The Fresno City Council is looking to crack down on the illegal breeding of dogs and cats as its animal shelter remains overcrowded.
Wednesday, Councilmembers Annalisa Perea and Garry Bredefeld unveiled a new ordinance that would result in fines for anyone illegally selling cats and dogs or breeding them without a license.
The backstory: After years of public concern over high euthanasia rates for cats and dogs at the Central California SPCA, the city built its own animal shelter to bring animal care services in-house.
- The Fresno Animal Center opened in 2022, and the city officially took over operations last December, only to find that it was vastly overcrowded with UC Davis veterinarian staff very concerned about the health of the animals.
- There were over 500 dogs and nearly 150 cats at the end of November 2023, yet the shelter was only designed to hold 128 dogs and around 60 cats.
- The city responded by waiving all adoption fees to encourage the public to adopt, leading to around 300 animals in the shelter at the end of February.
The big picture: Anyone who does not have a breeder permit from the city will face a $1,000 fine per dog or cat that is sold.
- They will be allowed to avoid the fines if they can provide proof within 30 days that the animals were spayed or neutered. They can also avoid the fines if they acquire a breeders permit within 15 days.
- Violators would also be subject to a misdemeanor if they do not meet the 30-day deadline.
- Licensed breeders would only be allowed to have one litter in any household annually.
What they’re saying: “The goal is clear. We will crack down on illegal breeding and end this practice in the City of Fresno,” Bredefeld wrote on Facebook. “We continue to encourage animals to be spayed and neutered and the Fresno Animal Center will continue to provide quality services to animals that are admitted into the Center. We will also work closely with all rescue groups to help find homes for all those animals that are in need of one. We are grateful to all the rescue groups that do so much great work with animals in need.”
What we’re watching: The bill will be introduced at Thursday’s city council meeting.
- If it passes, the bill will come back for final approval on Aug. 29.
