[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 2]
[House]
[Pages 1700-1701]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            IMPORTANCE OF ANIMAL WELFARE IN OUR COMMUNITIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, today we are starting efforts to 
reformulate the Animal Protection Caucus here for this Congress. I have 
been pleased for several years to serve as the co-chair. Last Congress, 
it was with our friend Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick from Pennsylvania--
a bipartisan effort involving over 130 men and women in Congress who 
are dedicated to efforts of animal protection.
  The welfare of animals says a lot about us. Animal abuse is often a 
precursor to domestic violence. We find that the health and welfare of 
animals in our communities speak to the environmental protections. We 
find that people who are able to deal meaningfully with animal welfare 
have a chance, in many cases, to have benefits that go far beyond what 
you would imagine.
  Animals have a capacity to have a calming influence on people. We see 
this as volunteers bring pet rabbits to nursing homes to be able to 
deal with people. Animals have a way of reducing people's blood 
pressure. It is a great symbiotic relationship.
  Here in Congress, we have a wide variety of areas that we can work on 
together to advance animal protections. We have strengthened laws 
against animal fighting. We have raised awareness about the barbaric 
practice of horse soring injuring them to produce the distinctive gait. 
We promote humane treatment of animals in agricultural research, to be 
able to reduce the harmful effects on animals in production of 
cosmetics.
  We have bipartisan legislation that would allow people to have their 
animals at domestic violence shelters, or for emergency services.
  One of the things that was most jarring for me, illustrated by what 
happened with Katrina--2005 hurricane in New Orleans--that there were 
times where people would not abandon their home because they were 
afraid of what would happen to their puppy.
  We have seen women who are in a situation of domestic violence refuse 
to leave their abuser because they are afraid of what is going to 
happen to their kitten that would be left behind.
  I am pleased that, in this Congress, the Republican co-chair is going 
to be my friend Congressman Vern Buchanan from Florida. Vern brings to 
this issue personal passion, energy, and new ideas. And I am quite 
confident we will continue the efforts with the caucus to be able to 
promote animal welfare, promote understanding on Capitol Hill.
  We have had, on a monthly basis, bipartisan briefings of legislation 
with Republican and Democratic cosponsors that garner broad support. 
And I am hopeful together that this can be, in a time when there is 
more than a little contention and controversy--that this is an area 
that we can come together to work on, on Capitol Hill.
  We are supported by organizations like the American Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the Animal Welfare Institute, Born 
Free, The Humane Society; representative of the over 25,000 
organizations across the country that are dedicated to animal 
protection.
  I am hopeful that each of my colleagues will join us in this 
bipartisan effort, focus on simple commonsense things that we can do 
that bring us together to promote animal welfare, to be able to make 
all of God's creatures better off, and in so doing, reinforce our 
humanity.

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