That said, Kansas statutes conveniently exempt greyhounds from the definition of “dog”. K.S.A. 47-1701(j)

Dog breeding is a big industry, I have a relative who flies to Europe a couple of times a year to buy purebreds of a certain rare breed to breed or sell. I do see your point, I guess we have to draw the line somewhere, and like most things theres going to be a “Yeah but…” example.

They don’t have authority, under the Commerce Clause, to track non-commercial traffic. (I think… but maybe there’s a presumption that -all- interstate movement of farm animals is commercial in nature. You don’t take your cow with you on vacation.)

State and local laws vary, of course, and usually have additional requirements. E.g., local laws requiring rabies vaccinations of domestic animals.

It might feel like a pain, but imagine buying a new animal to improve your genetic diversity and having a quarter of your animals die because of a disease. You would not be happy, but it could be impossible to know how much you could trust the sender’s assurance that the animal was disease-free. Remember that large livestock operations have their own staff vets and often move hundreds or thousands of animals at a time… and the pain of one-off regulations. Mandatory inspections can fix that.

Mon, Aug 11, 2008 at 5:55:12 pm PDT

An astoundingly bone-headed statement from Barack Obama today, as he calls for the United Nations Security Council to pass a resolution condemning Russia’s invasion of Georgia.

Memo to the Obama campaign: Russia has veto power in the United Nations Security Council.

You can say the same thing about horses, to further complicate the issue. A lot of people keep their own horses, but it requires a significant investment in shelter and roaming area. A lot of dogs live in urban apartments.

BTW I work with the USDA and know there’s a huge legal difference with them. Personal pets can be moved across state lines without vet exams or documentation. Livestock and exotics (zoo animals), you gotta file some paperwork.

I have to disagree with you a little on dogs. Some dogs are pets, but there are still a lot of working dogs out there. I know a few ranchers and shepherds whose dogs help them with the herd or flock. Plus there’s all the dogs that get used for hunting, service animals, etc.

Chris,

That was a dead on description of livestock and men!

It depends on state law, etc., but there’s usually significant legal status with/without livestock status. E.g., the right to keep the animal in residential areas (anti-livestock), the right to sue for financial loss when the animal is killed or injured (pro-livestock), etc.

Hmm… I see their point, but there are two good counterarguments. First, livestock status is usually on the basis of species. You don’t want to deal with somebody claiming he has a right to keep is pet cow in his 1 bdrm urban apartment. Dogs are domestic animals, not barnyard animals.

Second, ‘livestock’ usually lives off the land, at least theoretically. Cattle, horses, sheep, etc., can just graze. Dogs? Not so much.

(*) 35 acres is the magic number that exempts a parcel from zoning oversight in unincorporated areas.