Another attempt to force dog and cat owners to spay or neuter their pets is making its way through the state legislature.
The bill was approved Tuesday in the Senate. It would require dog owners, with some exceptions, to have their pets sterilized unless their local animal control agency agreed to issue them a license that allowed the animal to remain intact.
Cats allowed to roam out of doors also would have to be spayed or neutered.
The bill's author, Sen. Dean Florez, a Shafter Democrat, said the bill was an attempt to reduce the $250 million California spends a year to house and euthanize unwanted pets.
In other pet news out of Sacramento, a bill that would give a tax break to owners who adopt shelter pets recently passed a key committee in the state Assembly. The bill would allow state residents to deduct up to $100 in adoption fees.
