STARKVILLE — As expected Monday, the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors adopted its vicious animal ordinance, which will go into effect 30 days after publication.
Still unclear, however, is how the county will compensate the city for use of its animal control officers and the Oktibbeha County Humane Society for housing and vaccinating dogs that are picked up.
As of Monday, county officials had yet to hold discussions with city or Humane Society officials but are expected to do so before the ordinance takes effect.
Humane Society Manager Anita Howard said David Vanlandingham and Michelle Anderson, president and vice president of the nonprofit agency, were working Monday to schedule a meeting with the board.
Board of Supervisors President Marvell Howard said discussions will likely take place after the Thanksgiving holiday.
The ordinance defines a vicious dog as an animal that is terrorizing or attacking people in a public area, posing a physical threat to people, their livestock or pets; possessing a history of attacks, biting or otherwise injuring people or other domestic animals on private property without provocation and training or engaging in dog fighting. It also requires owners to keep their dogs in secure pens.
In August, two children, ages 4 and 10, were attacked by five pit bulls on Self Creek Road. Both boys were sent to the hospital; the 10-year-old required additional medical treatment in Jackson. The owners of the dogs were charged with aggravated assault two weeks later.
In July 2010, Mactoc Farm’s Bill McGee had five dairy heifers killed by a roaming pack of pit bulls while a half dozen others were injured. An owner of the dogs was never identified.
The initial plan is to continue using the city’s two-officer animal control division on an as-needed basis. All calls of vicious dogs must be placed to the Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Office, which will dispatch deputies to the scene. Deputies will then determine whether animal control officers are needed to apprehend the dog(s).
In the past, calls of vicious dogs were infrequent enough that the city didn’t charge the county for assistance. With an ordinance, deputies and Starkville Police Department animal control officers could see a spike in calls. Howard said it’s impossible to know until the ordinance goes live.
“As a board, we really don’t know what to expect,” he said. “Any kind of compensation, whether it’s on an as-needed basis or some other agreement, will depend on how many calls we get. There’ll be several things that could determine fees, but to give any kind of figure right now would be grasping at straws.”
Fines for citizens with vicious dogs are capped at a six-month jail term and $500 fine for a misdemeanor conviction not already outlined by state law.
For the first offense, a person will be fined $25, no less than $50 for the second offense and no less than $100 for all subsequent offenses.
Oktibbeha County Justice Court may also require up to 100 hours of community service. Additionally, the Justice Court reserves the right to apply penalties provided by state law for an offense that exceeds penalties outlined by state law.
Convicted owners also will have to pay humane society vaccination fees and any other charges incurred by housing the dog. Howard said vaccinations typically run $30, while housing a dog is $20 for the first day and $10 each additional day. All dogs picked up by SPD animal control officers are kept at the humane society until the justice court renders a decision.
While humane society fees must be paid by the owners of vicious dogs, Howard is concerned that a spike in roundups could lead to housing dogs without owners to pay fees.
“We hope they’re (board of supervisors) willing to step up to the plate and do more for the shelter since they’re asking more for us,” said Howard, who estimated that 10 percent of the dogs brought in from the county are considered vicious. “Since the city enacted its ordinance, those who didn’t want to follow it just moved to the county. I’ve seen as many as eight to nine dogs come in here at one time. Hopefully, those kinds of owners will comply or get out.”
The ordinance doesn’t include a leash or nuisance section, both of which were discussed at the first public hearing in September. However, the ordinance can be amended in the future to include either law.
A copy of the ordinance can be downloaded at www.oktibbehacountyms.org.
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