Texas House Bill 458

We recently became aware of a bill proposed by Rep. David Leibowitz that we have to stop!  Texas HB 458 wants to limit the number of dogs allowed in a residence in certain areas of Texas.  While I was unable to find an exact number of allowable dogs, I have seen the rumor of 2 dogs appear in multiple places.  The full proposal can be viewed here.

While some may see advantages to this proposal, here are a few things to consider..

• Targets all pet owners, regardless of their dogs’ behavior.
• A person who owns 1 unruly dog is a greater threat than someone with 4 well behaved dogs.
• The limit applies universally regardless of living on a 1/8 acre or 5+ acres.
• People will hide their dogs, which will result in a reduction on the number of licensed and vaccinated dogs.

I agree that no one should be allowed to hoard dogs, and common sense and responsible pet ownership need to be enforced, but this is ridiculous.  I know many HOA’s, apartment buildings, and rental properties already have limits on breeds, size, and numbers, but this is a whole different ball game here.

Here is what YOU can do to help:

• Contact your legislators and tell them you oppose this bill.  If you do not know who your legislators are, click here to find out.
• Contact bill sponsor Rep. Leibowitz and politely ask that he withdraw HB 458. Phone Austin: (512) 463-0269, Fax: (512) 320-0555 and/or Phone San Antonio: (210) 372-0759, Fax: (210) 372-1405. Ask for the person in charge of legislation.
• Circulate this post and information to anyone and everyone you know, and encourage them to do something about this.

This issue was brought to our attention by a member of the board of directors of the Canine Political Action Corps (CPAC).  CPAC is a non-profit organization whose mission is to monitor government activity relating to dog trainers and dog groomers in order to influence any legislation as early in the legislative process as possible, defeat harmful legislation, and encourage legislation beneficial to those professions.

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