PIJAC Launches Membership Campaign

PIJAC staff members, including President Pamela Stegeman, second from left, model membership campaign T-shirts at SuperZoo in Las Vegas.

The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC) has borrowed a line from Texas with its new membership campaign “Don’t Mess with My Pet.”

The new initiative, unveiled Wednesday, aims to educate the public on legislation that could restrict pet ownership. It marks the first time individual pet owners will be able to join the Washington, D.C.-based organization.

“There are legislative actions out there that are trying to inhibit (the public’s) ability to own pets…we want them to learn about those and get engaged,” PIJAC President Pamela Stegeman said.

As the pet industry’s lobbying group, PIJAC tracks legislation that affects the pet industry, whether on a municipal, state or federal level. Some states have proposed measures that seek to increase taxes on animal products or on the animals themselves, Stegeman said. In addition, there has been action on Capitol Hill with the introduction of HR 669, which could affect the importation of many nonnative animal species in the U.S., including most birds, reptiles, fish and several mammals — hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs and ferrets —commonly kept as pets.

The public can join PIJAC online for an annual membership fee of $25. Members will receive a “Don’t Mess with My Pet” t-shirt as well as alerts on pending legislation and access to PIJAC’s Legislative Action Center.