House passes bill criminalizing improper dog tethering

The Alabama House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 361 on Wednesday, despite opposition from a bipartisan group of rural lawmakers, to create new standards for tethering companion dogs.

Senator Garlan Gudger, R-Cullman, sponsored the bill, which would prohibit tethering dogs to a stationary point such as a stake, tree, pole or structure. The only legal way to tether a dog outside under the bill would be with a trolley system, where the dog is attached to a line running between two stationary points.

The bill also would require that dogs receive adequate food, water and shelter whether they are tethered or in a fenced enclosure.

The measure excludes working dogs used for shepherding or herding livestock, cultivating agricultural products, hunting or retrieving.

A first violation would be a Class C misdemeanor, and subsequent violations would be Class A misdemeanors.

Lawmakers in the Statehouse said the Alabama Farmers Federation pushed them to block the bill.

“I cannot be bought or bossed around by powerful and deep-pocketed special interest groups,” Representative Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, said. Ensler sponsored the bill in the House. “That is why, after hearing from countless residents throughout the state, I reached across the aisle to work with Senator Gudger on a bill that targets cruelty toward dogs. We had to overcome fierce opposition from special interests to pass SB361—but we got it done.”

If Governor Kay Ivey signs the bill into law, Alabamians who keep dogs outside, whether tethered or in a fence, would have to provide proper shelter. The bill says a shelter must:

• Keep the dog dry and protected from the elements and inclement weather, including shade in hot weather and bedding in cold weather when needed.
• Have a roof, walls and a solid floor.
• Give the dog enough space to stand up, turn around, lie down in a normal position and extend its limbs.
• Be made of durable materials and provide adequate ventilation.
• Be free of accumulated waste, standing water and debris.
• Allow the dog unlimited access to the shelter.

Some rural lawmakers criticized the bill on the floor as an overreach.

“The idea that they have to have a wooden floor. What, are we gonna build condominiums for dogs now?” Representative Brett Easterbrook, R-Fruitdale, said. “This, to me, is not something that I can be in favor of. When you come to rural Alabama, people have dogs on chains all the time.”