Dog Attack Prompts Berlin Leash Law Questions

BERLIN — A recent incident involving an unleashed dog in Berlin has at least one resident pushing for stricter penalties for unattended animals.

The Town Council has agreed to examine the codes on the books but officials believe any immediate change needs to start with residents taking personal responsibility for their pets.

Earlier this month, resident Pam Hay was walking her own leashed dog on Vine Street when another animal approached them.

“A dog came and just attacked my dog, I saw it running at me and the next thing I know it’s attacking my dog,” said Hay.

After a scuffle, Hay said that she was able to separate the dogs but did receive some minor injuries in the process. She had encountered the same unleashed animal before but the owner was nearby to chaperone. But with this recent incident Hay said the dog’s owner was nowhere in sight. It’s not an issue that she believes is restricted to her neighborhood.

“If there are loose dogs, you can’t walk down certain streets, you can’t ride your bike down certain streets,” said Hay, mentioning Cedar, West, Burley, Branch and Washington as streets where she has spotted lose animals.

Much of the problem comes from the lack of penalty for letting a dog run loose, Hay argued. While Berlin does have a leash law, pets aren’t required to be leashed when  on their owner’s property, even if no one is around to supervise the animal. If a dog would leave their property unleashed, the owner is eligible for sanctions but it’s a simple warning for a first offense.

“I think that we need to have stricter rules because I think that if people have to pay money they may not let their dogs loose,” said Hay.

However, the town’s hands may be tied when it comes to any kind of further crackdown.

“We’re going to have to have our attorney do the research and find out what the limits of the law are, because there are limits,” said Mayor Gee Williams.

The mayor agreed with Hay that the expectation that a dog left unattended on a property, without any kind of fence or barrier, will stay on the property is highly unlikely.

There’s always been some resistance in the Berlin community for imposing regulation over private matters, the mayor continued. It stretches back decades to a time when there was no leash law. There was a period when Williams remembers small packs of local dogs being a normal sight.

“When the leash law was first proposed, there were a lot of people in town who thought that it was just ridiculous,” he said.

The attitude eventually changed due to pressure from the rest of the community, which is what Williams feels is the first step in solving any unleashed animal issue that Berlin still experiences. The council instructed Dave Gaskill, town attorney, to look into what room Berlin has in regards to regulation. Williams also asked Hay and other concerned residents to start talking to their neighbors, especially those who leave their animals roam unattended.

Residents should keep an eye peeled for those wandering dogs, added Berlin Police Chief Arnold Downing.

“I would go ahead and say to everyone, call the first time. Because the first warning is when you are down Washington Street and see the dog off the property,” he said, noting that regular reports make it easier for police to identify trouble animals.

In Hay’s specific case, Downing reminded her to make a copy of any bills that may be the result of her incident and to take them either to the health department or to him directly. The unleashed dog that went after her pet has been labeled as “dangerous” and is not allowed to leave the owners’ property without leash and muzzle.