City: Limit restraint of dogs to 30 minutes
Owners could be charged for improper tethering of animals.
The city of Dayton is considering changing its laws to reduce the amount of time a dog can be tethered and allow law enforcement officers to seize and impound canines that are “improperly” restrained.
Dogs that are aggressive, poorly socialized and bark incessantly are a problem in the city, and experts say that canines that are tethered or chained up too long can develop these and other bad behaviors because they are unhappy, anxious, neurotic and don’t get the affection they want and need.
Chaining and tethering also is an unsafe practice for humans because it can cause the animals to become highly aggressive and territorial and is a high risk factor in serious dog bites and attacks, according to the Humane Society of the United States.
Neighbors said a dog that mauled a Dayton man to death in 2016 was always chained up and not properly socialized.
“We need to make sure we are treating animals humanely, and I think we’ve learned that when people treat animals better, it’s better for the neighborhoods and makes them safer, and it’s better for the community as well as the animals,” said Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley.
Nearly four years ago, the Dayton City Commission approved an ordinance prohibiting dog owners from chaining or tethering their canines for more than two consecutive hours during a 12-hour period. About a dozen citations have been issues since then, according to the city.
The law was approved months after Klonda Richey was mauled to death by her neighbors’ dogs. Richey had sought protection from the dogs and her neighbors leading up to her death.
The existing code, though a good policy position, is extremely difficult to enforce because it requires a lot of resources, said Andrew Sexton, chief counsel with the city of Dayton prosecutor’s office.
“It’s enforceability is an issue,” he said.
The city proposes amending city code to forbid dogs from being tethered for more than 30 consecutive minutes.
Dogs, however, can be chained if their owners are outside with the animals.
The city also proposes allowing law enforcement officers to seize and impound dogs that are tethered in ways that violate the law.
“Previous to this, we didn’t have the ability under our local code to impound improperly confined dogs,” Sexton said.
Officers would be required to notify the dog owners of the seizure and impoundment by written messages.
Hearings would be held within 10 days of the seizure, or at the next available court date, to determine if the officers had probable cause to seize the animals.
Dogs seized by law enforcement “may be humanely destroyed immediately” or at any time during the impoundment if a licensed veterinarian determines it is necessary because they animals are suffering, the proposed ordinance states.
Dog owners who are convicted of an offense may be required to pay the costs of impounding the dog and for the care it received, the ordinance says. Violations are a minor misdemeanor.
The improper tethering and confinement of dogs is inhumane, Sexton said, and studies show that canines that are suffering may engage in aggressive behaviors.
The Dayton City Commission is expected to have a first reading of the new ordinance today.
Officials admit that enforcing the city’s anti-tethering ordinance was challenging.
Across the city, there have been just 13 citations issued for unlawful tethering of dogs since 2015, the prosecutor’s office said.
Neighbors and officials have said that the laws currently on the books rarely lead to citations because it is not practical to monitor a dog that is chained or tied up for two hours straight.
The city gets a significant number of complaints about barking dogs, many of which are restrained and not properly cared for, said Whaley.
“It’s something we want to get serious about and be smart about how we change behavior,” she said.
Last year in Montgomery County, there were about 875 reported dog bites, according to Public Health — Dayton & Montgomery County.
In April 2017, Dayton resident Maurice Brown died after being bitten numerous times by a dog behind a home on Middle Street.
Neighbors said they never saw the dog off its tether and it seemed aggressive. No criminal charges have been filed in the case.
The city of Dayton is partnering with the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center to make the center’s Animal Awareness Program available to Dayton residents who are found in violation of select minor misdemeanor ordinances.
Violators who elect to participate in the voluntary program will pay a program fee, and the citation will be withdrawn and fines and court costs waived, said Cathy Petersen, county spokeswoman.
The program lasts 2.5 hours and covers topics like responsible pet ownership, spay and neuter education, dog laws, animal bite education and prevention and dog obedience training, she said.
When Dayton police issue a citation for eligible offenses, they will hand out a pamphlet that explains the program, she said.