IDA eNews: 2/20/08

L.A. City Council Approves Historic Spay-Neuter Measure
PetSmart Suspends Bird Sales - Help Make It a Permanent Ban
Call In Day to Stop Slaughter of Yellowstone's Wild Bison!


L.A. City Council Approves Historic Spay-Neuter Measure
Mayor Villaraigosa to sign ordinance into law on Feb. 26th

In our February 6th eNews ( http://ga0.org/indefenseofanimals/notice-description.tcl?newsletter_id=12749726 ), we reported that the Los Angeles City Council had voted overwhelmingly in favor of a historic spay-neuter measure, but that a second reading was required for the ordinance to become law. We are pleased to report that, as expected, the City Council passed the proposal by a margin of 14-1, making Los Angeles the largest city in the nation to ratify such a comprehensive companion animal sterilization law.

The ordinance sponsored by District 7 Councilman Richard Alarcón ( http://www.lacity.org/council/cd7/ ) will officially become law when Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa signs it, which he is scheduled to do at a press conference on Tuesday, February 26th. The signing is being timed to coincide with the 14th annual Spay Day USA, when communities across the nation promote spaying and neutering of animal companions, and offer free and low-cost sterilization services. Los Angeles will hold its Spay Day L.A. on February 24th, and provide free spay-neuter services for dozens of cats and dogs from a mobile veterinary unit at City Hall, and is already one of the nation's leaders in offering free and low-cost spay-neuter services for qualified residents in the majority of its jurisdictions.

The new law, which requires sterilization of most cats and dogs over four months of age, will bolster these efforts, and drastically reduce the number of animals relinquished to Los Angeles shelters. Last year, the city's shelters took in more than 45,000 homeless cats and dogs, and killed more than one-third of them. The new spay-neuter law will not only help Los Angeles reduce overcrowding in shelters, but also curtail dog-fighting and animal hoarding while saving taxpayers millions of dollars.

The Los Angeles City Council has also officially endorsed the California Healthy Pets Act ( http://www.cahealthypets.com/ca-healthy-pets-ab-1634-home.php ) (AB 1634), a spay-neuter bill authored by California Assemblyman Lloyd Levine ( http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a40/mainpage.htm ) at the state level. Every year, nearly one million dogs and cats wind up in California shelters -- and only half of them find new homes. By requiring sterilization of companion dogs and cats throughout the state, the California Healthy Pets Act would save millions of lives over the course of coming years.

What You Can Do:

California residents: The California Healthy Pets Act has passed the State Assembly, and currently awaits its next hearing in the State Senate's Local Government Committee. Please Take Action ( http://ga0.org/campaign/ab_1634% ) to urge committee members to support this bill, and send it to the Senate for a vote.

Learn more about the benefits of spaying and neutering ( http://www.idausa.org/facts/spayneuter.html ) for both animals and communities.


PetSmart Suspends Bird Sales - Help Make it a Permanent Ban
In wake of bird disease outbreak, nudge pet store chain towards compassion

In our January 8th eNews ( http://www.idausa.org/campaigns/exotic_birds/feature_080109.html ), we reported that birds sold by PetSmart and other pet store chains in several states had tested positive for a potentially-fatal avian disease called psittacosis. In all, birds in 43 PetSmart stores were diagnosed with avian chlamydiosis, a virus that is transmissible to humans, prompting the company to extend their suspension of bird sales until at least this April.

Just weeks later, a Today Show report ( http://video.msn.com/dw.aspx?mkt=en-us&from=truveo&vid=6b0fc8d7-85c6-4bc7-b413-766ea4450336 ) raised allegations that a supplier called Rainbow Exotics, Inc. had mistreated animals before sending them to PetSmart stores. The story featured undercover video footage of animals crowded together in unsanitary conditions, some desperately in need of veterinary care. PetSmart responded by issuing a statement that it was "disappointed and disturbed" by the video, and that the company has "launched a full investigation" into the matter.

When living creatures are mass-produced for profit, suffering and disease are inevitable. With more than 900 locations in North America, PetSmart could make a huge difference for animals by making their temporary ban on bird sales permanent, and extending it to all animal sales. PetSmart already does a lot of good by facilitating animal adoptions both online and at store events ( http://adoptions.petsmart.com/ ), but the company could help even more by focusing exclusively on helping animals find homes and selling quality products for companion animals and their guardians.

What You Can Do:

Please Take Action ( http://ga0.org/campaign/petsmart ) to encourage PetSmart to make their temporary ban on bird sales permanent, and extend it to all animal sales.


Call In Day to Stop Slaughter of Yellowstone's Wild Bison!
Urge Montana's Governor to protect, not persecute native species & national icon

Only 23 bison escaped the mass extermination that took place during the westward expansion of America in the 1870s, spared from massacre only by the protection of the U.S. cavalry. These few bison found refuge from extinction in Yellowstone, the world's first national park, and became the only continuously wild herd in the U.S. Today, their descendants have grown to nearly 4,500 in number, and continue to live in Yellowstone.

Tragically, they remain under siege in the 21st century, because Yellowstone park rangers now capture the bison and send them to slaughter as they migrate to lower elevations outside of Yellowstone with milder weather each winter and spring. Using snowmobiles and helicopters, government agents haze terrified animals out of the park where it is legal to round them up, and then send them to slaughterhouses or a quarantine research facility. Since 1985, more than 5,000 of these animals have been massacred under provisions of the Interagency Bison Management Plan, as well as state and treaty hunts, while some have also been captured for use in experiments. American taxpayers fund this unjustified violence to the tune of $2.8 million a year.

Why is this happening? Because Montana ranchers grazing their livestock on public land surrounding Yellowstone (at a fraction of market value) say bison compete with cattle for grazing resources. They also falsely claim that wild bison will infect their cattle with brucellosis (a bacterial cattle disease), even though there has not been a single documented instance of this ever occurring.

Every day, Yellowstone National Park officials continue to send dozens of bison to slaughter, most of who are not even tested for brucellosis. Rather than killing wild bison, governmental agencies should be protecting these majestic animals and allowing them safe passage on their migratory journey. Bison are part of America's rich national heritage, and must be preserved for their own sake and for future generations of Americans to experience. By engaging in this wholesale slaughter, the U.S. Government is repeating the misguided mistakes of the past, and basing its wildlife management policy on the self-serving whims of a small but powerful special interest group rather than what is best for our country.

What You Can Do:

The Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) ( http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org ) is actively working to stop the killing of bison in Yellowstone, and has proposed real alternatives ( http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/solutions.html ) to the cruel scapegoating of this native species. Please help them end the slaughter now by taking part in BFC's National Call-in Day on Thursday, February 21st to Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. Call the Governor at (406) 444-3111, and tell him that:

- The cattle industry did not put you in office, and America's last wild bison are not Montana's to destroy; they are a national treasure.

- Montana holds the key to restoring wild bison, and must open all public lands to them year-round.

- Yellowstone National Park Gateway communities bring in millions from wildlife-related activities, including $250+ million to park towns, and $86 million in wildlife viewing.

- Cattle-based risk management is the key to protecting Montana's brucellosis-free status and the health and viability of our native wildlife. Fences and vaccinations are for cattle, not wild bison.

- Pull out of the Interagency Bison Management Plan; turn bison management authority over to the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Department; and remove the Department of Labor from all wild bison-related activities.

From all of us at In Defense of Animals (IDA), thank you for standing up for the wild bison of Yellowstone National Park!


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