New State Statute Mandates Sterilization Of At Large Pets

By Linda Kor
   The City of Holbrook’s animal ordinances have recently undergone some changes that went to the city council for approval on Oct. 13. If those changes are approved, there will be more rigid requirements for pet owners and those will be noted in Friday’s edition of The Tribune-News. But as of Oct. 1, a new state statute has gone into effect that is expected to motivate pet owners to keep a tighter rein on their animals.
   According to an amendment to the Arizona Revised Statute that relates to dogs and cats, the owners of pets picked up by animal control officers will face stiffer fines and could find their pet spayed or neutered without their permission.
   In every instance where a pet is impounded there is a fee associated with its release. City ordinance states that for the first impound the cost is $20; the second is $50, the third is $80; the fourth $160 and for each impoundment after that the fees will double.
   In addition to those fees, the state statute prohibits animal control from releasing a pet to its owner if it has been at large unless one of the following applies: the dog has a current license; the dog or cat has been already spayed or neutered and implanted with a microchip for the purpose of identification at the pet owner’s expense; or if the condition of the animal hinders spay or neutering. In that instance, the surgery will be postponed until the animal is deemed able to be spayed or neutered.
   Otherwise, an animal that is picked up and isn’t already spayed or neutered, will be surgically altered before it is released, regardless of what the owner would want to have done. In addition, the owner will also be paying the bill for the surgery.
   “Basically, if the animal is not licensed it will be treated as a stray and even if the owner claims the pet it will be treated like a new adoption,” stated officer Merrill Young, with the Holbrook Animal Control.
   For an unlicensed animal that is not already altered, the cost to a pet owner for retrieving that pet will cost quite a bit more than a pet already licensed. There is a $20 impound fee, $5 license fee, $10 vaccination fee and a $50 surgical fee; a total of $85 to have a pet back that is now spayed or neutered whether the owner wanted the surgery or not. On top of those fees is a $5 daily maintenance fee for each day that the dog is housed in the shelter.
   “The maintenance fee will not be charged for people who try to claim a pet on Sunday when we’re closed and not for the time from when the animal is claimed and when the surgery is scheduled,” explained Young, adding that the animal must be kept at the shelter until after the surgery.
   The bottom line is simple: license and vaccinate your pet now, then if it does get loose and picked up by animal control you’ll be able to retrieve your pet for less money, in less time and intact.
   One of the biggest concerns for animal control is that some pet owners will feel they can’t afford the fees and as a result, don’t claim their pet.
   “It’s a concern that we will see an increase in animals that are unclaimed and will have to be adopted out or euthanized,” stated Young.
   The Holbrook shelter only has 12 kennels and an increase in pets means a smaller window of opportunity for adoption by abandoned pets.
   “If we need to, we’ll do more advertising and maybe have a pet fair to increase the possibility of adoption,” explained Young.
   The intent of the statute is to control the number of unwanted pets and to protect pets by ensuring they are licensed and vaccinated. The animal control shelter plans to arrange a vaccination clinic in the near future, as well as a spay/neuter clinic to help pet owners in protecting their pets.