Dog Pound Seizure Laws

In 1949, in an attempt to protect family pets from being stolen and sold to research facilities, the Pound Seizure Law was created.  The law gave licensed institutions the right to obtain animals for research purposes from publicly funded shelters or pounds if the animals had not been claimed after 5 days   Sixty years later, only three states still require shelters to give over animals to research facilities.  The remaining states are Oklahoma, Utah, and Minnesota.  

 

Families that are no longer able to physically or financially support their pets, often choose to give their animals to shelters hoping they find another loving and caring home.  Most Minnesotans are unaware of the Pound Seizure Law, and do not know that their surrendered pets could end up as subjects in experiments.