After several cases revealed animals found in squalid conditions in recent years, the state legislature set about tightening laws. However, the Senate and House have come up with vastly different versions. We'll hear the arguments behind each, and whether there's room for compromise.
GUESTS:
- Peter Bixby - Democratic state representative from Dover. He serves on the environment and agriculture committee.
- Bill Boyd - A musher from Merrimack. He owns the Midnight Run Racing Kennel in Merrimack, home to 27 sprint sled dogs. He is also a town councilor in Merrimack.
- Jeb Bradley - Republican state senator from Wolfeboro. He is lead sponsor of a senate bill that tightened the state's animal cruelty law.
- Lindsay Hamrick - State director for the New Hampshire chapter of the Humane Society of the United States.
Read more about the debate on preventing animal cruelty:
A billsponsored by state Senator Jeb Bradley would tighten animal cruelty laws. It easily passed the Senate but was amendedin the House. Bradley opposes the House version,and it appears that reconciling the two approaches will be difficult.
The debate on preventing animal cruelty comes in the wake of publicity surrounding several incidents of alleged abuse -- among them, cases involving horses in Deerfield and German Shepherd dogs in Alexandria.
Perhaps the most prominent case involved Wolfeboro breeder Christina Fay, who was found guiltyon 17 counts of animal cruelty in March. Police seized 75 Great Danes last June from Fay's Wofleboro estate. Some were in need of immediate medical care. They were placed under the care of the N.H. chapter of the Humane Society of the United States.
