Animal Adoption Policy Altered After Protest
A southeast Los Angeles County animal control agency Thursday amended its animal adoption policy after concerns were raised that the policy doomed kittens and puppies.
In an effort to curb the births of unwanted animals, the Southeast Area Animal Control Authority this week began requiring that cats and dogs selected for adoption be sterilized before they leave its Downey shelter. The policy amounts to a death sentence for animals too young to sterilize because the shelter only keeps cats and dogs for a week before destroying them.
Protests from a woman who tried unsuccessfully to adopt a 5 1/2-week-old kitten prompted the SEAACA commission to amend its guidelines. Now anyone wishing to take home a kitten or puppy can have the shelter hold the animal until it is 8 weeks old--old enough to be altered--by leaving a deposit and paying a daily boarding fee of $5.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
