Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Legal Complaint Filed to Stop MO Puppy Mill Phone Calls on Prop B

The Missouri puppy mill people may be howling, but they've stopped calling.  I've written here before about the robocalls we've received urging us to vote against MO Prop B.   It got to the point where I cringed when the phone rang and wished there was a no-call list for this sort of thing.

Turns out there is a no-call list of a sort.  Federal law requires all robocalls to include the identity of the party initiating the call at the beginning of the message, and the telephone number or address of the party initiating the call.  Calls like the ones we received were sponsored by the Alliance for Truth, a political committee made of up puppy mill owners / operators.  The Alliance for Truth recording included neither of these identifying items, even though Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster sent a notice to all political committees in August advising them of the rules.

Missourians for the Protection of Dogs/YES! on Prop B, a coalition of individuals and animal welfare organizations supporting the ballot measure to stop puppy mill cruelty, filed a legal complaint with the Missouri Attorney General alleging that opponents of Prop B are harassing Missouri voters with illegal and misleading automated telephone calls (robocalls).  Of course, not only did the calls violate the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, but they also offered a host of outlandish and false claims

“All dogs deserve basic food, water, housing and veterinary care, and that’s exactly what Prop B provides,” said Barbara Schmitz, campaign manager for Missourians for the Protection of Dogs/YES! on Prop B. “Voters deserve straight information about the cruelty of Missouri’s puppy mills, not garbled falsehoods from shadowy front groups that don’t even identify themselves on the phone.”

Amen to that!

Prop B will stop puppy mill abuses by establishing common-sense enforceable standards for the care of dogs in Missouri, including requirements that dogs in puppy mills be provided with clean water, adequate food, exercise and regular veterinary care. Reputable breeders are already complying with these standards and will not be impacted by the measure.

Prop B is supported by Missouri veterinarians and veterinary clinics; animal welfare charities and organizations, including the Humane Society of Missouri, the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation, Central Missouri Humane Society, Humane Society of Southwest Missouri, Wayside Waifs, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF), Best Friends Animal Society and The Humane Society of the United States; prominent Missouri figures such as Tony La Russa and Linda Bond; as well as responsible dog breeders, elected officials, religious leaders and Missouri businesses.

Needless to say, MO Prop B is also supported by all of us at For Love of a Dog Jewelry.

1 comment:

  1. Thank you so much for helping to bring attention to this issue. We hope that Missourians will read the bill and vote YES on Prop B!

    ReplyDelete

Go ahead... bark at us!