Georgia's spay, neuter program gets help from new license plate

A discontinued state program to help spay and neuter pets will be getting new life soon thanks to a new Georgia license plate - and a yellow Labrador called Buddy.

A painting of Buddy, by Alpharetta artist Carolyn Ritter, will grace a new specialty tag unveiled Monday by state Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin. Money from the tags will help bankroll the state's Dog and Cat Sterilization Fund.

"One of the ugliest sights you'll see anywhere is stray cats and dogs with no place to call home," Irvin said. "We've got too many of them in this state."

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The program, available in all 159 Georgia counties, helps veterinarians spay or neuter animals for people who apply for free or at a reduced fee.


http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/news/local/13393698.htm

I'm going to start a new thread with that heading and link it to your thread.

Great story about Buddy, too, in the rest of the article.

Buddy, who was named by Department of Agriculture officials, is based on a painting Ritter did of a dog she saw at a graduation ceremony for a canine assistance program in Alpharetta.

"I was drawn to him," Ritter said. "He was so dignified and had this serious look on his face, like he loved his work."

Her painting was selected from more than 400 images submitted for the new tag.

When she contacted the training school to tell them, she learned the dog, whose real name she does not know, died this year.

"I was really glad that he was the one that was picked," Ritter said. "It kind of honors him."