NEWSCATS

Is U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service poised to start taking out cats by the thousands? Such a project would be inhumane, not to mention a waste of precious taxpayer dollars in a time of deficit reduction. But believe it or not, this covert war on cats is already being waged and USFWS will be recruiting with a presentation scheduled for a Hawaii conference this fall.

In early November, USFWS personnel are going on a junket to beautiful Hawaii to teach conventioneers how to stop Trap Neuter Return programs in their towns. The program for the Wildlife Society's annual conference states that USFWS folks will give a presentation that includes "role-playing" that can be used to defeat TNR programs across the nation. (How come I never get sent to Hawaii for role-playing?)

And what is the USFWS method of choice to control community cats? Killing. That’s pretty unconscionable in this humane age, especially considering that catch-and-kill doesn’t work. If it did, we wouldn't have any community cats left by now.

Animal advocates and Change.org members scored a huge victory when they successfully lobbied  to increase the funding levels at New York City's Animal Care and Control. Let's face it, in this economy, that was not easy feat. Mayor Bloomberg and New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn agreed to raise funding levels to a 77 percent increase over the current budget by July 2014. That's a huge win for the cats and the dogs, especially in a city that has boasted one of the lowest per capita rates in the nation for funding animal control.

To capitalize on that success, Council Member Jessica Lappin filed Intro. No 655, a humane bill that would help provide a safety net for New York City's animals. This legislation would codify trap, neuter, and return programs for feral cats, in addition to requiring all free-roaming owned cats to be sterilized to help reduce the homeless cat population.

Cats aren't the only species that would benefit from this legislation. It would also require facilities that receive lost, stray or homeless dogs and cats from the public to be maintained 7 days a week, 12 hours a day in boroughs of the city in which there is not a full-service shelter. Additionally, at least one of the full-service shelters would have to be open to the public for the purpose of receiving animals 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

South Bend humanitarians descended on the city council in droves on Monday night to listen to the debate concerning funding for a new animal shelter in the city. Many carried homemade signs stating, "No Merge" or "Listen to the People."

The controversy was over a proposal to merge South Bend Animal Care and Control with St. Joseph Humane Society instead of funding a new animal shelter. Local activists opposed the merger, noting that South Bend Animal Care and Control had been making great strides toward improving the welfare of animals in their community and they desperately needed a new facility.

In a recent blog, I noted that  these smart activists had gotten the South Bend Redevelopment Commission to approve $1.5 million in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for the animal shelter project. Unfortunately, because of cost overruns, they needed the city council to pass a resolution for  more money ... $400,000 more.

There's no shortage of reasons for communities to support animal welfare programs: saving lives tends to save tax dollars and enhance public safety by getting animals spayed and neutered and off the streets. But what if there was a way to help the areas of town that it need it most while helping animals? There is.

Tax Increment Financing provides funds that can't be used for general projects, but can be used to develop economically depressed areas. Through redevelopment funds, Jacksonville, Florida, was able to help build the First Coast No More Homeless Pets Spay Neuter Clinic to bring low-cost programs to the area that needed it most. And in South Bend, Indiana, a creative and politically savvy crew of animal advocates are working the phones, gathering signatures, and attending meetings to secure an additional $300,000 in TIF funds for a new animal shelter on the city's impoverished west side.

The South Bend Redevelopment Commission has already approved $1.5 million in TIF funding for the project. If the commission and the city council approve the extra funding that will allow the new facility to be constructed in the part of town where new buildings and services are needed most, it will be a win-win for the human and animal residents of the city.

Several years ago, eBay considered the creation of a live animals auction category. Following protests from pet lovers, eBay decided to maintain its policy against live animal listings. But only when it came to auctions. While you won't see a bidding war over a puppy on the site, unethical breeders and puppy mills still have a marketplace with pet listings on eBay Classifieds.

In April, eBay amended its policy to prohibit the sale of pets on its Korean website, Auction.co.kr, stating that “eBay is committed to being socially responsible and we take the concerns of our global user community seriously.”

Now that more than 100,000 people have signed onto a grassroots campaign on Change.org calling for the end of live animal listings in eBay Classifieds, will the company once again listen to its user community?

Euthanasia of healthy dogs, cats, puppies and kittens is a national tragedy. Although approximately 4 million homeless pets are still euthanized each year, we’ve made huge strides since the '80s when over 20 million were killed. How? Through targeted spaying and neutering programs.

Yet the Alabama State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners is actively going after low-cost spay/neuter clinics in an effort to shut them down. Why? Cash, lira, and dollars. Many private vets charge and arm and a leg to sterilize dogs and cats, a service which these clinics offer in a more accessible, affordable way.

The Alabama Spay/Neuter Clinic received a certified letter, dated June 7, from Tammy Wallace, executive director of the Alabama State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, alleging that the clinic is in violation of the Alabama Code that defines veterinary practice, and therefore must cease operations.

What began as an attempt to broaden lines of communication between animal advocates and Memphis Animal Shelter regarding the treatment of shelter pets has led to threats and intimidation by the City of Memphis toward one South Carolina blogger.

Shirley Thistlethwaite began her YesBiscuit! blog to discuss standards of welfare in shelters of the Southeast and to advocate for communities to adopt the no-kill paradigm. Lately, the focus has been on MAS and their unacceptable 77 percent euthanasia rate.

In an attempt to help as many pets leave MAS alive as possible, a ChipIn donation page was set up to have funds available to get homeless cats and dogs into private rescue. Unfortunately, the City of Memphis prefers to continue the status quo and let adoptable pets die.

It was one disaster after another when Japan was slammed in early March by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded. The earthquake caused a tsunami that swept away homes and lives. Explosions and leaks at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station led to what’s been called the world’s largest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.

When the community surrounding Fukushima was evacuated, people were given very little warning that they had to clear out. They had no time to prepare, and shelters weren’t set up accommodate animals. As a result, countless animals were left behind to fend for themselves. Linda Wolfe, Program Associate for Born Free USA, explained that, “Unfortunately, Japan is now learning what New Orleans learned with Katrina regarding the non-existent contingency for animal evacuation.”

According to Wolfe, the Japan Anti-Vivisection Association believes that nearly 675,000 farm animals lived in the evacuation zone, and the number that survived could be as few as 1,000 or less. It’s unknown how many companion animals were left behind, or how many are still alive.

Killing animals is not only unconscionable policy, it's costly. It takes a lot of manpower — i.e. tax dollars — to house, kill, and dispose of a homeless dog or cat. Wouldn't it be much more compassionate to give dogs and cats slated for euthanasia to qualified rescue groups or no kill shelters if they wanted them? Such a measure would save lives and taxpayer dollars.

Enter Assembly Member Kellner, who has worked hard in the last few months to build consensus and bring a variety of groups together to help craft CAARA — the Companion Animal Access and Rescue Act. Kellner stated that "There are tens of thousands of animals in New York State shelters waiting to be adopted and most are healthy, well-behaved, and just in need of a loving home. When a humane organization volunteers to take these animals, they should not be denied. A shelter should work with them to the fullest extent possible."

Nevada is one step closer to passing Senate Bill 223, which makes certain acts of cruelty toward animals a felony. SB 223 was passed by the Senate two weeks ago and is now before the Assembly.

The bill, nicknamed Cooney’s Law, stipulates that the willful act of cruelty toward a cat, dog or other companion animal is considered a category D felony. Nevada Voters for Animals is one of the devoted groups working hard to bring awareness to animal cruelty and to help pass the bill.

An amendment (pdf) added to SB 223 states that if the act of cruelty “is committed against the animal in order to threaten, intimidate or terrorize another person” it is considered a category C felony. This is an upgrade from the current law making it a category D felony to kill the animal of another person. Perhaps Nevada is beginning to take the link between animal abuse and domestic violence seriously.