City Plans Campaign to Enforce New Pet Law

The head of Los Angeles animal control announced a stepped-up effort to get pet owners to comply with a new spaying and neutering law, which was given final approval Wednesday by the City Council.

The new campaign will send workers door to door to tell residents about low-cost programs for sterilizing their animals, said Dan Knapp, general manager of the city Animal Services Department.

Los Angeles officials adopted what they say is the nation’s toughest sterilization ordinance, citing a public health crisis caused by the city’s estimated 27,000 stray dogs.

The measure creates an incentive for pet owners to spay or neuter their animals by keeping license fees for sterilized dogs at $10. Fees to license unaltered dogs will increase from $30 to $100. The ordinance also creates a separate $100 breeders license fee for owners of animals that have litters. It requires that unaltered cats be kept indoors.

Knapp said sterilization generally costs less than $100.

Councilman Nate Holden voted against the measure, saying it was too punitive.

Other opponents, including actor Paul Winfield, told the council Wednesday that the ordinance might cause many pet owners who cannot afford the higher fees to decide against getting licenses.

“The people who can least afford to pay this $100 are the ones who indiscriminately breed their pets, so it’s going to be hard to collect it,” said Winfield, who breeds dogs.

Knapp said it will be his job to make sure pet owners obtain licenses. About 24% of the city’s dogs are unlicensed now, compared with the national average of 33%.

The City Council voted 11 to 3 to adopt the ordinance. It will not take effect for six months, allowing Animal Services time to prepare.

Knapp said a task force of five new animal-control officers is undergoing training.

That task force will be sent to locations where the department believes there are unlicensed and breeding animals. Contract workers also will go door-to-door to tell pet owners about the new ordinance.

The workers will carry coupons for discounts on spaying and neutering animals, as well as brochures telling residents where free and discounted surgeries are available, Knapp said.

Animal welfare groups have pledged about $300,000 to help low-income pet owners pay to have their animals sterilized. They also have proposed mobile sterilization vans.

The ordinance allows owners of unaltered dogs two warnings and a total of 60 days to obtain licenses before facing possible fines of $500 apiece.