01/21/2026
‼️‼️‼️Alert ‼️‼️‼️
Please READ and SHARE FAR &WIDE
ACTION ALERT!
The legislation to ban the bottle-feeding of exotic animals is back in the General Assembly and we need your help to defeat it! Delegate Amy Laufer has sponsored HB 112 in the House and Senator Jennifer Boysko has her bill once again in the Senate as SB 344.
https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB112
https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB344
This legislation is unnecessary and will conflict with current law! In Virginia, exotic animals are classified as companion animals. Code section 3.2-6510 already includes protections for unweaned companion animals, “No person shall sell, raffle, give away, or offer for sale as pets or novelties, or offer or give as a prize, premium, or advertising device any living chicks, ducklings, or other fowl under two months old in quantities of less than six or any unweaned mammalian companion animal or any dog or cat under the age of seven weeks without its dam or queen.” The current code also states, “Nothing in this section shall prohibit the sale, gift, or transfer of an unweaned animal... due to a concern for the health or safety of the unweaned animal”. HB 112 and SB 344 both go against the code and common sense!
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title3.2/chapter65/section3.2-6510/
These bills discriminate between citizens, criminalize an important skill, and harm animal welfare. This legislation divides animal owners/keepers—who are similarly situated in their professions—into two groups. It selects one group (independent owners/keepers) for enforcement and prosecution for bottle-feeding their baby animals while allowing the other group (who work for accredited zoos) to freely continue this common husbandry practice without fear of criminal charges. Such selective treatment violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. This bill serves the private interests of PETA—who wants to remove animals from our lives—and hurts animal welfare. By making bottle-feeding illegal for some and putting up roadblocks for others, valuable skills will be lost and baby animals will die. If this bill becomes law, when a caretaker needs to bottle-feed in an emergency situation, many will lack the knowledge and ability to save that baby's life.
HB 112 and SB 344 are trying to outlaw nature! It is estimated that approximately 10% of animal species experience hybridization and up to 25% of plants. It’s part of the web of life. There are plenty of examples including blynx, grolar bears, wholphins, and the narluga as habitats merge. Hybrids are also found in zoos. This bill is targeting multi-species exhibits. How will this law be enforced? Will DNA testing be required? Are baby hybrids going to be killed by DWR, because they are deemed “undesirable”? This is the opposite of animal welfare!
This legislation is building a wall between responsible owners and their local veterinarians. Only a “species-specific ” vet will be allowed to provide a medical exemption. The supporters of this bill fail to recognize that this language is unprecedented within the game department. The DWR DOES NOT HAVE a process to determine such certification and there is already a shortage of veterinarians in Virginia. The decision to “pull” a baby animal cannot be delayed due to red tape. This language is highly subjective and discredits licensed and qualified veterinarians. It will especially impact smaller facilities as well as those in rural areas. Is this by design?
It is hard to believe that Delegate Laufer is sponsoring this bill after growing up on a dairy farm and being in 4-H! Bottle-feeding and hand-raising calves is an important and essential part of the dairy industry. Just as it is not cruel to bottle-feed calves, it is not cruel to hand-raise exotics. A study of this bill proves that even its supporters recognize this common husbandry practice is NOT inhumane. How do we know this? Because there are exemptions! In reference to true animal cruelty--such as dog fighting--an exemption would never be proposed or considered! This bill is clearly about political favoritism—not actual concern for animals.
This bill ignores the many benefits of hand-raising certain species that live under human care. Bottle-feeding promotes animal welfare and is a management tool for many exotic animals. Being comfortable with their human caretakers is important for daily handling and needed veterinary care. A prime example is the kangaroo family. Facilities often allow mother kangaroos to raise the joey to a certain size/weight and then hand-raise the baby towards the end of the weaning process. These are healthy babies that do not have a medical issue, but bottle-feeding desensitizes them to humans. These macropods have a tremendous flight response and can easily injure themselves. Hand-raising helps them be less nervous and reactive. They are often used in educational programs and are wonderful ambassadors for their species. Many of these ambassador animals are later reintroduced back into the mob. It’s a win-win!
This legislative effort threatens animals across the nation, because it will be precedent-setting if passed. There is no other State that codifies bottle-feeding as cruel, because it isn’t! This bill is also wrong about keepers. Caretakers have the biggest hearts and are very dedicated. They don’t give up vacations, miss holiday celebrations, and wake up every few hours night after night, because they’re cruel and money crazed. They live for their animals.
Please help us protect the human-animal bond by emailing the following legislators!
Ask these Delegates to OPPOSE HB 112:
DelALopez@house.virginia.gov
DelNClark@house.virginia.gov
DelKTran@house.virginia.gov
DelSSimonds@house.virginia.gov
DelRWillett@house.virginia.gov
DelCHerring@house.virginia.gov
DelPKrizek@house.virginia.gov
DelJGlass@house.virginia.gov
DelPHernandez@house.virginia.gov
DelALaufer@house.virginia.gov
DelMMartinez@house.virginia.gov
DelJMcAuliff@house.virginia.gov
DelKPopeAdams@house.virginia.gov
DelVThornton@house.virginia.gov
DelLFranklin@house.virginia.gov
DelLWare@house.virginia.gov
DelTWright@house.virginia.gov
DelTWilt@house.virginia.gov
DelMWebert@house.virginia.gov
DelRBloxom@house.virginia.gov
DelBFowler@house.virginia.gov
DelHKent@house.virginia.gov
Ask these Senators to OPPOSE SB 344:
senatormarsden@senate.virginia.gov
senatorobenshain@senate.virginia.gov
senatorstuart@senate.virginia.gov
senatorstanley@senate.virginia.gov
senatorsuetterlein@senate.virginia.gov
senatorhackworth@senate.virginia.gov
senatorwilliamsgraves@senate.virginia.gov
senatorperry@senate.virginia.gov
senatorpekarsky@senate.virginia.gov
senatorfrench@senate.virginia.gov
senatorsalim@senate.virginia.gov
senatormulchi@senate.virginia.gov
senatorroem@senate.virginia.gov
senatorsrinivasan@senate.virginia.gov
Thank you for your help! Our animals are depending on us!
