City Council Approves Measures Requiring Spaying or Neutering Cats and Dogs

The Pasadena City Council on July, 8 approved a measure requiring all dogs and cats over four months old to be spayed or neutered.

While the City does not license cats, the penalty for unaltered dogs will be $60 more than the license fee for spayed or neutered ones.

City staff had reported that spaying and neutering has been shown to reduce aggression in dogs and has the added benefit of reducing the population of unwanted and stray animals.

Elizabeth Richard Campa of the Pasadena Humane Society told the council that as a result of passing this ordinance “the shelter can expect an immediate reduction in the number of puppies and kittens left there,” she said.

Campa believes this could save 7,000 animals in the next four to five years.

In 2012, more than 4,800 dogs and cats were impounded in Pasadena, of which more than 3,000 were strays. While the Pasadena Humane Society says it is dedicated to minimizing all unnecessary euthanasia, more than 1,300 dogs and cats still required euthanasia.

Additionally, reported dog bites in 2011 totaled more than 101 with varying severity, according to the agenda report signed by Eric Walsh, MD, Director of Public Health.

The Pasadena Humane Society will offer a new low-cost spay/neuter clinic set to open by the end of 2013.

According to the ordinance, “spay” and “neuter” are defined as any procedure performed by a licensed veterinarian that permanently sterilizes an animal and makes it incapable of reproduction.

The ordinance, which was recommended by the Pasadena Humane Society and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), would exempt animals which might be seriously harmed by the procedure as well as service dogs and dogs which are used for show or breeding purposes.

In other actions at the Council meeting,  a check from La Casita Foundation in the amount of $125,000 was presented to the Renovation of La Casita Del Arroyo Capital Improvement Project.

Newly elected 3rd District councilman John J. Kennedy nominated Robert Oltman for the Community Access Commission, Morey Wolfson for the Environmental Advisory Commission and James Smith for the Human Services Commission.

The meeting was adjourned with a moment of silence in honor of Joyce Wood Kelly, a vibrant community activist. She was a docent at the Pacific Asian Museum, an organizer of the Madison Heights 4th of July parade and a member of the Pasadena Council of Women.