The Advocacy Committee exists to
develop guidelines and procedures for dealing with pet stores, breeders and owners who are
operating in a non-licensed, unresponsible or abusive manner. In addition, the
committee exists to provide education on the UDSA licensing and inspection process.
Goal: To stop the sale of hedgehogs at non-USDA licensed pet stores and by non-USDA
licensed breeders, and to discourage the sale of hedgehogs at USDA licensed pet stores
that do not provide educational materials, do not offer a "bring-back" policy
that will care for the hedgehog until an acceptable home is found, do not keep hedgehogs
separated by sex while in the store, or do not allow the purchaser to contact the breeder
directly with health, care, or lineage questions.
Co-Chairs:
Jennifer Plombon jennerss@mn.rr.com
To access the Advocacy documents in a MSWord format, click on
the following links:
Advocacy US or Advocacy Canada
The Advocacy Committee will:
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Provide links to
USDA pages that will show whether a particular store or breeder is licensed to sell
hedgehogs |
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Provide links to
USDA pages that provide names, addresses, telephone and FAX numbers for USDA regional
offices responsible for the area in question |
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Provide links to American and Canadian animal
welfare organizations to contact when the USDA will not or cannot act in a timely fashion,
and as an adjunct to USDA actions |
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Provide a "blueprint" describing how
to remove a hedgehog from a pet store legally, quickly, and safely, and what steps to
follow once the hedgehog is safely in the hands of the rescuer |
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Provide a "blueprint" for following up
on the USDA investigations of the store, and for ensuring that the store does not continue
its illegal or abusive practices |
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A future goal is to provide access to funds that
can be used to buy the hedgehog(s) from the store, when the rescuer cannot afford to do
so, or that can be used to compensate the rescuer after they have used their own funds |
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Work with the Rescue Committee of the HWS to
find new homes for the hedgehogs rescued |
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©2001-2006 The Hedgehog Welfare Society
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