A Cody lawmaker’s effort to protect rodeos and similar events from animal rights activists cleared a House committee on a unanimous vote last week, overcoming some concerns about unintended consequences.

House Bill 95, the Working Animal Protection Act, would bar cities, towns and counties from banning or “unduly” restricting the use of working animals in lawful businesses. Sponsor Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams (R-Cody) said the intent of HB 95 is to prevent “the deterioration of our Western heritage” and to protect “legal, law-abiding animal enterprises from the animal rights extremists’ agenda.”

Williams said animal rights activists roam downtown Cody during the week of the Cody Stampede, handing out pamphlets that describe the rodeo as animal cruelty and discourage people from attending. However, she said HB 95 wasn’t related to any specific incidents in Wyoming, calling it “essentially a preventative bill to protect the agri-tourism industry that we so value.”

The bill comes after some local governments across the country have taken up efforts to curtail rodeo and other animal-related events and enterprises. According to The Cavalry Group — the animal owner advocacy organization that drafted the Working Animal Protection Act — more than 55 municipalities have banned rodeos, horse-drawn carriages, exotic animal exhibits, circuses, traveling zoos and various animal rides in recent years. For instance, the Los Angeles City Council is considering an ordinance that would ban rodeos from using flank straps, tie-downs, spurs, lariats, lassos and other equipment.

“They’re not banning rodeo in California; they’re banning everything that you use in rodeo,” Cheyenne Frontier Days CEO Tom Hirsig told the House agriculture committee Jan. 31, “which essentially takes rodeo away.”

Rodeo remains widely popular in Wyoming, but Ag Committee Chair John Eklund (R-Cheyenne) suggested that might not always be the case.

“Things are changing. As there’s an influx of other people and other ideas, much of our Western heritage gets put on hold, set aside,” Eklund said.

HB 95 offers protections to businesses and enterprises that use working animals in “human service, legal hunting, agriculture, ranching, husbandry, transportation, education, competition, tourism, entertainment or exhibition.” Examples at the hearing included not just rodeo but also county fairs, horse-drawn carriages, chicken roping, mutton busting, horse sales, and 4-H and FFA events.

The legislation would leave all of Wyoming’s existing ordinances and policies in place and allow municipalities and counties to make new rules if they’re related to public health and safety. However, there was some concern raised during public testimony that the bill could handcuff local governments.

Unintended consequences?

Dr. Donal O’Toole, who previously worked at the State Veterinary Lab, recalled a man who kept dozens of pit vipers in his Laramie apartment. He said the man would collect venom from the snakes, then sell it to companies to create antivenom.

“I have no problem with people, with companies raising antivenom,” O’Toole said. “But I do have a problem with folks having venomous reptiles in an apartment in a city. I think that’s a really bad idea.”

While a city council might contend that housing a large amount of venomous snakes in a residential area presents a public safety concern and thus could be regulated under the act, “I can hear the person who runs that business saying, ‘Well, I keep them under confinement,’ and I can see a law case arising,” O’Toole said.

He gave another example of a dog breeder in Kansas whose operation became the source of a massive outbreak of canine distemper virus — a disease that’s fatal to dogs — and who refused to fence in his animals. More than 1,400 dogs wound up being euthanized to control the disease.

Some local governments require kennels to be properly enclosed to prevent such situations, but “I can see if this bill was passed, people like that [individual in Kansas] who are running breeding operations would have a loophole,” O’Toole said. “They can say, ‘Well, I don’t want to go to the expense of fencing in my animals because it’s expensive and I want to make a profit.’”

Byron Oedekoven, the executive director of the Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police, also wondered if HB 95 would still allow municipalities to prevent certain animals from being raised in town.

“Can I house my chickens for the chicken roping in town 364 days of the year and use them on the [365]th?” Oedekoven asked. “... Does that fall under public health and public safety?”

Williams indicated that yes, such regulations would be allowed under the exception in the bill. 

Speaking against HB 95, Rock Springs resident Madhu Anderson said she wants her local officials to retain jurisdiction over animals. She said a 2018 Rock Springs ordinance that effectively banned businesses from reselling dogs, cats or rabbits from breeders has reduced the number of unwanted pets. Committee members noted Rock Springs’ already-passed anti-puppy-mill ordinance would not be affected by the bill.

The Cavalry Group behind the Working Animal Protection Act formed in response to restrictions that Missouri voters placed on dog breeders in 2010, but HB 95 doesn’t specifically address animal breeders. The president of the Oklahoma-based group, Mindy Patterson, said the act would preemptively protect Wyoming from outside special interest groups who are attempting to “redefine what is considered humane treatment of animals” and “vilify time-tested animal husbandry practices.”

“Every single day, legislatively, it’s just this constant push at the local and state level from these well-funded animal rights organizations,” Patterson said.

Sending the right message

In his remarks, Hirsig, of Cheyenne Frontier Days, cautioned lawmakers to be sure to send the right message at a time rodeo is under scrutiny.

“I think we need to be careful when we put a bill together like this that we also care about the animals, because we do,” Hirsig said, adding, “Everybody in this business cares about animals.”

Following his suggestion, the committee unanimously added language that would allow municipalities and counties to implement ordinances and policies that “reasonably protect the health and safety of working animals.” 

Rep. Bill Allemand (R-Midwest) wondered if the language needed to be broadened to make sure all fair animals are included.

“A show rabbit, in my opinion, is not working,” Allemand said. “He’s sitting in the pen looking cute.”

However, the committee felt the bunnies were covered.

“You ought to go to a rabbit showmanship contest,” Eklund advised, to laughter.

HB 95 cleared the committee on a 9-0 vote and easily passed its first vote in the full House on Monday. It will need to pass two more readings to advance to the Senate, where Sens. Tim French (R-Powell) and Dan Laursen (R-Powell) are cosponsoring the legislation.