Questionnaire Responses

Background

Question: Can you briefly tell us a story that impacted the way you feel about animals?

Response: I’ve always been a dog lover, I’ve always had a dog, I have two rescues now.

Prohibiting the Sale of Force-Fed Foie Gras

Question: Foie gras is an especially cruel product because of its reliance on force-feeding ducks and geese. California has a statewide ban on the sale and production of foie gras, and several other U.S. cities have enacted sales bans. Would you support or sponsor a statewide ban on the sale of force-fed foie gras in Oregon?

Response: Yes, absolutely.

Prohibiting the Sale of New Animal Fur

Question: Fur production relies on cruel practices, such as extreme confinement. California has a statewide ban on the sale of new fur products, and several U.S. cities have enacted sales bans.
Would you support or sponsor a statewide ban on the sale of new fur products in Oregon?

Response: Yes, absolutely.

Pain Relief

Question: The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) recommends using pain relief for common agricultural procedures such as castration, dehorning, and tail docking. Various studies show that the vast majority of Americans support requiring pain relief for these practices. Would you support or sponsor legislation requiring the use of pain relief during painful procedures performed on farmed animals in Oregon?

Response: Yes, absolutely. I would support the AVMA helping us create processes and procedures to do this safely and routinely.

Sustainable Food Procurement

Question: Public institutions in Oregon subsidize animal-based foods regardless of their cruelty, environmental impact, or threat to public health. Would you support policies for public institutions in Oregon to prioritize climate-friendly food and limit high-confinement animal products, such as setting ambitious goals for plant-based procurement?

Response: I am absolutely willing to listen to experts on the matter and make sure cruelty, environmental impact, and public health are priorities in the legislation we create.

Factory Farm Moratorium

Question: The rapid expansion of large-scale industrial animal farms (CAFOs) is a leading source of nitrate pollution in Oregon’s groundwater and has coincided with a sharp decline in independent family farms. Would you support or sponsor a moratorium on the construction of new or expanded large-scale factory farms in Oregon?

Response: Yes, I support research based upkeep of Oregonian farms, lessening nitrate pollution and supporting family farms.

Use of Dangerous Poisons

Question: Oregon law allows the use of rodenticides that are restricted or banned in states like California due to their documented harm to wildlife, pets, and children. Death by poisoning is widely considered to cause extreme suffering, often taking days. Would you support or sponsor legislation that minimizes death by poison, such as shifting state agencies toward fertility control instead of glue traps and rodenticides, or prohibiting the sale of glue traps and the most dangerous poisons?

Response: Yes.

Other

Question: What else would you like to share? Please add anything else that might be helpful
regarding your past or current support for pro-animal policies.

Response: I think it’s important to look at animal rescue a bit more pro-actively and would like to talk to experts on the topic about how we become better at care for rescued animals here in Oregon.