Here Comes the Sun
New York State Senator Joseph Robach and Assembly Member Micah Kellner have introduced new rescue access and shelter reform legislation, Senate Bill S05363A, called the Companion Animal Adoption & Rescue Act (CAARA). The centerpiece of the legislation is a rescue access provision that would still make killing illegal if qualified rescue groups are willing to save an animal’s life. But it does so much more.
CAARA would:
- End “convenience” killing when there are empty cages and when animals can share kennels or be sent to foster care;
- Require pounds to post strays, including photographs and descriptions, on the Internet so their families can search for them online;
- Require transparency in operations by requiring shelters to make their statistics public;
- Require pounds to scan for microchips, maintain lost/found lists, and match lost with found animals in the shelter;
- Require fresh food and water, environmental enrichment, clean living environments, as well as prompt and necessary veterinary care; and,
- Allow shelters to transfer stray animals to rescue groups during the holding period to free up cage space or get vulnerable animals out as soon as possible, subject to the same rights of redemption for the animal’s family.
If passed, the rescue access provision of CAARA alone will save the lives of roughly 25,000 animals every year. That’s how many animals are conservatively estimated to be killed every year in New York State who rescue groups are willing and able to save, animals who are killed after the pounds turn those rescue groups away. The additional provisions would increase the lives sized exponentially.
CAARA is based on the No Kill Advocacy Center’s model legislation, the Companion Animal Protection Act.
For more information about CAARA, click here.
To learn how to introduce and pass similar legislation in your state or county, click here.
♦