On Monday, we saw our Senate Bill 1151 get killed in the Senate Agriculture Committee. The bill was patroned by Senator Ryan McDougle and we are deeply grateful to him for his support as well as that of Senator Ticer and the other committee members who voted in favor of this legislation.  It would have required that dogs and cats that are taken in as strays for the second time at a pound or shelter and are reclaimed by their owner for the second time must be spayed or neutered.  The point of the bill was to address the largest source of our pet over population problem – stray animals allowed to run at large that are intact.  It would have gone a long way toward reducing the more than 100,000 dogs and cats being killed annually in Virginia pounds and shelters. 

The bill was vocally opposed by the hunters and the breeders as was predictable.  Their comments, as usual, were entirely self focused and they never mentioned the number of animals dying in Virginia pounds and shelters.  The situation apparently does not bother them.  The bill was also loudly opposed by Senator Stuart, a member of the Agriculture Committee, who announced that his two unneutered labs run free all the time and their local animal control officer (who he called the “dogcatcher”) brings them back home all the time.  He then told the large group that his dogs certainly are not breeding when they are running at large.  I found it amazing that a state senator would acknowledge openly the immense cost that he is causing to his locality to repeatedly have to deal with his stray dogs.  I found it even more amazing that he believes that, when they are running at large all over the landscape, they are remaining celibate at all times. 

And, so, yet again, the Virginia General Assembly refrains from taking even the smallest of step that would help reduce the massive loss of life of innocent animals in their state’s pounds and shelters.  All in a day’s work for them I suppose.

Today’s blog author is Robin Robertson Starr, chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA.

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