The following is information from the latest Animal Spirit Newsletter. Its US information but may be of interest to members of AAS and others who are interested in implementing spay-neuter legislation ...
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In the 9/3/02 issue, an alert was featured regarding a "Humane
Euthanasia" law proposed by Jim Willis (a wonderful animal advocate!).
This alert was in response to the horror stories we hear on a daily
basis regarding "surplus" companion animals killed by means of car
exhaust, heart sticks, rifles, etc.
The sample letter that was included was addressed to elected govt.
officials asking for a federal law for humane euthanasia of animals. The
idea of requesting a federal law regarding methods of killing animals
did not sit well with me, but like so many of you, I am also concerned
about the horrific methods used to legally murder animals.
As usual, there is always another side to every issue. Until we hear
both sides presented to us, it's not easy to make a clear decision.
Today, Friends of Animals sent an "open letter" rejecting the plan for
"humane euthanasia" and very clearly stated why. A copy of the open
letter appears below.
After reading the "other" side of this difficult issue, I leave it up to
you to decide where "on the fence" you fall. Personally, I do not
condone the killing of healthy animals and do not endorse govt. approved
killing of healthy animals.
If you agree that there needs to be a "humane euthanasia" law, a sample
letter and contact info was made available in Newsletter 9/3/02 (if you
need a copy, let me know).
If you reject the idea of killing healthy animals for any reason, there
are a couple of options. We can write to our elected officials and
request a law for mandatory spay/neuter. We can also work our butts off
and educate the public.
Spay/Neuter, Adopt, Rescue, Don't Breed. NO EXCUSES!
That must become our mantra. Paint it on signs, put it in your email
signature, download the flyers on The Animal Spirit site
(http://www.theanimalspirit.com/vigil.html -- see bottom of page), write
it on post-its and hand it out to people on the street. I don't care how
you do it, just do it! Nonviolently, of course! Don't attack people with
post-its! :-)
We must dispel the myths:
1. Companion animals DO NOT have to give birth to "just one litter."
2. It IS NOT acceptable to allow an unaltered companion animal to roam
unsupervised.
3. It IS NOT acceptable to sell and purchase animals like merchandise --
whether from pet stores, "backyard breeders," or "responsible breeders."
4. Purebred DOES NOT mean better.
5. Your children DO NOT need to see the "miracle of birth" in person.
Get them a video.
6. We DON'T CARE how cute/gorgeous your companion animal is. We DON'T
CARE if his/her great-great maternal grandparents were the companion
animals of the Queen of England and you have the papers to prove it --
GET HIM/HER SPAYED/NEUTERED!
Spay/Neuter, Adopt, Rescue, Don't Breed. NO EXCUSES!
That is the only way to stop the killing.
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FoA Rejects Campaign for the "Humane" Killing of Dogs and Cats; Seeks
Support for Sterilization
5 September 2002
Animal shelters in the U.S. kill over five million abandoned animals
each year. Uncounted millions more suffer the effects of violence,
sickness, exposure, and starvation in the streets of the nation's cities
and towns.
From our beginning in 1957, Friends of Animals has advocated low-cost
altering as the most effective means of preventing the births of
domestic dogs and cats, their abandonment, their suffering and mass
killing. Over the past four decades, we have facilitated more than 2
million sterilization procedures.
Friends of Animals recently received an Open Letter from Jim Willis of
The Tiergarten Sanctuary Trust, endorsed and circulated by Livi French,
Director of The Caring Corps, Inc. Livi French states:
At this place in time along our journey to becoming a no-kill nation,
let us pledge to engage in a unified campaign for federal legislation
mandating that the institutionalized killing of surplus companion
animals be done exclusively by the only humane method known: sedation
followed by lethal injection.
The message calls this "A Resonable Proposal" and states that this is
the "single defining issue that every one of us -- big and small, rich
and poor -- should support".
Jim Willis clearly states that the issue in "A Reasonable Proposal" is
not related to animal rights. We agree that it is not. And let us be
clear: Friends of Animals supports animal rights.
We do not consider the killing of healthy cats and dogs euthanasia. It
is killing.
We do not think that killing animals is reasonable.
We share your outrage over particularly grisly methods of killing; we
also share the frustration felt by many over what often appears to be an
intractable problem. But supporting a federal scheme for killing --
"humane" or otherwise -- is no way to score a national victory for the
animals. Rather, it is yet another move that would codify the human
right to kill animals on a national scale. Animal rights advocates must
oppose the killing of animals as a matter of morality.
We urge The Tiergarten Sanctuary Trust and The Caring Corps to
note that the cycle of suffering and death can only be effectively
addressed by dealing with the matter of births. Therefore
we urge animal advocates who envision a no-kill nation to act locally:
support local trap-and-neuter initiatives. Insist that
all shelters ensure the sterilization of all dogs and cats released for
adoption. Friends of Animals will gladly support such efforts, and would
welcome unified assistance in the struggle to end the proliferation of
domestic cats and dogs.
For more information on supporting the sterilization initiative,
kindly visit http://www.friendsofanimals.org/nokill.htm
Sincerely,
Priscilla Feral
President
Friends of Animals
777 Post Road
Darien, Connecticut 06820
phone: 203-656-1522
Friends of Animals sterilization certificate hotline: 1-800-321-PETS
e-mail: feral@friendsofanimals.org
Web site: http://www.friendsofanimals.org