Lorenzo, o gato modelo, posa para a câmera nas fotos de Joann Biondi

Lorenzo the Cat

The following post was written by a cat…yes, a cat!

Come on Miami, Give it Up for the Cats and Dogs
Vote Yes for the Pets’ Trust in November
There’s an important measure on the ballot in the November General Election and I don’t mean the Obama/Romney showdown. No, it’s much bigger than that. It’s the vote that will determine whether or not 20,000 cats and dogs are unnecessarily killed each year in Miami-Dade County.

That’s right, killed. Not “put down” or euthanized because they’re suffering from a terminal illness. They are killed by lethal injection often because their owners can’t afford to keep them, are moving to a place that won’t allow them, or just don’t want them anymore. We all know that Miami is a deadly city with a high murder rate, but imagine if 20,000 people were killed here each year. Would that grab your attention?

The big vote is the Pets’ Trust, a legislative initiative that will tax property owners about $13 per year to generate revenue for our Animal Services Department so it can protect unwanted animals and offer low-cost spay/neutering services. And about that neutering thing—to those of you humans who think it’s emasculating to neuter your male animals, I say: get over it. Trust me, I’ve been fixed and the babes still love me.

As a cat that was tossed in a garbage can at birth in Coral Gables, let me tell you that it’s rough out there on the mean streets of Miami-Dade County. My fellow felines are in dire need of help, especially the feral ones—they’re roaming the streets, making kittens, and going hungry. Others are being tossed out of car windows and dumped at shelters—sometimes just because they once peed on a rug. Dogs don’t have it an easier, not that I’m a big fan of those guys. They get dropped at shelters too—sometimes just because they bark.

In Miami-Dade County, it’s estimated that there are 500,000 dogs, 500,000 pet cats and 500,000 feral cats. We know that our human population—which also comes in all shapes, sizes, colors and proclivities—loves animals or these numbers wouldn’t be so high. But Miami, we have a problem. We—the animals—need your help. What’s $13 a year? I’ll tell you what it is: less than the cost of two bottles of beer at the new Marlins Park stadium.

“The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way it treats its animals,” said Mahatma Gandhi. And the same is true for counties in Florida.

Please, open your hearts and vote YES for the Pets’ Trust - #240 – on November 6th. Vote meow!

Yours truly,

Lorenzo the Cat