Illinois has passed a new dog law, which seems like a really complicated solution to a fairly simple problem.
Nick Tarasen of “Chicago Report” explains (pretty convincingly) why he thinks that the law is a bad idea.
Posts Tagged ‘animals’
Push for veterinary malpractice continues
More on the legal push across the country to reclassify humans as “guardians” rather than mere owners of pets, and the related-but-different push to expose veterinarians to sky’s-the-limit liability for the emotional significance of Fluffy and Snowball, rather than just the token damages that would be agreed to in virtually any imaginable contractual agreement they might reach with their paying human customers. (For earlier items, see Jan. 30-31, 2002, Feb. 12, 2003, and our animal-rights coverage generally (pre-6/03)). (“Malpractice Cases Spike … for Pets”, Christian Science Monitor/ABCNews.com, Jul. 29). Reader Sam Gaines comments: “I am deeply involved in the animal welfare/rescue movement here locally, but I see grave danger in this move — the potential for worse, not better, conditions for abandoned animals based on such initiatives is tremendous. Just as laws requiring fees for unneutered pets generally backfire into even more homeless animals than before, this feel-good meddling will simply drive vet costs further off the scale, and the animals will ultimately suffer.”
Let that gator do his thing
Michael McCormick of Lake County, Fla., has now gotten off with a simple warning, instead of the original $180 ticket from the Florida Wildlife Commission, for roping an alligator he saw headed toward some children and their adult caretaker. The mechanic “says he’s certain what would have happened if he had not put himself between the 5 or 6 foot gator and the family. ‘Considering the size of the small children, I honestly think he was coming after them.'” To his surprise, wildlife officials when they arrived treated him as the wrongdoer for illegally “possessing” an alligator. A 12-year-old Tavares, Fla. boy was recently killed by an alligator. (Man Ticketed After Catching Gator That Was Threatening Children, WFTV.com.)
Archived animal rights items, 1999-June 2003
Archived entries before July 2003 can also be found here.
2003: “‘Suit seeks to keep elephant at L.A. zoo’“, May 16-18 (& update Jun. 2); “Pigs’ right not to be bored” (EU), Feb. 26; “Pet custody as legal practice area“, Feb. 17; “‘Grieve for Fido, but don’t litigate’“, Feb. 12.
2002: “Suit: schoolkids shouldn’t attend rodeo“, Oct. 24; “Officious intermeddlers, pet division” (chimps; lawyers intervene in divorces on behalf of couple’s cats and dogs), May 14-15; “Zoo asserts animals’ ‘medical privacy’“, May 8; “Lawyers for chimps?“, Apr. 29-30; “‘PETA Says It Will Sue New Jersey Over Deer/Car Accident’“, Feb. 25-26; “All things sentimental and recoverable“, Jan. 30-31.
2001: “‘North America’s most dangerous mammal’” (deer), Nov. 29; “Fight over dog’s disposition said to cost taxpayers $200K“, Nov. 21-22; “Harvard Law’s new Bob Barker program in animal rights“, Jul. 5.
2000: “Lab mice paperwork“, Oct. 26; “European roundup” (Swiss animal-rights initiative), Oct. 16-17; “‘Parody of animal rights site told to close’“, Jul. 3-4; “Compare and contrast: puppy’s life and human’s“, Jun. 22-25; “Suits by household pets?“, May 26-29; “From the dog’s point of view“, Feb. 8-9; “Down, attorney! Down!“, Feb. 1; “Weekend reading: columnist-fest” (Laura Pulfer on animal rights), Feb. 5-6.
1999: “Got milk? Get sued” (veggie lawsuit against milk in schools), Dec. 16; “Wide world of federal law enforcement” (“crush video” ban), Oct. 16-17; “Not just our imagination” (class action against “Big Meat”?), Sept. 25-26; “Polly in Margaritaville” (felony defendant charged with getting parrot tipsy), Aug. 2.