BigGameHoundsmen.com

Calls Needed – Vote on Harmful Washington Tethering Bill Pending
Sportsmen and Sporting Dog Owners Need to Call and Oppose Bill

House Bill 1755, introduced by Representative Roger E. Goodman (D – Kirkland), would create many new restrictions and prohibitions on dog tethering. Among the most harmful restrictions included in the bill is a complete ban on the tethering of a dog between the hours of 10:00 Ppm. and 6:00 a.m. Also, included in the bill is a prohibition on the tethering of a dog for more than 10 total hours in a 24 hour period.

The bill provides an exception for dogs while temporarily at exhibitions, shows, and contests such as field trials. However, this would not protect sporting dog owners while at home or while training.

Sportsmen and sporting dog owners need to contact their state representatives today and ask them to oppose House Bill 1755. The bill recently passed out of the House Judiciary Committee and could soon move on to a vote before the full House.

“The tethering prohibitions in House Bill 1755 don’t make any sense,” said Jeremy Rine, U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance in-house counsel and associate director of state services. “Many sporting dog owners safely tether dogs outdoors both during the day and the night. This bill would even prohibit someone from tethering their dog outside at night for only a few minutes when their dog needs to go out.”

Similar legislation, Senate Bill 5649, is also pending before the state’s Senate.

Take Action! Sportsmen should contact their state representatives and ask them to oppose HB 1755. Tell them that the prohibitions in the bill are arbitrary and will prohibit many safe tethering practices used by sporting dog owners. To find your state representative’s contact information, please visit www.ussportsmen.org/LAC.





U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance
801 Kingsmill Parkway
Columbus, Ohio 43229
614-888-4868
www.ussportsmen.org
info@ussportsmen.org

email sent! thanks for the info

What is tethering?? here ya go

To tether or not to tether has become an important issue as certain groups of people try to get anti-tethering laws passed throughout the United States. This is not an easy topic to deal with for a number of reasons.

What is a tether? Is it defined by the material it is composed of, (cable, rope, leather, nylon, chain)? Is the length of the tether a qualifying factor? Could it be defined by the way it is anchored or attached? Or is a combination of these things?

Most people consider a dog to be tethered when it is tied in some fashion that restricts where it can go. This could be a trolley line, a leash, or any other means of tying the dog to an object or person. There are both good and bad situations that involve tethering. Consider the elderly person who is not fully mobile, and must let the dog out during the day or night to relieve itself while the rest of the family is at work or not at home. The ability to tether the dog not only allows the person to have the dog as a companion, but also keeps the dog safe in an environment where fencing is not allowed or not practical. The dog may only be out for a short time and the owner could be watching the dog to be sure that it is safe. Then there is the situation where people live in a community that will not allow them to erect a fence around their property. The only exercise the dog can get on a daily basis is on a tether. Working dogs such as Search and Rescue dogs, police dogs, and even Seeing Eye dogs sometimes must be tethered while waiting to work. Seeing Eye dogs work entirely in a harness, which could be construed as a tether. It is common practice to tether sled dogs when they are not working, a practice that has been done for a very long time.

Every year Washington State has another BS law that is trying to pass that wiil have a negative effect on hound hunters.

I fought I-655 when I lived in WA. and finally got tired of all the BS after that initiative passed so I moved to another state that doesn't treat a houndsman like a outlaw..

Keep up the fight and hopefully all hunters will stick together, or we all lose our hunting rights.....