9 June 2007

Do you care about any of this?

There was quite a bit of discussion at the Membership meeting of 11 June on the California Legisla-ture bill AB1634 which will require mandatory spay/neuter of all dogs in California over 4 months of age. This bill has passed the California House and is being considered in the Senate. The consensus opinion is that this bill will eventually be passed into law in California. Why is this important to us that live in beautiful King County?
In a recent E-newsletter (www.metrokc.gov/mkcc/members/patterson ) published by Councilmem-ber Julia Patterson, District 5, she took credit for the passage of the following legislation.

“29 May 2007, the King County Council passed Ordinance 2007-0284 which makes changes to the King County Code relating to abuse, euthanasia rates and the King County Animal Control and Care Citizen’s Advisory Committee. Among the changes are:

• Calculating the euthanasia rate based on the total number of cats and dogs that enter King County Animal Control Shelters, and reduce the rate of animal euthanasia from 38 percent down to 20 percent by the end of 2008 and down to 15 percent by the end of 2009;
• Granting more comprehensive and strategic roles to King County Animal Control and Care Citi-zen’s Advisory Committee including:
  • Exploring strategies and providing recommendations on the prevention of animal cruelty, the humane care and welfare of animals in King County shelters, the reduction of euthanasia, development of a no-kill shelter policy, and ways to increase adoptions and participation in spay/neuter programs.
  • Analysis of how King County might implement a “no-kill” policy.”

There are other items covered in the new legislation, but what is really important to us is the reduc-tion in the euthanasia rate, the implementation of a “no-kill” policy and the desire for increased par-ticipation in spay/neuter programs. Does AB1634 sound like the answer King County is looking for?

Did anyone hear anything about this legislation being passed? Did you see anything about it in the newspapers? You may not care about any of this today, but when, in the not too distant future, a King County Councilmember quietly announces (through a back door) a mandatory spay/neuter law backed up by the Coalition for a NO KILL King County (www.nokillkingcounty.org/NoKillDeclaration.asp ) and Pet Data, Inc. (www.Petdata.com) of Irving, Texas, you may care then.

Take the time to check the links listed here; you will be surprised about what is going on behind your back. You might even want to do “something”.

Respectfully,
Dee Carlson
President – Sammamish Kennel Club