Larry Meeks addresses KY Houndsmen

Lexington, KY – Larry Meeks, owner and CEO of Professional Kennel Club, Inc., was the featured speaker at the business meeting and fellowship dinner hosted by the Kentucky Houndsmen Association (KHA) on Saturday night. The annual event was held at the Holiday Inn South in Lexington. Snow showers in the region failed to prevent a full house of houndsmen and their families from attending the meeting. A highlight of the festivities was the recognition of the achievements of association members in various forms of coonhound competition. Headliners among those recognized were Frank Johnson and Mark Jones for their achievements in the Purina Outstanding Coonhound of the Year award program. Johnson’s hound Slugger became a two-time winner of the prestigious award with back to back wins in 2002 and 2003.

Meeks chose “Unity” as the keynote of his address and his remarks were extremely well received by the crowd on hand. Citing the threat of animal rights and providing unbelievable statistics to prove the seriousness of “misguided” individuals whose aim is to stop all forms of hunting, Meeks urged the group to become politically active. He stressed the importance of bringing all hunting groups together in a common cause. Larry laced his remarks with humor by recalling KHA Executive Director Wayne Caudill’s invitation to speak at the banquet. “He asked me to speak for 20 minutes. I told him I could do that but I didn’t realize he meant 20 minutes in a row!” At the close of his remarks, the crowd responded with a standing ovation.

The Kentucky Houndsmen Association is a frontline lobbying organization that supports the right to free-cast hunting dogs afield. Caudill of London, KY, as emcee of the event, introduced Larry Meeks by thanking him for his monetary contributions to assist the organization in their legislative efforts. The latest effort being sponsored by the association on behalf of houndsmen in Kentucky is Senate Bill No. 131, a bill to provide the “right to retrieve” dogs that enter upon lands other than those where permission is granted. Sponsored by Senators Worley, Buford, Blevins, Casebier, Herron, Jackson, Jones, Karem, Moore, Neal, Palmer, Pendleton, Saunders, and Turner, the bill states as follows:

Section 1. A new section of KRS Chapter 150 is created to read as follows:

“This section shall apply only to hunters engaged in hunts which customarily employ the assistance of dogs. For the purposes of this section, ‘prohibited lands’ means any privately-owned property for which the hunter has not received permission to enter. When the chase begins on other lands, hunters may enter prohibited lands solely for the purpose of retrieving their dogs. Hunters retrieving dogs shall not carry firearms or bows on their persons or hunt any game. The use of vehicles to retrieve dogs shall be allowed only with the permission of the landowner.”

Senate Bill 131 has been assigned to the State and Local Governments committee. The members of the committee are:

Sen. Albert Robinson (Republican), Chair
Sen. Alice Kerr (Republican) Chair
Senator Charlie Borders – R
Senator Julie Denton – R
Senator Elizabeth Tori – R
Senator David K. Karem – D
Senator Tom Buford – R
Senator Ernie Harris – R
Senator Walter Blevins – D
Senator Johnny Ray Turner – D
Senator Ed Worley – D

Caudill urged members to contact their Senators and to urge them to support SB 131. The Kentucky Houndsmen Association has done a yeoman’s job in getting this legislation introduced and sponsored. It’s now up to the hunters to make the phones in Frankfort ring off their hooks with their calls calling for passage of the bill.

Larry and Rita Meeks as well as Steve and Carol Fielder attended the banquet on behalf of PKC. They wish to express thanks to the Kentucky Houndsmen Association for their warm hospitality this weekend and wish them the best of success in the passage of SB 131.

PHOTOS - Left, part of the large crowd at Lexington enjoying a delicious meal before the business meeting. Right - Kentucky Houndsmen Association's Executive Director Wayne Caudill, left, presents an award of appreciation to PKC CEO Larry Meeks.