NEW AUDIT RELEASED SHOWS LITTLE PROGRESS MADE IN REGULATING STATE'S DOG BREEDING FACILITIES!
12/26/04 - A new audit released last week by the state auditor's office shows little has changed in the Department of Agriculture's inability to regulate and inspect Missouri's registered commercial breeding facilities. Claire McCaskill's office released the new report showing violations still go unpunished by the state's nine inspectors.
This report shows the department has done little to remedy the problems in the last four years and has not been run efficiently. While citing lack of funding and a small number of inspectors, the department has chosen to inspect facilities already inspected by federal officials in the same year, while most licensed facilities are not being inspected annually. When inspected, many violations are not observed or recorded due to nothing more than apathy by those conducting the inspections. The unreported violations included, but were not limited to:
Despite some efforts to improve inspections through the use of a checklist, the audit stated "in discussing inspection procedures with all nine inspectors, we found that seven of nine inspectors do not believe it is necessary to report all violations found when inspecting licensed facilities."
Facilities cited for things such as "dirty pens in need of cleaning, a puppy in a pen had been dead for several days, pens had no shelter or shade and kennel dogs were running loose on premises, several dirty dog feeders with either no food or caked, moldy food in them, and several dogs with skin problems" were still in operation.
And some facilities, despite their record of "marginal" compliance and having been cited for violations such as canines with matted hair, a strong ammonia smell in whelping room, and lack of rodent control" many violators were not being penalized.
The entire report may be viewed at:
http://www.auditor.state.mo.us/press/2004-91.pdf
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
1. As the new session is about to begin, please take a few moments to call your state representative and senator to let them know about the new audit and your concerns. You can find your elected officials as well as the full audit on the Alliance's web site at http://www.maal.org/.
2. Call the Department of Agriculture at 573-751-4211, letting them know citizens are concerned about this issue and they cannot continue to conduct business as usual with regard to dog breeding facilities in Missouri.
3. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper bringing attention to the audit and to the suffering of animals in these facilities. Remember to stick to the facts and share this information in a clear and concise manner.
4. Mark your calendars now for our annual Humane Day at the Capitol on April 12, 2005 when you can visit with your legislators face-to-face to discuss this and other issues.
Remember- politics is not a spectator sport!
Sincerely,
Shane
This report shows the department has done little to remedy the problems in the last four years and has not been run efficiently. While citing lack of funding and a small number of inspectors, the department has chosen to inspect facilities already inspected by federal officials in the same year, while most licensed facilities are not being inspected annually. When inspected, many violations are not observed or recorded due to nothing more than apathy by those conducting the inspections. The unreported violations included, but were not limited to:
inadequate flooring which allowed the canine's feet to slip through
canine pens having large amounts of fecal accumulation
partially completed housing facility which did not protect canines from the weather
too many large canines sharing one shelter
outdoor kennels backed up to tall weeds (approximately 6 feet tall)
dog food on the floor in the whelping building which could attract mice and other rodents, as well as a pile of food on the ground in one of the outdoor runs
rusty kennel fencing and a piece of unsecured metal covering a drain channel which was inside the outdoor runs
dirty water and /or water bowls in several canine pens
several pens had unsecured, sagging tarps or unsecured plywood over the pens for shade
numerous feline cages stacked, but not secured
several canines running loose with no perimeter fence
open medications lying on a shelf in an outdoor housing facility
Despite some efforts to improve inspections through the use of a checklist, the audit stated "in discussing inspection procedures with all nine inspectors, we found that seven of nine inspectors do not believe it is necessary to report all violations found when inspecting licensed facilities."
Facilities cited for things such as "dirty pens in need of cleaning, a puppy in a pen had been dead for several days, pens had no shelter or shade and kennel dogs were running loose on premises, several dirty dog feeders with either no food or caked, moldy food in them, and several dogs with skin problems" were still in operation.
And some facilities, despite their record of "marginal" compliance and having been cited for violations such as canines with matted hair, a strong ammonia smell in whelping room, and lack of rodent control" many violators were not being penalized.
The entire report may be viewed at:
http://www.auditor.state.mo.us/press/2004-91.pdf
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
1. As the new session is about to begin, please take a few moments to call your state representative and senator to let them know about the new audit and your concerns. You can find your elected officials as well as the full audit on the Alliance's web site at http://www.maal.org/.
2. Call the Department of Agriculture at 573-751-4211, letting them know citizens are concerned about this issue and they cannot continue to conduct business as usual with regard to dog breeding facilities in Missouri.
3. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper bringing attention to the audit and to the suffering of animals in these facilities. Remember to stick to the facts and share this information in a clear and concise manner.
4. Mark your calendars now for our annual Humane Day at the Capitol on April 12, 2005 when you can visit with your legislators face-to-face to discuss this and other issues.
Remember- politics is not a spectator sport!
Sincerely,
Shane
posted by Shane at 12:48 PM
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