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Hawaii looks to make harsher penalties for dumping pets

STAR-ADVERTISER / FEBRUARY 2005

The bill would make deserting animals a petty misdemeanor with fines upto $1,000.

Alongside throngs of lounging tourists on Hawaii’s pristine beaches live other creatures that enjoy relaxing in the sun: feral cats. Thousands of the wild cats have made their homes in colonies across the state, and the growing population is causing concern.

In response, lawmakers are introducing a bill to crack down on animal abandonment. The bill would make deserting animals a petty misdemeanor with fines up to $1,000. If the animal suffers death or substantial bodily injury, the penalty would be increased to a misdemeanor with fines up to $2,000.

Thousands of unwanted pets are abandoned throughout the islands each year, which animal rights groups say could hurt Hawaii’s native wildlife.

“For those of us doing rescue, animal abandonment is a regular part of our lives,” said Alicia Maluafiti, president of Poi Dogs & Popoki, an animal rescue organization on Oahu.

Hawaii’s current law is one of the weakest in the nation, according to the Humane Society of the United States. Right now, people in Hawaii who dump their unwanted pets face a petty misdemeanor with a $50 fine. But in other states, animal abandonment is classified as a misdemeanor or even a felony, the organization said.

However, the most recent draft of the bill provided an exemption for animals released under a “population management program,” which means cats or dogs could be released if they’re spayed or neutered.

The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources opposed that part of the bill. Because there are so many feral cat colonies, pet owners may be more likely to abandon unwanted animals because they think someone else will care for their pet, said Suzanne Case, the department chair.

Supporters of the bill say Hawaii’s native species are also threatened by cats and dogs living in the wild. Nearly 28 percent of all threatened and endangered species in the U.S. are in Hawaii, according to the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

14 responses to “Hawaii looks to make harsher penalties for dumping pets”

  1. mrrdgreen says:

    Breaks my heart…getting a pet (really a family member) is a Lifelong commitment.
    I wish others would think long & hard before adopting.

  2. KB says:

    stop please …just make a policy and enforce the offence ..do not waste energy and resources on these issues ..

  3. iwanaknow says:

    Cat or dog stew……protein for the hungry?

    • FARKWARD says:

      My Dog (“Spartacus”) and my Cat (“Hyde”) resent your comment. Spartacus weighs 92lbs and stands 33″‘s and Hyde weighs 23lbs and is 30″‘s long, and together they are a formidable-team and force… ..”jus say’n”..

  4. Maipono says:

    Releasing a pet into the aina is unconscionable, the damage to the indigenous plants and animals is only matched by the pain of abandonment for the pet. Regardless of the penalty, just don’t do it, but for some lolos , the penalty unfortunately is the only thing that works.

  5. EOD9 says:

    The only way to enforce this is to make it mandatory for all pets to be chipped. Since Hawaii can’t even enforce littering and dumping laws, this will also be just another waste of time and effort.

  6. tigerwarrior says:

    Just glad this article doesn’t demonize feral cats or those who care for them and take them in to get spayed and neutered–but goes after the real culprit–the scofflaws who abandon their pets.

  7. Tanuki says:

    Does letting your cat or dog out to roam the neighborhood to poop and cause damaging to other people’s property qualify under this bill?

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