PETITION TARGET: Alabama House Agriculture and Forestry Committee Chair Danny Crawford
Four puppies recently perished after being allegedly abandoned without food or water at a residence in Baldwin County, Alabama. The month before, a dog, covered in motor oil and nursing a broken pelvis, was found suffering in the road in Montgomery, Alabama. Less than a year before that, a puppy with two broken legs was apparently discarded at a dumping ground in Bullock County, Alabama.
Following heartbreaking cases like these, Representative Brock Colvin has sponsored a new bill in Alabama that could discourage people from abandoning their animal companions by ensuring they face real legal consequences if they are found guilty of the crime.
Bill HB249, if passed, would make it a criminal act to abandon a dog or a cat. Anyone found “to forsake entirely or leave a dog or cat at a location without providing minimum reasonable care” could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor for cruelty to animals and could face one year in jail, a maximum fine of $3,000, or both.
If enacted, this bill could prevent countless animals from being heartlessly discarded — sparing them from suffering and even saving their lives.
Abandoning a helpless animal who depends on a person for care is a devastating act of cruelty and betrayal that deserves to be taken seriously.
Sign our petition urging the House Agriculture Forestry Committee Chair to support this legislation to ensure abandoned animals receive protections in Alabama.
