AUGUSTA – Critics are claiming that the Maine Department of Health and Human Services is dragging its feet on crafting an exemption amendment to the recently approved rabies protocol.

State officials say, however, that the process is ongoing and should be ready for comment by Dec. 1, nearly three months after it was promised.

The amendment would exempt certain dogs from vaccination if a veterinarian believes it would be damaging to a dog’s health.

The exemption likely will be identical to an existing amendment for cats, that reads: “An owner or keeper of a cat is exempt from the requirements of this rule if a medical reason exists that precludes the vaccination of the cat. To qualify for this exemption, the owner or keeper must have a written statement signed by a licensed veterinarian that includes a description of the cat and the medical reason that precludes the vaccination.”

Chris Kristine of Alna is the pet owner who began the campaign to revamp Maine’s rabies rules after her dog developed a cancerous tumor at the site of its rabies injection. Kristine is continuing to put pressure on DHHS to get the exemption written for ill or allergic pets.

“It is ridiculous that this has taken this amount of time to change the word ‘cat’ to the word ‘dog’ and publish the amendment,” she said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, dog licensing season is here, and some pet owners are worried. Laura Moon of Brunswick has two Jack Russell terriers that both have life-threatening cancer.

“My vet in Augusta said that vaccines would be contraindicated for both,” Moon said Tuesday. “I am so afraid that with all the side effects of a vaccination, it would be kinder to euthanize them.”

Philip Haines, DHHS deputy director, said Tuesday that the delay “is not putting dogs’ lives at risk,” since accepting letters of exemption for dogs is something that has been ongoing for decades. “Informally for years, veterinarians have been writing these letters,” Haines said. “This was happening long before the protocol change, behind the scenes.”

But the exemption needs to be written into the rule to be legal, he admitted.

Haines said that a number of issues have gotten in the way of the rabies amendment, including the flu shot crisis. “Along with that, we have had budget issues, and we are very short-staffed at the administrative level,” he said.

Still, Haines said the amendment should be ready for public comment on Dec. 1. After 30 days of public comment, adoption could take place 20 days later. This means the amendment could go into effect by the end of January.

Due to public pressure, the state’s rabies protocol was changed earlier this year from a two-year vaccination requirement to the national standard of three years. The rule was made final on Oct. 14.

However, the public pressed for an exemption in the rule for dogs whose medical condition would make vaccination inadvisable. The medical exemption could not be enacted with the original protocol change because the Maine Attorney General’s Office determined it would be too much of a change in the rule. It therefore had to go through its own process.