City program helps fix problem of unwanted pets Every month, the agencies involved provide free spaying and neutering.

Too many times when government comes up with a way to combat aproblem, it's merely a bandage, not a real solution. That's why I'mpretty impressed with a program operating out of the city's AnimalCare and Control.

Unwanted pets have become a big issue for the city. Animal Careand Control handles 70,000 calls a year about problem animals on theloose, often the ones that end up injuring people. Then there's theproblem of the thousands of dogs and cats that the city has to put tosleep every year.

Neither situation is good, and no one knows that better than thepeople at Animal Care and Control. After all, they're the ones whosee it firsthand. And firsthand often isn't very pretty, according toMelanie Sobel, director of program services.

Often the animals her department brings in off the street are"abused, neglected strays," says Sobel. "They are often injuredanimals. We see animals in horrible, horrible circumstances.

"It's important to understand that not all of these animals areadoptable," she says, when citing the thousands that the city musteuthanize each year. Even if they were, too many people now want"designer" dogs, and only 12 percent to 14 percent come to animalshelters when they decide to get a pet, according to Sobel.

Cartoons often portray the animal control officers as the mean olddog catchers. But seeing these maimed creatures and putting down allthose animals can't be easy for them, either. "Overpopulation is atragedy," says Sobel. "We're sending animals to a premature death."

Which is one of the reasons this department and two of the largestanimal care agencies came up with their innovative program. Thecity's Animal Care and Control, along with the Anti-Cruelty Societyand the Animal Welfare League, created Chicago's Big Fix program.It's a multifaceted plan that goes to the heart of the problem,reducing the number of unwanted animals born in the city. Theirthinking was that fewer births would mean fewer street rescues andunwanted pets relinquished to shelters. Great idea!

Encouraging people to spay or neuter their pets isn't enough.After all, it can be a very expensive surgery. So the agencies knewthey had to make the price right. Every month, the agencies involvedprovide free spaying and neutering to residents in those ZIP codesthat have the largest stray animal populations. The ZIP codesinvolved are 606: 09, 10, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 32,33, 36, 37, 39, 43, 44, 47, 49, 51, 52 and 61.

Participants must be the pet's legal owner. Only dogs and cats areaccepted, and there's a limit of one pet per owner. The animals mustbe between 8 weeks and 10 years of age. (To register for the freeservice, call 312-742-3499.)

The agencies involved knew that while the free surgery would beimportant, they couldn't stop there. So they began an educationprogram to explain what responsible pet care is, according to Sobel.Fliers are being handed out at schools. Community policing workersand volunteers have been placing orange hangers on doors that explainwhat the pet laws are.

They've also been giving presentations in the targeted areas,addressing responsibility and humane treatment of animals. Throughthese presentations and the distributed information, they also wantto dispel the myths surrounding spaying or neutering.

There are people who see neutering their male animals as cruel,according to Sobel, who says it's quite the opposite.

"An animal that is spayed or neutered is less likely to want toroam, less likely to be aggressive," she says.

As mentioned, the education program also deals with the humanetreatment of animals. The agencies see a lot of dogs being bred forstreet fighting, and they want people to know that it isn't "cool"for the animals, it's cruel.

The city has done its part to help pet owners. Now it's up to themto be responsible to do the right thing.