Animal Rights

Our country is one that holds many rights in which some have been presented in my previous blogs. One right that still holds current debate is animal rights. Some laws are established to prevent animal cruelty, but not all laws defend animals. One thing is for certain; all pets should be protected from harm and danger.

The thought of someone intentionally putting animals in danger is a complete and absolute outrage. For obvious reasons there does exist some exceptions to the rule. For example, hunting is considered a sport that helps to control over population of certain animals such as deer and bears.

On another note, endangering and mistreating pets, such as dogs and cats is unacceptable. Let's take in consideration puppy mills. This is a place where dogs are caged up and forced to breed over and over without proper medical care and nutrition. These dogs suffer through the scorching hot sun or freezing cold weather in cages with no concern of their physical and mental condition.

Apparently, Pennsylvania is considered to be the capitol of puppy mills of the east coast. According to the provided website, the dog cages are stacked upon one another which means that the dogs occupying the cages below are "defecated and urinated" upon. The photos are horrific to bear another look. Unfortunately, Pennsylvania isn't the only puppy mill state. Other states include: Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. In my opinion, these mills must be stopped from this sort of animal cruelty. Not only are they putting these dogs at risk but they are also putting the families that purchase these puppies at risk. These puppies run the risk of having diseases or other medical problems that could be costly. Bottom line, puppies should not be purchased in pet stores and pet stores should be boycotted.

The Animal Welfare Act "establishes certain laws, policies and guidelines for treatment of animals" for example in laboratories. However, this act is not always enforced by law. Some states, such as Florida, have established there own Association to enforce cruelty to animals. The Florida Animal Control Association will not hesitate to prosecute those found guilty of such cruelty.

Being a dog lover, I found it very difficult but important to write this blog. Reading about the puppy mills literally made me cry. If I was financially and physically capable, I'd rescue as many of those dogs as possible. I'm sure it would be complicated and is obviously not within my reach but for now, all I can do is refuse to buy pets from the pet stores and try to convince as many people as I know to do the same and hope that they to will spread the word.

No Smoking Allowed

Everyone has the right and choice to smoke or not to smoke. Just like drinking, smoking is legal. Some issues do arise with both smoking and drinking but smoking impacts the quality of air for all. Smoking in public places has been a long and complex issue. Thanks to a recent bill, we no longer have to be forced to deal with such pollution.

I was ecstatic about the recent bill that was signed by Virginia Governor Tim Kaine. Based on the signed legislation, which took affect on December 1, 2009, "smoking is prohibited in public restaurants that are open to the public with a few exceptions." What this means for you and I is that all restaurants have smoking restrictions that must be enforced. All businesses that operate and handle food must have separate rooms with proper ventilation for smoking. However, certain private clubs are exempt from abiding by this legislation. Such clubs are the VFW's. Being a non-smoker and having a child with asthma, I most certainly appreciate the clean air in a public place and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Before this legislation took effect, I experienced several issues with smoking being permitted in restaurants. One issue is dealing with the smoke lingering into the non-smoking section. The odor would often irritate not only me but my children as well, especially my son. The smoke would cause headaches, watery eyes and difficulty breathing. We usually would try to rush eating so that we could go outside and breathe the fresh air. I recall going to a public sports bar with my boyfriend to watch the Steelers vs. Vikings game. We sat in an empty location; well at least it was empty for the first hour. By half time, all surrounding tables were full and needless to say, the smoking began. Shortly after, my head began to pound as if I just attended a Heavy Metal concert with the music blasting in my ears. In order to prevent my headache from getting worse, I held napkins up to my nose so I wouldn't inhale this pollution. This brings me to my second issue, which is having your hair, clothing and coat smell like smoke after your departure. There were times I'd intentionally leave my coat in the car to avoid the scent of smoke on it later. Third, just knowing that second hand smoke is just as bad as smoking is not surprisingly another issue of mine. One might ask why I wouldn't avoid such exposure, well; the truth of the matter is that going out to eat shouldn't be a health hazard to anyone, especially minors. I've seen children not old enough to walk or talk being exposed to smoke in restaurants. Smoking in public places is problematic.

Smoking in public places, other then those exceptions should have been banned and/or restricted a long time ago. This legislation now allows everyone including children to avoid this unhealthy exposure.