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Editorial by Pam Davis
Well, here we go again. Senate Bill (SB) 2017, "Relating to
Feral Cats,"
seeks to impose a civil fine of up to $1,000 for each "offense,"
i.e.,
feeding a feral cat. On 1-16-08, SB 2017 was introduced by
Senator Clarence
K. Nishihara, and passed first reading. On 1-18-08, the bill was
referred
to the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Hawaiian Affairs,
Committee on
Health, and Ways and Means. We've been through this before and,
sadly, it
appears that Senator Nishihara and other legislators weren't
listening.
The text of SB 2017 states that Hawaii faces an overpopulation
of feral
cats, and the problems associated with this include "public
health risk and
nuisance to humans, unchecked reproduction, and predation of
birds." We,
too, are concerned about the native and non-native birds and
flora and fauna
of Hawaii, and that is one reason why the feral cat feeders
deserve our
support. Feral cat feeders employ Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR),
which is a
proven, effective method of non-lethal feline population
control. I don't
believe that SB 2017 will reduce feral populations. Do the
senators think
that once the feral cat feeders stop coming all the cats will
lose their
appetites and die overnight? If not, then what do the senators
propose? Do
they plan to trap the cats, and if so, who will pay for it? Once
cats are
trapped, do the senators propose their wholesale slaughter? That
would be
cruel. Obviously, this ill-conceived bill represents the
solution to
nothing.
I wonder if there is already a law that penalizes the
irresponsible humans
who abandon their cats and if so, why don't our legislators work
to
strengthen that law? That would be a more proactive solution.
Yet, rather
than sponsor legislation to punish those who thoughtlessly
'dump' animals,
leading to the feral overpopulation, Senator Nishihara seeks to
punish the
dedicated, responsible people who manage feral cat colonies. A
study
conducted in Minnesota found that for every $1 invested in
spay/neuter
programs, they saved over $19 in animal control costs over 10
years. Yet
the feral cat feeders receive no public recognition nor public
monies for
their work, even though they are providing an important service.
Instead of
promoting backward legislation to punish the cat feeders, why
doesn't the
senator sponsor legislation to aid already successful feral cat
management
through TNR?
In the few days since this bill was introduced, I've received
e-mails from
people in Hawaii, the mainland, and even from foreign countries
expressing
opposition to this bill. Some snippets: "However, our
experience, and that
of thousands of other people who have worked on this problem is
that
stopping the feeding of feral cats does not make the problem go
away.
Rather, it makes it worse. Stressed populations have larger
litters." And:
"Legislative efforts should be put into spay and neuter programs
for feral
cats. This will take care of the problem. Many thousands of
people across
the nation have put volunteer time that they don't have into
fighting this
problem. Please do not undo the valuable work of so many with
this bill.
It would set back progress and would have the opposite effect
than its
intention." Also: "We find this to be such an archaic and
inhumane
approach to dealing with the situation of ferals. By the way, it
was the
meddling of environmentalists that introduced the mongoose to
control
rodents that decimated the bird population. It's human
encroachment that
continues to decimate the bird population, not to mention,
lizards, etc."
To be fair, it isn't only Senator Nishihara who doesn't "get
it." The
people of Hawaii aren't even able to get our legislators to pass
a ban on
killing cats and dogs for human consumption, despite
overwhelming public
support. They wouldn't even schedule a hearing for that bill.
Yet, they
apparently have no problem sponsoring regressive laws aimed at
punishing
responsible citizens who perform acts of compassion and caring
for animals
in need, and who also provide an important service to the
community. The
words of Mohandas Gandhi still resonate: "The greatness of a
nation and its
moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are
treated."
Pamela Davis
President, Animal Advocate, Inc.
http://www.animaladvocateinc.org/index.htm
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