Swiss Animals Will Not Get a Voice in the Courtroom

Animals Will Not Have a Voice in the Courtrooms of Switzerland

Every dog has his day. But apparently not in court. In a recent Swiss election, voters did not approve a referendum for animal representation in court. 

The referendum was apparently proposed by animal rights activists and would have given abused animals their fair representation in court, but was voted down by a 70% majority, possibly due to the costs of implementing the referendum.

I can easily imagine the impassioned speech an eloquent advocate would have given on behalf of the dogs in the Michael Vick case and can even envision an advocate fighting for the rights of the family dog in the case of inadequate care or a neglected dog. 

According to what little I’ve read, Switzerland is largely recognized as having the strongest standards for the treatment of animals in the world already, which is definitely positive, even if some of the regulations are a little bizarre.

In Switzerland, a goldfish will never be lonely because the pet owners must always provide a companion for social animals. Would-be dog owners have to take part in a dog ownership training sort of classes and there are many provisions which affect everything from fishing to farming.  

And, (be forewarned as this is more than a little weird) according to this article:

The regulations will affect farmers, who will no longer be allowed to tether horses, sheep and goats, nor keep pigs and cows in areas with hard floors.
The legislation even mentions the appropriate keeping of rhinoceroses, although it was not clear immediately how many, if any, were being kept as pets in Switzerland.

I, for one, am very glad that the pet rhinos in Switzerland are being well provided for.

The laws are said to be enforced through notification of wrong-doings and not by the Swiss Police going from door to door looking to see if your pet goldfish has a friend.

The United States animal protection laws, by contrast, tend not to be so specific over the housing of animals and mostly appear to be for cases of animal cruelty. Each state has varying degrees of punishment for animal cruelty with some animal cruelty penalties  as get as high as $20,000 or up to five years in jail.

Michael Vick, the NFL player who served 18 months for animal cruelty (dog fighting), is the most notable example of someone receiving punishment in the US for cruelty to animals. There were of course those who believed that the punishment did not fit the crime. I am glad he received such a high penalty given what he did and that the fact that the entire US was watching.