Animal advocates wary of euthanasia legislation (ending gas chambers, shooting instead)
Animal advocates wary of euthanasia legislation
Specter of 2008 killing of 80 dogs in Berks lingers.
It may be 2012, but it's still legal in Pennsylvania for a shelter operator to put a dog in a chamber, fill it with carbon monoxide and wait until the animal is asphyxiated.
That's something state Sen. Andrew Dinniman, D-Chester, is hoping will soon end, as legislation he has been shepherding through the Senate for the past year may come to the floor for a vote as soon as Tuesday.
But some animal welfare advocates fear that in finally putting an end to what they consider an inhumane method of euthanasia, the state may be reopening the door to another — shooting dogs and cats.
That's because the bill includes language that could be interpreted as allowing kennel owners to use guns to put down "dangerous" animals, a practice that was banned after the 2008 shooting of 80 dogs in Berks County. The event became the tipping point for tougher regulations on dog kennel owners.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-pennsylvania-euthanize-dogs-and-cats-20120114,0,7233094.story
