May 16-20~Statewide Spay/Neuter, Step by Step: Targeted spay/neuter programs are proven to reduce the number of animals entering shelters and save taxpayer dollars. But where do you start? Sharon Secovich of Spay Maine will share her experiences and answer your questions about launching a statewide, publicly funded spay/neuter program.
You can send your questions and comments now through Thursday evening to [email protected].
Related transcripts from previous forum weeks, especially the sections on Spay/Neuter and Legal Action, can be viewed by visiting the forum archives at http://www.bestfriends.com/nomorehom...umarchives.cfm.
In addition, Peter Marsh of New Hampshire, pioneer of statewide spay/neuter, gave an interview with Best Friends on what has made the New Hampshire program so successful, at http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehom...hinterview.cfm. Find out why Peter calls adoption the "crack cocaine of animal sheltering."
Introduction from Sharon Secovich:
Everyone who works in animal welfare knows there are more cats and dogs than homes available to take care of them. As a result, millions of animals are killed each year. As evidenced by the thousands of shelters that practice “euthanasia,†the millions of donors who contribute money to shelters that “euthanize,†and the animal control agencies that also “euthanize†or contract to have it performed for them, this killing of healthy adoptable animals is considered accepted public policy in this country.
I believe that pet overpopulation, their relinquishment to animal shelters, and the subsequent “euthanization†of these animals are preventable problems with a rational solution (killing being an irrational solution). In addition to being supported by both relinquishment studies and economic studies of issues surrounding pet overpopulation, this belief is also supported by the experience of the states of New Jersey and New Hampshire, which implemented low-income, low-cost spay/neuter programs in 1984 and 1994, respectively.
In July 2004, Maine also implemented a state-funded, low-income spay/neuter program. The inception of this program was spearheaded by Spay Maine, comprised of a small group of individuals who successfully tapped into the goodwill and support of the stateâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s many shelters and rescue groups to convince the state that it was time to follow the example of New Jersey and New Hampshire. Spay Maine did this with literally no money and little legislative experience. If we did it here in Maine, you can do it in your state, too!
Bio for Sharon Secovich:
Sharon Secovich and two other women co-founded Spay Maine, a loosely formed, grassroots coalition of animal welfare advocates who successfully petitioned the State of Maine to implement and run a statewide low-income spay/neuter program. Following this success, Spay Maine went on to find the necessary public money to fund the program by convincing Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s legislators to increase the dog licensing fee and by placing a “spay/neuter check-off box†on Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s tax return. Spay Maine is currently in the process of working with the legislature to find even more funding for the program. Spay Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s success proves that you do not have to be an existing organization to effect positive change for animals.
In addition to Spay Maine, in 1994 Sharon and several other “crazy cat people†co-founded Friends of Feral Felines (FFF) to do TNR for the feral cats on Portlandâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s working waterfront. Over the years, Sharon has been FFFâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s president, volunteer coordinator, fundraising coordinator, and a trapper. Sharon is also active with her local animal shelter by providing a foster home to kittens and working with the shelterâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s spay/neuter committee.
Sharon is employed as an environmental geologist at Woodard & Curran, Inc., in Portland, Maine. She received her bachelorâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s degrees in English and geology from the University of Massachusetts and her masterâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s degree in public policy and management from the Muskie School of Public Policy at the University of Southern Maine. For her graduate school Capstone project, she studied Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s companion animal overpopulation problem, which provided much of the information Spay Maine used to design the spay/neuter program for the state.
You can send your questions and comments now through Thursday evening to [email protected].
Related transcripts from previous forum weeks, especially the sections on Spay/Neuter and Legal Action, can be viewed by visiting the forum archives at http://www.bestfriends.com/nomorehom...umarchives.cfm.
In addition, Peter Marsh of New Hampshire, pioneer of statewide spay/neuter, gave an interview with Best Friends on what has made the New Hampshire program so successful, at http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehom...hinterview.cfm. Find out why Peter calls adoption the "crack cocaine of animal sheltering."
Introduction from Sharon Secovich:
Everyone who works in animal welfare knows there are more cats and dogs than homes available to take care of them. As a result, millions of animals are killed each year. As evidenced by the thousands of shelters that practice “euthanasia,†the millions of donors who contribute money to shelters that “euthanize,†and the animal control agencies that also “euthanize†or contract to have it performed for them, this killing of healthy adoptable animals is considered accepted public policy in this country.
I believe that pet overpopulation, their relinquishment to animal shelters, and the subsequent “euthanization†of these animals are preventable problems with a rational solution (killing being an irrational solution). In addition to being supported by both relinquishment studies and economic studies of issues surrounding pet overpopulation, this belief is also supported by the experience of the states of New Jersey and New Hampshire, which implemented low-income, low-cost spay/neuter programs in 1984 and 1994, respectively.
In July 2004, Maine also implemented a state-funded, low-income spay/neuter program. The inception of this program was spearheaded by Spay Maine, comprised of a small group of individuals who successfully tapped into the goodwill and support of the stateâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s many shelters and rescue groups to convince the state that it was time to follow the example of New Jersey and New Hampshire. Spay Maine did this with literally no money and little legislative experience. If we did it here in Maine, you can do it in your state, too!
Bio for Sharon Secovich:
Sharon Secovich and two other women co-founded Spay Maine, a loosely formed, grassroots coalition of animal welfare advocates who successfully petitioned the State of Maine to implement and run a statewide low-income spay/neuter program. Following this success, Spay Maine went on to find the necessary public money to fund the program by convincing Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s legislators to increase the dog licensing fee and by placing a “spay/neuter check-off box†on Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s tax return. Spay Maine is currently in the process of working with the legislature to find even more funding for the program. Spay Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s success proves that you do not have to be an existing organization to effect positive change for animals.
In addition to Spay Maine, in 1994 Sharon and several other “crazy cat people†co-founded Friends of Feral Felines (FFF) to do TNR for the feral cats on Portlandâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s working waterfront. Over the years, Sharon has been FFFâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s president, volunteer coordinator, fundraising coordinator, and a trapper. Sharon is also active with her local animal shelter by providing a foster home to kittens and working with the shelterâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s spay/neuter committee.
Sharon is employed as an environmental geologist at Woodard & Curran, Inc., in Portland, Maine. She received her bachelorâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s degrees in English and geology from the University of Massachusetts and her masterâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s degree in public policy and management from the Muskie School of Public Policy at the University of Southern Maine. For her graduate school Capstone project, she studied Maineâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s companion animal overpopulation problem, which provided much of the information Spay Maine used to design the spay/neuter program for the state.
