New York, NY – Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal (D/WF-Manhattan) today responded to reports that a Brooklyn tattoo artist tattooed his dog following a medical procedure and called for the passage of her bill, A.739-A, which would ban the practice.

“Tattooing or piercing an animal for vanity is selfish at best and inhumane at worst, and should be prohibited by law,” said Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal. “Animals cannot speak for themselves, and therefore rely completely upon their humans to keep them safe and out of harm’s way. It’s so sad that this animal was subjected to needless cruelty at the hands of its ‘trusted’ human.”

Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal is the sponsor of legislation, A.739-A, which would prohibit tattooing or piercing of companion animals unless performed by a licensed veterinarian for identification or medical purposes only.

“If a person is weighing whether to get a tattoo, they will consider the amount of pain the procedure will cause both during and afterward against the benefits that they will receive from it," said Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal. “As we all know, animals do not have the capacity to make these decisions, nor can they contextualize that the pain they feel might result in what some might consider beautiful body art; sadly, all they know is the pain. My bill, A.739-A, will ensure that no animals suffer needlessly to satisfy the selfish vanity of their cruel owners.”

Rosenthal first introduced bill A.739-A

in July 2011 after learning about a woman who was selling kittens that had been pierced on the face, neck and down the length of the spine; she was marketing them to the public as ‘gothic kittens.’ After researching the issue, Assemblymember Rosenthal learned that this is, unfortunately, a growing trend, with owners and breeders alike across the country and right here in New York tattooing and piercing companion animals with reckless abandon.

“In the case of tattoos administered for identification or medical purposes, we’ve made a decision that the benefit conferred on the animal by the procedure – reuniting a lost animal with its family or some unidentified medical purpose – outweighs the pain associated with the procedure,” continued Rosenthal. “Clearly, the same cannot be said for vanity tattoos or piercings; something must be done to stop this immediately.”

Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal represents the 67th Assembly district, which includes the Upper West Side and parts of the Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen neighborhoods in Manhattan.