NEW JERSEY – Senator Robert Singer recently introduced a bill that would allow veterinarians to transfer ownership of animals rather than euthanizing them, under certain circumstances.
“Pet ownership can provide a lifetime of love and companionship, but it comes with a lot of responsibility,” said Singer (R-30). “If a pet owner cannot correct troublesome behavior, and brings their animal to a veterinarian to be euthanized, that veterinarian should have the opportunity to find a home for the animal as long as the animal is healthy, and the veterinarian believes its behavioral issues can be corrected with proper training.”
The legislation would supplement and amend the “New Jersey Unretrieved Animal Act” to authorize veterinarians, when an animal is brought to a veterinarian in order to be euthanized, to instead transfer the animal to a suitable home or animal shelter, under certain circumstances.
Specifically, the authorization would only apply if:
- the animal is physically healthy and the request for euthanasia is being made for behavioral reasons;
- the veterinarian determines that the behavior of the animal does not pose a permanent threat to the public safety and that the animal can be rehabilitated; and
- the veterinarian informs the animal’s owner prior to its placement in a suitable home or shelter that the animal is capable of being rehabilitated.
