3 Aug 10 @ 08:00am by Liam McAleer

NEWLY registered cats in Melton shire must now be desexed by law.

The new law will be introduced over the next three months after councillors voted 6-1 in favour of the motion at last week’s meeting.

It’s hoped the mandatory desexing of cats will reduce the number of stray and feral cats in the shire as well as reduce their impact on wildlife.

Councillors hope the law will also see less putting down of kittens, fewer cat fights and fewer homeless, hungry and sick cats.

The council first decided to draft the mandatory cat de-sexing laws last December, when a notice of motion – which originally included a proposed cat curfew but was later denied – and petition were presented to council.

Council’s corporate services manager Kel Tori said de-sexing would only be mandatory for cats registered for the first time, not existing registered cats.

“It’s not retrospective, it will apply for cats on their first registration,” he said. “If an unregistered cat is impounded, before it can be released it must be registered and desexed.”

Cr Sophie Ramsey, the only councillor to oppose the law, said she supported mandatory de-sexing, as long as it would not disadvantage members of the community. “As a council our number one priority is the health and well-being of the members of our community and it’s a proven fact that owning pets benefits a lot of people such as the elderly and the disabled,” she said.

“A lot of people are struggling with the increased costs of everyday living and to be subjected to additional costs for compulsory de-sexing of cats, which is in the vicinity of a few hundred dollars, could be really hard for those struggling to make ends meet. Ninety-eight per cent of our residents to the right thing, but if people can’t afford it and would still like to be pet owners, I’d hate to see anyone disadvantaged by that.

“But, it is my understanding that there are grants available and residents can apply for council’s hardship policy, so I’m quite comfortable with the law if that’s the case.”

There are about 3800 registered cats in the shire, with the vast majority desexed.

read original article here and post your comment

20 Jul 10 @ 04:00pm by Alicia Melville-Smith

PLAYFORD residents may soon be forced to register their cats, under a new bylaw being considered by the council.

The council last week voted to draft a bylaw, which could possibly include cat microchipping, compulsory desexing and curfews.

Councillor Don Levitt, who called for the bylaw, said unruly cats were causing a nuisance in the community.

“They create a lot of noise at night,” he said. “I get them running through my garden, they knock off the bird life and a lot of them go feral.

“NSW, Victoria and Tasmania have had this law in place for a number of years. It’s about time council made the decision this is a bylaw that this council needs.”

The council, which already limits cat ownership to two per household, recorded 86 complaints about nuisance cats in 2009/10.

The number of complaints was about the same as the previous year. Playford Council says the bylaw will take up to a year to develop and will include consultation with residents and the Dog and Cat Management Board. Cr Levitt hoped the introduction of cat registrations would lead to a decrease in the population of feral cats in the area.

RSPCA spokesperson Tracey Taylor said the organisation supported the move. “Our history shows that if responsible pet owners register their cats they are more likely to take care of their pets, stop them straying and have less unnecessary litters,” she said. “We think any step towards more responsible pet ownership is a good one.”

Gawler and Salisbury councils have both said they have no plans to introduce tougher cat controls.

How far should Playford’s cat controls go? Have your say by visiting the original article here

20th July 2010 11:05:41 AM

By Belinda Nolan

Still waiting …Caroline Springs animal activist Nathan Miles is frustrated by delays to Melton Council’s mandatory cat de-sexing policy. 50195

MELTON Council has promised to speed up mandatory cat de-sexing, after more than seven months of delays.

Animal activists have been clamouring for the new laws to be introduced amid fears the shire’s stray cat population is spiralling out of control.

Councillors had voted in December to establish a new local law that would make it compulsory for all newly registered cats to be de-sexed, in a bid to combat the cat problem.

But the initiative has remained on the drawing board following changes to the State Government’s Local Law guidelines.

Animal activist Nathan Miles has been a strong campaigner for mandatory de-sexing and says the delay is unacceptable.

The Caroline Springs resident said the initiative was vital to take control of the shire’s cats and further delays would only exacerbate the problem.

“When we won the campaign we had no idea it would take this long to implement,” Mr Miles said.

“I can understand why there has been a delay but I still don’t think it’s good enough.

“Mandatory de-sexing has to be enforced immediately.

“We’re heading towards breeding season and I’m concerned that if the law is not in place by then, the problem is just going to get worse.”

Caroline Springs Animal Welfare Association President Rana Hales said her organisation was also pushing for the laws to be fast-tracked.

“As far as we’re concerned this can’t wait any longer,” Ms Hales said.

“We fought hard for this and we want to see it happen sooner rather than later because we believe it will make a difference.

“There is a huge amount of stray cats in the area and breeding is getting out of control.”

Melton Mayor Justin Mammarella told Star the council was committed to mandatory de-sexing and would be presenting a draft local law at next week’s council meeting.

“There was some delay but we’re looking at bringing this issue forward as soon as possible,” Mr Mammarella said.

Mr Mammarella said the regulations would come into effect soon after the council approved the new laws.

Read original article here

By Anthony Megna

The most positive results in this world come from understanding. Once you understand something, you are better informed to make the right decisions. Education is nothing but communication. Retaining that communication is the goal of all educators. It is not a secret that we have a huge dog and cat overpopulation problem. Why? Because spaying is not at the high numbers it should be. It’s really that simple.

Now, there are people who breed animals for a living. They have every right in the world to pursue their occupation because most of them know what they are doing. But it is tough to justify pet owners not taking the responsibility to neuter their pets in this day and age. All it takes is a trip to an animal shelter to see the pain and suffering a lot of these animals go through to see that there is an overpopulation problem. Shelters have to put down a lot of animals per week because they just can’t handle the crisis. It costs money to feed and house these creatures, and there is only so much cash to go around these days.

My wife and I got our dog from a shelter. He had two days to live and was skinny as a rail. Now he is fully healthy and is a trained therapy dog. He visits nursing homes, hospice, hospitals and even libraries to spread joy to people. He is a treasure, and this is possible because we took the time to train him. I believe he is thankful to be alive and to have a home, and he is very empathetic to other beings who are suffering.

There needs to be a double-pronged approach to the animal overpopulation problem. First, spaying your pets is key. We need to spread the word as much as possible. The simple truth is that there are enough cats and dogs out there for anyone who wants a pet without generating more. Second, your local animal shelter needs help in trimming the amount of animals they have. If you want a pet for your home, please visit your shelter. The odds are you will find what you are looking for. The animals can’t thank you enough as all they need is a loving home. Believe me, you won’t be disappointed.

Education needs to be an ongoing process so that these animals can find a home. Also, spaying and neutering is a must. There is just no reason, unless you are a breeder, to not spay your pet today. It is a sad, sad, thing to witness an animal that no one wants, or is wandering the streets starving to death.

Yes, we need to continue our efforts to educate the public about the overpopulation problem so we can eradicate the ignorance.

Read original article here

CAT welfare groups want people to sterilise their pets before breeding season starts in August to reduce the high number of unwanted kittens being dumped during the Christmas period.

Cat Haven spokeswoman Jessica Reid said thousands of unwanted kittens were received by cat shelters last Christmas with many of them put down.

“If more cats were sterilised before the start of breeding season this awful situation could be prevented,” Ms Reid said.

Australian Veterinary Association (WA) president Garry Edgar and RSPCA spokesman Tim Payne said people also needed to take responsibility for ‘unclaimed cats’.

“Some people need to be more responsible for the cats they are feeding.” Dr Edgar said.

“Semi-owned cats that are being fed by irresponsible people are often the source of these unwanted kittens. Do not just feed a cat, de-sex it and let it become a pet for life.”

view original article here

Heidelberg Leader

GREENSBOROUGH’S Cat Protection Society of Victoria has renewed calls to Banyule Council to implement a mandatory desexing policy for cats, amid one of its busiest months for receiving dumped animals.

Society director Dr Carol Webb said of the 15,000 cats processed at the Elder St site each year, up to 11,000 were put down due to severe injuries, wild temperament and in some cases, over-crowding.

Read out the stark reality of cat culling.

“The society has been making a concerted effort for the past five years in campaigning local councils for the mandatory desexing for all domestic cats over 12 weeks of age,” Dr Webb said.

“We have always been running with an over supply of cats in the area (since 1990) and the society strongly urges the councils to have all cats de-sexed to control the numbers.”

Summer is the busiest period for the organisation, with cats breeding in the warmer months.

Only 21 of Victoria’s 79 councils have a mandatory de-sexing policy for cats.

Banyule Council’s manager of governance, information and laws, Gina Burden, said the council was researching the effectiveness of such a policy.

She said the council would continue to delivered education programs and desexing campaigns.

Should cats be compulsorily desexed? Add your comment below.

Original Article here

PET owners are being urged to register, microchip and desex their cats and dogs after a large number of strays were captured over the holiday season.

Since summer began, veterinary clinics in the western suburbs have been inundated with calls about litters of feral kittens and the Lost Dog’s Home in North Melbourne has been busy catching and housing strays.

Maribyrnong Veterinary Clinic nurse Lorena Sirol said kittens should be kept inside until they were ready to be desexed at five- to six months of age.

She said many people didn’t realise when their kittens became fertile, or failed to think about the long-term consequences of a pregnant cat.

“People often want their pets to have one litter in their lifetime.

“They have kids and want them to witness a birth of animals, to see the miracle of life, but they don’t think of anything down the track. Then they have these kittens and don’t know what to do with them.”

In the past six weeks in Maribyrnong:

■ 67 dogs were picked up and, of those, 37 were claimed.

■ Five puppies were picked up and none claimed.

■ 52 cats were picked up and only three claimed.

■ No kittens were claimed from the 79 picked up.

Maribyrnong Council’s Helen Morrissey said the number of animals picked up over the Christmas period tended to be higher than any other time of the year. This was due to reasons such as people going away, pets being unwanted gifts and fireworks scaring animals.

Animals assessed as being unsuitable for adoption or rehousing by the Lost Dog’s Home are put down.

Ms Morrissey said anyone wanting a new pet should first consider adopting an animal from the home.

“We encourage all pet owners to take responsibility for their animals’ welfare and ensure that they are registered and microchipped, as this allows us to reunite lost pets with their owners.”

Original Article here

Leader News

Dr Carol Webb, executive director of the Cat Protection Society of Victoria, is quiet when she takes the DV Leader to the room as part of a tour of the …Full article here

IT is a small and sparse room, no bigger than 3m by 4m with a small bed in the centre.

It is here where up to 11,000 cats are destroyed each year.

Dr Carol Webb, executive director of the Cat Protection Society of Victoria, is quiet when she takes the DV Leader to the room as part of a tour of the organisation.

“Cats who are deemed as wild, suffering of serious injuries and ill are taken here and we put them to sleep,” Dr Webb said.

She said this in a matter of fact way and indeed, the way cats are euthanased in the centre is similar to falling asleep.

One cat at a time is placed on the bench.

The veterinary assistant would raise the cat’s leg, exposing the necessary vein where Dr Webb would inject an overdose of barbiturates.

It only takes a moment and the cat is dead.

No anguished moan or pleading purrs.

The cat’s eyes close and silence returns to the room.

Dr Webb is no stranger to this room.

Sometimes she or a fellow veterinarian can euthanase up to 90 cats a day.

Earlier this morning she administered a final dose to a cat that was found by a council officer.

The cat was in agony after suffering severe injuries when it was run over by a car.

“It is really the saddest and most heartbreaking thing you have to do,” she said.

“Many people who have to do this go through long-term grief because of this.”

This could also explain the high turnover of staff in such organisations.

The Cat Protection Society of Victoria is not only a place where you can purchase a cute and fluffy kitten.

It is here where you see the daily tragedies of an out-of-control cat population, careless owners and the cruel treatment of cats masquerading as pranks.

“Cats don’t have the high profiles that dogs have,” said Dr Webb, who herself owns eight cats and today wears gold cat shaped earrings.

“But they can be more emotionally giving than dogs. It’s just that sometimes you have to take the first step.”