Delaware House Bill 425, sponsored by Senator Patricia Blevins and Representative Terry Spence, provides for one of the most comprehensive pre-adoption mandatory spay/neuter laws in the United States, according to the Humane Society of the United States (www.hsus.org).
The HSUS highly commends Governor Milner and the Delaware General Assembly for enacting legislation that will improve the health and quality of life of cats and dogs adopted from shelters, while ensuring that they do not produce litters that would increase the countless numbers of animals who lack good homes, said Samantha Mullen, HSUS regional program coordinator.
The bill requires all dogs and cats adopted from animal shelters, adoption clinics or private animal welfare or rescue groups to be spayed or neutered and inoculated against rabies before adoption. The bill also establishes a fund to provide low-cost spay and neuter programs for low-income residents, animal shelters and groups or individuals caring for feral cats or stray dogs.
The HSUS estimates that six to eight million dogs and cats enter animal shelters every year, and of those, three to four million must be euthanized because of health-related issues, aggression or lack of available homes. The HSUS believes the only way to change this situation is to implement a widespread sterilization program and to spay or neuter all companion animals.
Posted: July 4, 2006, 5:00 a.m. EST