California is trying to introduce a new mandatory spay and neuter bill which is now going to the Senate for review. It basically says cats and dogs need to be spayed or neutered by 6 months of age, unless they have an exemption. Animals exempt from it are show cats/dogs, breeding cats/dogs, agility dogs, service dogs, and animals not fit to be fixed (due to age or illness).
So the local Senate member invited members of the public to come today and speak to him about what they thought about it to help him make a well informed decision.
it was interesting to say the least! It was pretty much dog breeders and agility dog owners against cat people. And there wasn't many cat people - there was a lot more against it than for it. Which is sad because all the people against it have a financial stake in the dogs, and don't want to pay an extra fee for their dogs, even though it would help shut down the back yard breeders.
And unfortunately they're not the ones this Bill is aimed at - it's aimed at the animals who don't have people with a financial interest in them - the ones whose owners don't realise the importance of spay/neuter, the numerous animals roaming the streets unneutered, and the people who don't realise you can get it done cheap at a low cost spay and neuter clinic. Part of the bill will be to put lots of money into free/low cost spay and neuter clinics to ensure people can be responsible without breaking their budget.
It was so frustrating, because the dog people kept blaming the feral cats for the problems, and they're the reason this bill was written, and because they're feral, there's nothing that can be done anyway. They don't realise a feral cat is generally the result of a dumped litter of unwanted kittens. So if you reduce the number of unwanted litters, you reduce the number of ferals. And if there's more free or low cost clinics available it's easier to run a feral TNR program!
This bill is based on laws in Santa Cruz County which has had essentially a mandatory spay and neuter law for a number of years now. The number of animals being euthanised has dropped dramatically, there's less animals coming into the shelters, and the breeders and agility owners are still quite happily doing what they do. It's proven to have worked, yet they're still opposing it. It's crazy. It won't FIX the problem, but it'll certainly reduce the number of unwanted litters, and the number of animals being euthanised.
If someone doesn't have their pet fixed, they get issued with a "Fix-it" ticket, and get given a list of the free/low cost shelters. They only pay a fine if they still don't get it fixed and can't produce a reason why they should be exempt.
I didn't get to speak today - he said he wasn't going until he had spoken with everyone who wanted to talk, but after being there 3 1/2 hours, and having not eaten all day I was beginning to feel sick, so had to give up and go get food. I do think I'll write a letter to this Senator though with pretty much all this.
It'll be interesting to see what happens!
So the local Senate member invited members of the public to come today and speak to him about what they thought about it to help him make a well informed decision.
it was interesting to say the least! It was pretty much dog breeders and agility dog owners against cat people. And there wasn't many cat people - there was a lot more against it than for it. Which is sad because all the people against it have a financial stake in the dogs, and don't want to pay an extra fee for their dogs, even though it would help shut down the back yard breeders.
And unfortunately they're not the ones this Bill is aimed at - it's aimed at the animals who don't have people with a financial interest in them - the ones whose owners don't realise the importance of spay/neuter, the numerous animals roaming the streets unneutered, and the people who don't realise you can get it done cheap at a low cost spay and neuter clinic. Part of the bill will be to put lots of money into free/low cost spay and neuter clinics to ensure people can be responsible without breaking their budget.
It was so frustrating, because the dog people kept blaming the feral cats for the problems, and they're the reason this bill was written, and because they're feral, there's nothing that can be done anyway. They don't realise a feral cat is generally the result of a dumped litter of unwanted kittens. So if you reduce the number of unwanted litters, you reduce the number of ferals. And if there's more free or low cost clinics available it's easier to run a feral TNR program!
This bill is based on laws in Santa Cruz County which has had essentially a mandatory spay and neuter law for a number of years now. The number of animals being euthanised has dropped dramatically, there's less animals coming into the shelters, and the breeders and agility owners are still quite happily doing what they do. It's proven to have worked, yet they're still opposing it. It's crazy. It won't FIX the problem, but it'll certainly reduce the number of unwanted litters, and the number of animals being euthanised.
If someone doesn't have their pet fixed, they get issued with a "Fix-it" ticket, and get given a list of the free/low cost shelters. They only pay a fine if they still don't get it fixed and can't produce a reason why they should be exempt.
I didn't get to speak today - he said he wasn't going until he had spoken with everyone who wanted to talk, but after being there 3 1/2 hours, and having not eaten all day I was beginning to feel sick, so had to give up and go get food. I do think I'll write a letter to this Senator though with pretty much all this.
It'll be interesting to see what happens!