Thursday February 24 9:57 AM ET
Man Hit by Bus -- Then Hit by Repair Bill
LONDON (Reuters) - A British man who was run over by a bus faced a second shock Wednesday after he received a bill for repairing the damaged vehicle.
Norman Green suffered four broken ribs in the accident in Leicester city center, central England, and was unable to work for 14 weeks.
The 51-year-old pub landlord wrote to the bus company, First Leicester, outlining his claim for damages. But then he received a bill for $845 for a broken light and windshield on the vehicle.
First Leicester said it was suspending the action until Green's finances picked up. Insurance manager Tony Lambell said: ''This accident happened because Mr. Green was not looking where he was going.''
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Dog Death on Live TV, Front-Yard Cat Killings and Roadside Pet Dumps
Prompt Sixth National Campaign to Reduce Pet Overpopulation and Save Billions
of Taxpayer Dollars
WASHINGTON, Feb 25, 2000 (BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES) --
"Spay Day USA" to Be Held Feb. 29, 2000;
1+1 = 420,000(a)
Fed up with taxpayers spending billions of dollars annually to house,
feed and ultimately destroy homeless animals, and the lack of good
homes available to adopt unwanted and abandoned pets, individuals and
groups across the country are working together on Feb. 29 as part of
the Doris Day Animal Foundation's national campaign to reduce
companion-animal overpopulation.
This will be the sixth-anniversary campaign for Spay Day USA, a program
of the Doris Day Animal Foundation (DDAF) that has been responsible for
altering more than 350,000 dogs and cats since its inception in l995,
savings millions of lives and billions of taxpayer dollars.
Emotions run high over the issue of pet overpopulation, as cited by
news stories about an Ohio homeowner shooting a cat on his property, a
roadside "dog dump" installed in Tennessee, a North Carolina sheriff
who put a dog to sleep on live television, and a California humane
society whose media campaign showed barrels full of destroyed animals.
The United States faces a companion-animal overpopulation crisis as 6
million to 8 million dogs and cats are euthanized annually simply
because there are not enough good homes for them. For example, one
unaltered female cat and her offspring can produce 420,000 cats in
seven years (a).
Millions more pets are abandoned each year only to die of starvation or
disease. It costs U.S. taxpayers approximately $2 billion each year to
house, feed and ultimately destroy these homeless animals.
While the pet overpopulation problems continue, on Feb. 29, the Doris
Day Animal Foundation, humane societies, shelters, veterinary clinics
and individuals across the country are promoting programs to encourage
the spaying and neutering of pets. Highlights of programs include:
-- VetSmart's 240 hospitals located throughout the country have
pledged to perform 1,000 free surgeries with sign-ups on wellness
plans ($69 for the year).
-- Sixteen veterinary clinics in Monterey County, Calif., will offer
discounted surgeries in conjunction with "Prevent a Litter" month
Feb. 22-March 22, co-sponsored by the Doris Day Animal League and
Monterey County Animal Control.
-- Tulsa Animal Shelter is offering free surgeries every weekend
during February.
-- "Neuter Scooter for a Nickel," sponsored by the SPCA of Dallas,
will offer low-cost surgeries.
-- Bridgeview, Ill., Cook County Department of Animal Control is
offering a rebate of $40 to anyone having a pet spayed or
neutered during February.
-- Brevard County Animal Services Enforcement of Rockledge, Fla., is
promoting a countywide recycling of cans to fund spay/neuter
services.
-- "Spay Week Tampa Bay," sponsored by Tampa Bay Humane Society,
is providing discounted surgeries for one week.
-- Animal Lovers League of Grants Pass, Ore., holding Spay Week, is
neutering cats for $5.
-- Humane Society of Harrisburg Area, in Harrisburg, Pa., is
partnering with local veterinarians to provide free surgeries on
animals adopted from HSHA on Feb. 29.
For the first time, DDAF announced that PETsMART(R) Charities, the
nonprofit organization affiliated with the national pet-supply retailer
PETsMART, will be a sponsor of Spay Day USA 2000, joining LitterMaid(R)
Self-Cleaning Cat Box, which returns for its second year to sponsor the
event. Both organizations have furnished prizes for Spay Day USA's
"Every Spay/Neuter Counts!" contest, designed to encourage participants
to report their spay/neuter numbers to DDAF.
"It is so gratifying to see that so many people realize that we can put
an end to pet overpopulation in a humane and caring way," said Doris
Day, president of the Doris Day Animal Foundation. "The community
education and awareness programs are working, and millions of lives are
being saved by spaying and neutering these animals," she explained.
Spaying/neutering also helps reduce the likelihood of people
surrendering their companion animals to shelters because of undesirable
behaviors such as spraying and fighting. A recent study conducted by
the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy showed that
approximately half the cats (50.8 percent) and dogs (42.8 percent)
relinquished by their owners had not been altered.
The Doris Day Animal Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
dedicated to promoting increased protection for animals. For more
information or to receive an Action Pack to plan a Spay Day USA event,
call DDAF at 202/546-1761, ext. 31.
(a) Statistics courtesy of Humane Society of the United States. Pet
Overpopulation Fact Sheet, 1994.
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CONTACT: Linda Dozoretz Communications
Linda Dozoretz or Jane Covner, 323/656-4499
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