Animal Lovers

Two senators are taking action after the tragic death of a dog that was placed in an overhead bin on a United Airlines flight. Republican Senator John Kennedy (R-La.) and Democrat Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced the Welfare of Our Furry Friends (WOOFF) Act in mid-March . The bill prohibits pets from traveling in overhead compartments, and requires the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to establish regulations and penalties for anyone found in violation of the rule. “Too many animals have died as a result of human neglect and carelessness. Our WOOFF Act is designed to protect the wellbeing of our beloved family members – our pets – when traveling,” Cortez Masto tweeted. A spokeswoman for United Airlines apologized for the “tragic accident” on a United flight that resulted in the death of the French Bulldog put in the overhead bin by the flight attendant. She also said the airline is thoroughly investigating the matter. “This was a tragic accident that should...

BREAKING NEWS : Animal Abusers Will Now Be Registered Like Sex Offenders. Consider this a win for animals all over the country. For every abused puppy, abandoned kitten, or medically tested bunny, this is a win. No question. A new law is growing in popularity across the country, and it's something everyone can agree on. A number of United States jurisdictions have implemented an animal offenders registry, which will publicly reveal the names of known animal abusers in the area, similar to how sex offenders are registered. Currently, Tennessee is the only state to have an animal offenders registry, but other cities like New York and Cook County, Illinois have them at a local level. The Tennessee registry is monitored by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and can be accessed at the TBI or any local country office. Each abuser will have their name, date of birth, offense, conviction date, and expiration date. First time animal abusers will be registered for two years. A...

A proposed California law would allow people to smash out a car window if a dog is suffering inside a hot vehicle. The bill is in response to a growing number of incidents involving pets being left in hot cars. The bill, named the "The Right to Rescue Act” (Assembly Bill 797) would legally allow Good Samaritans to smash a window or use other means to rescue dogs who are left in hot vehicles. The Assembly members who proposed the bill went so far as making a video of themselves sitting in a hot car for 21 minutes to show the dangers. ABC7 spoke with a few Californians about the proposed bill and most spoke out in support of it. "I'd rather have the ability to do it rather than not do it. It's more important to help the dog than it is to worry about people's feelings," Randall Whittinghill of Silver Lake said. A similar bill was signed into law in Florida last month . The bill in Florida outlines that a person would need to first check the vehicle was lock...

An animal shelter in Bristow, Oklahoma, is reportedly putting down dogs in the worst way possible: by taking them behind the building and shooting them. Residents of the town southwest of Tulsa are petitioning officials to stop the practice, alleging at least three dogs were shot dead this week alone — a claim confirmed Thursday by Bristow's mayor Leonard Bristow . State laws mandate shelter animals be put down in a "humane way." But by not describing what constitutes "humane," Oklahoma legislation leaves the door open for a wide range of interpretation. One such interpretation, according to the mayor, is to shoot them. He told reporters on Thursday that the practice is legal, but also promised it wouldn't happen again. "We are not going to shoot dogs anymore and we will try to work with local vets to help us," Washington said. "Shooting dogs is not a common practice, and this was a rare situation." Angry Bristow ...

ROCKVILLE, MD — With lows dropping into the teens at night, Montgomery County authorities are reminding residents not to leave pets tied up and unattended outside. Pet owners face a $500 fine for violating the ordinance. The Director of the Montgomery County Animal Services Division Thomas Koenig says his officers will enforce a county regulation that says, “a person must not tether a dog under circumstances that endanger its health, safety, or well-being including: unattended tethering of the dog during a weather emergency.” Enforcement of the regulation goes into effect during periods of extreme cold, wind, and heavy snow, which can all be damaging to dogs and other animals. Montgomery County Police Animal Services officers urge residents to bring pets indoors during extreme weather. Even animals that are accustomed to living outdoors can be susceptible to the dangers of cold weather. Livestock animals should have a place to get out of the wind and dry bedding should be ...

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - Brevard County sheriff's deputies arrested a man Wednesday morning after they say he ignored firefighters' commands and tried to save his dogs from his burning home. Brevard County Fire Rescue crews responded to 2387 Victor Road at around 5 a.m. Wednesday after someone called 911 to report the fire. Fire investigators tell News 6 they found the home was full of smoke from a fire that appeared to start in a television and spread. They say Wendell Joyner, 58, kept going inside his burning home to save his three dogs. "I got out of the house, and then I realized, 'Oh, wait a minute, my dogs are in there, " Joyner said. "So, I went back inside to look for my dogs." Joyner tells News 6 he kept getting overcome with smoke, and he had to keep coming outside to breathe. He said he saw an opportunity when he grabbed a firefighter's ax and threw it through a front window to get access to his dogs. Deputies tackled Joyner,...

Police in Fresno, California, have arrested a man for animal cruelty after they found him with a cat stuffed into his backpack. Authorities said in a news release that officers found the cat yesterday morning after stopping a suspicious-looking bicyclist behind a Wal-Mart in the city of Clovis. That cyclist turned out to be 24-year-old Cody High. He “initially lied about his name,” police said, “but officers quickly discovered this and determined his true identity, at which time he was found to be on felony probation for drug violations.” When officers opened High’s backpack to do a search, they found the cat inside and actually thought it was dead at first, they said. The orange adult cat “had electrical tape tightly wrapped several times around the neck, face, and nose.” Its legs were also “tightly bound together,” leading police to think it was no longer alive. But when they removed the tape from its face, the cat started breathing. Animal control officers then took...

A Missouri police chief has quit following allegations he took a lost puppy to a firing range and shot the animal to death. Andrew Spencer of Sparta was asked by city officials to leave his post and remain with the department as a sergeant, but chose instead to resign after the November incident. The shooting, which took place in November, sparked outrage after the 16-month-old dog's owner chronicled the events on Facebook. Elizabeth Womack described her dog Chase as a "playful and loving puppy who wanted to do nothing but play and cuddle. He played with our son and watched over him." But in his police report, dated Nov. 11, Spencer painted a portrait of a difficult-to-control dog barking at people in a neighborhood with children. "I did not want to destroy the dog if we could help it, and certainly did not want to destroy it in a neighborhood where it was possible children were watching," Spencer wrote. The former police chief instead forced the do...

FBI data collection to begin effective January 1 2016.... Animal abusers will now be grouped into the same category as murderers! They believe animal cruelty is and should be identified as a violent crime, one that leads to bigger things if it goes unchecked. No longer will violent cases of animal cruelty be included in the “other offenses” category simply because the victims of the crime are animals... The new FBI categorization is significant because it affirms that at the highest level of our government animal cruelty is recognized as a violent crime." According to the FBI, the official definition of animal cruelty will be: Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly taking an action that mistreats or kills any animal without just cause, such as torturing, tormenting, mutilation, maiming, poisoning, or abandonment. Included are instances of duty to provide care, e.g. shelter food water care if sick or injured transporting or confining an animal in a manner likely to...