Impact Report

Demanding Transparency on Government Factory Farm Funding

Your support allows the Animal Legal Defense Fund to fight back when government actions unfairly benefit factory farms over the well-being of animals and vulnerable communities.

In May, we filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), demanding timely access to records about the environmental impact of proposed new or expanding factory farms that receive federal loans.

The law requires the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to proactively make these records available to the public through an electronic reading room. But instead, advocates are forced to file individual Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to obtain them.

The agency often takes so long to respond that the public comment periods associated with these federal loan decisions have lapsed before the public records have been provided. Advocates are left in the dark, and taxpayers are denied the facts about how their money is being used to subsidize factory farms.

Our lawsuit demands the USDA do its job by making environmental-impact records available online, accessible to all. We’ve partnered with Food & Water Watch on this case, and are also represented by Public Citizen.

Learn more about the work you make possible for farmed animals at aldf.org/farmedanimals.

Demanding Accountability for Police Killing of Blind, Deaf Dog

Animal lovers across the country were outraged when a blind and deaf shih tzu named Teddy was shot and killed by a police officer in Sturgeon, Missouri.

Teddy had escaped a fenced dog run and wandered into the yard of a caring person who set out to find his guardian. But unable to determine whom Teddy belonged to, she called local police, who are also tasked with animal-control duties in the small town. Though 13-pound Teddy clearly posed no threat, the officer who was dispatched to help spent only a few minutes trying to catch him before fatally shooting him instead.

With your help, we’re providing a grant to help cover the costs of a federal lawsuit against the City of Sturgeon and the police officer. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Teddy’s guardian by attorneys Daniel J. Kolde and Eric C. Crinnian. Learn more at aldf.org/teddy.

Standing Up for Imperiled Grizzly Bears

In May, we joined with partner organizations to demand continued Endangered Species Act (ESA) protection for grizzly bears in the Yellowstone and Glacier Park ecosystems.

The federal government is currently conducting a “status review” after receiving petitions from Montana and Wyoming asking for ESA protections to be withdrawn from these populations.

Nearly 7,000 Animal Legal Defense Fund supporters took action, and the coalition collectively secured over 100,000 signatures on a petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Department of the Interior, urging the agencies to continue to protect these imperiled grizzlies. Learn more about how you’re helping wildlife at aldf.org/wildlife.

Fighting Puppy Mill Industry Cruelty

In June, we filed a pair of official complaints urging state and federal agencies to crack down on unscrupulous pet stores and a puppy mill transport company.

We took on Subject Enterprise, a USDA-registered animal carrier that transports mill-bred puppies to pet stores across the country. Numerous puppies have been sickened, injured, or even killed in Subject Enterprise’s care. The company has also attempted to deliver ailing puppies, including those sick with highly contagious parvovirus, to pet stores to be sold to unsuspecting families. We’re urging the USDA to investigate and revoke the company’s ability to transport animals.

In Illinois, we’re urging a state agency to investigate and revoke the licenses of five pet stores and a pet-store owner that are unlawfully selling mill-bred puppies in violation of the state’s retail pet sale ban. The law bans pet stores from selling puppies and kittens, who are overwhelmingly sourced from commercial breeding mills, instead encouraging them to partner with shelters or rescue groups to showcase rescued animals for adoption. Learn more about the work you’re powering to end puppy mills at aldf.org/puppymills.