Most pet lovers would agree that piercing and tattooing are an individual choice for people, but needless and cruel for pets. The state of New Jersey wants to ban those practices for companion animals, but they forgot a crucial exception in their proposed law.

Tattoos are widely used to indicate a pet has been spayed or neutered. That way, no female dog or cat who is later taken into a shelter or animal control agency will undergo the risks of spay surgery only to have the veterinarian discover she’s already been sterilized.

Likewise for male dogs and cats who were “Zeutered,” or non-surgically sterilized by zinc injection. Although the testicles do eventually become smaller, it’s still not always possible to know that the pet was altered already. For that reason, pets who are neutered in this manner have a small green “Z” tattooed on the inner thigh.

Additionally, while I prefer microchipping, some people do still have their pets tattooed with a number for purposes of identification. This may not be effective, but it’s certainly not a form of cruelty.

I think tattoo lovers should stick to getting a tattoo of their pets, not on their pets. So while I applaud the sentiment, I encourage lawmakers to amend this proposed bill to exempt the use of tattoos to identify sterilized animals as well as for ID purposes.

What do you think?

Sometimes I think almost everyone once wanted to be a veterinarian. One former child star actually did it.

In my decades on “Good Morning America,” I’ve met countless celebrities backstage, many of whom told me not only did they love pets, but they had a childhood dream of becoming a veterinarian. No matter how famous or rich they were, there was always just a little sadness that their dream didn’t come true.

Peter Ostrum, the young actor who played Charlie Bucket in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, doesn’t have any such regrets. He’s a practicing veterinarian in upstate New York!

How did it happen? He got the inspiration watching an equine veterinarian treating his family’s horse! So now, 40 years after his time of magic tickets and Ooompa Loompas, Peter Ostrum has a DVM on his wall!

I may be biased, but I think that’s better than being a movie star any day.

I’m always proud to be a veterinarian, but sometimes I’m not too proud of being human.

That’s how I felt when I read this sickening story of how Dr. Jennifer Magilton of HOPE Veterinary Specialists in Malvern, Penn., had to treated a tiny kitten who had been abused and injected with heroin:

Police said the officer found a small black kitten lying on the ground outside of the car with a rope bound tightly around its neck. The kitten was bleeding from its face and had several teeth knocked out. It had also been injected with heroin, according to police.

Police said a vulgar message describing the abuse of the cat was found spray-painted on the ground near the car. It appeared the kitten was dragged behind the vehicle or slammed into the ground, according to investigators.

[…]

“The abuse of this kitten was a singularly depraved act. Heroin addicts abuse themselves, animals, and children without remorse or regret. What punishment is severe enough for this type of evil?” said District Attorney Tom Hogan.

The Lord must have been watching out for this tiny life, because, while it at first seemed the kitten could not be saved, Dr. Magilton thought of injecting him with the human drug Narcan, which reverses the effect of opioids. He began to improve immediately.

The monster who allegedly did this has been arrested, and others are being investigated. As soon as the kitten is well enough, he’ll be adopted into a loving home. Until then, he and his veterinarians are in my prayers!