Concerns Raised Over Animal Control Ordinance

SALISBURY – Officials in Wicomico County have agreed to consider changes to a new animal control ordinance after hearing suggestions from the public.

Last week, members of the public, including those on a committee tasked with creating an ordinance that would better promote the safety and welfare of domestic animals, came before the Wicomico County Council in a public hearing requesting that “gray areas” of the new animal control ordinance be addressed.

Last March, the county council formed an Animal Ordinance Review Committee to draft a new ordinance that would promote the safety and welfare of domestic animals after 300 neglected dogs were found on a Wicomico County farm. Since that time, the committee has worked with council staff to create a lengthy ordinance that would achieve those goals, and in August the county council voted unanimously to introduce the ordinance.

“This is a complete revision of what is the animal control ordinance,” said Council Attorney Bob Taylor.

In recent weeks, however, Taylor said several members of the committee and officials with the Wicomico County Humane Society have met with council staff to make additional suggestions.

“We suggested that they speak at the public hearing rather then having the comments they made last week be filtered to the council …,” he said.

Resident Edna Walls, a member of the committee, said she had brought a copy of the proposed ordinance to a local veterinarian, who suggested changes that would better protect animals from extreme temperatures and inadequate shelter.

“You have an animal out there in the cold, in the heat, trying its best to survive,” she said, “and we should give them that opportunity to survive.”

Walls noted that portions of the proposed ordinance mentioning shelter and weather conditions were vague and could limit an animal control officer’s ability to enforce the ordinance.

“In order for your animal control to protect the animals and do what is right by them, the officers need to have more specific laws written so that they can do their job,” she said.

Wells also recommended the county consider tethering restrictions.

“When a dog is tethered all the time, it becomes territorial and aggressive …,” she said. “They resort to aggression and attacks.”

Walls noted that four counties in Maryland – Baltimore, Anne Arundel, Queen Anne’s and Howard counties – have passed laws prohibiting tethering.

“When a dog is chained, it’s a death sentence,” she said.

Hebron resident John Holston agreed.

“There is nothing in here about a time limit for animals being outside and tethered,” he said.

Holston also said he would like the county to better define portions of the ordinance regarding suitable shelter and temperature.

“We have seen a couple of dogs this summer that were literally on a front porch that was not screened in and half of it was open to weather conditions and nothing could be done about it …,” he said. “Instead of considered the ambient temperature, you might want to look at the heat index or wind chill.”

Instead of making any decision on the proposed animal control ordinance last week, the council agreed to hold another work session to discuss the suggestions.

“At our next meeting we will hold a work session and finalize all the details,” said Council President John Cannon. “That will also give us time to send all of this information back to the committee and make sure it has their blessing.”

Taylor said the biggest issue that the council would need to address is tethering.

“I think the desire of the members of the committee is to have no tethering, to have it completely prohibited,” he said. “That would be a major change, I think, in our law and how people have to care for their animals. It could have some other implications as well.”

About The Author: Bethany Hooper

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Bethany Hooper has been with The Dispatch since 2016. She currently covers various general stories. Hooper graduated from Stephen Decatur High School in 2012 and the University of Maryland in 2016, where she completed double majors in journalism and economics.