Analysis signifies that there are roughly 2 million free-ranging cats within the state of Virginia, roughly 1.2 million of them are unowned. Many of those acquire in colonies which constitute critical well being dangers to the neighborhood, nuisance to neighborhoods, and feature a devastating impact on wildlife–not to say the intense dangers to the well being and well-being of the cats themselves.
After years of effort to reach at smart methods and regulatory pointers to assist cope with the issue, there’s now a invoice within the Common Meeting to empower localities to successfully cope with and arrange outside cat populations of their house. The invoice, HB 221:
- Authorizes localities, in the event that they so make a choice, to undertake free-roaming cat control plans through ordinance
- Directs the Virginia Division of Agriculture and Client Services and products (VDACS) to create a type Loose-Roaming Cat Control Plan to scale back and regulate the inhabitants of free-roaming cats and the abandonment of cats to scale back unfavourable affects on public well being, flora and fauna, and the welfare of the cats
- Directs VDACS to determine minimal requirements for a Loose-roaming Cat Control Plan
- Calls for VDACS to talk over with related stakeholders in pleasing those tasks
Sadly, an lively foyer of out of doors cat supporters is operating to mischaracterize and defeat this invoice. We’re asking supporters of flora and fauna to make their voices heard in this factor.
Assets and Background
What You Can Do
The invoice is recently in committee within the Space of Delegates. In case your Delegate is at the Space Agriculture Subcommittee, PLEASE WRITE AND CALL to allow them to know that HB 221 is necessary to you and to the well being of flora and fauna around the Commonwealth.
Agriculture Subcommittee contributors:
Please ONLY COMMUNICATE WITH A DELEGATE IF YOU ARE A RESIDENT OF THEIR DISTRICT.
Use Who’s My Legislator to search out your district and representatives.
In case your Virginia Delegate is at the primary Space Agriculture, Chesapeake, and Herbal Assets Committee, please write to allow them to know that you just give a boost to HB 221.
Major committee contributors:
Pattern e mail textual content you’ll ship:
Pricey Delegate ________
As certainly one of your constituents, living at ___________, ________, I’m writing to invite to your give a boost to of Space Invoice 221 on Loose-Roaming Cat Control Plan Laws.
It is very important me that this law will give a boost to the improvement of smart type rules for:
1) lowering the devastating have an effect on of out of doors cats on local flora and fauna
2) lowering the specter of feline-borne sicknesses, and
3) supporting the well being and well-being of cats themselves.
This invoice is supported through:
American Hen Conservancy
Affiliation of Avian Veterinarians
Audubon Society of Northern Virginia
Bat Conservation & Rescue of VA
Blue Ridge Flora and fauna Middle
Bristol Humane Society
Cape Henry Audubon Society
Capital Naturalist, Alonso Abugattas
Middle for Conservation Biology
Danville Space Humane Society
Ernesto Dominguez, DVM,
DACVPM, CWR
Margaret B. Mitchell Spay Neuter Sanatorium
Nature Ahead
Northern Virginia Hen Membership
Other people for the Moral Remedy of Animals (PETA)
Piedmont Virginia Hen Membership
Southwest Virginia Flora and fauna Middle
Flora and fauna Middle of Virginia
Virginia Alliance for Animal Shelters (VAAS)
Virginia Animal Keep watch over Affiliation (VACA)
Virginia Conservation Community
Virginia Ornithological Society
Virginia Veterinary Clinical Affiliation (VVMA)
Thanks to your give a boost to of this topic.
Sincerely, __________________________