$500 Fine for Pets not Spayed or Neutered by 4 MONTHS!!!

[Dan & Corinne]

Can you believe this? The new proposed bill in California wants to force pet owner to a mandatory spay neuter by the time the pets are 4 MONTHS OLD!

If you are caught with any pets over 4 months that are not there is a $500 fine!

If you are a breeder, you have to get a permit at $50 to $100 per pet!

Why? to reduce the number of animals being euthanized.
This is outrageous!

First of all the responsible pet owners will do it anyways. The ones who don't care won't. In my opinion it's not going to change anything.

What do you think? What if this bill passes and other states follow suit?

The price of purebred dogs and cats are so much more in California already, if this bill passes, I can't imagine what a new Yorkie puppy would cost, I rarely see a pup for under $1200 and a good breeder is asking for $2500+ for a limited registeration.

for more details go to:
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_5632446

[lolabella]

Ummm... 6 months would be more appropriate in my opinion, but...

I guess I don't see what is outragous about it. Care to elaborate?

[Amber_lv]

It has it's pro's and con's first the

pro's.....

1. This would stop a lot of the puppy mills i think because you think about it they have like 300-500 dogs at $100.00 a pop thats $30,000-50,000.00 that they have to come up with to breed!

2. It would stop a lot of the BYB breeders as well if this law was inforced and kept on top of.

Con's....

1. It would hurt small breeders that care about the breed

2. It would hurt the legitamate kennals that have a lot of dogs as well that is a hefty price for each dog

[stedmansmommy]

Well in ALOT of ways I actually think it's GREAT ( What Amber said about the Puppy Mills ) however, on the other hand, 4 months is QUITE young, especially for these tiny ones like Yorkies. Some are just WAY too small at 4 months still. I know that if I lived in Cali and this law was passed, I'd have a $500 fine slapped on me because there is no way in h3ll I would have had Tatum spayed at 4 months - WAYYYY too little, still is!

[Dan & Corinne]

My biggest problem with it is it forced upon us. It's not a choice. I would do it anyways but let say I'm undecided about breeding, and my pup is only 7 months old, if I get caught it's going to cost me $500 fine then I have to decide to pay for neuter, spay or pay the $50-$100 for a permit.

Even if they pass the bill, unresponsible owners are NOT going to spay/neuter and if it looks like they might get caught, they'll take them to the shelter anyways so they don't have to pay.

Vet's will charge more for the procedure because we have to have it done. Breeders will charge more because "they have to get a permit".
People will bring unhealthy dogs accross the border or there will be a "Black Market" on poorly bred dogs to meet the demand depleted inventory from the small breeders and hobby breeders. Puppy mills will blossom since the demand will increase and people will buy from pet stores since they can't find the smaller breeders.

I just don't see this as a good thing.

I just can't see how this is going to reduce the number of animals in the shelters. If anything I think it might increase.

[livingdustmops]

This is what is outrageous to me:

The bill would "address the needless slaughter" of as many as 500,000 animals in California each year, said Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys, the author of the bill, AB1634. "There has to be a better way."

While I don't agree with the 4 months idea I do believe we as a society must stop this needless killing. There does have to be a better way.

[Dan & Corinne]

Originally Posted by livingdustmops

This is what is outrageous to me:

The bill would "address the needless slaughter" of as many as 500,000 animals in California each year, said Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys, the author of the bill, AB1634. "There has to be a better way."

While I don't agree with the 4 months idea I do believe we as a society must stop this needless killing. There does have to be a better way.

I 100% agree there is a huge need to reduce the number of shelter dogs, but the way I see it, and maybe it's a Southern California thing... but because So Cal has people from so many different cultures, they don't see pet ownership the same way we do. They don't see that spay/neuter, regular check-ups, good diet, etc. applies to dogs & cats. Also, the "questionable" south of the border immigrant community can not afford the cost of spay neuter and may not know about the low cost clinics or that letting your pets reproduce is a problem at all.

Hmmm.... I wonder if their Catholic beliefs plays any part in them not sterilizing their pets. (I don't mean to offend anyone by this comment - it's just a thought that hit me).

Basically people need to be educated in responsible pet ownership. As far as the shelters go, I check their websites quite a bit and there are far more cats and kittens then there are dogs, especially young dogs. I would guess most of the cats are feral (sp?) and what do you do about that? As for the dogs? Again, they are being given up because of unresponsible pet owners for behavior problems, age or illness. Most dogs I see listed for adoption in our area are pit or pit mixes and smaller dogs are older chi's & chi mixes.

[Peters]

i think its a great idea!

[Mardelin]

California local news has just begun reporting the dog fancier's side. Letter's to your local congressman need to be sent. Where before you were only getting a one sided view (PETA). I know that the AKC has sent a letter to the California Governor, many of Kennel Clubs have also sent letters opposing this. If it does pass, the dog world as it is today is a thing of the past. I do know that in Palm Springs, in order to be a breeder, you must be an AKC member and actively be participating in showing a dog.

[Patti]

I don't agree with spaying/neutering at 4 months old. I think some modifications need to be made so that responsible pet owners aren't penalized for waiting until safe to s/n their pet. I know it would be an administrative nightmare but something like a refund of the fee/fine once proof animal has been spayed by 1 year of age. Something has to be done to stop the millions of animals euthanized or living their life out in a shelter.

[Mardelin]

Visit the following to view the letter sent to the Governor from AKC

http://www.akc.org/pdfs/canine_legis...ReBill1634.pdf

[Tytainea]

i also think its a good idea. However, I think that the age of spay or neuter should depend on the breed and or weight of the dog. A Lab at 4 months is going to be much bigger than a yorkie or chi or maltese. Perhaps you should have to notify someone when you get your puppy of what age he or she is and what breed and weight and then get a time frame from there. Like saying you have a yorkie that is 3 months and 2 lbs it may not be healthy enough to spay by 4 months. So maybe you could be given a grace period of a few months for that particular dog.

[Mardelin]

Originally Posted by Tytainea

i also think its a good idea. However, I think that the age of spay or neuter should depend on the breed and or weight of the dog. A Lab at 4 months is going to be much bigger than a yorkie or chi or maltese. Perhaps you should have to notify someone when you get your puppy of what age he or she is and what breed and weight and then get a time frame from there. Like saying you have a yorkie that is 3 months and 2 lbs it may not be healthy enough to spay by 4 months. So maybe you could be given a grace period of a few months for that particular dog.

Several studies have been conducted, if spay/nuetering ocurrs at too young an age it does affect the bone growth process.

The bill while it does appear to be directed at responsible ownership has much more of an impact on other areas.

[TammyJM]

Originally Posted by Tytainea

i also think its a good idea. However, I think that the age of spay or neuter should depend on the breed and or weight of the dog. A Lab at 4 months is going to be much bigger than a yorkie or chi or maltese. Perhaps you should have to notify someone when you get your puppy of what age he or she is and what breed and weight and then get a time frame from there. Like saying you have a yorkie that is 3 months and 2 lbs it may not be healthy enough to spay by 4 months. So maybe you could be given a grace period of a few months for that particular dog.

I agree with this...it should be a certain age and weight. It isn't as cut and dry as what they want it to be, "4 months of age or a fine." I have a Maltese mix and he is not neutered at a little over 4 months. I want him to be closer to 6 months because I honestly feel that 4 months is too young. Other than the age requirement, I actually like the bill. I am a future breeder and I would have no problem with paying extra for a permit. I really think overall, this would discourage the puppy-millers....which is GREAT!!!

Tammy

[Mardelin]

Originally Posted by TammyJM

I agree with this...it should be a certain age and weight. It isn't as cut and dry as what they want it to be, "4 months of age or a fine." I have a Maltese mix and he is not neutered at a little over 4 months. I want him to be closer to 6 months because I honestly feel that 4 months is too young. Other than the age requirement, I actually like the bill. I am a future breeder and I would have no problem with paying extra for a permit. I really think overall, this would deter the puppy-millers....which is GREAT!!!

Tammy

Yes, but it will affect your economy....no dog shows in the state of California as it doesn't make allowances for those traveling into the state. No it won't deter the puppy millers, they'll just pay the fees....they are making big bucks......and it won't deter those such as the "Hunt Corporation" Dog wholesaler, who has made millions off of the importation of dogs from other countries and selling them, to millers and pet stores.