Dem Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Ban Dogs Sticking Heads out Car Windows, Sitting on Driver’s Lap

The bill includes several provisions designed to protect animal safety.

A recent Florida legislature bill would ban dogs from sticking their heads - or any other body parts - out of car windows while the vehicle is in motion.

Senate Bill 932, created by Democratic state senator Lauren Book, also stipulates that dogs must be safely secured by means other than a leash or necktie, being placed in well-ventilated crates or having a harness when being transported on public highways.

In the latter sections of the nameless bill, the provisions extend beyond simple transportation guidelines for your dogs.

Namely, the declawing of cats would be deemed illegal if it is proven to be medically unnecessary. The purchasing of rabbits or bunnies is also severely restricted during the time of Easter holidays in hopes of limiting the possibility of abandoning the furry pets. Lastly, the bill states that animal testing for cosmetic products would also be fined and charged.

Offenders and their affiliates of the new bill will not be allowed to own pets in the future. The punishments for these rules are also rather severe, where the violators would be fined starting from $5,000 and can be charged with a misdemeanor.

Owning pets is an innately unpolitical topic, but if the new bill is to be approved, simply driving with your pet can prove to be legally burdensome. In the name of safety, the new bill limits some basic choices that pet owners are entitled to.

Some say that the lawmakers are pursuing an extremely vague agenda, where limiting certain choices, and in this case regarding pets, will benefit society. However, it is quite hard to see how criminalizing the declawing of cats would aid that purpose. Moreover, there are various reasons why a cat could be declawed, namely safety concerns for the owners.

Owning a pet should come with concrete responsibilities and expectations, but the argument to limit some of the choices that pet owners are entitled to make is opaque, to say the least.