2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 San Francisco Commission of Animal Control & Welfare
Meeting Minutes
August 11, 2005
1. Call to Order and Roll Call
Present: Commissioners Kennedy, Franklin, Kipnis, Weiss, DVM, Schulke, Yeager, Hamilton,
Also Present - Colleen Rivecca, volunteer who will be assisting the Commission in taking minutes and compiling the Commission's pit bull recommendation for the Mayor's Workgroup.
Absent: Commissioner Guldbech
2. Public Comment
Eric Mills - reported on status of elephants at the CA state fair. No elephant rides at the far.
Laura Massa - Expressed gratitude to Laurie Kennedy for her work and dedication as Chair on the Commission. Commended Kennedy for her work at the SPCA.
Judy - Does the Commission have an internal mechanism to censor other Commissioners who make public statements that are inflammatory and factually incorrect? Referred to article in Marina Times where Commissioner Yeager made statements regarding the population dynamics of feral cats in San Francisco.
Commissioners Kennedy - a Commissioner can represent themselves as Commissioner but can not speak on behalf of the Commission. There is no policy on the books now that prohibits a Commissioner from stating that he/she is a Commissioner, yet speaking for themselves on a particular issue.
3. Approval of Draft Minutes from the July 14, 2005 Meeting.
Change DA to City Attorney.
Correct spelling of Commissioner Schulke's last name.
Motion by Commissioner Schulke to accept the minutes with changes
Seconded by Commissioner Franklin
Passed Unanimously
4. Chairperson's report and opening remarks
B7 New Commission address - mail now goes to room 362
B7 No budget, Commissioner Kipnis will continue to do the minutes
B7 Name plaques and business cards have been ordered
B7 State Bill 861 will go back to the State Assembly on or about August 15th.
5. Old Business
a. Explore legislation that would require spay/neuter surgery. Options may include:
Commissioner Kipnis provided a report of research findings of mandatory spay neuter laws across the country:
B7 Goal was to reduce the overpopulation of homeless animals and to prevent future births of unwanted animals. There was not much mentioned about aggression in unaltered dogs, which we already know is correlated with rates of neutering.
B7 The laws also allowed for owners keep unaltered pets as long as they obtain a permit or breeders license, which was accompanied by an annual fee.
B7 Statistics have shown that euthanasia rates are down, impounds were drastically reduced as well.
B7 Enforcement - variance on that depending upon resources. In some communities, animal control officers were able to identify unlicensed and or unaltered dogs on their day-to-day calls out in the field. And that's how they enforced the law. Other counties have canvassing staff who go door to door.
B7 Not able to get a great deal of stats on costs, but in some counties, cost of penalties and licensing was put back into the city budget which was then used to hire more staff for enforcement, etc. Other counties found that it cost less to implement the law then to take care of so many homeless animals
B7 Major opposition came from AKC and breeder groups, not from individual residents.
Kipnis clarified that LA County has mandatory licensing for dogs, not mandatory spay neuter, however, they are still able to addresses the problem through mandatory licensing. LA implements differential licensing frees for altered and unaltered dogs - a financial incentive to neuter you dog ($10 for altered dog $100 for unaltered dog ).
Commissioner Weiss reported on two cities that have breed specific laws. One of the laws was upheld and one was overturned by the courts. The Mass law was not upheld due to too vague language in reference to the defining a pit bull. The law was determined discriminatory. The Washington state law was upheld due to Animal Control officers actually having illustrations and standards to clarify what was considered a pit bull type dog.
Commissioner Yeager, spoke with director of Contra Costa County - clear problem with pit bulls; pit bulls were too much dog for most people. If a pit bull goes off, there must have been some warning signs preceding this behavior. Most difficult dog to place.
Commissioner Kennedy spoke with the San Mateo SPCA. Said their mandatory spay neuter law is not working. Too many governing bodies in the area. Major opposition is from people who do not want he government in their personal lives. Feral cat groups opposed the law due to licensing requirements, which is included in the law. It will be much harder to pass BSL down the line if SF goes for mandatory spay neuter and it fails.
Commissioner Weiss reported that behaviorists were not in favor of BSL. Much more information needs to be gathered and assessed on what is occurring with these dogs.
Invited Speakers:
Tim Racer - Bad Rap
B7 Would like to see the population of pit bulls cut down. Not been any country wide breed specific spay neuter laws, but there are breed specific bans of pit bulls, most of which are failing. CDC provided stats on dog bites but never quote the conclusions, which is breed specific legislation never works. Young boys get bitten by unaltered male dogs, of all breeds. Neutering a dog is the most effective thing to do to curb aggression in dogs.
B7 Other counties interested in an all-breed ordinance including Humboldt, Vallejo, and Alameda counties.
B7 Would like to see the Commission use LA legislation as a model.
B7 Change language for mandatory spay neuter to mandatory breeder licensing for dogs.
Kiska Icard, SF SPCA
Supports mandatory neutering of dogs to curtail behavior issues and overpopulation.
Referenced Holland as a good model for mandatory spay neuter laws.
Corinne Dowling, Give a Dog a Bone, ACC
Legislative ideas are good ones, but we also need to focus on education for public, those who plan to adopt a dog, regarding behavior in all dogs- how to recognize an aggressive dogs, etc. Suggested free assessment clinics for the public so that owners can bring their dogs in for behavior assessment.
Sally Stephens, SF Dog
Supports legislation being applied to all dogs. If we must target pit bulls now, we'll be back in a few years targeting another breed of dog. There is much more support in the community for this than we think. People will be more accepting of mandatory once they know there are exceptions to the law, i.e., health reasons, guide dogs, etc.
Danny Bamys, Bad Rap
SB 861 will have to go back to the state Senate after it appears on the floor in August, then to the Governor, and then usually bills are enacted the following January. So, if all that does not happen in the timeframe, the bill, if passed, will not go into place until January 2007. An all breed legislation can be done now. Also, it is not in our best interest to ensure that the shelters stay in operation - goal is not to have homeless dogs.
Kat Brown, ACC
Supports mandatory spay neuter for pit bulls only. Cited that 38% of serious bites are caused by pit bulls. Believes state amendment will pass because it is a problem across the state, not just a San Francisco problem. Animal control officers can use the ordinance to require that those pit bulls they find in the field be spayed and neutered before returning to the owner. 8 out of 15 dogs are pit bulls at ACC, which cannot be places.
The political climate will not allow a mandatory spay neuter ordinance to pass, but a pit bull ordinance will pass. Need a multifaceted ordinance to include both education and outreach. Target individuals and areas where there is a problem. The CA Animal Control Directors Association supports mandatory spay neuter of pit bulls and breeding regulations. Most animal control agencies in the state would support a pit bull specific legislation.
Public Comment
Patrick Dorman - dog etiquette sign needs to go up in the parks. Include phone numbers in the park so that people can call the SPCA or ACC if they see a violation. There are dog walkers in Portraro Hill Park where there are signs that say 93no dogs.94
Ron Cole -commends Bad Rap for the alliance they have with east bay shelters for training pit bulls. Need training so owners know how to assess their dog's behavior. BSL targets pit bulls which ads to euthanasia rate; voluntary programs work better than mandatory programs.
Corey Evans - Attorney of Animal Law; BSL not upheld due to vagueness of language, easily challenged. Cannot claim that all-breed legislation as vague or discriminatory. Have more opposition to BSL.
Richard Fong - must care for the best interest of the animal, which has not been touched upon by the Commission
Tim Racer -responded to Kat's comments; All-breed ordinance can have the ability to target any dog when out on a call, a complaint system is not so bad, influx of insurance companies that are not insuring pit bull owners and landlords are not allowing pit bulls.
Maryanne Buxton - exclude cats from this proposed legislation.
b. Develop draft legislation to curb backyard breeding by licensed breeders.
Commissioner Franklin presented proposed breeder regulations.
Public Comment
Ron Cole - Must treat cats differently in terms of breeding regulations. Cat must breed every time cat comes into season or her uterus becomes infected and she'll have to be spayed..
Danny Bemys- Responsible breeders are not breeding for money. It is the hobbyist breeders that have got us to the situation we face today. Those are the ones we do not want to have exceptions for.
Commission Discussion
Cats will not be a part of the breeding requirements; we need to do further research on how this would impact cats before we include them in any ordinance.
Elements for breeder regulations:
B7 Permit for breeders
B7 Limitations on the number of litters per year
B7 Requirement for a healthy environment
B7 No in breeding
B7 Proof of initial exam and vaccine by a licensed vet
B7 Must print permit number of advertising
B7 Not convicted of animal cruelty and neglect
B7 Education on health of puppies
B7 Exemptions
Motion made by Commissioner Hamilton to accept elements to be included in breeder regulations
Seconded by Commission Franklin
Passed Unanimously
Elements for Mandatory Spay Neuter legislation
Cats will not be a part of the legislation.
B7 Require all dogs over a certain to be spayed or neutered unless they obtain an unaltered permit or breeders license.
B7 Require owners who choose not to spay or neuter their dog to obtain an unaltered permit and pay an annual fee for that permit.
B7 Require owners who wish to breed their animals to obtain a breeder's license and pay an annual fee for that license.
B7 Require owners who redeem their dog from shelters to pay a fine if their dog is unaltered. After three redemptions, if the dog is still unaltered, the dog must be spayed or neutered at owner's expense before the dog will be returned.
B7 The ordinance must allow for exemptions including, medical reasons; guide dogs; law enforcement dogs; rescue dogs; guide, signal or service dogs; animals in the care of shelters, humane societies, etc. that have spay neuter policies and procedures in place; dogs in transit - those temporarily in the city.
B7 Require a detailed enforcement plan, which would include canvassing, monitoring and reporting of statistics, such as dog attacks, euthanasia rates, shelter impounds, etc, as necessary to assess effectiveness of the ordinance. Funding for enforcement must be made available.
B7 Require penalties for violation of the law - penalties should include penalty fees and prosecution if fees are not paid and/or violations are not corrected.
B7 Require that effective public awareness and education about responsible pet ownership, pet adoption, and the benefits of spay and neuter operations be implemented.
B7 Provide lost cost spay neuter and/or vouchers. Funding must be made available.
Commissioner Kipnis moved to accept mandatory spay neuter elements.
Seconded by Commissioner Schulte
Passed Unanimously
Postpone agenda items 7c, 7d, and 8a until next month. All agreed.
6. New Business
a. Discuss making a recommendation for the removal of the African Clawed Frogs from ponds in the city.
Eric Mills, Action for Animals, spoke about the urgent need to get the Africans Clawed Frogs out of the pond in Golden Gate Park. If they get into the Delta, it will be a disaster. Has been trying to get this issues addressed over the past 2 years. Fish and Game has said it is the responsibility of the city of San Francisco, presented a report with solutions to the City Attorney, written to the Mayor, met with Supervisor Peskin's office, met with Park and Recreation a few times. Nothing has happened. No action. Plan will not cost a lot since there are a lot of volunteers lined up to help.
Miles Young, Consultant, worked with SF Fish and Game when this issue was first brought to their attention. Spoke about the need for action. When the plan was ready to go, politics interfered. City spoke about trapping the frogs, but that only gets rid of the adults, not the tadpoles.
Commissioner Hamilton left the meeting.
Commission Discussion. Important to get the ear of a Supervisor. Also need involvement from the Rec. and Park Commissions before we bring it before the Board of Supervisors.
Commissioner Schulke will request that this item be on the Rec and Park Commission's next meeting agenda. He will speak before the Commission along with Miles Young and Eric Mills.
Public Comment - None
7. Calendar Items - Commissioners will send via e-mail any agenda items for next month's issues.
8. Closing Review of Task Allotment and Next Steps
Commissioner Kipnis will send draft minutes to Colleen, other Commissioners will send Colleen notes on the research they've done regarding the pit bull issue, Commissioners, Kipnis and Franklin will send the Commission's recommendation specific to mandatory spay neuter and breeding requirements. Colleen will consolidate this information, prepare a draft report, and send to Commissioner Franklin for review.
9. Adjournment - Meeting adjourned at 9:10 pm.