Election Day Results--Prop B Decision

After staying up late watching the polls my finger nails are now worn down to nubs and my nerves are shot. I watched the polls as they slowly rolled in, anxiously watching what Prop B would do.

I check my computer and the "No" votes are winning by a landslide. It updates and the "Yes" votes start creeping closer. It updates again and again and again...we're neck and neck. Watching, waiting, hoping, praying I bite and chew my nails until the taste of blood forces me to remove my hand from my mouth. Impatiently, I watch as the little white counties turn green, one by one, signifying they have finished counting.

The vote runs neck and neck. A few more yes votes then a few more no votes, then yes, then no. It stays split down the middle while I sit, raking my hands through my hair because I'm out of nails to chew.

Then, as yet another update hits Prop B is at a dead tie, 50/50 split right down the middle with only one county left...the waiting is torture. My nerves have been on a roller coaster ride ever since the polls closed. Weeks of campaigning, blogging, emailing, calling, talking to friends and family explaining the issue, I just want the final word on it...whatever that may be. However, the updates have slowed to a near stop.

On a lighter note, the "Should Prop B pass?" poll ended with 55 votes. Not bad for my first blog poll. The results are promising. "Yes" got 9 votes, "No" received 12 votes, "Hell NO" dominated with 32 votes, and 2 voters were undecided. It is safe to say "No" won by a landslide, too bad that doesn't count for anything.

Another update just hit, St. Charles county is in...Prop B "yes" votes just jumped up by half a percent. It looks like we may lose this battle after all. Now, only 3 percent of the state remains. St. Louis County, St. Louis City, and Bollinger only have half their numbers in; Ray County has nothing. STL is all for Prop B, so we know there will be no help there, Bollinger is against Prop B. No one know were Ray County stands, the

vote is so close that one county could make the difference. Finally, with the votes being too close to call, I shut it down and go to bed.

Early this morning I wake and flip on the tube. Coincidentally, the first thing that I hear on the news is Prop B passes by 60,000 votes. I hang my head and kick myself for not campaigning earlier, for not educating enough people, for not agvocating sooner. There is a light at the end of this tunnel. We got Jay Houghton in office and I trust him to do everything possible to keep this bill from hurting Missouri.

There is a lesson to be learned in all this. Our stories, that of farmers and breeders, need to be told. We have always trusted people to use common sense. Too many of us thought people would never believe the lies spread about farmers and breeders but we were wrong. Radical groups have been out there besmirching our industry and we trusted the people to see through the lies; however, we forgot it is our duty to educate those detached from this line of work. Only 2 percent of Americans farm, we took our knowledge for granted.

Farmers, breeders tell your stories. People have lost touch with their roots and it is our duty to remind them. Let the people know that the cruelty that happens and the abuse plastered on YouTube is not the norm. Let the people know that we care about our animals and the environment. Let the people know what you do for a living. If you think your story is not worth telling...think again. We all have a story worth telling; so get out there and tell it, people will listen.

10 Reasons to Vote NO on Prop B

I stopped by Veterinary Clinic, Inc. in Mexico, MO the other day to ask why a local vet would have a

"Vote NO on Prop B" sign in their front yard.

Turns out, Don Hudson, DVM didn't have a single reason to oppose Prop B...

He has a list. 



Veterinary Clinic, Inc. Mexico, MO
Don Hudson, DVM
Jeanine Utterback, DVM



PROP B

1. Everyone should visit the Missouri Veterinary Medical Association website.

2. All Licensed kennels are under very strict inspections by state and federal investigators. These inspections are unannounced.

3. HSUS never documents the source of their videos with animals in cages when asking for donations (Hoarders, unlicensed kennels, etc.)

4. Prop B demands solid flooring (concrete) which is very stressful over long term. They are cold, damp, and filthy for non housebroken animals. Many breeders use tenderfoot or fiber glass flooring to keep animals dry, warm, and waste drains into trays underneath the racks.

5. Licensed kennels are inspected by a veterinarian once a year and state and federal inspections twice a year. A written form outlines vaccinations, nutrition, deworming, etc. This must be followed with attending veterinarian and owner.

6. The idea of having only 50 dogs is ridiculous. Who came up with that number? Why not 49 or 51?

7. Many people feel that Prop B opponents are paranoid about this being only the beginning of attacking other aspects of animal production. They have every reason to be paranoid. Just investigate what happened in California, Ohio, Florida, and Arizona. Many supporters actually believe this only affects kennels; however HSUS has a very toxic track record.

8. The very wording of Prop B is misleading and should never have been allowed.

9. The amount of money coming from out of state is disgusting. This alone should make everyone suspicious. Why should out of state people tell us in Missouri what we should do? We don’t try to regulate the number of cars owned by someone in California, or the number of houses a realtor can sell. The latest numbers I have seen were October 23, 2010. At that time, 2.6 million dollars has been donated for Prop B. Of the 2.6 million, 2.37 million came from out of state of which 1.32 million came from HSUS!! In state donations for Prop B amounted to about 8.8%! Follow the money! At the same time, the Missouri Federation of Animal Owners had $44,700.00 to oppose Prop B.

10. If this passes, there will be a tremendous amount of collateral damage, which the proponents will either deny or won’t care. Prop B is wrong financially and ethically because of how misleading HSUS has been, and in the way it does business.

 

This list is from a well-known, respected, and reputable Missouri veterinarian.

Enough said.

 

Vote NO on Prop B.

 



Volunteers Needed

I received another email. No, I'm not going to make a habit of sharing my emails but this one is important.


A phone bank has been set up at the Mo Cattlemen’s in Columbia to make phone calls to voters to oppose Prop B. The phone bank will accommodate at least 20 callers and will operate from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm daily through Saturday, noon to 9:00 pm on Sunday and from 9:00 am until noon on Monday. Automatic dialing and a short script are there so now all we need are people. To sign up and help defeat Prop B, contact Jeff Windett at 573-499-9162 or jeff@mocattle.com to coordinate schedules.

I am also getting more information sent to me about setting this up using my home computer. If you have a high-speed connection (not dial up) you can set up your own at-home phone bank. If you'd like more info on doing this at home email me (j.windmann@yahoo.com), as soon as I receive the info I will forward it on to you.

We need your help getting the word out about Prop B.
Please help in anyway you can, November is just around the corner.

Vote NO on Prop B.



Other sites of interest to learn more about Prop B:

Proposition B not the right answer to problem--published in the Missourian

KnowledgeisPower2011--YouTube channel

Using Your Brain to Think Through Prop B--24th State Blog

Law makers want to expose "truth" of Prop B--Brownfield Ag News

Also see the links to the right and my past Prop B blogs for more information. Thank you for your support.

Update:

I wanted to let you know a similar phone bank is also available at Missouri Farm Bureau home office in Jefferson City if that is a closer option– as a fellow producer, we all need to be aware that Proposition B is a critical issue we need to ensure is defeated. MOFB has a call center area set up With a computer program installed to generate the telephone numbers and dial until a live body answers. Callers will have a script to follow so no one will have to “wing it.” Phones will be available beginning at 9:00 a.m. this week. Evening hours are possible if people are available to make calls. Leslie Holloway is the primary contact in the home office and she can be reached at lholloway@mofb.com or 573-893-1410. Jill Fansler can also be contacted; her email is jfansler@mofb.com, or 573-893-1410.



Missouri Cares--Vote NO on Prop B

I would like to share an email I received last week. It caught me by surprise and I thoroughly appreciated it. This email shows the level of dedication Missouri's legitimate pet businesses have and how serious they are about their job. One of the major issues we are having right now with Prop B is that radical groups are trying to paint every puppy breeder as being a "puppy mill." This is the same as labeling our family farm a "factory farm," which just isn't the case. Just because we're big doesn't make us bad, same goes for puppy breeders. Furthermore, people like Tonya, who buy puppies from legitimate breeders, are being chastised as well.

Hi,


My Name is Tonya Thoenen and I own and operate a small pet store outside of Mexico MO. Puppy Love Haven has been in business for 28 years . I love my job providing quality puppies to mid Missouri and providing children with their first pet (best friend) or an elderly person finding companionship after they have lost their loved one. This is better than being Santa Clause! I know in my heart they went home with a good healthy dog that will love them unconditionally.

I purchase puppies from several licensed kennels in Mo. and have first hand knowledge that this is their livelihood also. We don’t do this as a hobby. Its in our blood. The dog breeders I know are passionate about what they do. This is a blessing from God to love what you do. I know for a fact that you will not find one livestock farmer or row cropper or dog breeder that hates their job.

Thank you for coming to the 4 H meeting and all of your well written blogs. I forwarded your site to my Mo. inspector to read. I know she will like it and appreciate it. It took me awhile to figure out how to thank you, I'm over 40 and don't have any children to show me how to respond to a blog. (smile)

So in closing. Thank you for your support, thank your for your information. I had no idea how much I rely on pork products. Where would we be without our pork?

God Bless and have a great day.

Thanks, Tonya Thoenen
Puppy Love Haven
573-581-6433

Missouri has been labeled "the puppy mill capital" by HSUS and ASPCA. These same radical groups have pushed Prop B onto Missouri's ballot claiming it will end puppy mills, claiming it will stop puppy cruelty. But, I'd like to know how? Prop B does nothing to enforce the laws, it does nothing to improve the laws, it basically does nothing but put HSUS's foot in the door to legislate animal businesses out of Missouri.


Thank you Tonya for caring. Thank you to all the legitimate and responsible puppy breeders that provide healthy pets to loving homes. Please help keep these people in business and don't let misleading ads by radical groups stop us from having pets. We don't need more government to protect animals, we need help enforcing the laws that we already have. If HSUS and ASPCA really cared they would have spent the millions they have wasted on this campaign on actually helping animals. They push the ballot but don't pay the bill. Prop B won't help Missouri.
 

Vote NO on Prop B. 

Prop B Debate Continues

The Prop B debate continues and will until November 2, where you, as an American citizen, have the right to voice your opinion by voting.  You have constitutional rights and options but if Prop B passes it will be yet another stepping-stone toward more government control in our every day lives. Little by little our rights as citizens are being eaten away by more and more government control.

Prop B limits dog breeders, despite the level of care they have given their dogs in the past, to a specific number of breeding females and dictates how many times those females can be bred. This would, by law, limit breeders to how much they are allowed to earn per year making it impossible to earn a living and stay in business. Would you stand for the government dictating how much you are allowed to earn and controlling your business? That fact alone goes against our constitutional rights. Missouri already has laws in place that protect these animals. Furthermore, Prop B lowers the standards of care required while increasing punishments for such non-offenses as a piece of food in a water dish or a single scratch on a painted surface. How many of you have had your pet eat some kibble then take a drink and oops, there is some food in the water. Should you too be charged with a Class C misdemeanor crime? Do you have all the cobwebs out of the corners of your ceiling? If not, according to Prop B, that is another misdemeanor charge. Prop B also makes it nearly impossible for puppies to survive given the new "environmental" requirements.

By lowering care standards, imposing severe income limits, and making non-offenses into misdemeanor crimes Prop B would close most of Missouri's properly operated, inspected, licensed and reputable facilities, while doing NOTHING to increase state resources to close unlawful kennels. In other words, the breeders that are following the rules and filling out the paperwork are being punished while the unregulated and unlicensed facilities remain just under the radar and in business. Even the Missouri Veterinary Medical Association calls Prop B "unfair and misguided." The MVMA goes on to state, "We don't need more laws and more governmental limitations on those that follow the rules...the answer lies in adequate funding for inspections and better enforcement of unlicensed facilities."

Coincidentally, HSUS and certain "favored" organizations are exempt from this law if it should pass. Even HSUS, who is responsible for pushing Prop B on the ballot, wants nothing to do with this law. Shouldn't that be a red flag unto itself? Get the facts before you vote! Don't put thousands of Missourians out of work and out of business. Vote NO on Prop B.



See my video on YouTube

Vote NO on Prop B

For more information visit:

http://www.thealliancefortruth.com/

http://www.mofb.org/

http://www.missourifac.com/