Public Comment Correspondence – Cholena Humphrey
From: Cholena Humphrey [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, May 15, 2023 5:24 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>
Subject: Suggestion for Long Beach
-EXTERNAL-
In order to improve Long Beach, I suggest that we have more affordable and obtainable pet health here in Long Beach. I recently had the experience of losing a pet rat and the doctor's bills for the vet were outrageous. I spent nearly 1,000$ in the pet's lifetime. That was includin a 400$ pet deposit at the place I rented. Some places charge a monthly fee as well, just to have a pet live with you. One apartment, down the road, charges 50$ per pet per month. I have seen the devastation as people who are in the low income bracket and senior citizens as they are handing out hundreds of dollars for their pet's health as well as euthanization, ashes, and cremation. These are people on a fixed income that are spending their whole Social Security check on their loved one. The Humane Society is overwhelmed with pets and it's hard to get in.
You have to wait in line all day, or at least 4-6 hours for an appointment. They do not have vets for exotic animals such as hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, snakes, birds, bunnies, exc. It is mentally very hard for all individuals to live with these costs. Please consider putting in more affordable veterinarian clinics here in Long Beach, for the public, so we can continue to take care of our pet's health and wellbeing. For many of our residents, pets are the main focus in their life. We need to make sure that all pets have access to affordable vet care so that disease is not prominent in our city.
Thank you,
Cholena Humphrey
LVN in Long Beach Ca.