His Fine Feathered Friends, And Ours

"Hobby" breeders are a con.

Although they claim not to make money, they most certainly are.

They run undocumented, unlicensed businesses and do not report income (which is much larger than they claim.)

They claim "deductions" for expenses like "taking time off from work to raise a litter of puppies" but they don't file with tax authorities to determine whether or not these are acceptable deductions.

"Hobbyist" breeders are also frequently breaking local dog limit laws, health code violations, zoning laws, business licensing laws- all in the name of keeping businesses off-the-books and secret.

And untaxed.

And if one actually thinks about it, many who breed pets do it largely as a HOBBY, and make VERY LITTLE, if anything at all, from it at all. Name someone who became a millionaire by breeding dogs, or cornsnakes? Most expenses that are earned have to go towards housing, food, and other things needed for routine care.

Why is earning a profit from using or owning animals a bad thing? How is it different than making money in any other occupation. If I were to start a business which sold faulty computer software for example, how long do you think I would be in business? Certainly the same would be so with animals, if someone's animals were being abused/neglected/whatever, that they would LOSE money and customers. Do you those people to do their jobs for free? Also, please provide some proof that all dog breeders are not paying their taxes and are illegal.

Animal agriculture is in the Dark Ages.

Barbaric, outdated practices are used simply because farmers slide along in the same rut doing the same thing for lack of education and lack of effort.

It isn't "science" that backs up these barbaric, antique farm practices. It is MONEY. Greed.

As well as a backwards ignorance among people who just refuse to improve practices or learn new things.

Or care properly for their animals.

Strangling pigs on a backhoe is barbaric. And yet "farmers" and the vets who work for them defend practices such as this.

Using downer cows introduces DISEASE into the food supply. Yet farmers stridently insist on slaughtering downed and sick animals. And endanger the public.

How many meat recalls have we had recently? How many children getting sick or dying from eating contaminated meat?

Farming is failing, miserably.

It is time for the farming community to move their BUSINESS into the current century, with up-to-date, humane practices that not only decrease suffering but also improve safety and decrease disease risk.

Time for farming to crawl out of the Dark Ages.

jschristensen, the Humane Society of the United States is not trying to end animal agriculture, only reform it and educate people. The kind of traditional agriculture you are thinking of only exists on small family farms these days. Part of what the Humane Society of the United States is doing is supporting those humane farms through its "Certified Humane" program, which helps identify ethical meat producers to their customers.
Factory farming is NOT farming, it is simple production with no regard to the animal welfare. Miserable, sick animals still have babies, just like humans in war zones and in times of famine do. That is why factory farm industries do not need to treat their livestock with compassion; they'll produce just fine if you feed them enough drugs to keep them alive until slaughter.

Animal agriculture is a vocation shared by individuals who not only call animal husbandry their "job", but is rather a calling shared by those who have committed themselves to a way of life. This way of life is built on a foundation of hundreds of years of science that has helped America's farmers raise animals in the way that they will best thrive. The majority of these farmers do not have degrees from Yale, but rather agriculture degrees in such disciplines as animal science, dairy science, and farm operations. Science based. The "barbaric" thing to do would be to forget that the livelihood of America's farmers depends on the livelihood of the animals that they raise and to place the future of the world's protein supply in the hands of an activist group.

Animal agriculture is a vocation shared by individuals who not only call animal husbandry their job, but rather commit their lives to feeding the world. They do this by employing what hundreds of years of science has taught us about what situations animals thrive the best under. Many of these individuals obtain degrees in things like animal science, dairy science, and farm operations, so that they can remain on the cutting edge of the world of animal husbandry. The "barbaric" thing would be to forget that the livelihood of America's farmers depends on the livelihood, the health of their animals and place the future of the world's food in the hands of an activist group like HSUS.

And whenever you see these people emphasizing "pet ownership" or you see the "responsible dog owner" groups- those are the FOR-PROFIT BREEDERS!

They consider animals to be property that they can abuse and kill at will, with no rules or regulations.

Some are dog fighters, some are AKC breeders, some are puppy millers, but they all share one thing in common.

PROFITING FROM ANIMALS, and they don't want any anti-cruelty laws or rules to stop the money.

(They also don't want the government to find out about their illegal businesses and the fact that they are NOT paying taxes. Another reason they don't want regulation.)

So they make up stories about humane groups that want to crack down on the abuse and get anti-cruelty laws passed.

These dog breeders even claim that animal shelters "make money!" and they try to shut down animal shelters that might be "competition" for purebred dog sales.

Meanwhile the dog breeders are hiring lobbying firms to send press releases, raise money, to fight any kinds of anti-cruelty laws or rules.

They spew out the false propaganda about "breed extinction." They will say anything, tell any lie to stop rules and laws.

The President of the AKC meanwhile makes more than $600,000 a year. And there's more AKC executives raking in the money. The money comes from puppy mill registrations.

Wonder why dog breeders oppose rules and regulations?

The purebred dog breeding world is built on a foundation of abuse and cruelty.

Money from animal abusers pays the bills for purebred dog "fancy" promotion and sales.

They don't want to cut off that income.

Yes, here the dog breeders go again.

The Activist Cash propaganda site is OWNED AND RUN by Rick Berman of CCF (Center for Consumer Freedom.)

The Big Tobacco lobbyist. The liquor industry lobbyist. The pro-animal abuse lobbyist.

http://www.consumerdeception.com

It's all about the (untaxed!) money for these dog breeders and their animal-abusing friends! The shady business of dog breeding and more.

And that is why they reach out to Rick Berman and CCF to help provide the lies and smear against humane groups.

(As do the dog fighters and the bird fighters and other assorted criminals and abusers)

Yes, jtucker62. Donations that go to H$U$ are more likely to spent on their own press releases, fundraising schemes (as much as 53% I hear and a D- rating in Worth magazine), and lobbying for restrictive legislation that makes pet ownership less fun, more difficult, and expensive.
???We have no ethical obligation to preserve the different breeds of livestock produced through selective breeding ...One generation and out. We have no problems with the extinction of domestic animals. They are creations of human selective breeding.???

Americans pride themselves on being so advanced, and yet we still have barbaric practices when it comes to dealing with animals. We will never move forward as a nation as long as we continue to abuse those who cannot defend themselves. It's time to wake up and look at the reality straight in the face. I get tired of people telling me, "No, I don't want to see those pictures, they would upset me too much," but are unwilling to make any changes in their life to minimize the suffering they know exists. I too became vegan once I became aware of the atrocities being committed against our fellow earthlings.

It's really hard to imagine that there are people so ignorant and useless, that they get their kicks from shooting and stomping on injured birds. These people are such backwards, cowardly scum, that the only way they feel they can execute power in this world is by hurting defenseless birds . But I believe in Karma. And they will get what's coming to them. They should have their heads checked for serious self confidence issues. On the other end of the spectrum, it is so wonderful that these issues are getting attention, and I thank God every night for the wonderful people's who make it happen., and who's voices are speaking for our animal friends, and who make it happen. I was recently at a horse drawn carriage ban protest in NYC and it was heart warming to see the number of people who came out from all walks of life. Thank you for the article, and your dedication.

I have heard about this pigeon shooting festival and am still horrified that it continues. God bless the Humane Society and PETA for being voices to animals. I was always a meat eater, and have cut down on my consumption of it for health reasons, but this year after reading about horrific animal abuses at factory farms in books such as "Skinny ***" have decided to go vegan. i truly believe that if Americans really knew what went on in factory farms and slaughterhouses the majority of the country would go vegan. Thank you for the article.

Peace on earth will include peace for all creation: people,animals, plants, the works! Thank goodness, HSUS is helping to open eyes and hearts to this possibility by extending our compassion beyond humanity and to our fellow members of creation in the animal kingdom.

Yes, here the dog breeders go again.

The Activist Cash propaganda site is OWNED AND RUN by Rick Berman of CCF (Center for Consumer Freedom.)

The Big Tobacco lobbyist. The liquor industry lobbyist. The pro-animal abuse lobbyist.

http://www.consumerdeception.com

It's all about the (untaxed!) money for these dog breeders and their animal-abusing friends! The shady business of dog breeding and more.

And that is why they reach out to Rick Berman and CCF to help provide the lies and smear against humane groups.

(As do the dog fighters and the bird fighters and other assorted criminals and abusers)

Only the facts:

http://www.activistcash.com/organization_blackeye.cfm/oid/136

Great article about NAIA and AKC sleaze, as well as their friends the various Pet Breeder Associations (the puppy millers!)

http://network.bestfriends.org/Blogs/PostDetail.aspx?bp=2820

Eric, the fact that you seize upon my typo (NAIC instead of NAIA) speaks to the weakness of your position. Please work harder.

Creativelabs,

Of course they haven't. They are insurance commissioners....