Policy Hurts Dog Owners

The tragic overpopulation of animals described in The Times (“Inside the Blue Room,” June 21) could be lessened if the Animal Regulation Department would change its discriminatory policy vis-a-vis spaying and neutering.

In Ventura County, a cat owner can simply request and receive financial help from Animal Control to have the animal neutered--no other rules or expenses are involved. Conversely, an equally poor dog owner is refused any help unless the dog has been licensed (at a cost of $20 because the dog is not spayed) and unless all necessary shots needed to buy the license have been obtained from a veterinarian. Talk about Catch-22.

Refusing to help an underprivileged dog owner unless an immediate outlay of some $45 is made seems not only inhumane, but hardly in enlightened self-interest. Unwanted litters not only create a tragic problem, but are an expense to taxpayers.

Surely it would be possible to give immediate help for spaying, as is done for cats, and then request licensing at the presently lowered cost of $7.50 for a neutered pet.

ELISABETH ARVIN

Ojai