Levi Leipheimer Takes On Puppy Mills for Animal Legal Defense Fund's Animal Law Video Series

Champion cyclist Levi Leipheimer is going the distance with the Animal Legal Defense Fund to protect dogs!

In this continuing series of updates on former SALDF members, ALDF is proud to spotlight Alexis Fox.

You helped make incredible strides for animals this year! Please make a special year-end gift to the Animal Legal Defense Fund and help make 2012 another year of extraordinary progress.

Your generous donation, and all you do to support ALDF in your everyday life, truly makes a difference... to the animals abused on factory farms, in puppy mills, and in the name of entertainment.

The fact is that animals do not make good gifts because these animals are not toys -- they are living beings that require a lifetime of constant care, support, love, and attention.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund is interested in hearing from you if you bought or adopted a dog from Pennsylvania after July 31, 2010 with problems caused by a lack of exercise before adoption.

Join us in our fight against abusive puppy mills and those who support them.

Help ALDF stop Barkworks' blatant and illegal deceptive practices.

The Los Angeles City Council moved to make it illegal to buy animals from vendors on public streets or sidewalks.

The move is a response to growing public awareness of the cruelty of puppy mills.

After four successful dog-friendly cruises in Annapolis, Maryland to benefit the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Little Ben is on tap to host a fifth.

Citing growing sentiment against puppy and kitten mills that has led a number of states and communities to adopt legislation regulating these mills, and the stores that provide an outlet for animals bred in substandard conditions, Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz introduced a measure recently seeking to curb the market for such animals.

Abusers Beware – Your Punishment Can Now Fit Your Crime

Last November voters in Missouri passed a measure known as Prop. B, approving valuable and much-needed protections for animals throughout the state, which is known as the "Puppy Mill Capital of the United States."

Tune in for the Animal Legal Defense Fund's series of exclusive one-on-one interviews with actress and animal advocate Kristin Bauer, who plays the lovely but lethal Vampire Pam on HBO's hit series, True Blood. Kristin shares her reaction to cities like El Paso, Albuquerque, and West Hollywood banning the sales of dogs and cats in pet stores.

From an animal rights perspective, no single legislative accomplishment has filled me with such gratification as the unanimous adoption of my animal abuser registry (also known as "Justin's Law").

The co-sponsor of National Justice for Animals Week 2011, Jon Cooper was elected legislator for the 18th district in Suffolk County, New York in November 1999. In October 2010, Jon sponsored a landmark bill, passed unanimously by Suffolk County lawmakers, to create the nation's first animal abuser registry.

In November 2010, we reported that voters in Missouri, often infamously referred to as the "puppy mill capital of the nation," passed Proposition B -- the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act. The law is scheduled to go into effect later in 2011, but a fight has now begun to repeal or change the new law.

Thanks to your support, the Animal Legal Defense Fund has pushed the U.S. legal system to end the suffering of abused animals for over 30 years.

Despite heightened public awareness, puppy mills continue to plague communities across the nation.

Arizona voters rejected Proposition 109 in an effort to protect wildlife, while in Missouri, voters passed Proposition B, the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act.

Donate before November 30th and your gift will be matched dollar-for-dollar!

Were you ever that passionate? Were you ever that hopeful?

Prop B will ask voters whether to enact a new set of laws that would greatly expand regulations on dog breeders.

A wave of loud cheers and clapping erupting inside El Paso City Hall on Tuesday, October 5, as El Paso, Texas joined the growing list of cities across the U.S. that have committed to reducing pet euthanasia rates and animal cruelty by regulating local pet stores.

This November, Missouri voters will have the opportunity to change the state's reputation as being the "puppy mill capital of the United States."

Please send a letter to your senators and representatives through ALDF's website and ask them to join Senators Menendez, Durbin, and Lieberman and ALDF in amending this regulation to ensure accurate reporting about the real risks to animals shipped in cargo holds.

Your call can help stem the travesty of the 500,000+ companion animals that are euthanized every year in California. SB 250 -- the Pet Responsibility Act -- is now ready for a final assembly vote and your Assemblymember needs to hear from you today!

Current Regulations Ignore Deaths, Injuries to Animals Shipped by Puppy Mill Operators

ALDF Urges City to Reduce Pet Overpopulation and Protect Consumers and Animals from Cruel Puppy Mills by Banning Retail Pet Sales

Last year, Americans spent roughly $18 billion dollars on coffee—and virtually nothing to protect animals from some of the worst abuses imaginable. Is this who we are?

Tune in to the Genesis Awards on Animal Planet this weekend to catch Barry Yeoman, author of "Operation Rescue," an in-depth account of the ALDF v. Woodley case, win an award for his outstanding article published in O, The Oprah Magazine.

New law to protect "puppy-mill" dogs in effect and improved pet-related legislation one step closer to becomeing law.

In the world of animal crimes prosecutions, it is common knowledge that those who participate in the underground world of animal fighting have a very real and frequently indulged need to communicate about their illegal exploits.

On February 23, 2010, the Iowa Senate passed a "puppy mill" bill designed to improve the conditions for dogs and cats at commercial breeding facilities. The bill, House File 2280, passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 41 to 9.

Celebrating some of our nation's most important animal advocates.

Tammy Somers joined the Office of the Indiana Attorney General in October of 2008 as a Deputy Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Division. The Attorney General's Office shut down a puppy mill and removed 74 dogs and four horses, and then shut down a second mill, rescuing nearly 300 dogs.

William G. Lamberth II is currently an Assistant District Attorney for Sumner County, Tennessee. In 2006, William, helped secure a positive outcome for hundreds of rescued dogs from a puppy mill near Nashville.

I had the honor of helping assist in the final stages of drafting a proposed statutory amendment in Illinois that has been introduced in the house as House Bill 5772, and in the Senate as Senate Bill 3594. The bill is referred to as the Dogs and Cats Disclosures Bill.

City urged to protect consumers and animals from cruel puppy mills with first of its kind ban.

Bob Barker may best be known as the beloved host of the longest running TV game show in history. But "The Price is Right" host is also a long-time advocate for animals and is the keynote speaker at Animal Legal Defense Fund's "Future of Animal Law" conference on April 9-11 at Harvard Law School.

An amicus curiae brief permits a non-party to offer its view of a case, typically premised on either its interest in the outcome or its expertise in the field. The Animal Legal Defense Fund submits amicus briefs in a wide variety of cases, working to advance the interests of animals by urging courts to recognize their own interests and their special value to humans.

Some excellent articles discussing animal law issues have been hitting news stands lately, from pet custody to puppy mills. Here a few stories to check out.

Earlier this year, I wrote an article for O, The Oprah Magazine about 300 dogs who were rescued from an abusive hoarding situation in Sanford, North Carolina. The dogs lived in horrible conditions, and the rescue involved an innovative legal fight staged by the California-based Animal Legal Defense Fund.

I used to dread the holiday season. Like many people, I allowed myself to be burdened with obligations that felt overwhelming. I've let go of a lot of those obligations and in recent years, I've begun to concentrate more on what the spiritual meaning of the season is.

Happy anniversary, Edgar - I shall rub your softball shaped head, give you another cookie and dote on you some more. I can think of no better way to celebrate our time together.

I recently listened to a podcast on Scout's House Radio entitled, "The Making of Special Needs Pets." In the interview, ALDF's Chief Outside Litigation Counsel Bruce Wagman discussed how humans create special needs companions - special needs companions like Maggie, who, at the age of two, was too fearful to play.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced today that Dearborn, Michigan dog hoarder Kenneth Lang Jr is being charged with two counts of cruelty to 10 or more animals, after more than 100 live and approximately 150 dead Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes were removed from the filthy home this past July.

ALDF grant allows for necropsies of Chihuahuas found in Michigan man's freezer.

When ALDF learned that our case, ALDF v. Woodley, was being featured in the June issue of Oprah's Magazine, O, we were thrilled that this triumphant story of 300+ rescued dogs saved from a life of suffering would reach thousands, if not millions, of people and inform them about the horrors of animal hoarding.

The story of the Woodley case is beautifully told by journalist, Barry Yeoman and for the first time, millions of people will get an introduction to the gut wrenching, long term suffering that the victims of animal hoarding undergo.

Check out this heartwarming tribute to the 325+ dogs rescued from North Carolina hoarders Barbara and Robert Woodley. In its June issue, O, the Oprah Magazine, catches up with a crew of the case's spunkiest survivors.

Catch up with a crew of the case's spunkiest survivors.

The incredible patience and love of very special volunteers from nearby communities and the foster families who eventually helped them on their way to their forever homes made it possible for the Woodley dogs to have their second chance at life.

Images of the dogs rescued in ALDF v. Woodley, and the conditions in which they were found, leave no doubt that hoarding is one of the most egregious forms of animal cruelty facing communities nationwide.

Everyone is eager to hear the final word on the Obama family's new dog, and it looks like we’ll get the chance in mid-April.

Most recently, Mr. Brandes has been working on prosecuting large scale breeders, including a case in which more than 130 dogs were seized from the property of defendant Mahlon "Pat" Patrick.

Carroll County, Virginia
Case Closed

Give Something Warm, Fuzzy, and Cruelty-Free this Valentine’s – Get a Dog From a Shelter, Not a Pet Store

Swift Settlement Protects Severely Neglected Toy Poodles and Birds Seized in October from AKC Champion Breeder

Final Judgment in Lee County Court Means Dogs Rescued from Sanford Hoarders Will Be in Forever Homes for Christmas

Dozens of Severely Neglected Toy Poodles and Other Animals Already Seized from AKC Champion Breeder in Animal Hoarding Case

Hundreds of dogs rescued from a puppy mill near Nashville, Tennessee, last fall are now finding permanent, loving homes, thanks to a joint effort and some extra work by the county prosecutor.

This is the must-have resource for lawyers, law professors, law students, legislators, other legal professionals, and anyone who wants the most comprehensive animal protection laws collection of its kind available.

Hoarding is one of the most egregious forms of animal cruelty, affecting tens of thousands of animals – mostly cats and dogs – in communities nationwide. Find out how to spot it and what you can do to stop it.

You go into a pet store to buy some delicious treats for your oh-so-adorable companion animal, only to find out that the store is selling live animals and keeping them in appalling conditions. Learn what you can do.