Paws Up! To New Hampshire Governor Sununu for signing three bills into law that will make a better life for animals.
December 29, 2021
The New Hampshire legislature has been busy the past few months passing important laws that will help dogs, cats, and wildlife in the White Mountain State. Here are the three new laws that take effect in 2022:
Starting in the new year, cats will be treated equally to dogs when it comes to road accidents. Currently, if a person hits a dog with their car, they are required to stop and notify the dog’s owner or the police. Beginning in January 2022, people will be required to do the same if they hit a cat.
HB 338 will also go into effect on January 1st, 2022. This law targets the increasingly growing problem of dog theft, or “dog flipping”. Perpetrators are known to steal dogs from homes or yards, remove the dogs’ microchips, and then sell them for a high profit. HB338 increases subsequent offenses from misdemeanors to class B felonies and also makes it illegal to remove a microchip from another person’s dog.
Finally, New Hampshire passed HB 529 this year, which increases protections for wild animals, fish, and birds. According to the text, anyone who intentionally hits, whips, cruelly beats, tortures, or mutilates a wild animal, fish, or bird is guilty of a class B felony.