The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

Carthage, Jasper County

Discussion

April 4, 2010

Forum to focus on dog breeder proposal

Ballot initiative would regulate industry

By Emily Younker

eyounker@joplinglobe.com

NEOSHO, Mo. — The Newton County Farm Bureau will sponsor a panel discussion Tuesday focusing primarily on a Missouri ballot initiative that would regulate dog breeders.

“The purpose of the lecture is to inform those in agriculture, not just in my industry, but also in poultry and cattle, everybody that has an interest in the agricultural community,” said Chris Fleming, general manager of Mid-America Pet, a puppy distributor.

The initiative would bar breeders from having more than 50 breeder dogs per site. It also would require large operations to provide each dog with sufficient food, water, housing and space, along with veterinary care, exercise and rest between breeding cycles, according to the secretary of state’s office.

Officials estimate the measure, if passed, would cost state government entities more than $650,000. It is supported by the Humane Society of the United States, the Humane Society of Missouri, the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

For the initiative to be on the November ballot, supporters need to collect about 100,000 signatures by May 2.

Tuesday’s panel also will discuss what the ballot initiative could mean for other animal producers, Fleming said.

“It’s just a steppingstone for (animal rights activists) to control the number of cattle a farmer has, or the proper time to raise chickens,” he said. “It’s a steppingstone to regulate other areas of the industry. Who are you or I to say how many cattle or chickens a person has?”

Fleming said there will be about seven people on the panel, including representatives from various animal industries as well as from the Missouri Farm Bureau.

Kelly Smith, director of marketing and commodities for the Missouri Farm Bureau, is scheduled to speak.

The Farm Bureau has said it opposes the ballot initiative. In a March 18 column written for the bureau, Dan Cassidy, the bureau’s chief administrative officer, wrote that the ballot initiative is a way for the Humane Society of the United States to make money and target breeders. He argued that the proposal “will do nothing to help identify and prosecute unlicensed dog breeders.”

Cassidy also argued that the initiative “will not provide any additional resources to the Missouri Department of Agriculture to enforce the existing dog breeder inspection program.”

“This isn’t about focusing on bad breeders,” Cassidy wrote. “It is about targeting all dog breeders and raising more money.”

Supporters of the initiative disagree.

“Missouri citizens are not proud of the reputation the state has earned as ‘puppy mill capital of the United States,’ and they want to see the laws strengthened,” said Ginger Steinmetz, executive director of the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation, in a statement.

Fleming said Tuesday’s forum is intended to be informational.

“I have my own ideas of what (animals) a person could or couldn’t have, but it’s not my place to voice those opinions,” he said. “No matter which side somebody stands on, we’re getting attention brought to the matter. This is an open-forum discussion to give folks an idea of where we’re at with all this.”



On tap

The panel and discussion, titled “Understanding the Animal Activist ... Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing,” will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Crowder College’s Williams Building, 601 Laclede Ave. in Neosho.

Text Only
Carthage, Jasper County
  • Jim-Spradling-obit.jpg Carthage attorney, reformer of revenue department, dies

    James R. Spradling, a Carthage attorney who was noted for his reform of the Missouri Department of Revenue in the 1970s, died at 5:50 a.m. Monday at McCune-Brooks Regional Hospital.

    August 9, 2010 1 Photo

  • Bondswoman charged with false imprisonment

    A bail bondswoman from Carthage is facing a charge of false imprisonment for allegedly attempting to put a man in jail without a judge’s order, then taking him home and handcuffing him to the banister of a staircase until a friend of the man paid her his bond money.

    January 4, 2012

  • Man’s last statement to be given to defendant

    A judge ruled Monday that the Jasper County prosecutor must provide attorneys for Darren J. Winans with a videotaped statement co-defendant Matthew D. Laurin made about the Sheldon murders shortly before killing himself.

    August 23, 2010

  • Carthage proposes 1.6-cent rise in city property tax

    A drop in the assessed value of Carthage real estate will translate to an increase of about 1.6 cents in the city’s proposed property tax rate.

    August 9, 2010

  • Open house to celebrate projects at courthouse

    Projects completed last year at the Jasper County Courthouse will be celebrated in ceremonies Thursday in the courthouse lobby.
    County officials will join representatives of local chambers of commerce and others for a ribbon-cutting and open house to mark the opening of a Route 66 display in the lobby and a new “peace star” atop the building.

    May 9, 2010

  • Newton County Jail State budget cuts reduce county funds

    County officials are bracing for more state budget cuts to translate into a loss of county revenues.
    In an effort to balance Missouri’s budget, the state earlier this year cut the amount it reimburses county assessors for work to determine property values. The budget approved by lawmakers for fiscal 2011 calls for cutting the amount the state reimburses counties to house prisoners bound for state lockup.

    May 9, 2010 1 Photo

  • Jo Ellis: County home to rare yellowwood tree

    In late spring, drifts as white as snow fill the gutters and curbs on the east side of the Jasper County Courthouse. It isn’t snow, of course; it’s the fallen petals of the yellowwood tree that grows squarely in front of the door to the Jasper County Extension office.

    May 9, 2010

  • Jasper County Commission gets building project update

    Plans to close out one building project and start another were reviewed by the Jasper County Commission last week.
    Darieus Adams, Western District associate commissioner, met Thursday with officials of the firm who designed a $292,400 project to upgrade the lighting and make other changes to make four county-owned buildings more energy efficient.

    May 8, 2010

  • Two men running for associate judge in 39th Circuit take case to court

    Two men running for associate judge in Missouri’s 39th Circuit began battling it out in a Jasper County courtroom this week.
    Jasper County Circuit Judge Gayle Crane heard arguments Wednesday concerning the disclosure of documents sought by Robert “Bobby” George, Aurora, the current Lawrence County prosecutor.

    May 7, 2010

  • Carthage tiger Unveiling ceremony celebrates CHS tiger

    Kandy Frazier, Carthage High School principal, summed it up once the new addition to the CHS campus was unveiled Thursday.
    The bronze tiger sculpture created by Carthage artist and sculptor Bob Tommey, she said, is the kind of work that would be found at a big university.

    May 6, 2010 1 Photo