Sen. Kane Supports Bill Backed by Animal Rights Groups

March 10, 2014

From the Waterbury Republican-American

State lawmakers are being asked to require owners of pets and livestock seized through court orders to pay towns and cities more for caring for the animals.

Voters in the town of Bethlehem just authorized officials to spend an additional $71,000 for the care of 63 dogs seized from a partially finished animal shelter in 2012. Town officials have said housing the dogs cost $2,790 per week and food costs range between $600 and $700 a month. The legislature’s Environment Committee conducted a public hearing Friday on legislation that would increase how much owners of seized animals must pay for their care and feeding. Under current law, animal owners can be required to post a $500 bond to cover reasonable expenses. The legislation would require a $500 bond per animal. The proposed revision would permit the bond requirement to be waived if animal owners provide satisfactory evidence that they are indigent. Sen. Robert Kane, R-Watertown, urged the Environment Committee to support the legislation. His district includes Bethlehem. “This proposal would not have grabbed my attention were it not for a situation that occurred very recently in the town of Bethlehem,” Kane told the committee. Southbury found itself in a similar bind after authorities seized more than 30 dogs from a woman accused of mistreating the animals. Town voters recently approved spending $54,157 to cover expenses at the dog pound related to the animal cruelty case.

In addition to Kane, two animal rights groups are backing the bill, Connecticut Votes for Animals and Our Animal Companions Rescue. Kane said Bethlehem cannot put the 63 dogs up for adoption because of an ongoing appeal, and the cost of caring for them is expected to top $100,000 when the current fiscal year closes on June 30. “The scale of this case is resulting in extraordinary expenses to the town,” he said. Kane said the $500-per-animal charge will assure towns and cities can go after any perpetrator of animal cruelty or abuse without incurring thousands of dollars in veterinary care and housing costs. The legislation would not provide immediate relief to Bethlehem, however, because it is not retroactive. The 63 dogs were seized after local and state officials raided a partially built shelter where animal activist Fred Acker was housing the animals. Acker, the director of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Connecticut, was arrested on 63 counts of animal cruelty. A judge in Litchfield Superior Court found Acker guilty of 15 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty last month, but not guilty concerning his treatment of 48 other dogs. Acker has appealed the decision. The state Appellate Court heard an appeal of a related civil case concerning custody of the dogs last month. The criminal and civil appeals and the parties’ inability to reach agreement on the dogs’ ownership have blocked their adoption.