responsibility, as many friendly house pets respond to people of all levels and are much easier to work with over time. Animals in research who die immediately are the ones who are better off, as others survive in less than quality surroundings for months if not years. It would still benefit a pet owner to either tattoo or place an ID c hip in their to slow down the animal identity theft process going on today.

Licensed Class B Dealers:

These individuals are brokers who “deal with animals”. Their purpose is to make money off breeders and anyone with a USDA license. The only way a dog breeder can make money with what they sell is to sell in bulk—which is where your so-called puppy mills or large breeders come into play. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) enforces the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) which sets the pace for the licensing of these Class “A” or Class “B” dealers. Class A dealers are considered animal breeders where Class B dealers are able to obtain animals from any random source—dog auctions, USDA licensed dealers, pounds, shelters, and private individuals. All proper documentation if it is on the up-and-up should be able to form a “paper trail” to the animal’s actual origin. Shelters and pounds are required by law to hold an animal for ten days before selling to a Class B dealer while breeders are legally required by USDA to not sell before eight weeks of age.

Shelters and pounds:

Most animals and shelters do their best to find homes for their animals. But without money and becoming rapidly overly crowded, they are faced with two options: euthanize by gas or sell the animals to research labs. A word many of us do not recognize is “pound-seizure” where animals from shelters and pounds are “seized” by biomedical research industries for their needed supply. Animals in the pounds or shelters are purchased or seized—with no identification or they would already have been returned to their original homes. Many have either had their chips removed or never were put there in the first place. No tattoos are obviously on the animal for identification, a requirement by USDA for their breeders. Private owners who do not have any form of tattoos or chips for permanent identification purposes have no way to have their pets returned. If not placed in a new home, many are either put down or sold as laboratory experiments.

Animal shelters, humane society shelters, and pounds were originally set up to do three specific things which are listed below. Unfortunately, only 13 states have laws against pound-seizure–Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia– even though under no circumstances should an animal have to be subjected to torture in a research facility. In fact, several states (Utah, Oklahoma, and Minnesota) legally require that any publically funded shelter or pound provides their animals to biomedical research institutions for experimental or educational purposes.

• Protect animals until their guardian reclaims them.
• Adopt the animal to a loving, secure home if the animal is not reclaimed.
• Humane euthanization if there is NO other alternative.

(To be continued April 20, 2009 – Part 3- Ugliness of Animal Identity Theft)

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Related posts:

• Part 3-Ugliness of Animal Identity Theft
• Part I-Ugliness of Animal Identity Theft
• Animal Tips for Identity Theft
• Majority Leader Supports Animal Protection Law
• Dog ID Tags