DES MOINES — A new study is shining a spotlight on the inadequacy of Iowa’s welfare laws, according to the Animal Rescue League of Iowa. The Animal Legal ...

DES MOINES — A new study is shining a spotlight on the inadequacy of Iowa’s welfare laws, according to the Animal Rescue League of Iowa.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) found Iowa is 49th in the country in this category. Mississippi ranked worse at 50th.

The ALDF shared why Iowa ranked so low:

No felony provisions for first offense cruelty to animals, except for fighting

Felony animal abuse provisions available only for second or subsequent offenses against select species

No felony neglect or abandonment provisions

Inadequate definitions/standards of basic care

At the federal level, the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Prevention Act (PACT) was passed into law last November. It makes animal cruelty a federal felony, but is not a “blanket” law that would cover all cases in Iowa.

Instead, it would include animal cruelty cases committed on federal property or through interstate commerce. One example is bestiality rings.