{"id":59728,"date":"2025-12-06T20:51:58","date_gmt":"2025-12-07T01:51:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=59728"},"modified":"2025-12-06T20:52:03","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T01:52:03","slug":"letter-many-countries-around-the-world-have-already-taken-bold-steps-to-protect-animals-recognizing-them-as-sentient-beings-and-family-members-not-just-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2025\/12\/06\/letter-many-countries-around-the-world-have-already-taken-bold-steps-to-protect-animals-recognizing-them-as-sentient-beings-and-family-members-not-just-property\/","title":{"rendered":"Letter &#8211; Many countries around the world have already taken bold steps to protect animals, recognizing them as sentient beings and family members, not just property"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By Maria Consuelo Barrero<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many countries around the world have already taken bold steps to protect animals, recognizing them as sentient beings and family members, not just property. Nations such as Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Switzerland, the U.K., Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, and New Zealand have passed laws that provide stronger protections against cruelty, ensure accountability, and guarantee better standards of care.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" data-dominant-color=\"5a4f44\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #5a4f44;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"503\" height=\"640\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1110px) 100vw, 1110px\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/595166738_10162112577893201_4543525170577756695_n.webp?resize=503%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-59729 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/595166738_10162112577893201_4543525170577756695_n.webp?w=503&amp;ssl=1 503w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/595166738_10162112577893201_4543525170577756695_n.webp?resize=236%2C300&amp;ssl=1 236w\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These laws WORK. They save lives, prevent suffering, and respect the deep bond between people and their pets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\ud83d\udc3e\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/tde\/1\/16\/1f43e.png\"> Florida can and should follow these examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our state urgently needs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Laws that recognize pets as more than property<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Stronger protections against cruelty and neglect<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Mandatory minimum standards for animal shelters<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Investment in humane infrastructure, including state-of-the-art shelters with proper medical areas, quarantine spaces, enrichment rooms, disaster preparedness, and community outreach programs<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Mandatory TNVR (Trap\u2013Neuter\u2013Vaccinate\u2013Return) for community cats, the only proven long-term, humane, and cost-effective method to stabilize outdoor cat populations<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\u2705\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t33\/1\/16\/2705.png\"> Support for rescues, foster programs, and public education<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" data-dominant-color=\"5c5e52\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #5c5e52;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"640\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1110px) 100vw, 1110px\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/593308631_1795838247825093_5997738980331928252_n.webp?resize=512%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-59730 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/593308631_1795838247825093_5997738980331928252_n.webp?w=512&amp;ssl=1 512w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/593308631_1795838247825093_5997738980331928252_n.webp?resize=240%2C300&amp;ssl=1 240w\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A modern animal shelter in Polk County would not only save thousands of lives\u2014it would support animal services staff, strengthen public trust, reduce disease outbreaks, and provide the kind of compassionate care our community expects and deserves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" alt=\"\ud83d\udca1\" src=\"https:\/\/static.xx.fbcdn.net\/images\/emoji.php\/v9\/t3c\/1\/16\/1f4a1.png\"> If other countries can evolve, protect animals, implement progressive TNVR policies, and invest in the right structures, Florida can do the same. We need our County Commissioners and our State Legislature to move beyond temporary fixes and commit to long-term, meaningful animal welfare reform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Animals are family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Florida should finally treat them that way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Maria Consuelo Barrero Many countries around the world have already taken bold steps to protect animals, recognizing them as sentient beings and family members, not just property. Nations such&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":59729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"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.sWY6WQ21P32V1yecR0vHLzJ_gc-e0pfRgO54dempvwwMQ"},"version":2,"attached_media":[{"id":59729,"url":"http:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/595166738_10162112577893201_4543525170577756695_n.webp","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[11],"tags":[12797,12799,12798],"class_list":["post-59728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-letters","tag-many-countries-around-the-world-have-already-taken-bold-steps-to-protect-animals","tag-not-just-property","tag-recognizing-them-as-sentient-beings-and-family-members"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59728"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59728\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59731,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59728\/revisions\/59731"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}