New Jersey Bill Would Make It Easier To Kill Surrendered Pets (UPDATED)

A proposed law would make it easier to kill surrendered pets in New Jersey under its current version, but will the language of the bill change before it comes up for a vote in the Legislature?

According to state legislature records, S-2847 was introduced in December as a bill that would “require spaying or neutering of cats or dogs prior to sale or other release from animal rescue organization facility, kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound.”

However, the bill also contains provisions that would loosen parts of New Jersey's mandatory seven-day waiting period for euthanizing surrendered animals, which could have grave consequences for dogs and cats in the Garden State, some activists say.

One of the bill’s primary sponsors, Sen. Stephen Sweeney (D-3, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem), told Patch on Thursday that an amendment is in the works that would maintain the seven-day waiting period without any exceptions or waivers.

But as currently written, the proposed law is a "quick kill bill," according to the NJ Animal Observer blog.

Currently – as long as the owner of an animal can be identified via a tag or microchip - New Jersey shelters must give them a seven-day written notice that their animal will be euthanized or adopted out if not reclaimed.

Pet/owner reunions at New Jersey's animal shelters happen fairly often. In 2015, about 14 percent of all impounded animals –almost 11,000 dogs and cats - were reclaimed by their owners, according to the state’s annual intake and disposition survey report.

• See related article: Life, Death and Adoption: N.J. Animal Shelters Report 2015 Statistics

Exemptions to the seven-day rule are currently allowed for animals surrendered voluntarily by their owners, or if an animal is suspected of being rabid, according to the New Jersey Department of Health.

Under the proposed law, animals willingly surrendered by their owners would be allowed to be euthananized under the following conditions:

• When the animal’s “age, health, or behavior” warrants euthanizing the animal
• When the animal is suffering from “an intractable illness other than rabies” that threatens the welfare of the other impounded animals

An animal that is stray or has been surrendered by anyone other than its owner would also be able to be euthanized before seven days have elapsed if a licensed veterinarian determines that the animal is "in extreme pain and cannot recover from the illness or condition," the bill states.

Euthanasia would have to take place “in a manner that causes as little pain as possible,” the bill states.

In addition to the change to the seven-day euthanasia waiting period, the proposed bill would also:

• Require animal rescue organizations to register with the state Department of Health
• Allow an animal surrendered voluntarily by its owner to a shelter, pound, or kennel operating as a shelter or pound to immediately be offered for adoption or transferred to an animal rescue organization or foster home

Another pending bill sponsored by Sweeney, S-2846, contains clauses that would allow euthanasia exemptions similar to S-2847.

"The bill provides that, if the animal is surrendered voluntarily by its owner and the animal’s age, health, or behavior warrants euthanizing the animal before the required seven-day holding period has elapsed, the shelter, pound or kennel operating as a shelter or pound may euthanize the animal in a manner causing as little pain as possible and consistent with the applicable state law. However, if an animal is stray or has been surrendered by anyone other than its owner, the bill provides that the animal may only be euthanized before the seven-day holding period has elapsed if a licensed veterinarian determines that the animal is in extreme pain and cannot recover from the illness or condition that is causing the pain."

In addition to the euthanasia clause, the bill would also:

• Require anyone who imports 10 or more cats or dogs a year into the state for sale or adoption to register with the Department of Health
• Authorize the department to inspect any animal importer’s records, place of business, or the condition or health or any cat or dog in the animal importer’s possession upon request.

Read the text of S-2846 here.

SWEENEY: 'CHANGES TO THE BILL WILL BE MADE'

Sweeney issued a statement to Patch about planned changes to the language of S-2847 on Thursday.

"The bill was amended in committee to limit the circumstances when the seven-day waiting period could be waived, but the changes did not go far enough. I understand that [State Senator Raymond Lesniak] has proposed an amendment that would maintain the seven-day waiting period without any exceptions or waivers. I support that amendment and I will work with Sen. Lesniak to make that change to the bill before it is acted on in any way in the Legislature."

Sweeney elaborated on the intent of S-2846 and S-2847:

"These bills will improve animal welfare conditions for cats and dogs that are imported into the state, cared for by shelters and pounds, or sold by kennels or individuals. There has been huge growth over the last decade in the number of dogs and cats being imported into the U.S., with a disproportionately high number arriving with parasites and contagious diseases. The legislation improves the transparency and traceability of importations of cats and dogs into New Jersey, requiring more information about the origin, the condition and the treatment of these animals. The sterilization of stray domestic animals has become a widely used tool because it is both a humane and effective way to deal with the feral animal population and is a better alternative to euthanasia.”

Photo: Flickr Commons, wsilver

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