Oh, No, Ojai

Yes, it's coming to the U.S. Two of the rules that restrict the choice of a purebred puppy from a responsible breeder have in fact already passed — here in California, and actually in the town where I live, which is particularly galling.

On October 28, I received an email from AKC — whether because I happen to live in Ojai or for some other reason I do not know — informing me that the Ojai City Council had voted to adopt a first-in-the-nation law that prohibits the breeding of dogs and cats within city limits with “congenital anatomical features” that are likely to cause the animal or its offspring to suffer pain, deformity or difficult expressing natural behaviors, difficulty breathing, difficulty with physical exertion or exercise, or difficulty breeding. It provides no exceptions.

I am not the best person to debate if this law is unnecessary, as I have never owned nor bred a dog that has the supposed “congenital anatomical” features. (The breeds likely to have these include, according to the City Council, the following: Boston Terriers, Boxers, Bullmastiffs, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Chinese Shar-Pei, Chow Chow, “English” Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Lhasa Apso, Pekingese, Pugs, Shih Tzu, Basset Hounds, Beagles, Dachshunds, Dandie Dinmont Terriers, Pembroke Welsh Corgis and Scottish Terriers.)

I would like to point out, however, that similar laws in Europe have been largely ineffective, in spite of the fact that they are held up as a model by the Ojai City Council — at least judging from the entry figures at the annual FCI World Dog Show, which was held in Croatia earlier this year: Dachshunds were one of the show's biggest breeds, if not the biggest, with 637 entries combined for the different size and coat varieties. Others with big numbers were Bulldogs (168 entries), French Bulldogs (235), both Welsh Corgis (248), Boston Terriers (177), Cavalier King Charles Spaniels (123) and Pugs (126). The other “defective” breeds had good entries, too. Doesn't sound like the restrictive laws in Europe have been very effective in curbing people's fondness for the “defective” breeds, does it? (Croatia does not have these laws, of course, but entries at the World Show come from many countries, and there was no difference between those that have adopted the restrictive laws and those that had not.)

If I cannot make an effective rejoinder to this new law, except to say that it seems to have PETA's footprints all over it, I can certainly say something of the second law that was enacted. The Ojai City Council also voted to eliminate the exemptions regarding spaying/neutering that were previously made for dogs competing at AKC events or owned by AKC Breeders of Merit. It now only allows exceptions for “big” dogs (over 40 pounds) — these males don't have to be neutered until they are two years old, and bitches until they have been in season once. Exceptions remain for service dogs and those certified in writing by a veterinarian that they cannot be sterilized until after a certain date or because sterilization would be detrimental to the health of the animal.

It is STUPID to believe that you are going to eliminate any loose dogs in town (the goal is, according to the City Council's own words, to “eliminate strays from shelters and the streets,” although we really don't have a problem with strays in Ojai) by requiring dogs of a registered breed to be spayed/neutered! I have bred dogs of a particular breed (Whippets) longer than I care to remember, and so far none of them has ended up in a shelter or in the streets, and I am pretty sure that none of the miserable dogs sitting in the shelter come from my respected colleagues either. Any serious breeder of dogs would check very carefully that his/her puppies go to good homes where they are really wanted, and I cannot imagine any of the dogs I've bred ending up in a shelter!

(To avoid any misunderstandings, let me say that I have only two Whippet bitches now, both spayed to avoid tempting me to breed again. I am a little too old for that. Both are champions but have not produced puppies in Ojai for several years.)

If it can happen here, it could happen where you live. Ojai is a small town (pop. 7,400) between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. It's known for being the place old hippies go to die, for its beauty and tolerance — although that does not extend to the City Council, obviously. It also is known for first-in-the-nation laws: The town adopted an ordinance that grants bodily autonomy to elephants. This means that legally elephants cannot be imprisoned against their will inside city limits. No elephants are known to be located in Ojai.