Last week, a San Antonio City Councilmember requested an ordinance intended to address at-large and dangerous dog issues in the city. However, the request includes concerning provisions requesting the city adopt practices requiring the spaying/neutering of at-large animals even if the owner is identified.
The AKC understands the City’s desire to address dangerous dog and community safety concerns, and hopes to be a resource to the council on developing strong policies regarding this issue. We are concerned, however, about the impact of a broadly-worded policy that will lead to spaying and neutering owned dogs after a single at-large issue.
The AKC supports spay/neuter for stray animals and for animals purchased from a shelter, but we oppose measures punishing responsible dog owners that choose to keep their animals intact. The AKC does not condone anyone allowing a dog to illegally run at large. However, a dog that runs at large once in its life is not indicative of irresponsible ownership, as there are often circumstances beyond the control of the owner such as when a third party leaves a gate unlatched.
Currently the city policy is to never spay or neuter owned animals and this ordinance if drafted and passed will represent a drastic change in city policy.
What you can do
Please take the time to call the mayor and members of the San Antonio City Council and respectfully ask that there be protections for responsible owners in any ordinance that is drafted, and encourage them to instead consider a comprehensive dangerous dog policy.
Be sure to discuss the steps you and your club members take to ensure that dogs bred and owned by you do not end up in the shelter system. Please also discuss the benefits and importance of local shows and explain how this policy law may negatively impact these shows. You can find information on the impact of AKC events HERE.
Contact information:
You can find email contact forms for each councilmembers HERE.
| Mayor Ron Nirenberg | 210-207-7107 |
| Councilmember Suhk Kaur (District 1) | 210-207-7279 |
| Councilmember Jalen Mckee-Rodriguez (District 2) | 210-207-0950 |
| Councilmember Phyllis Viagran (District 3) | 210-207-7064 |
| Councilmember Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia (District 4) | 210-207-7281 |
| Councilmember Teri Castillo (District 5) | 210-207-7043 |
| Councilmember Melissa Cabello Havrda (District 6) | 210-207-7065 |
| Councilmember Marina Alderete Gavito (District 7) | 210-207-7044 |
| Councilmember Manny Pelaez (District 8) | 210-207-7086 |
| Councilmember John Courage (District 9) | 210-207-7325 |
| Councilmember Marc Whyte (District 10) | 210-207-7325 |
AKC Government Relations (GR) will provide updates on at-large spay and neuter discussions in San Antonio. For more information, contact AKC GR at doglaw@akc.org.