New York, NY – Department’s Phil Abramson told us on Wednesday he was “not familiar with any regulations about killing rats” in city parks, NYC the Blog has heard from PETA, and they seem more in the know. To recap: a video emerged recently of a dog hunting rats for sport in Washington Square Park, killing nearly 15 in one night. But is that legal, even if the city does have a rat problem?
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The animal rights organization’s Martin Mersereau said, “Setting dogs upon rats is depraved, sadistic, and entirely illegal. It constitutes an explicit violation of New York’s anti-cruelty laws.” He noted that there are two sections in New York’s Agriculture and Markets Law that apply; one prohibits anyone from unjustifiably injuring, maiming, or killing an animal, and another prohibits fights between any animals.
Allegedly every species is protected by these laws, even a rat. Mersereau suggests calling the ASPCA if you witness a rat attack, and notes that rat-killing dogs aren’t going to solve the city’s ratdemic. We’ve contacted the Parks Department again to get their comment on this law… that they should probably be aware of?
I suggest that the members of Peta adopt these rats and take them home. Great fun for the kids.
A rat is not considered an animal. It is akin to an insect. Secondly, it is not “unjustifiable” to kill a rat, so there goes PETA’s whole theory.
KILL RATS.
Why is it more humane to kill them with rat poison?
Maybe they should let the homeless eat them with pigeons.
Its a win-win situation. (Ratlesburger!)
Can I get these dogs to take care of my squirrel problem? Or does PETA have any volunteers that would come and take away the ones I catch?
We have an overabundance of feral cats in our neighborhood. We have absolutely no rats.
all these rats, mice, wild animals s/b captured and let loose inside PETA’s offices and member’s apartments.
I have another question. How illegal is it to have PETA hunting dogs that can take care of our PETA problem. I think they are far worse a problem than our usual neighborhood rat.
This is great news!
The more PETA says crazy things, the more the public will realize they are sick puppies themselves.
The Black Plague was caused by Rats ….. I think that PETA interrupts the natural order of this world that G-d intended. Like – we hate Lizards but lizards eat mosquitos and we hate mosquitos too. … Did they ever see this picture of the big fish eating the smaller fish eating the tiny fish? If people were hunting rats, they may have a point (albeit a stupid point) but each animal animal, naturally eliminates another animal …. let them be.
PETA!!! u realy think that animal life is more important than human?? these rats get everyone annoyed and PETA makes everyone more annoyed.
Rat Poison which is the approved method causes severe internal bleeding where the “animal” rat bleeds to death.
I suppose PETA considers bleeding to death to be humane.
if this dog is trained to kill rats then martin mesereau better not go near washington sq. park at night.
Did these PETA ppl see the youtube video of the rat climbing up the guys leg on the subway???
I wonder if the rat crawled onto 1 of these pathetic PETA ppls bodies, would they still be yelling….
When we had a small pack of feral dogs in my neighborhood the squirrel problem abated. I can’t say that I was unhappy.
Have you ever seen PETA at a cattle ranch where they actually BRAND cattle with hot branding irons? Can you imagine the pain caused to the animals? I’ve never heard of PETA visiting a single cattle ranch. But they are all over shechita and RATS! What kind of fluff do they have between their ears?
Any concept taken to the extreme becomes torture. There is an issur of tzaar baalei chayim. If taken beyond limits, it would place the value of animal life above that of humans. I wonder how many laws exist in which cruelty to animals carries stiffer penalties than if the same were done to another human. This is a value that has gone riot. PETA does not represent anything related to cruelty to animals, with which it began. It is now the equivalent of a political party with an agenda that trivializes what really matters. It is a stupid as “political correctness”, that has only managed to brand legitimate and honest people as violators of a contrived “value”. Is there any morality left?
G-d created animals to serve mankind. When will these wackos recognize that? I’m sorry, that was not exactly politically correct.
I really do not understand the Chareidi obsession with PETA.
When Adam and Chava recognized their nakedness – they were allowed to dress in the skins of animals. After Noach got off the Teiva with the animals, we were given the right to eat of the animals. If you are an observant Jew – by definition, you are made to realize the hierarchy which puts humans above animals and allows for humans to make use of animals for their needs. One does not have to assume that an animal is always “suffering” when it comes to how they are utilized by humans. However we do utilize animals, it should be by means that do not include suffering.
Like so many things, activities that can be good and beneficial can be taken to an extreme. We should not torture or mistreat animals, even rats. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t, or shouldn’t, try to control the rat population. PETA is correct that we should be “ethical,” they just take it to an absurd extreme.
Having viewed the video, I found it quite disturbing. I wasn’t disturbed by the dog capturing the rats. I was disturbed by the beer drinking guys who thought it was great sport and a lot of fun. I hate rats and would have no problem training and dog to hunt them down. But killing an animal, even a rat, should not be entertainment.
several years ago P
ETA was accused you killing stray dogs that were not adopted in their shelters in the deep south so much for their animal first attitude
Clearly PETA cares more about the lives of RATS then they do for humans.