Finally, nearly 17 years after the "San Mateo ordinance" era began and years of bickering about how, when and whether to fund and subsidize spay/neuter, a voucher program for dogs, cats AND RABBITS is now in effect -- announced by this small slip of paper inserted in license renewal bills.   For voucher information, call the County at 650-573-3940.  Assistance for feral cat caretakers is also available.  San Mateo County has not euthanized healthy dogs and cats since 2002.

July 17th has long been an anniversary of things I stop to ponder.  July 17, 1967 was the long awaited day my Rottweiler puppy arrived from Rodsden in a 70 pound crate on a UAL flight from O'Hare to SFO.  It was the "Summer of Love" in San Francisco, and it seemed there could be worse things for a girl to do than choose a new breed and start a new puppy.  I suppose...but the difficult dogs are the ones we learn from, and these years were formative years in ways I never imagined.

July 17, 1991 was the incorporation date of The Animal Council. It was 9 months into the San Mateo County moratorium on breeding ordinance, and it seemed a formal organization would be a ticket into our longer term and credible participation in public policy.  Had we known that 16 years later after year in and year out work, we would have found ourselves in the midst of AB 1634, we might have thought longer about former band singer Grace Slick's telling us to get a new hobby.  We didn't, because this is a life, not a hobby.  All the dogs and people over the past 40 years have been part of a greater community of meaning for us all -- something legislator Lloyd Levine could not understand when he complained that we think an attack on one of us is an attack on all.  

This is what I pause to remember on July 17. 

Sharon A. Coleman, President, The Animal Council

Following the California Senate Committee on Local Government hearing at dawn on a rare, cool overcast morning in Sacramento, California on Wednesday, July 11, when the infamous California Healthy Pets Act (AB 1634) slipped into the legslative version of coma of uncertain prognosis, hundreds of opponents gathered on the west steps for a celebratory Rally sponsored by PetPac and a chance to greet many old friends and put new faces with familiar names known only online.  The crowd stretched out the wide walkway toward 10th Street where the TV news trucks were parked, up the west stairs to the doors into the Capitol and out the walkways in both directions to the sides with TV cameras lined up in front of the crowd.  In addition to State Senator George Runner and key opposition leadership, the "star" speaker was the adult Jon Provost, known best as the child actor who played "Timmy" in the "Lassie" TV series, along with the 9th generation "Lassie" -- an unregistered Collie dog actually named "Laddie" and his owner/trainer, Bob Weatherwax.  Legislators had enjoyed photos with the lobbying "Lassie" who brought reality to the irreparable flaws in the bill. 

PETPAC TOWN HALL MEETING AT COYOTE HILLS KENNEL CLUB

William Hemby of PetPac spoke to a large gathering of dog fanciers at a Town Hall Meeting at the Coyote Hills Kennel Club (AKC Licensed) at the Saturday, May 19 show at the Solano County Fairgrounds in Vallejo, California.  The noon meeting had been announced by loud speaker throughout the morning and gave exhibitors new to the legislative process an opportunity to a chance to hear first hand about the campaign to defeat AB 1634.