In Their Own Words

Here are some of the most vocal opponents of spay and neuter laws, and some others opposed to animal laws in general, in their own words (shown in blue).

William Hemby, founder of PetPAC, describing who he thinks is behind SCIL legislation:

"...across the United States you have some of these animal rights extremist groups like the Animal Liberation Front... it started years and years ago, if you remember, about throwing the blood on fur coats and all that jazz....

Well now... these people want to eliminate all dogs and cats in California, and so they want everybody else to conform to their society."

As far as I can tell, it was PetPAC's Mr. Hemby who first coined the phrase "Pet Extinction Act" to describe spay and neuter laws. The term has inflamed breeders and presumably increased donations to PetPAC.

Update: Bill Hemby is now being sued by the State of California for allegedly running a false charity. Click here for details.

PIJAC (Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council), on pet overpopulation:

The claims of pet overpopulation are "without sound basis" and "intended to alarm the public about an overpopulation problem that does not even exist".

Regarding the enormous number of pets euthanized in shelters "it is unclear where the evidence for such statements comes from, or whether it even exists".

A quick note... PIJAC is the primary lobby group representing pet stores in California, and these quotes are taken from a letter submitted by JK Pedrotti, a Government relations firm representing PIJAC.

Clearly, it is in pet stores best interest to pretend there is no overpopulation problem. If PIJAC will not believe the shelter admission and euthanasia numbers submitted to the State by the shelters themselves, then they will never believe that we have a problem, no matter how many pets we kill each year.

We the People for Pets, an anti-pet legislation group:

Animal rights is a "staircase leading to pet extinction and total loss of pet owner rights", and spay and neuter laws are being pushed with tactics "used by the Nazi party to dehumanize their targets".

I can't really find words to address this lunatic fringe stuff...

Nathan Winograd, author and shelter consultant, on pet overpopulation:

"Shelter killing is not the result of pet overpopulation; it is the result of shelter managers who find killing easier than doing what is necessary to stop it."

Nathan states that shelter workers are "content to kill animals" while "hiding behind the myth of pet overpopulation".

I must take a moment to comment on this. I have spent much of the last four years meeting with shelter workers across California. I have seen their tears as they explain their anguish at having to put down healthy animals every day. I have seen the emotional toll, and I have seen their pain as they come to grips with the horrible task they are faced with every day, thanks to careless pregnancies and reckless overbreeding. You can watch interviews with many of these shelter workers on our homepage.

The claim that it is the shelter workers who are to blame for the number of pets flowing into our shelters, rather than the irresponsible pet owners and breeders who fill those shelters with their careless actions, is callous, shallow thinking.

Nathan is now selling books directly to breeders via a book tour with PetPAC, who advertise "Tour Dates" for him on the PetPAC website. And incredibly, he is now involved with radical underground breeder publications like The Animal Herald, a newsletter based partially on the idea that spay and neuter laws are "akin to genocide of dogs". The founder of this publication, cat breeder Diane Amble, appears to devote a lot of time trying to find ways to use the term "terrorist" in conjunction with the term "animal rights". This image is a capture from the latest edition of The Animal Herald... you can see a cartoon of Senator Florez, Assemblymember Nava and myself, dressed as "angels of death" for trying to pass animal protection laws. Nathan Winograd's contribution to this classy publication begins directly under the cartoon.

Ironically, or conveniently, pet breeders have become the biggest cheerleaders for Mr. Winograd, and they are often seen at the Capitol with a copy of Nathan's book clutched as their bible. Nathan has given backyard breeders an 'out' for a problem they directly contribute to, while blaming those who have to clean up the mess.

Gina Spadafori, author, columnist, former contributor to AKC publications:

Pet breeders must "realize that we're all in this together, pet-owners against the forces of pet extinction".

Gina is a columnist and author of pet books. Shame on her for constantly pushing the bogus claim that pet owners are against spay and neuter legislation. The truth is that tens of thousands of pet owners have written and called in support of the bills. Those "pet owners" who come out against these bills consistently turn out to be people only looking out for their own self-interest (the "Me Me Me" crowd).

In fact, according to a 2008 poll by the well respected firm Zogby International, "California voters are strongly in support of a law that would enforce the spaying and neutering of pets." The Zogby poll found that 66% of California voters supported spay and neuter laws, and that after learning more about the laws, a full 80% of the voters supported them. The Zogby poll conclusion? Pet owners overwhelmingly support spay and neuter laws to reduce shelter euthanasias.

From the scarier side of the breeder community... some breeders refer to violence as a possible answer to what they perceive as an intrusive government in league with animal rights "wackos":

Walt Hutchens, Timbreblue Whippets breeder in southwestern Virginia:

"We need to win as rapidly as possible, hopefully before there is any significant violence. The effect of violence on our chances of victory cannot be predicted." In general Mr. Hutchens seems to oppose violence, but he also slyly notes "By making the AR wars 'interesting,' it will lead to much more media interest".

Joe Overlease, Cocker Spaniel breeder from Missouri who ships dogs nationwide:

"Every Breeder I know is armed to the teeth as well, hot lead is a good motivator even for the most sincere AR wacko... Welcome to Fort Cocker".

Walt Hutchens' writings appear on the website Rexano.org, which is devoted to keeping exotic animal ownership legal and unregulated. Rexano offers the opportunity to purchase bumper stickers like these:

Raxano also features posters by artist Tamara Burnett, who envisions pet legislation as a PETA / HSUS plot to remove dogs and cats from society. Tamara has painted depictions of me on a broom, wearing a PETA hat and stealing dogs from children... click here and here to see some of the posters, which illustrate just how far out these folks are (and how much time they have on their hands!).

California Farm Bureau Federation writing about SB 250:

"Not all counties have provisions for intact [differential] licenses, and the amendments do not seem to allow dog owners to obtain an intact license if their cities or counties do not have them. This would force... dog owners residing in these counties to sterilize their dogs."

This statement from the Farm Bureau is completely wrong, and is one of the many scare tactics being used by opponents of animal legislation. In fact, statewide law for differential licenses have been in existence since 1973 (Food and Ag code 30804.5).

"Farm Bureau is also concerned about the potential for... actions taken against our members who may leave their dogs in the back of a pickup truck."

This is another example of outlandish hyperbole meant to scare Legislators. There is no provision in SB 250 that would allow animal control to seize a dog, and in the several California communities where similar laws are already in place, these hypothetical events do not occur.

Save Our Dogs, an anti-spay and neuter legislation group:

"...are the supporters trying hide the fact that the real goal of the bill is to eliminate all cats and dogs?"

The Save Our Dogs website, created and maintained by a California couple, also provides misleading graphs for download. The site consistently tries to influence opinion by presenting only part of the available data. In my opinion, this group was formed solely to provide misinformation about spay and neuter laws.

John Yates, American Sporting Dog Alliance (in Pennsylvania), on spay and neuter laws:

"Such is the murderous intent of [this]... movement, which seeks to gradually eliminate animals from American life. Its immediate goal is to force people to sterilize or euthanize as many dogs and cats as possible, and SB 250 was written for this reason."

Unbelievable. The delusions held by some of these people are downright ridiculous.

Last, but not least.

No overview of spay and neuter law opponents would be complete without mentioning the Oregon group National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA). This group is front and center when it comes to opposing legislation that helps any type of animal, whether it is spay & neuter laws, curbs on puppy mills, or restrictions on animal cruelty.

Who are they? According to SourceWatch, who featured NAIA in their "FRONT GROUPS" project, The NAIA is a front group and industry funded lobbying organization for animal commerce and agriculture based in Portland, Oregon. Agendas include financial interests, legislation and public perception related to farm animal agribusiness, commercial breeding, hunting, fishing, trapping, fur ranching, animal testing, horse slaughter, rodeos, circuses and entertainment.