(CN- HK) SPCA blueprint for 'no-kill' city

[Guest guest]

South China Morning Post

http://hongkong.scmp.com/hknews/ZZZEI6F8GZC.html

 

Campaign of fines and education aims to end killing of thousands of unwanted

pets

 

by ELLA LEE

 

The SPCA has drawn up a blueprint to make Hong Kong Asia's first

" no-kill city " , banning the putting-down of healthy animals and forcing pet

owners to pay to find new homes for their animals.

 

In a paper to be submitted to the Government next week, the Society

for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals calls for the Government to join it

in adopting the policy. It also wants the Government to help find pets new

homes.

 

Each year, the SPCA destroys about 10,000 healthy pets, or 30 a day,

while the Government puts down more than 20,000.

 

Although the SPCA has not put a deadline on when the no-kill policy

will be implemented, it is already introducing schemes to discourage owners

from abandoning their pets.

 

According to its blueprint, which will be discussed with other animal

welfare groups today, the SPCA sets an initial target of doubling the " save

rate " for abandoned pets from six per cent to 12 per cent in one year.

 

The SPCA and other groups find homes for only 2,000 abandoned pets out

of 35,000 each year. The number of animals destroyed by the society alone

rose from 9,754 in the 1999-2000 financial year to 10,661 in 2000-01.

 

The SPCA hopes to achieve the no-kill goal by banning the sale of

animals by pet shops, increasing adoption rates, making desexing more

affordable and charging owners who abandon pets.

 

Under the newly adopted Guaranteed Attempt to Place programme, owners

have to pay a boarding fee while the society tries to find new homes for

their animals. The fee is $70 to $80 a day. But the animals may have to be

killed after a maximum two-month stay.

 

SPCA chief executive Chris Hanselman said: " Animals will still be

killed in the short term, but in the long term, hopefully we can stop all

these with a joint effort by the Government and other organisations. "

 

The South China Morning Post reported in January that veterinary

surgeons at the SPCA had expressed frustration at having to kill dozens of

healthy animals a day. They said the situation was intolerable.

 

Mr Hanselman said he would meet officials from the Agriculture,

Fisheries and Conservation Department next week to urge the department to

share the burden of rehousing animals. The SPCA proposes that the department

find homes for the most " adoptable " animals.

 

The society will also ask the department to sign a joint agreement to

make Hong Kong a " no-kill " city.

 

" We do not know when Hong Kong can finally become a no-kill city, " Mr

Hanselman said. " San Francisco is the first place promoting the idea but it

took the city 10 years to boost the save rate to 60 per cent. We hope Hong

Kong can be a model city in Asia in terms of its animal save rate. "

 

Other proposals under the " no-kill " policy are:

 

a.. A $5,000 import licence fee for an animal that has not been

neutered;

 

b.. A $5,000 fee every three years to keep an animal that has not

been neutered;

 

c.. Barring pet shops from selling animals;

 

d.. Reducing animal imports;

 

e.. Cracking down on illegal puppy farms;

 

f.. Relaxing the ban on pets in public housing estates;

 

g.. Encouraging private property developers to allow owners to keep

pets;

 

h.. Encouraging private vets to provide cheap desexing services;

 

i.. More training and publicity for responsible pet ownership.

 

Since the beginning of the year, the SPCA has also provided

counsellors for owners who want to abandon their animals.

 

The SPCA will still provide euthanasia for very sick or seriously

injured pets.