Animal control debate continues

Kate Hessling, Tribune Staff Writer

Published 3:07 pm, Friday, April 22, 2016

BAD AXE— After additional information came to light during Tuesday’s Huron County Board of Commissioners meeting, officials agreed to continue exploring reinstating an animal control officer or contracting out dog pickup services.

After Huron County commissioners discussed the need for more research following the board’s Aug. 25 meeting, Commissioner Clark Elftman said he learned the cost to contract with Sanilac County for animal control services has more than doubled since he first researched the matter in March.

At that time, he said he was told it would cost roughly $100 per dog for Huron County to contract with Sanilac County. Now, it would cost an estimated $230 per dog to contract with Sanilac, said Elftman, who chairs the Safety Committee. He did not state why there is such a large increase in the recent estimate from the one given in March.

Elftman and Huron County Sheriff Kelly J. Hanson estimated it would cost between about $100,000 and $150,000 to reinstate the animal control position in Huron County, as there is a need to purchase a truck and equipment, and pay for training and more than $44,000 in salary and benefits, among other expenses.

Also at Tuesday’s meeting was Ron Forster, who operates the Thumb Animal Shelter. He told commissioners his research shows the shelter, which is contracted by the county to house dogs that are dropped off by area police departments or residents who encounter stray dogs, processed more dogs when there was a full-time animal control officer than it does now. For instance, the shelter currently processes between 400 and 500 dogs per year, but processed nearly 800 a year during the last year there was a full-time animal control officer in the county, Forster said.

He also noted “more and more people are dumping” their animals, not by dropping them off at the shelter, but rather letting them loose because they can no longer afford to care for them.

“There are packs starting now, so we’re looking at a safety issue now,” he said.

Commissioners also discussed information Hanson compiled after researching animal complaints handled by the Huron County Sheriff’s Office since 2007. Clarifying information given in the article, “Sheriff sees needfor dog pickup,” that ran in Tuesday’sHuron Daily Tribune, Hanson stressed the information, which included the number of complaints related to barking dogs, dogs at large, vicious dogs, dog licenses, dog cruelty/neglect and similar complaints regarding other animals, was not intended to reflect the number of dog bites his office has handled over the past three years.

He said the research he compiled states “zero” dog bites in 2007, 2008 and 2009 because the Huron County Health Department already compiled the number of dog bites reported since 2004-05. Hanson said it would be redundant for his office to spend any more time researching animal complaints for dog bites because if his department handled a dog bite complaint, it would have been reported to the local health department. Therefore, it’s not true the Huron County Sheriff’s Office has handled zero dog bites over the last three years, but any dog bites reported to the sheriff’s office were reported to the Health Department, so zero dog bites were listed in the information he compiled.

According to that information from the health department, there were 51 animal bites reported in the 2003-04 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1 and ends Sept. 30.

There were 68 reported in 2004-05 and 69 the following year; 60 in 2006-07; and 69 in 2007-08. As of the end of last month, there have been 55 animal bites reported to the health department during the 2008-09 fiscal year.

The biggest question officials have been mulling since the topic of reinstating the animal control officer position resurfaced in March is whether the cost would be justified.

Specifically, commissioners wanted to know if having an animal control officer would have prevented tragedies such as two cases this year, the first where three dogs killed 41-year-old David Whitenack, a veteran from the Kinde area in mid-April. The second occurred last month when a 2-year-old Sherman Township boy was hospitalized at Children’s Hospital in Detroit after he was attacked at his home by a stray dog.

Elftman previously said he believes an animal control officer “definitely” could have prevented Whitenack’s attack. After the accident, it was learned a family member of the dogs’ owner, who was in a nursing home at the time, reported the dogs to the Thumb Animal Shelter. However, the shelter is prohibited from picking up dogs to transport to the shelter, and the dogs were too vicious for the caller get close to, so they were not picked up/transported to the shelter.

Regarding the dog that was involved in last month’s attack in Sherman Township, Forster said the dog previously had been reported to the shelter.

He stressed when dogs are reported to the shelter, there is nothing that can be done unless a police department or private individual is willing to pick up the dog and transport it to the shelter.

Hanson has advocated for the county to hire someone either on a contractual or part-time basis to be able to pick up dogs as requested. He said while his department enforces dog law violations and responds to extreme incidents, such as vicious dogs or a dog that is threatening someone, no one is trained and there are no resources to have anyone in his department serve as a county dog catcher.

And while he’s in favor of the county board of commissioners working to have someone to pickup dogs around the county, Hanson said he would not want to see his road patrol budget cut in order to fund the animal control position.

Commissioners noted because of the union contracts, it would not be possible for the county to hire an animal control officer at the expense of another position, particularly corrections.

Damrow: Hold the owners accountable

Commissioner Kurt Damrow voiced frustrations, particularly because he said it doesn’t seem like dog owners who commit violations are being held accountable. He said instead of sinking money into animal control, the county should focus on how dog owners are managing their dogs.

The reason for that, Damrow said, is because the county’s budget just can’t take on a new position like this — especially one that costs so much to begin.

“We’re in for some tough times,” he said.

Damrow proposed having a location in various communities where people can drop off dogs they no longer can take care of. The animals then could be picked up about once a week or month and taken to the shelter, so there’s not a problem of strays forming packs.

He also advocated for the county to do away with dog license fees, and instead offer rabies shots so people won’t have to pay for a license. This would help because people who can’t afford the fee for licensing their dog may not be getting the necessary shots, and the dogs aren’t registered with the county. If there were no fees, more people would license their dog and get their rabies shots.

Those who still are offenders, however, then should face heavier fees, Damrow said.

Currently, there is a $50 fee for dogs at large. Owners of dogs whose license has expired have to pay a nominal fee when renewing the license.

Damrow stressed someone who is willing to take on the responsibility of caring for a pet should be held accountable to be responsible for having it licensed and current with its shots.

Looking at the information presented during Tuesday’s meeting, Commissioner Jim Leonard said the statistics don’t show a large influx in the number of animal complaints, particularly dogs. He indicated there may not be a need for an animal control officer — circumstances just may appear so because of the two high profile cases that took place this year.

“We’re not looking at an exponential increase here,” Leonard said.

Others on the board felt there indeed is a problem, and the Safety Committee was charged with continuing to research what can be done on a contractual basis for picking up dogs. The move would, among other things, require the union’s blessing, commissioners noted.

Commissioners also proposed combining the part-time or contractual dog pickup position with that of the deer pickup and dog census part-time/contractual programs. The county currently pays about $21,000 for those programs, commissioners stated.

Commissioner John Horny suggested the county raise the license fee to fund some sort of animal control position.

Commissioner Dave Peruski, who heads the Finance Committee, said currently, license fees bring in about $41,000 that goes into the general fund. The animal control budget is about $39,000, which includes $27,000 that goes to the Thumb Animal Shelter for kennel services. Peruski noted the $39,000 animal control budget does not include the roughly $9,000 the county pays for dead deer pickup.

His point, he said, is that the dog licensing program is “not a big money-making scheme.” Other commissioners agreed, and it was noted there more than likely would be some dissent from the public if the county was to raise the licensing fees.