POSITION STATEMENT ON ANIMALS AS PROPERTY

UNITED RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNER GROUPS takes the position that animals are valuable property. Animals are among the most ancient of traditional property. The human/animal symbiotic bond is as ancient as are we human beings. Animals are a more ancient traditional property to human beings than land. We all know that land is of great value to we human beings.  All nomadic tribes have owned, nurtured, and learned the honorable profession of animal husbandry. Owning animals is normal, and natural for human beings in all areas of the world,  from the most primitive, to the most affluent, from the Arctic to the rainforest, to the high rises of New York, and beyond. Human beings have the vast weight of eons of tradition to give legal standing to being, and expecting to be animal owners.  Animal ownership encouraged the settling of the land, and to civilization, to cities, laws, and technology. Animal ownership, and use made us the people that we are today.

We are endowed with the Constitution of the United States to give added weight to our property ownership rights. At the time when our Constitution was written and ratified there was no thought given to a time when animals would not be an immediate part of our lives.  Although animal ownership is not among those enumerated the IX Amendment concerns itself with all of the things that are not enumerated.

It is only in the most recent of times with the advent of the animal rights movement that there has been any question of animals being the property of human beings.  The avowed goal of the animal rights movement is to do away with all animal ownership. To halt all us of animal products, and by products. To make animals obsolete in other words. As they spread their false message of care, and compassion they are working to remove animals from the care, nurture, ownership, and use of human beings.  They shout that animal owners/breeders are "greedy", when in fact they are the money grasping, wealthy groups with multi-million dollar budgets being used to undermine this nations great pet/animal/agriculture industry.

The wealth of most nations rests firmly upon the back of the vast animal/agriculture industry. Wealthy nations have a sound and healthy animal/agriculture system. The United States animal/agriculture industry fees the world. The pet animal industry adds more than $50 billion dollars annually to our economy.   It is only in those nations that are unable to feed themselves through their own animal/agriculture system that there is famine, a disregard of the sanctity of life, and a breakdown of law, and order.

It is very important to understand exactly what the definition of property is before agreeing to give it away. We tend to devalue the idea of property, as "just property" thus showing our ignorance, and disregard for our precious rights of ownership. Property is divided into two classes: real property such as land, or real estate, and personal property meaning everything to which we own title that is not land or real estate. 
 
The ownership of property is one of our most precious rights granted under the Constitution of the United States of America. It establishes we the people as individuals with the freedom to control our own lives. The founding fathers of this great land came from European kingdoms where all of the people, and all of the land, and all of the animals, and all of the goods belonged to the monarchy. They understood that ownership is freedom.  The right of property ownership is given an important place in our enumerated freedoms.
 
Ownership, and possession of property are two different things under the law. Ownership gives the title holder the right to retain,  and to enjoy your property to the exclusion of all others. Possession is the right to temporary custody and does not necessarily include the right to title. For example a renter of an apartment, or garage, or the lessee of a dog or a bitch for breeding purposes has temporary possession without ownership. The landlord, or registered dog owner has the title, and all of the rights that accompany ownership, but is not in temporary possession of said property. Property can be acquired in numerous ways, it can be bought, inherited, received as a gift. A sale transfers ownership from the seller to the buyer.

It is the expected responsibility of the owner to maintain the property in such a manner as to cause no harm to either the property, or to the surrounding neighbors, or neighborhood. With ownership, comes responsibilities that are not incurred by those persons having simple possession, such as a guardian. A guardian is simply a buffer between the actual owner i.e. the landlord, or in the case of animals, or human beings the government. The guardian has no intrinsic rights of possession, that possession is transitory and is subject to the terms of agreement between the true owner, and the guardian. A guardian has no rights in buying, selling, or trading of property. A guardian is financially responsible for the property while said property is in his/her possession.
 
Emotional attachment in an animal is an important reason to retain ownership, rather than relinquishing said ownership. An owner has a legal right to possession. Only when an owner's negligence, or carelessness gives due cause for the removal of the property may authorities take legal steps to remove that property from the ownership, and possession of the titled owner.  Each case must be tried on an individual basis so that all owners are not subject to the same punishments as the irresponsible, careless, or negligent owner.

UNITED RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNER GROUPS calls upon all levels of government to protect, and preserve the ancient, and traditional  animal ownership and use rights, and the honorable practice of animal husbandry, and this nations great pet/animal/agriculture industry.