AUGUSTA – It is legal to kill your own dog or cat by a single gunshot to the head.

Sometimes it takes more than one bullet to kill the dog.

Rep. Elaine Makas, D-Lewiston, presented a bill to the state’s Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee on Friday to make it illegal to do so, unless the dog is dying or is a threat to the public.

“A healthy, young, and affectionate animal can be killed at will, as long as the killing is done in a specific way by the person who owns that animal,” she testified.

There are so many shelters and rescue groups waiting to take unwanted animals, she said.

The current law, “would allow an unscrupulous breeder to produce a limited number of ‘perfect’ puppies or kittens that could catch a handsome profit,” she said. “Cats or dogs that did not have the ideal coloration or exactly the right length tail or ears could be killed to keep the supply low and the asking price high.”

Several people supporting kennels and animal rights groups testified in support of the bill.

Norma Worley, director of the Animal Welfare Program, said the bill protects the pets against unnecessary pain and suffering.

“Under the best of circumstances, even the most ardent marksman would find this to be a difficult task to complete,” she said.

It also borders on animal cruelty, she added.

“The Animal Welfare Program has also found the current statute as a means of the owner to ‘get even’ with their dog or cat by simply shooting it when we respond to a complaint of cruelty or neglect,” she said.

Rep. Nancy Smith, D-Monmouth, spoke against the bill. She affectionately spoke about her family’s three dogs. One dog, a golden retriever mix named Honey, she described as “perfect.”

Honey is getting old, she said, and knows her time with her pet is limited.

She said, when the time comes, she will take Honey “for a walk in the woods.”

Although the bill exempts dying dogs, Smith said the definition is not clear.

Makas said she is an animal lover and spoke passionately about the issue during her testimony.

“Denying a second chance to a dog or cat is inhumane,” she said.

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