Bob Barker's Showcase Showdown For Animal Control

By Kevin Robinson in News on Jul 30, 2008 3:15PM

Bob Barker visited the Chicago City Council yesterday, to speak on behalf of his favorite cause: spaying and neutering pets. Greeted with a standing ovation, Barker addressed the council, calling the spay/neuter legislation a movement. “When we come to this wall which is seemingly impossible to get over, the only answer is legislation….It’s the obvious answer. …The movement for spay and neuter legislation is sweeping across this country," Barker said, pointing to Los Angeles, San Antonio and Dallas as cities that have mandated fixing pets. He also added, "Something has to be done. It's leading to just reprehensible animal suffering and it's costing a fortune for the taxpayers."

But not everyone agrees. “I don’t like when government gets involved in everything to try to solve problems. We’re starting with pets….What happens with irresponsible parents-mothers and fathers [who] are having children out there that aren’t doing their job, either? What’s the next step? You have to be careful,” said 31st Ward Ald. Ray Suarez. “There’s got to be other ways of doing this besides forcing people. …There are parts of this ordinance that can create headaches for responsible pet owners.” The International Kennel Club of Chicago isn't happy about the proposed legislation, either. "After this ordinance passes, they will still unfortunately have dog-biting, dog-fighting and undesirable people who will be unscrupulous in the way they deal with dogs," said Louis Auslander, club president.

According to Chicago's Animal Care and Control, 13,300 stray dogs and cats were collected by the city last year, and euthanizing them cost taxpayers an estimated $2.3 million. Nevertheless, alderman decided to put off voting on the ordinance sponsored by Aldermen Ed Burke and Virginia Rugai, and supported by PAWS Chicago and the Humane Society.