In the last two years, the number of attorneys registered as members with the Animal Legal Defense Fund has mushroomed from 450 to 600. Though not all subscribe to hard-line animal rights beliefs, many attorneys shun fur or leather clothing and avoid eating meat. Most are pet owners themselves and longtime devotees of the cause. When his Lake Forest landlord ordered that his cat, Shredder, be declawed in 1995, Newman fought back and won. Most recently, Newman has been helping a Newport Beach woman retain custody of her Rottweiler, Guinness, against a former boyfriend who claims the dog is his.
Animals are much more grateful for what they get.
Such a change holds dire implications, they say. Veterinarians believe animal health care costs would skyrocket under an avalanche of litigation. O'Brien, the veterinary insurance executive, said his industry has noticed an increase in the number of pet owners demanding emotional-distress damages. Some animal rights activists are now urging state regulators to require that any disciplinary actions be posted in doctors' offices. I'm concerned that if we start allowing, through the courts, people to think of the loss of a pet as equivalent to the loss of a human being, that will contribute to erosion of the primacy of human beings.