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to address the most common forms of animal mistreatment in the state," said Woody Barth, the president of the North Dakota Farmers Union and a rancher and farmer from Solen in rural south-central North Dakota.
• The Animal Legal Defense Fund, an advocacy group based in Cotati, Calif., says North Dakota and South Dakota are the only states without a felony penalty for animal cruelty.
• Thunshelle said the drafters of the measure took care not to interfere with normal farming and ranching practices. Cats, dogs and horses are mentioned specifically because they are the most common companion animals, she said.
• The North Dakota Legislature defeated a broader anti-cruelty proposal last year,

in part because of opposition from agricultural groups. They have promised to bring an alternative proposal to the Legislature next year, an effort supported by Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring.
• Dustin Oedekoven, South Dakota's state veterinarian, said South Dakota does have a felony penalty for staging dog fights, with a maximum two-year prison term. However, most animal mistreatment offenses in South Dakota are misdemeanors, which are punishable by a year in jail.
• Oedekoven said the South Dakota Legislature has declined to provide a broader felony penalty for animal mistreatment because it is not seen as a major problem, and farmers and ranchers fear a law would inadvertently affect them.
• Farmers and ranchers "really feel like the industry is best served by self-monitoring, and ensuring that production practices are left to be decided between the veterinarian and the producer," Oedekoven said.
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• VERMILLION, S.D. (AP) -- South Dakota pole vaulter Derek Miles begins competition at the Olympics on Wednesday.
• The University of South Dakota assistant track and field coach will be competing in the preliminaries in London. If he qualifies for the finals he will compete again on Friday.
• The 39-year-old Miles is competing at the Olympics for a third time. He finished seventh in Athens, Greece, in 2004, and fourth in Beijing, China, in 2008.
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