Coping with the growing stray animal problem

It's tough not knowing where your next meal is coming from...but still better than being picked up by the animal control warden..... (File photo by Vince Rosati)
If the fact that 71% of the pets received by the Joplin Humane Society are eventually euthanized or that the number of stray pets through the years is trending upwards along with your tax dollars, then you as a Joplin citizen would be pleased that a newly revised chapter of the animal code is now in force.
Effective January 1, 2008 changes were made to Chapter 18 - Animals of the Joplin City Code by an ordinance passed by the city council last November. Statistics are revealing that of the 4557 animals in the care of the Joplin Humane Society in 2006, only 12 percent were reclaimed and 14 percent adopted.
While the overall theme of the revisions was to reduce the number of animals brought to the Joplin Humane Society, Dan Pekarek, director of the Joplin Health Department, said that other changes redefined what was considered a "potentially dangerous" animal.
As an example, Pekarek spoke of someone who was afraid to mow the last three to four feet of her yard because it was near a fence in which a neighbor's dog leaned and snarled. He said that "acts aggressive" has been watered down to include "causes fear." The new language, he said, helps the court deal with problems occuring in one's own backyard.
The January 2008 edition of "The Joplin Citizen" had rather strong language about "stray cats not to be fed," but Pekarek qualified the warning. While the revision is aimed at the one person feeding 15-30 cats and causing a nuisance in a neighborhood, anyone feeding one stray cat whose breeding may be controlled, that is not a risk of disease or injury and does not cause a neighbor to complain, is not subject to the code.
Changes aimed to reduce the animal population that will hit pet owners' pocketbooks include an increase in the annual license fee for dogs or cats not altered from $5.00 per animal to $20.00. In addition, owners retrieving their pets from the care of the Joplin Humane Society will be paying an increased fee of 45-cents to $4.70 daily for normal care or 50-cents to $6.00 for quarantined care. The increase, according to Pekarek, was to allow daily charges to be set based on changes in the consumer price index.
Most revisions attempting to reduce the number of animals that potentially could run at large require citizen complaints for enforcement. New regulations state that each residential household would be limited to one litter of cats or dogs per year and any young produced in a household already containing the allowed maximum of four cats and/or dogs must be found new owners before the eleventh week...but not on public or private property without appropriate permission.
A new section has been added dealing with outdoor cats. "Any cat allowed to be in the outdoors and unsupervised for any period of time [as if cats allow supervision when outdoors] shall [not must?] be spayed or neutered," section 18-96 states...unless "a licensed veterinarian states in writing that the animal is unfit to undergo the required surgical procedure due to an extreme health condition" [but then why would the cat be allowed to wander?].
Hikers, especially those who use the Campbell Parkway paths, might be disappointed to find out that a pooper scooper section has not be added by the council. Pre-existing language may be found regarding the disposal of litter and droppings from animals like chickens but pet owners who walk their dogs along hiking paths still are not required to remove their dogs' poop. [See an article posted here.]
The changes so far have not been posted on the city's website. However, those interested in becoming acquainted with the code now or when the changes are made should go here.

Pup's Surgery Could Help Humans

Raleigh — North Carolina State University veterinarians hope that a high-tech surgery on a little dog could revolutionize treatment for other pets and humans.
Pez, a beagle with a big, toothy grin and plenty of energy, arrived at N.C. State's School of Veterinary Medicine, in September with a big problem: a large hole in the roof of his mouth that made it hard to eat or and drink.
N.C. State's School of Engineering teamed up with the veterinarians to create a titanium plate to cover Pez's hole.
"This was a new case for us," Dr. Ola Harrysson, with N.C. State's School of Engineering, said. "This was something that we hadn't done before."
Engineering students used computed tomography scans to create three-dimensional computer images, and then physical models, of Pez's head.
Veterinarians used the models to practice the surgery, tweaking the methods to ensure a perfect fit before Pez reached the operating table.
"When you can rehearse a surgery, then you have less complication," Dr. Guillaume Chanoit, with N.C. State's School of Veterinary Medicine, said.
Pez rebounded well from the surgery, becoming again playful, happy and healthy, Chanoit said. Pez, whom Sound Pet Animal Rescue found, was living with a foster family while he recovered.
"We are very, very surprised by how fast the healing in the mouth is going on," Chanoit said.
Doctors believe that the pint-sized pup's successful recovery from the cutting-edge surgery could have a big impact on the treatment of animals. N.C. State's School of Veterinary Medicine has already lined up new patients for similar operations, veterinarians said.
"We think there is a tremendous amount of dogs that can benefit from that type of surgery," Chanoit said.
Professors with N.C. State's School of Engineering believe the impact of the surgery might also be felt by humans, such as troops wounded in Iraq.
"This gives us confidence to move on and offer this to humans as well," Harrysson said.
The engineering and veterinary schools at N.C. State have teamed up on other projects, including creating prosthetic limbs.

Urban coyotes on the prowl

Don't let the high lonesome howl of a coyote in the middle of Boston unnerve you. January and February are active times for the area's populations.
"It is not uncommon for coyotes to pass through urban areas, including areas of Boston and Cambridge," said Lisa Capone, spokeswoman for the state's office of energy and environmental affairs. In fact, the state's 10,000 coyotes have been spotted in every city and town in Massachusetts except Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket over the years.
But Mark McCabe, director of animal control in Cambridge said that their numbers are on the rise, at least in his 20 years on the job.
"When I first started, coyotes weren't seen," he said.
Years of development have eaten away at coyote habitat, and years of adapting have made coyotes accustomed to the bustle of city life. In Cambridge, they like to lay low in the Cambridge Cemetery during the day and have been spotted near Antrim Street, Wendell Street and the Third Street areas so far this year.
This time of year is especially active because juvenile coyotes are leaving the pack for the first time, and all coyotes are about to breed, said Tom O'Shea, assistant director of wildlife for the Massachusetts division of fisheries and wildlife.