Brooks Animal Law Digest

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed into law House Bill 655 which will make it a crime to stop, hinder, impede, board, obstruct, or “otherwise interfere” with a motor vehicle transporting an “agricultural animal” or to provoke, disturb, or “otherwise interact” with an “agricultural animal . . . confined in a motor vehicle.” “Agricultural animal” is defined as “an animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, equine, ovine, or porcine species; farm deer . . . ostriches, reas, and emus; turkeys, chickens, domestic geese or ducks, or other domestic fowl; fish or other aquatic organisms confined in private waters for human consumption; or honey bees.” A first offense would constitute an aggravated misdemeanor, and each subsequent conviction would constitute a class D felony.

Senate Bill 1106 would ban the sale of shark fins in the United States. The text of the 2021 bill is not yet available, but the text of last session’s bill is available.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed into law House Bill 655 which will make it a crime to stop, hinder, impede, board, obstruct, or “otherwise interfere” with a motor vehicle transporting an “agricultural animal” or to provoke, disturb, or “otherwise interact” with an “agricultural animal . . . confined in a motor vehicle.” “Agricultural animal” is defined as “an animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, equine, ovine, or porcine species; farm deer . . . ostriches, reas, and emus; turkeys, chickens, domestic geese or ducks, or other domestic fowl; fish or other aquatic organisms confined in private waters for human consumption; or honey bees.” A first offense would constitute an aggravated misdemeanor, and each subsequent conviction would constitute a class D felony.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed into law House Bill 522 which will remove the requirement that a hunter using a dog to retrieve a wounded deer be “trained in deer blood tracking,” exempt unarmed dog handlers assisting in such recovery from licensing requirements, and remove the requirement that the Department of Natural Resources issue rules to implement the law.

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte has signed into law House Bill 305 which will add wildlife sanctuaries to the list of establishments housing wild animals that are subject to regulations and permit requirements. The law additionally prohibits such establishments from obtaining “healthy” wild animals by purchase or capture from the wild unless certain requirements are met and adds wildlife sanctuaries and nonprofit entities “accredited” by the Zoological Association of America to the definition of establishments that are exempt from existing prohibitions on the possession and sale of “exotic wildlife.”

A consumer has filed a proposed class action against Bayer Healthcare alleging that the company knowingly made and sold a flea and tick collar containing a pesticide that is linked to death and injury in companion animals. Plaintiffs allege “Seresto” brand collars “have been responsible for over 75,000 reported incidents—including the deaths of 1,698 pets and nearly 1,000 incidents involving human harm” since 2012.

The Center for Biological Diversity has filed suit against the Environmental Protection Agency seeking documents related to the “Seresto” brand flea and tick collar linked to death and injury in companion animals and the pesticides imidacloprid and flumethrin released by the collar.

The Klamath Tribes have filed suit against the Bureau of Reclamation alleging that the agency’s operation of an irrigation project has violated the Endangered Species Act by harming the C’Waam and Koptu fish species.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and the Animal Legal Defense Fund have filed suit against the Pymatuning Deer Park alleging that its treatment of animals constitutes a public nuisance and a violation of the Endangered Species Act.

The Center for Biological Diversity has filed suit against the Fish and Wildlife Service alleging the agency failed to classify nine species as endangered or threatened and failed to designate “critical habitat” for 10 listed species under the Endangered Species Act.

The Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed to “affirm the listing of” the streaked horned lark as threatened under the Endangered Species Act and revise the section 4(d) rule governing the treatment of the species. The new rule would expand the exception for incidental take for certain agricultural activities in Oregon and Washington and add an exception to the take prohibition for incidental take associated with habitat restoration activities that benefit the species. The agency is accepting comments on the proposal until June 14, 2021.

The Fish and Wildlife Service has announced it has reopened the public comment period on its proposal to list the Panama City crayfish as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, its proposed 4(d) rule for the species, and its proposed designation of critical habitat for the species. The agency is accepting comments on the proposal until June 14, 2021.

The National Marine Fisheries Service has announced it is initiating a status review of the shortfin mako shark to determine whether listing the species as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act is warranted. The agency is accepting scientific and commercial information regarding the species until June 14, 2021.

An article by Ashley Joan Englund and Kelsey Beirne in the Florida Bar Journal, “Courtroom Canines Are Leading Courtroom Accommodations for Children,” explores the role that therapy animals play in trials where children testify.

A new book by Elan Abrell, Saving Animals: Multispecies Ecologies of Rescue and Care, bridges anthropology, animal studies, and political philosophy in the first major ethnography to focus on ethical issues related to sanctuaries and other animal rescue facilities.