The Maryland House voted on Thursday to prohibit the act of declawing cats, unless deemed necessary for therapeutic purposes.
An identical bill recently passed the Maryland Senate and would next be sent to Governor Larry Hogan to be signed into law.
According to the Humane Society, declawing involves the amputation of the last bone of each toe. If performed on a human being, it would be like cutting off each finger at the last knuckle.
“It is an unnecessary surgery that provides no medical benefit to the cat. Educated pet parents can easily train their cats to use their claws in a manner that allows everyone in the household to live together happily.”
Veterinarians would face a fine of up to $5,000 for their first offense and $10,000 for a second offense.
Maryland would become the second state in the county to ban the act declawing of cats. It was banned in New York in 2019.
“When people wrap their head around it, the idea that we would mutilate to protect a furniture item is abhorrent to people,” Maryland State Del. Lorig Chakoudin, the House sponsor, told the Washington Post.
The Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Montgomery Parks issued a warning today about “Critters in Crisis,” at a special event at Maydale Conservation Park. Certain insects, fish, and amphibians are now considered at-risk in local streams due to water quality issues.
According to county natural resource specialists, pollution in county creeks and streams is having a serious negative impact on the wildlife, including changes to, or loss of, habitats, lower oxygen content in water, and the reduction of the variety and hardiness of organisms.
“There is a direct connection between the quality of water in our streams and the vitality of local wildlife,” said DEP Director Adam Ortiz. “Clean water allows for wildlife to thrive and flourish. Unfortunately pollutants, pesticides, and even pet waste that wash from our streets and lawns flow into our County creeks and streams. The result is stream critters that should be thriving, are instead at risk because of human actions.”
“Montgomery Parks is working with DEP to monitor our streams so we can make informed decisions on how to keep them healthy through land acquisition, stormwater management, and other strategies,” said Mike Riley, Director of Montgomery Parks. “There are many ways the public can also help improve water quality and protect wildlife, including picking up litter and pet waste and volunteering for park cleanups.”
Each of the “Critters in Crisis” has a unique history to Montgomery County and interesting attributes. They include:
- American Eel—the only fish in our area that begins life in seawater (Bahamas and Bermuda area) and travels to freshwater streams for adulthood.
- Acuminate Crayfish—unique to Montgomery and Prince George’s counties (found largely in the Anacostia watershed).
- Giant Stonefly—very sensitive to water pollution. Its lack of abundance is an indicator of less than pristine conditions.
- Marbled Salamander—has a poison tail that helps fend off predators.
- Yellow Lance Mussel—Federally Threatened Species in Maryland, not found in Montgomery County for over 50 years until DEP biologists recently found them in the Patuxent Watershed.
DEP’s programs such as RainScapes, Tree Montgomery, and Green Streets help to reduce pollution from flowing into our creeks and streams. Each of us must play a part in reducing pollution and keeping our water clean. That means
- planting native trees and plants,
- reducing or replacing non-porous surfaces like driveways and sidewalks and
- using environmentally friendly soaps when washing your car at home.
Remember any time it rains everything left on the ground will get washed into our creeks, streams, rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay.
DEP and Montgomery Parks regularly monitor County creeks and streams for biological, chemical, and physical stream changes and trends. Biologists test water for oxygen content and assess habitats and stream features for changes.
For more information on Critters in Crisis, visit My Green Montgomery for blog posts on each of the critters listed https://mygreenmontgomery.org/(opens in a new tab)
December 14th Update: The remaining two zebras that went missing from an exotic animal farm in Upper Malboro, MD back on August 22 have been located. The zebras are reported to be back with the rest of the herd at the farm located on Duley Station Road. A third zebra that also went missing from the farm was found dead in an illegal snare trap nearby the property back in September.
Prince George’s County has filed three counts of criminal animal cruelty against Jerry Holly, the owner of the animal farm. A second dead zebra was also found on Holly’s property.
According to the Washington Post, Holly operates a second farm in Florida and has been cited for “multiple animal welfare violations that include inadequate veterinary care, unsafe enclosures and dirty conditions, according to USDA inspection records.”
Prince George’s County Animal Services were not involved in the capture, but were notified by the farm owners on Monday that the zebras had been recovered.
Video footage of the zebras below from WUSA9:
@wusa9's SKY9 flying over the Upper Marlboro, MD farm where at least two zebras were seen this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/aIcJ6bMbLp
— Spencer Allan Brooks (@SpencerSays) December 14, 2021
October 15th Update: According to FOX5, Officials from the Maryland Natural Resources Police have confirmed that one of the escaped zebras roaming in Prince George’s County has been found dead.
The zebra was found in an illegal snare trap in the 10000 block of Duley Station Road in Upper Marlboro, MD.
Two zebras remain on the loose.
September 15th Update: As of Tuesday, September 15, zebras are still on the loose in Prince George’s County. The latest update we received was that there was a total of five zebras roaming the area of Croom Road and Duley Station Road in Upper Marlboro. The animals escaped from an exotic animal far that recently received a shipment of 39 zebras.
September 8th:
Three zebras were spotted in Upper Marlboro, MD on Tuesday. According to NBC4, the zebras escaped from a nearby farm.
They were last see in the area of Croom Road and Duley Station Road.
Zebras are legal to own in the state of Maryland.
According to animallaw.info,a person may not own foxes, skunks, raccoons, bears, caimans, alligators, crocodiles, wild cats, wolves, nonhuman primates, and venomous snakes in the state.
If you spot the zebras, please contact
Prince George’s Animal Services Facility
Phone: 301-780-7200
3750 Brown Station Road
Upper Marlboro, MD 20772
“I thought it was a deer for a second and then I saw it was a zebra – a whole zebra right next to our playground right next to the fence," Layla, a young girl in Upper Malboro who spotted them, said.🦓 https://t.co/hMdhGBf4nK
— NBC4 Washington (@nbcwashington) September 8, 2021
