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Dear Editor:
Federal lawmakers should swing behind the bipartisan FIGHT Act (H.R. 2742/S. 1529) to root out dogfighting and cockfighting.
Animal fighting venues not only involve malicious cruelty, but also money laundering, drug trafficking, and other crimes. In recent weeks, the FBI and other federal law enforcement broke up a massive illegal dogfighting network tied to a narcotics ring in Indiana.
“It is essential for policymakers to understand that animal fighting is bound up with other crimes,” wrote Steven P. Luce, executive director of the Indiana Sheriffs’ Association, in its endorsement of the FIGHT Act.
“Cockfighting has played a major role in the spread of H5N1 in Asia, and now that virus is in the U.S. and has triggered major containment efforts by our agricultural agencies,” wrote Joseph Miller, general counsel of Rose Acre Farms, the nation’s second largest egg producer, in Seymour. “An invigorated outbreak could cost our nation tens of billions of dollars.”
“Ensuring the health and welfare of our birds is our highest responsibility, and these types of activities go against all mores of the treatment of the animals in our care,” added Rebecca Joniskan, president of the Indiana State Poultry Association.
Please join Indiana’s agriculture, law enforcement, and animal welfare communities in calling on Indiana lawmakers in Congress to cosponsor the FIGHT Act and help stop the menace of animal fighting.
Wayne Pacelle
President
Animal Wellness Action