Representative Shad Pearce

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:34:18)

didn't research the other canine. Okay, I got you. All right, thank you. Representative Meeks, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr.

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:34:34)

time, I've had many and I've had one for a long time, a long phase that was, that I thought a lot about, but no, at this time I do not.

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:34:10)

But no, I did not research any of the others. And there was no reason that I picked this one other than the others. Other than because, I just thought it fit. I

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:34:07)

although I like, like you said, I like all breeds of canines.

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:34:04)

Thank you. Go ahead. Thank you. I did not,

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:33:36)

So, I mean, and I thought it, and after I researched it, I thought, you know, that's a good suggestion. Do you mind me

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:33:33)

and ask me if I would do this.

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:33:27)

in consideration. Actually, let me restate what I said. I had someone to come to me

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:33:05)

Did you decide this? I decided this because of the canine on the duck. No, there's no group or anything pushing me to do this. I just thought it fit. I really did because it was so versatile in all areas and so loyal. Okay. Did you have others in

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:31:59)

Is there another state that does a dog? I didn't look if any other state done a canine or not. I did look

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:32:07)

to see that this canine was not designated to any other

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:31:30)

be a friend to the patient. There are many studies available on positive use of labs in treating both physical and mental disorders. And with that, I'll take questions. Representative Pierce has presented the bill. Are

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:31:27)

due to their trainability, gentle, loving nature, and willingness to

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:30:56)

they are highly valuable service dogs in a variety of fields such as search and rescue, bomb, drug detection, and personal therapy. I think, Mr. Chair, you have done something similar to this in courtrooms as far as therapy. Is that correct? I'm not supposed to ask you questions, am I? I apologize, but I thought I

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:31:21)

dogs, right? You're right. That's right. Okay, so many, many mental health organizations recommend labs for psychiatric service dogs

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:30:14)

the sizes come in medium to large, the versatility, they run, they swim, they work, They are friendly to everyone. The American Kennel Club has classified the dog of all reasons. So, and obviously it's a hunting dog with its web feed and its swimming ability. And Arkansas is home of a large population of duck hunting, as we all know. And with that, we've also got a state duck. But to move on and to speed this up, due to their intelligence, eagerness, eagerness to please, and willingness to work hard,

State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs (House) — March 31, 2025 (1:29:42)

Thank you, committee. I'll try to be real fast on this. All this is doing, 1886, is just to designate that the Labrador Retriever as the official canine of the state of Arkansas. And some of my justification to that is its popularity, and it's not a state dog at this time of any other state, to my knowledge, that I have researched. It's friendly, it's intelligent, it's versatile, it's affectionate, it's gentle, it's outgoing, it's high-spirited, eager to please,

Meeting — April 1, 2025 (2:11:03)

And there's 14 states, which was a question I was asked yesterday and didn't know to, so thanks to the colleague that brought it to my attention. There's 14 states in the nation that have canines, none of which have the Labrador Retriever. We will be the first state to adopt the Labrador Retriever, and we already have a state duck, which is the Mallard, and we need something to go get it. And with that, I'll take questions. Seeing no questions, I ask for a good vote, please. Thank you. Representative Pierce has explained the bill.

Meeting — April 1, 2025 (2:10:30)

First of all, I believe it fits for some of the reasons as we are the natural state. And to me, it's kind of the dog of all reasons. They're friendly, they're intelligent, they're versatile, they're affectionate, gentle, outgoing, high-spirited, eager to please. We use the service dogs, bomb dogs, drug dogs, all this kind of stuff. And with that, there was no no votes in the committee, and no opposition to my knowledge, and no physical impact to my knowledge.

Meeting — April 1, 2025 (2:10:19)

Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. I'll try to be very quick here. It's just like it says. It designates the Labrador Retriever as the official canine in the state of Arkansas. You ask yourself why.