The Humane Treatment of Animals Task Force is investigating how to reduce the rate at which homeless pets are euthanized and make sure every adoptable dog goes home to a loving family. "Many of us at the municipal level began to see how our animal shelters became even more stressed with the number of animals being dropped off and how animal control officers were finding pets being abandoned," Freda said. In one community, he knows of a litter of puppies that was recently abandoned, Freda said, as well as a litter of cats that was dropped off in a wooded area known to be inhabited by raccoons and coyote. In West Hartford, 192 dogs were impounded and 53 were killed, and in Hamden, which does not have its own animal shelter and relies on renting space in neighboring facilities, 25 of the 105 animals taken in were euthanized. "We are finding that there are so many issues — shelter conditions, animal cruelty, stress," Freda said, which is why the task force is expected to extend its work through early next year. The task force also will investigate the possibility of establishing a registry of people convicted of animal abuse to assure that they are no longer allowed to adopt animals from shelters, Freda said. The volunteers regularly walk the dogs, which is essential in keeping down kennel stress, which can lead to undesirable behaviors that makes the dog less desirable to potential new owners. There also are potential financial benefits to establishing a task force on animal welfare, Freda said, because it opens up opportunities for additional funding from private and nonprofit organizations. Bailey said that at task force meetings, people from all facets of the spectrum come together and discuss how to make conditions better for homeless animals New Britain requires completion of a breeders permit application for anyone who wants to breed a dog, and that application requires that the animal be vaccinated for rabies and parvovirus, microchipped, has proof of home ownership, liability insurance coverage for the dog being bred and a copy of the dog's pedigree or a DNA test to prove the dog's breed.