Senate Bill 211, sponsored by Senator Patricia M. Blevins (D- Elsmere), would add commonly used dog tethering practices to the states definition of animal cruelty. Animal cruelty is a Class A misdemeanor in Delaware. The bill would:
- Prohibit tethering a dog for more than 18 hours in a 24-hour period;
- Completely prohibit tethering a dog under the age of four months for any amount of time; and
- Ban tethering a nursing female dog if any of its offspring are “present.”
Many respectable sporting dog owners safely and humanely tether their dogs. Setting an arbitrary cap on the amount of time a person can keep a dog tethered will only criminalize responsible dog owners and will do nothing to stop bad actors who are treating dogs poorly.
Further, the bill’s complete prohibitions on tethering dogs under four months of age and nursing females while their offspring are present is vague and could be interpreted to even prohibit keeping these types of dogs on a leash.
The bill was sent to the Senate Committee on Judiciary which is chaired by bill sponsor Senator Blevins.
“This bill is nothing more than an outright assault on dog tethering,” said Jeremy Rine, U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance in-house counsel and associate director of state services. “Sportsmen need to let members of the committee know that they oppose Senate Bill 211.”
Take Action! Delaware sportsmen should contact members of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and ask them to oppose Senate Bill 211. Tell them it is unnecessary and could punish law abiding dog owners.
The Committee members can be contacted at:
Chair Patricia M. Blevins (D-Elsmere) – 302-744-4133 [email protected]
Sen. Anthony J. DeLuca (D-Varlano) – 302-744-4165 [email protected]
Sen. Margaret Rose Henry (D- Wilmington East) – 302-744-4191 [email protected]
Sen. Harris B. McDowell (D-Wilmington North) – 302-744-4147 [email protected]
Sen. F. Gary Simpson (R-Milford) – 302-744-4134 [email protected]
Sen. Liane M. Sorenson (R- Hockessin) – 302-744-4136 [email protected]