Since an ordinance to limit animal breeding was passed in San Mateo, Calif., last March, pet breeders have been watching nervously as shelter workers, humane society interests and animal rights activists unite to challenge many traditional ideas about pets.
Those traditional ideas include an owner`s prerogative to breed a pet, a buyer`s right to choose a specific breed and even the right, once considered a wholesome part of American life, to own a pet at all.
Many agree that pet overpopulation has reached a crisis level. Breeders and humane activists alike use words like ”sickening” and ”appalling” to describe the numbers of animal destroyed each year and the conditions of neglect that lead to their end.
Legislation was proposed in Illinois recently that would have required all dogs and cats over the age of 6 months to be neutered unless owned by a licensed breeder. It also would have required that anyone giving away or selling a cat or dog be a licensed breeder and pay a $75 fee to run an ad.
The bill died, but now breeders, most of whom are unlicensed hobbyists, are worried that there will soon be more like it to come.
One of the bill`s sponsors, Rep. John Matijevich (D-Waukegan), says animal rights groups will have to drum up more grassroots support for the idea before legislation is reintroduced. ”We tested the water with this bill and the water was cold,” he said.
If legislation does come to Illinois, Du Page dog and cat breeders want to have some input. They also want to help educate the public about non-legislative options such as low-cost neutering programs, differential pet licensing fees, which would favor neutered animals, and the responsibilities of pet ownership.
For information and advice, they asked Dr. David Bromwell, chief veterinarian of the Illinois Department of Agriculture, to speak to them at the Odeum in Villa Park.
The many breeders were jumpy, shouting questions at a beleaguered Bromwell, who tried to make himself heard in the cavernous Odeum over a noisy basketball game being played on the other side of the arena.
”There were over 600,000 animals that went into shelters in Illinois last year and I bet there were 600,000 animals euthanized,” said Bromwell.
Last year, Du Page County Animal Control euthanized approximately 2,000 cats and 2,000 dogs, but that doesn`t take into account what individual towns might do.
”I`m not a humaniac,” Bromwell said, ”but I think it`s tragic to go and see all those animals in every shelter in the state.”
Nevertheless, Bromwell told the group he was opposed to the type of legislation being proposed.
”The bill (if it had passed) would likely result in a larger number of animals that are dumped by their owners, creating a larger number of homeless animals. Also, it would be virtually impossible to enforce without investigating virtually every pet owner in the state of Illinois.”
This has not been true so far in San Mateo, says county Supervisor Tom Nolan, who proposed the San Mateo ordinance. ”So far, we`ve had a high rate of voluntary compliance, no dumping of animals and all the publicity has helped promote responsible pet ownership,” he said.
Breeders respect Bromwell, giving him the credit for the ”clean” state of affairs in Illinois breeding; there are considered to be virtually no puppy or kitten mills-mass breeding facilities that disregard the animals` health and welfare-here as there are in other midwestern states.
Bromwell is also responsible for the law requiring that animals adopted from a shelter be neutered.
If the animal is too young for the procedure, adopting owners must sign a legally binding contract agreeing to have it done. They are required to put down a deposit, averaging $35, that`s refunded when proof of alteration is presented.
The compliance rate is 90 percent at the West Suburban Humane Society in Downers Grove, says director Rose Bak.
Breeders who want to speak out on the issue of breeding regulations are hesitant to do so publicly. Most are back-yard hobbyists who admit they are quietly violating animal limits in their communities.
Some are unclear on state regulations and aren`t sure if they should be licensed, which is required only if they have six or more breeding females.
As a group, they are reluctant to draw attention to themselves and speak out. (Nearly all breeders interviewed for this article refused to be quoted or identified.)
Further, they`re afraid of harassment by supporters of extreme groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), a group they claim has hoodwinked animal lovers into unwittingly supporting an agenda that will ultimately mean the end of companion animals.
”People who support PETA and send them money don`t realize that their bottom line is that no one should own a pet,” said Diane Parish, a cat breeder from Algonquin.
PETA makes no secret of its desire to abolish pet ownership, but as Parish noted, many people do not look beyond the name of the group.
”After all, who wouldn`t support the ethical treatment of animals?” she asks.
While there appears to be no direct connection between PETA and the legislation that was proposed, the activities of radical animal rights groups have influenced mainstream thinking. To breeders, PETA has assumed the status of a bogeyman. Parish said the fear of protests (which did not materialize) by PETA led her club, the Lincoln State Cat Club, to omit the usual breeder list from the available materials at their last cat show.
Steven Simmons, a spokesman for the Maryland-based PETA, said the group has never proposed any specific ordinances, but ”is opposed to any purposeful breeding of pet animals. Anyone creating more animals is adding to the problem. We`re opposed to the idea of ownership and animals as property. It rings of slavery. However, we encourage people who already own pets or who could provide for a needy abandoned animal to do so. In an ideal world there would be no pets.”
PETA does support neutering animals, calling it a service to animals in today`s society.
Simon dismisses the possibility that if all breeding were stopped, some breeds would become extinct.
”These are not natural species. These have been selectively bred. Human whim is the factor here. The loss of, say, the Pekinese, doesn`t mean much in the overall system of species diversity. Extinction of domestic animals is irrelevant.”
Most shelter workers interviewed are not opposed to keeping pets and think that if breeding were prohibited, the inevitable stray animals that slip through the enforcement process would more than ensure the survival of enough dogs and cats to meet the need for pets.
Bromwell said there`s no immediate threat of legislation banning breeding, let alone banning pet ownership.
”This is a poor session of the legislature for any of these bills to receive consideration, it`s the least priority right now.
”The biggest problem right now is people can go into a pet store, buy a pet and breed it if they want. I would like to see a law that pet stores have to register animals as pets so they cannot reproduce,” said Bromwell.
Purebred animals are of two types: show quality and the lower priced pet quality. When reputable breeders sell a pet-quality animal, they register the animal as a pet with the Cat Fancy Association or the American Kennel Club, and if the new owners try to register any offspring from that animal, they will be unable to.
Additionally, most breeders will not release the papers for the animal until proof of neutering is presented. This is not the procedure with animals sold by pet stores.
But people like to buy in pet stores, because, as Dr. Jean Waldron Churan, an Elgin veterinarian and breeder of Great Danes points out, ”It`s like buying something cellophane wrapped. In most chain pet stores the animals are clean and in a showcase. It`s the way Americans like to shop, and they can use a credit card. Whereas if they buy it from a breeder, it`s running around the house and it`s not pristine.”
Most reputable breeders will not sell to a pet shop because of disease problems and lack of control over who buys the animals, said Churan. ”People don`t realize that when they buy from a pet shop they are perpetuating a problem.”
Marshall Meyers, vice president and general counsel for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council in Washington, D.C., said pet stores are being unfairly maligned because they are a visible, easy target.
”Pet stores sell only 6 to 8 percent of all the dogs (and even fewer of the cats) sold in the entire U.S., so they are hardly the cause of the overpopulation problem.
”We support stronger kennel licensing laws as well as improved regulation of pet stores, including provisions for veterinary care and disclosure of any defect in the animal.
”We encourage stores to distribute information on spaying and neutering when they sell a dog or cat,” Meyers said.
Meyers said that Illinois pet store regulations are some of the best in the country, but they haven`t done enough to ensure veterinary care for animals in stores. He added that the biggest problem is irresponsible pet owners.
Bromwell said he isn`t opposed to legislation, if it is fair.
For example, ”I added the regulation giving counties the right to charge a litter registration fee and I haven`t found a county in Illinois with the guts to pass it. You could cut down on litters, people would say, `Hey, this is going to cost me money!`
”I believe in animal rights,” said Bromwell. ”But I think their rights are to have proper care from the two-legged animal that owns them.”
