County's mandatory-spaying proposal could backfire, vets say |
By HECTOR FLORIN
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
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Wednesday, December 12, 2007
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Two veterinarians said Tuesday night they feared that Palm Beach County's proposal to require the spaying and neutering of dogs and cats would cause more people to leave their animals at shelters or skip vaccinating their unfixed pets to avoid paying penalties or newly established fees.
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"Our message is to encourage spaying and neutering of all pets," Dr. Mark Dew, a member of the Florida Veterinary Medical Association executive board who runs an animal clinic west of Lake Worth, said at a town hall-style meeting in suburban West Palm Beach.
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But Dew said the "majority of the 'problem animals' are free-roaming animals, feral animals ... and it's unlikely if an ordinance like this is passed" that those owners will follow the law.
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County commissioners in October voiced their support for the mandatory sterilization of cats and dogs amid reports that the county shelter euthanized 18,000 animals in the past year.
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Last month, commissioners approved a $300 fee, effective Jan. 1, for owners to reclaim their animals at the shelter and leave them unsterilized. They also voted to double the fee for licensing and vaccinating unsterilized dogs and cats to $75.
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Dr. Jean Oberg, president of the Palm Beach County Veterinary Society, said those policies, combined with a mandatory spay/neuter law, could lead to lawlessness because fewer owners would choose to seek licenses and rabies vaccinations for their unfixed pets.
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Public awareness, she said, is a better solution.
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"I don't think there is enough education in the school system. I don't think there is enough education on TV on spaying and neutering," Oberg said.
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About 100 people attended the meeting organized by County Commissioner Bob Kanjian. The other six county commissioners were invited, but none attended.
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"Here we have a situation where everybody agrees that we have a problem," Kanjian said.
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But enacting a countywide policy requiring pets to be sterilized — unless owners show proof that they are hobby breeders and buy a permit — steps on constitutional rights, some argued.
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Dianne Sauve, director of the county's Animal Care and Control Division, said that if commissioners approve a mandatory policy, with a first vote scheduled for Jan. 15, those breeders would have a 90-day window to obtain a permit for free. After that, they would have to pay, although the cost has not been determined.
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"We are looking at this as a tool," Sauve said. "It is not a punitive action for responsible breeders."
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Everyone, responsible owners included, should work to solve the problem, said Kay-Lynette Roca, executive director of the Safe Harbor Animal Sanctuary and Hospital in Jupiter.
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"Pet overpopulation is an epidemic in this country and it must be treated as one in this community," Roca said. "You can build shelters on every street corner ... and you are not going to solve the overpopulation problem."
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Owners who care for their pets already deal with waits of as long as six months to sterilize their pets at the county shelter and the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League, said Heidi Cole of the Jupiter-Tequesta Dog Club.
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Adding more mobile spay shuttles, working with veterinarians and enforcing current laws would work more toward solving the overpopulation problem, Cole said.
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"Animals are often dropped at the shelter because of unrealistic expectations" of the owner, Cole said. "It has nothing to do with (the animal) being intact. ... We're not killing dogs and cats because there isn't a mandatory spay/neuter policy."
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Assistant County Administrator Vince Bonvento said the county would set aside $500,000 to work toward revisiting a rebate program with the county's 200 or so veterinarians to perform sterilizations.
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Sauve said she also wants to turn the Pahokee animal shelter into a low-cost sterilization clinic.
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Those attending, including a group of private breeders, submitted comment cards. About 20 voiced suggestions and opinions on the county proposal, which would be the first mandatory program in Florida.
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"The problem is very complex," said George Lauterbach, a Loxahatchee resident who breeds Havanese dogs. "It's just not a mandatory spay and neuter program that is going to fix the problem."
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