San Francisco considers banning Pet ownership

[Copernicus]

San Francisco is considering banning the owning of any Pet - other than fish..


S.F. considers banning sale of pets except fish


Sell a guinea pig, go to jail.

That's the law under consideration by San Francisco's Commission of Animal Control and Welfare. If the commission approves the ordinance at its meeting tonight, San Francisco could soon have what is believed to be the country's first ban on the sale of all pets except fish.

That includes dogs, cats, hamsters, mice, rats, chinchillas, guinea pigs, birds, snakes, lizards and nearly every other critter, or, as the commission calls them, companion animals.

"People buy small animals all the time as an impulse buy, don't know what they're getting into, and the animals end up at the shelter and often are euthanized," said commission Chairwoman Sally Stephens. "That's what we'd like to stop."

San Francisco residents who want a pet would have to go to another city, adopt one from a shelter or rescue group, or find one through the classifieds.

The Board of Supervisors would have final say on the matter. But not before pet store owners unleash a cacophony of howling, squeaking and squawking.

"It's terrible. A pet store that can't sell pets? It's ridiculous," said John Chan, manager of Pet Central on Broadway, which has been in business 30 years. "We'd have to close."




http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/07/08/MN9L1EAT90.DTL#ixzz0t7zlf4rL




I bet the gerbils will be throwing a party of this ever gets approved!

[StoneTheCrow]

That's pretty fucked up.

[TOAO]

They already have a similar law here, about selling ducklings and bunnies.

People give them to their kids at easter, then turn em loose in the park a few weeks later to fend for themselves.

HUNTINGTON BEACH–A local woman says the Orange County Animal Care Services should have rescued a duck with a mangled beak that was left in Chris Carr Park for five days after she reported it.

The duck had to be put down at the Huntington Beach Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center on Tuesday.

Officials say they tried on various occasions to capture the injured Pekin but could not safely get a hold of it.

Pekin ducks are domestic animals that are often dumped at parks once they grow from being fuzzy yellow chicks into large white-feathered ducks, officials said. Wildlife Technician Kelly Beavers said they are often bought as chicks for Easter presents and then abandoned later.

Leslie Hathaway of Huntington Beach walks Chris Carr Park every day and has come to know the wildlife that makes a home there. A group of ducks in particular catches her attention on her daily walk – six ducks that waddle together around the lake, she said.

On her walk on June 3, Hathaway noticed the ducks near the pond but 30 minutes later as she started to return home, she saw one of the ducks standing alone. When she got a closer look, she saw his front was covered with blood and his beak was almost completely ripped off.

"It was horrific," she said. "Whatever was left of his beak was going every which way."

Hathaway says she believes a dog was responsible for the attack. She said there were two large dogs running off leash around the park, which is against the city's municipal code.

When she tried to confront the dog owner, the woman told her she didn't see her dogs do anything, Hathaway said.

"It's obvious that it was a dog attack," she said. "It happened in such a short period of time."

Hathaway called O.C. Animal Care Services to come pick up the Pekin but got upset when, for the next five days, she continued to see the hurt duck still at the park. She said she called every day to report the suffering animal to the agency.

"They could see how badly hurt the duck was and they should've done everything to get him out of there,'' she said.

Hathaway said she would try to leave bread for the injured Pekin, but he wouldn't take it. He couldn't open his beak to eat.

Ryan Drabek, of the animal care agency, said officers responded at least three times to try and bring in the injured duck but it kept flying away or swimming into the lake.

"If the animal is healthy enough to maintain a significant distance... there's not a whole lot we can do until it heals up itself or it gets to a point where we can capture an animal," he said. "Sometime the better thing to do is let it heal and not put it though the stress of capture. Our officers are well trained. I understand it's never easy to see an animal seemingly in pain."

Animal control officers cannot use tranquilizer darts or a net to capture flying animals, which could pose a safety threat to park goers or other wildlife in the area, Drabek said.

"There is a real challenge to picking up injured wildlife that's able to fly such as a duck," he said.

Hathaway said the attack should have never happened in the first place. She said she would like to see more attention paid so park-goers are more conscientious about keeping their dogs on leashes.

The city requires dogs to be on leash in the park. Owners could face a $100 fine if caught with their pets running free. If more people followed the rules, Hathaway said, the little duck would still be swimming in the lake with his friends.

The Pekin was finally captured and taken to the Huntington Beach Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center on Tuesday. Beavers said the young duck was in bad shape – malnourished and obviously in pain.

"It looked like something grabbed his beak and chomped on it," she said. "It was really bad."

Beavers said sometimes the Care Center can nurse injured animals back to health but the Pekin's beak was beyond repair and the duck had to be put down.

Although she doesn't know the history of the duck, she said Pekins are not wildlife. They are domestic ducks and she said they see a lot of this species in parks this time of year because people leave them at parks after they aren't so little and fluffy anymore.

"They are left to fend for themselves – they go up to people or go up to dogs, they don't know," she said. "The majority of them get dumped."

[StoneTheCrow]

What the fucks up with you California animal hatin mufuckas?

[Laney]

"San Francisco is considering banning the owning of any Pet"

wow, this could turn into black market pets.

i see the point of the Commission Chairwoman about impulse buying. someone who has never owned a pet wouldn't have a clue what is involved in its care and well being.

btw, what happens to the animals in pet stores that don't ever get adopted?

[Canis]

I hope they will do not ban my bird please.

[ozzman62]

Some people can hardly take care of themselves let alone a creature which requires love food and medical care . So in one way I guess this isn't such a bad thing but unfortunately those who are good responsible loving pet owners will pay the price for those bad owners who neglect or abuse the animals who ask of no more than love some food and companionship .

[ozzman62]

San Francisco is considering banning the owning of any Pet - other than fish..


S.F. considers banning sale of pets except fish


Sell a guinea pig, go to jail.

That's the law under consideration by San Francisco's Commission of Animal Control and Welfare. If the commission approves the ordinance at its meeting tonight, San Francisco could soon have what is believed to be the country's first ban on the sale of all pets except fish.

That includes dogs, cats, hamsters, mice, rats, chinchillas, guinea pigs, birds, snakes, lizards and nearly every other critter, or, as the commission calls them, companion animals.

"People buy small animals all the time as an impulse buy, don't know what they're getting into, and the animals end up at the shelter and often are euthanized," said commission Chairwoman Sally Stephens. "That's what we'd like to stop."

San Francisco residents who want a pet would have to go to another city, adopt one from a shelter or rescue group, or find one through the classifieds.

The Board of Supervisors would have final say on the matter. But not before pet store owners unleash a cacophony of howling, squeaking and squawking.

"It's terrible. A pet store that can't sell pets? It's ridiculous," said John Chan, manager of Pet Central on Broadway, which has been in business 30 years. "We'd have to close."




http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/07/08/MN9L1EAT90.DTL#ixzz0t7zlf4rL




I bet the gerbils will be throwing a party of this ever gets approved!

I Bet Some of the Gay community will be very sad about this LMFAO !

[Copernicus]

LOL, Oz, didn't think anyone caught that little quip

[chi]

I was too busy noting your misleading title. They were considering banning sales not ownership. 30 lashes for u!

[Canis]

Most people who get "pets" end up killing them from neglect or mistreatment. The ban is probably a good thing. And, as Chi said, it's not a ban of ownership....it's a ban on sales.

[Canis]

I should have added.....that animals are not "toys" and should not be treated as such. Very few children are capable of giving a living thing the care that it needs.