AR-News: Pets May Have to Buckle Up

[jim robertson]

Pets May Have to Buckle Up
Fri Mar 26, 8:17 AM ET  Add Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!



SANTA FE, N.M. (Reuters) - Buckle up Fido!



The city of Santa Fe may soon require pet owners to restrain their dogs, 
cats and ferrets in special pet seats or with seat belts while traveling in 
a moving vehicle.


The ordinance, endorsed by the city's public safety committee, would also 
require that "animals in open beds of trucks and cars be tethered or 
restrained enough so the animal can't fly out the window," said Kate Rindy, 
executive director of the Santa Fe Animal Shelter, who helped develop the 
proposed law.


Rindy said dog seat belts as well as portable pet carriers would fit the 
bill, as would someone merely "holding a pet in their lap," she said. "Just 
like people need to be safe, so do animals."


There are special restraints on the market selling for about $20 to $30 to 
attach an animal to a seat belt.


The pet restraint law in vehicles is part of a larger animal measure that 
tackles regulations for items such as spaying and neutering pets.


The city council will vote on the ordinance within the month, Rindy said.




Compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full 
breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit 
itself to humankind.
Dr. Albert Schweitzer, Nobel Peace Prize winner

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