Bobby Orrock's 'other' dog bill deserves to be put down by Gov. Kaine
PERHAPS IT WAS the rush of trying to complete the General
The bill would require veterinarians to report all dogs vaccinated against rabies to county officials, who then would make sure owners have the required licenses for their animals. Fair enough. State law requires dogs in Virginia to be both vaccinated and licensed.
So what's the problem? For one thing, the requirement could end up increasing vet bills to cover the additional administrative costs to animal hospitals. Second, it would create a database, easily accessible through FOIA, with extensive information on every canine in the commonwealth. The owner's name and address and the dog's sex, age, color, primary breed, secondary breed, and spay-neuter status would be there for every pet-supply seller and, more importantly, every homeowners' insurance company to peruse. Insurers commonly "profile" dogs by breed. Own a Doberman or a Rottweiler and you could find your rates hiked sky-high.
But by far the most dangerous effect of this snoopy legislation is that it would discourage some people, especially those suspicious of government intrusion, from vaccinating their animals against rabies. Now, according to Bob Kane of the Virginia Hunting Dog Owners Association, about three-fourths of the commonwealth's dogs are protected from the disease; just half of those are licensed. (Norfolk, with its $25 fee, has an abysmal rate of compliance--fewer than 10 percent of the city's dogs have tags.) Mr. Orrock's bill is guaranteed to reduce those numbers even further.
Nearly 500 cases of rabies surfaced in Virginia in 2004, the last full year for which statistics are available. Only three infected animals were dogs. Mr. Kaine can help ensure that number stays low by sending HB339 on a one-trip to the pound.