AB1634 – The California Responsible Pet Ownership Act

August 12, 2008

Problem: Massive pet overpopulation and animal bites in California.

Roaming dogs and cats can have an untold number of accidental pregnancies. According to the CA Department of Public Health, over 800,000 dogs and cats are abandoned annually in our state; this costs taxpayers over $250 million each year. Over half of these pets, 400,000 of them, are not adopted and thus are euthanized at taxpayer expense.

Unaltered dogs are three times more likely to bite, and almost 40,000 people in California are attacked and bitten by dogs and cats each year. Children are the most common victims.

AB 1634 – A common sense law to help combat pet overpopulation and bites.

AB 1634 is a common sense tool that allows law enforcement to target roaming dogs and cats, prevent unplanned litters and reduce attacks. The law requires that a dog or cat to be spayed or neutered, if the animal meets one of the following criteria:

• The dog or cat is repeatedly impounded by animal control or cited for being at large.
• The dog or cat is repeatedly cited for being unlicensed as required by current law.

At any occurrence, the penalty is waived if the dog or cat is spayed or neutered. On the second occurrence, in addition to the penalty the cat or dog shall be microchipped.

AB 1634 – Building on existing law.

Current state law already provides additional fines for the owners of impounded nonspayed or unneutered animals. AB 1634 increases existing fines, and adds a spay or neuter requirement for dogs and cats subject to repeated animal control action.

AB 1634 – A fair process

AB 1634 does not apply to dogs and cats that are the subject of unwarranted complaints. It applies only to dogs and cats that are repeatedly impounded, improperly licensed or repeatedly cited.

Owners cited under the provisions of AB 1634 are accorded the exact same due process and appeals rights granted to them for any violation of state or local animal control laws.