Supervisors Postpone Action on Shelter’s Spay/Neuter Plan

The Orange County Board of Supervisors postponed a decision Tuesday on a proposal to spay and neuter dogs to comply with a Jan. 1 state law.

“We haven’t been given enough time to study the proposal,” said Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who said his office was “bombarded” with calls from people anxious about the county animal shelter’s proposal. The vote was rescheduled for Dec. 7.

In addition to more time to consider the plan, Spitzer said he would also like the shelter’s advisory board to make a recommendation on the proposal. The seven-member group did not reach a decision on the plan at its Monday night meeting. Critics say the county’s proposal lacks sufficient planning as officials rush to comply with the new law.

On Jan. 1, state law will require all shelters to spay or neuter dogs and cats before they can be given up for adoption. The county shelter already has a program in place to sterilize cats but has had to get approval to hire a new veterinarian and two technicians to do the same for dogs.

The cost would be $234,230 a year, offset by the $36 fee each adoptive owner would pay to have a pet sterilized and the $36 fine the new law imposes on owners whose unsterilized pets are impounded, shelter officials said.