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| Subject: Gainesville, GA & Fayetteville, TN IMPORTANT!! | |
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Author: VSBA |
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Date Posted: 06:35:47 04/02/07 Mon Humane Society aims to ban practice of chaining dogs Gainesville, Georgia A chained dog is a danger to itself and to everyone around it. That's the view of the Humane Society of Hall County, which is seeking to have the practice banned locally. Humane Society president Rick Aiken made a presentation to the Gainesville City Council on Thursday morning, hoping to persuade them to pass an anti-chaining ordinance. "Obviously they had some questions, but I was real pleased with the response," he said afterward. "We focused on the safety issue, because that's something everybody can understand, even if they're not an animal lover." Aiken said Hall averages about one dog-bite case per day, and he cited a Centers for Disease Control study showing that a chained dog is three times more likely to bite someone. He also addressed the beautification aspect. "The city doesn't let you park a car in the yard because it ruins the grass," he said. "Yet chaining a dog in one place wears all the grass away and does just as much damage from an aesthetic standpoint." Several metro Atlanta counties, including DeKalb, Cobb and Gwinnett, already have some form of anti-chaining law. Gainesville Mayor Bob Hamrick asked Aiken to provide copies of other ordinances for the council to study. Mayor Pro-Tem Myrtle Figueras questioned whether Gainesville needs a new law or if simply educating pet owners might suffice. But Councilwoman Ruth Bruner seemed to feel an ordinance is necessary. "I think if people are going to chain their dog up, they just don't need a dog," she said. Aiken said he also plans to approach the Hall County Commission within a few months to request a similar ordinance. Gainesville City Manager Bryan Shuler said if both governments ban the practice at the same time, it might make enforcement easier and less confusing. If laws are passed in Gainesville and Hall, it will be part of a growing national trend. Adam Goldfarb, spokesman for the Humane Society of the United States, said more than 100 communities in 30 states have adopted such ordinances, "but there's a lot of variation in what they will allow." Some towns, for example, allow owners to chain dogs for short periods of time. But Aiken is pushing for a total ban. "It would be hard to enforce if it were limited to a certain number of hours," he said. "It needs to be all or nothing." Tara Mitchell, spokeswoman for a PAWS Atlanta, a private, no-kill animal shelter in Decatur, said she was glad DeKalb County passed its ordinance two years ago. "It's had a huge positive influence," she said. "At least with the law, if someone calls and complains about a dog that's tied up, there's something animal control can do." Aiken said Hall animal control frequently gets calls about chained dogs, but as long as the dog has adequate food, water and shelter, the owner can't be cited for anything. Wednesday, Banks County officials announced plans to charge Randall Morgan, a Jackson County Sheriff's deputy, with animal cruelty after four chained, dead dogs were found on his property near Homer. But Morgan's alleged crime is starving the animals, not chaining them. Goldfarb said local governments are beginning to recognize that chaining in itself is cruel. "A dog's well-being isn't just physical," he said. "The main problem with chaining is the isolation. Dogs are social animals and need to be with people. Some of these owners treat them as if they're nothing more than living lawn ornaments." Deprived of social contact and stimulation, chained dogs typically become neurotic. "They tend to be very territorial, and they also develop aggression as a way of defending themselves, because they can't get away if they're threatened," said Goldfarb. That makes these dogs especially dangerous if they get loose. "Sooner or later, a chain breaks, and then it's a threat to the entire community," he said. Goldfarb said more than 70 percent of the dogs involved in fatal attacks are non-neutered males. "When you put a dog like that on a chain, it's a setup for tragedy," he said. "And so many of these incidents involve children who wander within the dog's reach." Goldfarb added that people who engage in the illegal sport of dogfighting usually chain their dogs deliberately to make them more aggressive. "Chaining is the confinement method of choice for fighting dogs, so by eliminating chaining you can also cut down on dogfighting," he said. Chaining can also leave a dog with physical and mental scars that never quite heal. "We've had dogs come into our shelter wearing outgrown collars that have become embedded in their skin," said Mitchell. "And many chained dogs are so unsocialized that no one wants them. I adopted a dog who still has behavior problems as a result of being tied up." Aiken doesn't see the point of getting a dog that's going to be left outside all the time with no human interaction. "Why have a dog if it's chained 24 hours a day, 365 days a year?" he said. "That's a form of torture." Some owners might argue that chaining is their only choice if leash laws don't allow them to let the dog run loose and they don't have the money to build a fence. But Mitchell said that's not an excuse. "If you don't have a fenced yard, then you walk him twice a day and keep him indoors the rest of the time," she said. "That's where a dog wants to be anyway, with the family." *Robert L. Hamrick Mayor 770-532-1690 citycouncil@gainesville.org *Myrtle W. Figueras Mayor Pro-Team 770-532-0960 citycouncil@gainesville.org *Ruth Bruner Council Member 770-532-7207 citycouncil@gainesville.org *George Wangemann Council Member 770-534-5861 citycouncil@gainesville.org *Danny Dunagan Council Member 770-503-0084 citycouncil@gainesville.org *Bryan Shuler City Manager Bshuler@gainesville.org *Tim Merritt Assistant City Manager Tmerritt@gainesville.org ________________________________________________________________________ Fayetteville, Tennessee BSL passed in Fayetteville, TN Heads up bull breed owners in Fayetteville, Tennessee.... your constitutional right to due process is being violated! After reading a very vague article this morning regarding a new ordinance in Fayetteville, I contacted Kevin Helms, the city administrator for Fayetteville. BSL has been passed, and it targets bull breeds. It is based on a modified version of Denver's ordinance. (However, any dog can be deemed dangerous and be subject to the same regulations if it exhibits dangerous tendencies. The suggestion to research and implement BSL was at the request of the local humane society. City Administrator Helms advised that after meeting with several resident pit bull owners, the city is considering additional modifications to the ordinance, including relieving owners of the insurance requirement and lowering the registration fee. Because the ordinance is based on Denver's, I advised him that Denver animal control issued a statement in December 2006 that their ban has little or no effect on the number of pit bulls in Denver. I also advised him that in Tennessee, dogs are considered "property" and, therefore, subjecting owners to regulations and penalties by deeming their dog dangerous without the benefit of a hearing is a violation of due process. Mr. Helms advised that at this time, there are no plans to remove the breed specific language from the ordinance. I don't know that educating the city would do any good, but perhaps it might be worth a shot. They seem to be listening to their citizens in modifying the law, so... never hurts to try and contact information is below. The ordinance goes into effect in 90 days. If you live in Fayetteville or know a bull breed owner who lives there, or near there PLEASE encourage them to challenge this ordinance! Jodi *Kevin Helms, City Administrator helmsk@fpunet.com *Steven Broadway, City Attorney sbroadway@fpunet.com *Gwen Shelton, Mayor gshelton@fpunet.com *Joe Askins Home 931-433-5990 Courthouse 931-433-2556 *Richard Bolles Home 931-433-8123 Work 931-433-1607 Courthouse 931-433-2556 *Harold Bradford: Home 913-433-4374 Courthouse 931-433-2556 *Carolyn Denton Home 931-433-2513 Work 931-433-1234 Courthouse 931-433-2556 *Dorothy Small Home 931-433-4825 Work 931-438-7595 Courthouse 931-433-2556 *Walter Sloan Home 433-4017 Courthouse 931-433-2556 VSBA www.vsbulldoggerassoc.com [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |
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