Feds to force owners to register, RFID tag, and file reports on animals

I shit you not. These people are so out of control. What's next, registering your little garden plot and having the veggies inspected before you're allowed to eat them?

http://www.jimhightower.com/node/5752

http://www.stopanimalid.org./

Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Posted by Jim Hightower
Listen to this Commentary

Listen up, America. Apparently, there's a big, new threat to our national security: Terrorist chickens. Luckily, though, our national government, with the support of agribusiness corporations and high-tech firms, have a plan to tag and track every one of these terrible terrorists.

Few have heard about it, but a new National Animal Identification System is headed our way fast. It will require that every single chicken in America – as well as every horse, cow, pig, mule, turkey, goat, goose, etc. – have an RFID tag implanted in it. Wait, you say, this can't mean me. I've just got one chicken out back, or one horse for my kids. Wrong. Every one of these animals must be tagged, and every single owner must register their premises with the feds, even putting the GPS coordinates for your place in the new NAIS database. Also, you'll pay fees and file regular reports to the government.

Holy George Orwell! Forced surveillance of livestock and pets – who came up with this? The National Institute of Animal Agriculture – a lobbying front for the likes of Cargill, Monsanto, Schering-Plough, and other agribusiness giants, as well as for the makers of the billions of electronic tags that Americans will be forced to buy. Since 2002, this tiny group has quietly pushed the Bush ag department to impose this mandatory program on all livestock owners, literally invading our homes and farms, while trampling our privacy and property rights.

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Is this where the rubber finally meets the road and rolls over every fundie with a rooster in the yard? Is this when they sit on their porches with the shotgun across their laps and grumble "revenoors..."?

This is where the 2nd amendment really comes into play. Duck! Cheney!

voting for the buy running for Texas State Rep who's against it, too.

Feck 'em, I treat my chickens better than any agri-business ever will and they do NOT have to wear a chip.

That's the sound of dollars being sucked into the corporate cash register.

humans are animals, too.

Probably be introduced just in time for RealID - 2008.

Total Surveillance
http://www.motherjones.com/interview/2005/12/albrecht.h ...

Couple this insidious technology with purposely erroneous background checks

Who is checking the background checkers?
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1128/p13s02-wmgn.html

They've offshored, outsourced, and privatized TIA. Now all they have to do is fire you for being 'of the wrong political party' and put false information in your background data...and voila ! You've just created the most insidious terror project in the US ever.

BTW, Bush's evangelical base is well aware of this, yet are moving forward with it at breakneck speed despite his own base's wishes:

The Mark of the Beast - Means Total Surveillance of Livestock, too
http://www.tldm.org/news4/MarkoftheBeast.htm

passing legislation that no longer requires them to label potential harms in their foods (like Mercury in Tuna)? Now, all of a sudden, they have all kinds of money for this RFID crap? :wtf:

:shrug:

you can't travel overseas with a pet unless it's chipped. And more and more vets are pushing getting pets chipped.

:hi:

there were a few companies trying to make RFID zappers, don't think they've succeeded yet, but WHEN THEY do, I'm going to buy them if they work.

I have chickens, ducks, geese, and guineas. I don't run a commercial operation but mainly have them for pets, we sell eggs sometimes, and EAT A LOT OF EGGS, but mainly they're just fun birds, and I see no reason to have to chip each one of them, or any reason to do it. If the govt was really concerned about poultry, they'd STOP those infernal, inhumane poultry farms that load up too many birds in a small area, and keep them away from free-ranging, sunlight, etc for their short miserable lives.

and they are pets and lay wonderful eggs. No way am I going to do this.

and blue eggs, the rest are brown egg layers.

I've been waiting for weeks. I already have a few Delawares and Rhode Islands Reds. I'm getting a few leghorns, too, so I can have white eggs as well as brown and blue.

But back to the ID chip stuff: What BS!! I can't imagine how they're going to enforce that. What an intrusion of people's lives. The GOP ran on a platform of "less govt. intrusion" in our lives and look what we're getting instead. Everything they do now has become so Orwellien.

I got a couple of indoor cats and they are terrorists if your a mouse or insect.


This just sounds so obserd. What ever happened to all the "get the goverment of my back" types?
I can't believe they've be so quite during Bu$hCo's slashing away at our freedoms.

Nice fat hens that were providing us with lovely eggs. One night a predator (fox or coyote) got in the hen house and killed them all. Didn't eat any of them, just tore em up and left them lying.

or me for that matter...something about prying Henrietta out of my cold dead fingers...those bastards have done gone too far...

Hubby's comment: Register my pet chicken? What am I going to do- grab her by the legs and point her at someone? (my thought- back end is more dangerous than front end...projectile poop?)

A neighbor has a specially heated house and "run" for his few.

I don't have mine done because they're really old (16, 14, & 12) and I know they're not about to run away anymore or be dognapped either. There have been a lot of stollen or lost dogs rcovered via the chip. It is however MY decision to do it, and not the Feds! I don't understand why they would even want the aggrivation of trying to do this to all animals.

god only knows what's next. Probably mandatory church attendance.

(a church, I mean) here in the North Richland Hills, TX area.
They build them like crazy here!
And most of the newest ones look like big metal warehouses.....no kidding.
Huge, cheap-to-build warehouses with a sign and a big cross on the front.

Some scary shit is happening around here.

He used to be a baptist minister, part time at little country churches, in addition to a full time job he had with an oil company. Even those little poor country churches had real charm to them.

I realize a traditional church building has a single use design to it, and maybe banks and mortgage lenders don't want to loan against that, but these warehouses are dreadful looking. Nothing inspirational about them at all. No wonder these fundie-types don't like creativity -- they can't handle the freedom of expression and the inspiration it may impart.

Maybe the ministers there want the money spent on people (especially staff) rather than buildings.

Personally I think it ought to be a requirement before you can buy/adopt/sell a pet. I don't think its a bad idea for livestock raised with the intention to sell.

MZr7

Next it's your ass!

Heil Bushler

Frankly, I don't want my pet(and hence myself) tracked everywhere I go. Right now they are starting to implement the infrastructure to do this, putting in sensors to read RFID by the major roads, etc. You may be comfortable being tracked via your dog everywhere you go, but I certainly don't.

Then there is a matter of health. These things have not received adequate long term testing, and given that their is lots of evidence that various EM waves can and will cause cancer, why should I expose my pet to that sort of potential? Then again, what about the materials of the chip itself. Do I really want to be exposing my pet to such materials? No. My pets are all tagged, have rarely run off, and the tag system has worked for years and decades now. Why change to this more intrusive form? You may wish to do so, but this should by no means be mandatory.

As far as livestock goes, you don't seem to realize that this is another strategy to drive out the small farmer. Large corporate farms have the resources to implement this tagging system, and the ability to pass the cost on to the custormer. Small farmers don't. This will impose and unfair financial burden on them, and since they are not working on the same sort of profit margins as corporate farmers, they will be unable to pass this cost on to the customer. Instead, many will be forced to eat the costs of this, and with the razor thin margins that many of these farmers operate on, it could very well drive them out of business. And again, there is the issue of how healthy is this for the animal, oh, and the invasion of privacy when USDA agents come onto your property to check up on your animals without your permission.

This is a horrible law, an invasion of privacy , and an unfair burden on the small farmer.

their collars, and end up lost with no identification. Want to try to describe your "black lab" which is of course completely different from every other black lab on the planet?

Making it mandatory for farmers is just plain wrong, though. I agree with many of your arguments, but please don't confuse a completely sensible and voluntary activity like identity microchips (and they don't tell you where your dog is, by the way; they just have a number associated with them, so if your pet gets lost, they can find you), with the latest whack job Bush plan.

Which means that they can indeed be read remotely. Right now many states are setting up RFID readers along their highways and byways, the better to scan your car with. And if they can scan your car, they can scan your dog. Hence, they can track where your dog and presumably you go.

And if you are really that worried about your dog slipping its collar, you can always tatoo the dog's ear:shrug:

I'm never, ever going to knowingly chip my animals, myself, or my property. It's just wrong, much, much too Orwellian.

puppies who have inadvertently escaped their yards. Sigh. I know that such things can be abused, but their are benefits, too.

Right now it is my understanding you have to be within six inches of a pet to "read" its chip. (I could be wrong.) The chip just transmits the code associated, and then the reader can contact the "chip number x belongs to xxx."

Again, this is a risk vs reward thing -- to each his own! :) Best, Ida

Try describing your "baby" which of course is completely different from every other baby on the planet.

(I understand your position IdaBriggs, this is not a personal swipe at you, simply a point I think has to be made because this is the argument that will be used when they start chipping humans.)

kidnapping; personally, I would do it under the correct circumstances (as in, if I was a high profile target for kidnapping, or my children were, for example).

I don't mind having a "Lo-Jack" thing on my car, which can be used to trace my vehicles whereabouts in the event it is stolen or conversely, to negatively impact me if I'm committing a crime and am stupidly using my vehicle as a cover for my crime -- okay, WAY too much Law & Order, right?

Again, I consider microchipping my animals to be a sensible precaution for their benefit and mine. I weighed the risks and rewards, compared it to the costs (under $40) and came out in favor of doing so, but I would *NOT EVER* force someone else to do it.

And human babies are much more identifiable by their foot prints and DNA, all of which in the event of an emergency or a situation requiring "guaranteed" identification can be used. The cost associated with those things isn't something many people are willing to put out for a family pet, no matter how beloved.

Please keep in mind that I am very active in animal rescue; one sad trip to the pound to see all of the "lost" pets who slipped their identity tags off was more than enough to convince me of the merits of making it as easy as possible for veterinarians and the folks associated with animal welfare to find me in the event one of my pets digs, jumps or is let out of the yard by someone "accidentally" -- all of which has happened at some point in the last five years -- despite the fact we're "super responsible" dog owners!

But, as I said, to each his own.

:)

No reports, though, of them being implanted--yet.

The "Hugs" system includes monitoring software and an ankle bracelet that contains a tiny radio transmitter designed to prevent infants from being removed from a health-care facility without authorization.
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2005/07/rfid_in_the_nur_1.html

NOT for the government! I volunteer at a shelter, and we chip every pet we adopt out. But the owner has it registered through a company, and the information is only ever used if the pet gets lost and turns up in a pound or shelter. I would be very much against government interference in our personal business on this issue.

Track the animal, track the owner? If animals are registered to individuals, do they consider that a way to keep track of our locations too?

who will have one more way to collect info on you, and figure out how to sell you stuff based on your profile as a pet owner.

They'll go berserk and oust every repub in every election. :popcorn:

...eat that chicken for dinner one night---and I eat the chip---

Does that mean that I am now being tracked?

:)

Straight up.

Seriously though... it's times like these that I'm reminded of why the acronym WTF came to be.

So, Do I have to chip the Baby mice before I feed them to my gecko's?????

I've just got one leo, most curious little gecko you've ever seen. Smart enough to make associations too. Like she knows that if my hand is fiddling around in her tank out of sight of her little house that I'm either refilling her water or putting mealies in her food bowl, so she'll go and investigate. :)

Any chance these initiatives are connected in some manner?

Clearly in this case the big companies want to drive up costs for the small ones. But is there more to this?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5286337

Talk of the Nation, March 17, 2006 · U.S. Agriculture officials confirm that a cow in Alabama died of mad cow disease. Are testing and tracking procedures adequate to protect against the spread of the disease?

tagged.

How many of you know small farmers who will actually just go in and let them do this? I won't, I don't think that even the biggest Bushbot in my small community (where my farm is) will go for this.

I don't remember where it was that I read that you had to actually call and let them know if your animal was going off your property. So, every time someone goes to a horse show, 4H show whatever they have to deal with the government? Every time I decide to ride one of the horses down the quarter to visit my friend I have to ask? This could be really interesting.

and I don't plan on loosing. these rat bastards need to be contained.

Holy George Orwell! Forced surveillance of livestock and pets – who came up with this? The National Institute of Animal Agriculture – a lobbying front for the likes of Cargill, Monsanto, Schering-Plough, and other agribusiness giants, as well as for the makers of the billions of electronic tags that Americans will be forced to buy.

Corporate congress at its best! Where's the part where we make gummit smaller and get it off our backs?

Never fear--not even the government tells cats what to do.

I like Hightower as much as the next guy, but he's wrong. In the case of animals like chickens and pigs who are raised and sold together on one premise, one identification number will be given to the whole bunch. Larger animals that tend to wander and be moved around before being turned into dinner will have to have an individual tag. RFID is only one means of ID; retinal ID is already popular. If you're raising a few chickens for your own food, the law will not apply.

The reasoning is that if any major disease breaks out, they will be able to instantly find out where the diseased animals came from and quarantine their premises. The option is to slaughter indiscriminantly, as they had to do in England during foot and mouth a few years back.

swastikas.

For instance, horses, donkeys, pigs, sheep and goats are kept as pets in my area.

edit: sp.

I agree, this is due to the fear of a major disease outbreak, but you are wrong that they will not note each individual animal.

During the avian flu outbreak (different strain than the one they are currently worried about) that happened in B.C. a couple of yrs. ago, the small farmers in Washington state counties up by the border were checked as a precaution.

Every bird I owned was noted on their clipboard, including a non-poultry pet caged inside our home.

The tendency to protect healthy animals from an unjust slaughter, by hiding or spiriting them away, would become very strong in the case of a government quarantine. They intend to control such actions, by hook or by crook.

<http://animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/index.shtml>
<http://www.nonais.org>

This is to be a uniform, across the board chipping of all livestock, from the corporate farms to Grandma with her single egg layer. There are to be no exceptions. Yes, large groups of livestock will be tagged with a group ID. But each and every one of those animals, while all having the same ID number, will still have to be tagged. And yes, this does favor corporate farmers over small farmers. Not only are they more able to afford this, but they can pass this expense on to the customer. Small farmers are less able to afford this, and really can't pass the cost on to their customer, given the markets they are competing in and with.

I suggest that you go to the USDA site and read the Draft Plan and other documents thoroughly. It is frightening in its implications. And every small farmer I know is royally pissed about this, afraid of the expense, and pissed about the extra added work this is going to cause.

have been exposed to the prions from BSE (mad cow) up in the NW in the first reported outbreak - allegedly farmers just cut the ear tags off some of the cows rather than turn them in for fear of losing whole herds. If the USDA was making even a half-a**ed attempt at really testing cows in the food chain for BSE, I would be more supportive of tracking efforts. Since they are not, I suspect this is mostly for show and another way for bureaucrats to enforce surveillance and the rampant Big Brother syndrome. They are ramping up this elaborate id system while simultaneously reducing the numbers of animals tested when it is already ridiculously inadequate? Reminds me of the recommendations to eat less tuna that were released the same day they eased the mercury pollution restrictions. Be afraid but don't rock agribusiness.

Microchipping a pet who may be lost or stolen is a whole 'nuther issue. Can you "prove" your dog is yours? If it ends up in another state with no collar, will anyone know how to tell you? I think this is a good idea and can't see a downside to pet microchipping.

But I'd cut a chip out of my body with my fingernails before I let anyone put one in me.

They'll have to haul my ass off to jail because I'm not doing it.

My horse is my personal property. She already has a microchip from her German breed society. She gets a yearly Coggins Test which is performed by my equine vet and is required by the state of Georgia. One must have up to date Coggins papers in order to transport the animal to shows and barns where many equines can come into contact. The Coggins test is for Equine Infectious Anemia which has no cure.

I'll take my horse when and where I want to. I even have an equine passport for her (issued by her breed society in Germany) which I would use to record vaccinations and vet certifications in case we leave the USA.

If Bush can say "I'll follow the law,.... except I don't have to do THIS" then he's setting an example for everyone.

Well, FECK them all. I'm not going to chip my home barnyard group of chickens, whether individually or as a group.

My friend has a chicken named Britney and a rooster named Tiny. Britney is sort of mean but Tiny will let you carry him around! They raom around her yard and also have a crate inside the house for when it's really cold outside. :)

I really want a chicken but I can't have one in the city. (My horse lives in the country.)

I recently tired to pet a huge chicken at a farm I was visiting and she pecked my hand really hard. Stupid me didn't realize she was sitting on an egg. :( Ouch! I won't do that again!

I used to have two ducks (the white ones with orange beaks and feet) when I lived in the country. They were named Ping and Pong. I loved those ducks. :)

Really. I'm not going to get implanted, and nothing that I own is going to get implanted.

This is unbelievable.

when they start tagging the ptarmigan. The spruce grouse, yeah. You hunt spruce grouse with a rock (walk up, drop it on their lil head) - ptarmigan are tougher. And who's gonna be the dude that tracks and tags wild turkeys?

Not to mention ravens!!

Can I watch? Please?