As I got my little tail feathers in gear to purchase my tickets to the third annual Pups & Purrs FUNdraiser at Fess Parker Winery in Los Olivos May 21, I marveled at the extent of outreach that the event sponsors, C.A.R.E.4Paws and Old Yeller Ranch Rescue, go through to support animals in need.
C.A.R.E4Paws recently began hosting clinics in Guadalupe. Prior to the clinic, Isabelle Abitia, co-founder of C.A.R.E.4Paws, said she was hopeful that it would be a success based on similar events held in Lompoc. The organization has spayed or neutered 1,500 dogs and cats, and vaccinated between 4,000 and 5,000 pets since 2013 when C.A.R.E.4Paws began hosting clinics in Lompoc.
Fortunately they don’t have to do all that work alone. The county has in place a spay/neuter ordinance, so do the cities of Lompoc and Guadalupe.
Absent from all this ordinance passing is the city of Santa Maria. The city is the only one in the county that doesn’t have an ordinance that speaks to responsible pet ownership.
That’s why it was great to see several people from Voices for the Voiceless attend the April 19 Santa Maria City Council meeting to urge the city to pass an unmandated responsible spay/neuter ordinance.
During public comment several supporters spoke on the importance of having the city on board when it comes to responsible pet ownership.
Linda Greco, president of the Santa Barbara County Animal Care Foundation explained exactly why such an ordinance benefits everyone—not just runners and walkers who hate coming upon a stray and wondering whether it’s aggressive. She said that currently the city has a problem with indiscriminate breeding, and strays running the streets in some areas of the city.
Other supporters said that there are also health benefits to the pets. Spaying and neutering pets can result in fewer pets lost due to their running off to mate, fewer injured pets, and a reduction in tumors and cancers.
Perhaps the shocking part of the information presented was the animal shelter statistics. Citing stats from the 2013-2014 fiscal year, Greco said that the Santa Maria shelter took in 1,500 stray dogs. Of those 36 percent were rescued by their owners, 24 percent were adopted, 26 percent were transferred to other facilities, and sadly, 11 percent were euthanized.
Compare Santa Maria’s numbers to similarly sized Santa Barbara—that shelter picked up 650 strays, 70 percent of which went home with their owners. Another 26 percent were adopted, 7 percent transferred, and only 3 percent euthanized.
Education is at the heart of the difference. With the city behind an ordinance for responsible pet ownership, animal welfare groups will have an easier job advocating for pets.
The Canary is a responsible pet. Contact her at [email protected].
