Veterinarians forward rabies certificates under new county rule.Byline: Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard County officials believe a new ordinance requiring veterinarians Veterinarians and veterinary surgeons (vets) are medical professionals who operate exclusively on animals. Well-known and notable veterinarians include:
A new provision adopted by the county commissioners Wednesday requires veterinarians in unincorporated areas of the county to forward to LCARA a copy of each rabies vaccination certificate they issue, starting in mid-January. The information will allow the county to verify whether the dogs that are being given rabies shots have been licensed. The county requires all dogs to be licensed. If they haven't been, their owners will be notified of the requirement and asked to bring their animals into compliance. Those who fail to do so eventually could be cited for the violation. "This is a win-win situation for everybody," said Mike Wellington, manager of the county's animal regulation facility. "It improves the safety of the public, it increases revenue for us to run better programs, and it means more (lost) animals getting returned to their owners." Two dozen veterinary clinics throughout the county - many of them within cities - already report rabies inoculations because they also sell dog licenses to the owners of their canine clients, Wellington said. As an incentive, the clinics receive $2.50 of each license, and a dog can't be licensed without a current rabies shot, he said. Since LCARA and the clinics began their collaboration on licensing, the number of dog licenses in rural Lane County has doubled to 6,300, with smaller increases in some cities, Wellington said. Not everyone has been thrilled at the prospect of requiring veterinarians to report the names and addresses of people whose dogs they vaccinate vac·ci·nate v. To inoculate with a vaccine in order to produce immunity to an infectious disease such as diphtheria or typhus. vac , acknowledges David Suchart, the county's director of management services. Some dog owners worry the mandatory reporting mandatory reporting The obligatory reporting of a particular condition to local or state health authorities, as required for communicable disease and substance abuse Infectious disease State boards of health maintain records and collect data resulting from MR of is a violation of privacy, while others own more dogs than local limit laws allow and fear they will be required to get rid of their animals if reports show they have more than the legal limit, Suchart said. Lorraine Still, a client of the Creswell Veterinary Hospital, said she spoke for herself and veterinarian veterinarian /vet·er·i·nar·i·an/ (vet?er-i-nar´e-an) a person trained and authorized to practice veterinary medicine and surgery; a doctor of veterinary medicine. vet·er·i·nar·i·an n. Sheri Schlorman in urging the commissioners to delay imposing the reporting requirement. "State law considers this information to be public, and it should be changed first to provide (increased) privacy," Still said. In addition, "limit laws should be raised - many owners don't license extra dogs because they're afraid LCARA will come and take them away. It's not the number of dogs but how they're cared for (that matters)." But Suchart assured the commissioners that the information provided by the veterinarians would not be misused. "Our intent is to use this information to help us increase the number of licenses we issue and (therefore) the amount of revenue we have to run our services, not to enforce limit laws" or violate the privacy of veterinary clinics or dog owners, Suchart said. Under the newly passed ordinance, owner information submitted by veterinarians would be shared only with LCARA, a physician treating a patient for a dog bite dog bite Public health The clamping of skin and subjacent soft tissues between the upper and lower mandible of a canine, which may cause infections, acting as a disease vector or even death. See Dog. or the state Department of Human Services in case of a suspected rabies case, he said. Wellington said cooperation by veterinarians to sell dog licenses already has shown benefits to animal regulation programs. The same citizen task force that recommended the inoculation inoculation, in medicine, introduction of a preparation into the tissues or fluids of the body for the purpose of preventing or curing certain diseases. The preparation is usually a weakened culture of the agent causing the disease, as in vaccination against reporting also urged the county to earmark earmark taking a piece out of the edge or center of the ear with a punch as an identification mark. The shape of the mark may be registerable under local legislation. a percentage of license fees to help low-income residents afford to spay spay v. To surgically remove the ovaries of an animal. spay, spey to remove the ovaries. See also ovariohysterectomy. spay hook see spay hook. or neuter neu·ter adj. 1. Having undeveloped or imperfectly developed sexual organs. 2. Sexually undeveloped. n. A castrated animal. v. To castrate or spay. neuter 1. their dogs and cats to avoid overpopulation overpopulation Situation in which the number of individuals of a given species exceeds the number that its environment can sustain. Possible consequences are environmental deterioration, impaired quality of life, and a population crash (sudden reduction in numbers caused by that leads to euthanasia euthanasia (y  'thənā`zhə), either painlessly putting to death or failing to prevent death from natural causes in cases of terminal illness or irreversible coma. of unwanted
animals, and it's working, he said.
"The commissioners authorized 5 percent of license fees for low-income spay/neuter programs last summer, and we already have 40 vouchers for $25 each available," Wellington said. Besides that, licensing offers the best way for lost animals to find their way back to their owners, he said. "If an animal has a license tag or a microchip, it will get back to its owner, often without even being brought in to our facility," Wellington said. "That means we'll have space to keep other animals for a longer time, to give their owners time to claim them or find them adoptive a·dop·tive adj. 1. a. Of or having to do with adoption. b. Characteristic of adoption. 2. Related by adoption: homes. All we want to do is keep the services coming - we just want to protect people, and we want to protect animals." LANE COUNTY ANIMAL LICENSE FEES State and local laws require most dogs to be licensed, with proof of a current rabies shot necessary. Lane County also offers a voluntary cat registry A cat registry is an organisation that registers cats for exhibition and breeding purposes. A cat registry stores the pedigrees (genealogies) of cats, prefixes or affixes of catteries, studbooks (lists of authorised studs of recognised breeds), breed descriptions and the standards to help identify and return lost cats more easily. Unaltered dogs: $35 for one year; $55 for two years; $70 for three years Altered dogs: $15 for one year; $25 for two years; $35 for three years Juvenile dogs: Voluntary registration of $5 for dogs younger than 6 months Cats: Voluntary registration for $4 a year for altered cats, $8 for intact cats Kennel fees: $150 a year, noncommercial; $250 a year, commercial; $350 a year for three to 10 dogs older than 6 months Where to license: Lane County Animal Regulation Authority at 3970 W. First Ave., Eugene, off Bertelsen Road; or participating veterinary clinics throughout the county Contact: LCARA, 682-3647 |
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