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Show By LE ANN B LODGE TT The dog control problem flared up again in Davis County when a Bountiful man complained his dog had been mistreated while in quarantine quaran-tine at the Animal Control Center. JOHN FOX, chief investigator inves-tigator from the Utah Humane Society, made recommendations to the commission com-mission for changes in the animal ordinance and care at the center. Mason Moore put in a claim for veterinary charges and county commissioners explained some of their problems in controlling people and dogs. MR. FOX gave the commissioners com-missioners a book, claiming that if they would read it and follow instructions they would be able to solve their dog problem. When the commissioners asked him if any municipality in Utah had been successful in dog control Mr. Fox said, "No. No one in Utah reads the book and follows the program." THERE are places in California, such as Los Angeles An-geles County, where animal control is self-supporting, not requiring tax support. Davis County taxpayers pay approximately $50,000 per year to control dogs. Dog license sales bring in $30,000 and the total bill for animal control is $80,000 per year. ANIMAL control employees in Davis County have received criticism in the past for their method of euthanasia. Mr. Fox spoke of dogs jerking between the legs of employees trying to administer cardiac euthanasia injections. "It may be snap judgment on my part," he said, "but there are some employees who are untrainable because they either can't learn or have a fear of dogs," he said. "THE vaccination method is not painful to the animal but is hard on the person administering ad-ministering it. It is hard to feel it die in your arms," he said. He suggested the purchase of a $1700 high pressure gas chamber. The county previously used carbon monoxide poisoning through the exhaust of the van but they discontinued this method after receiving complaints from the Humane Society and the Environmental Protection Agency. "IT'S HARD to get enough carbon monoxide to do the job with the emission controls on the new vehicles," said Mr. Fox. Other suggestions in the euthanasia method included keeping the area closed to the public while the procedure takes place, "a little old lady could walk in and see it and have a heart attack," he said. HE ALSO suggested that animals be left for three hours before being disposed of. "Unless the bodies are stiff they could come back to life just as the dirt is being pushed over them." Animal Control Director Noal Evans said they waited about two hours and took a sodium phenobarbital injection injec-tion needle with them in case it was needed if a dog showed any signs of life. IT IS estimated that only 25 percent of the dog owners are licensing dogs. The tee ot $3 is the same for all dogs. Mr. Fox says that in Los Angeles County and places where animal control is effective, licenses cost $25 for un-nu-tered animals and only a token fee for animals that are rendered sterile for reproduction. Getting people to sign complaints on their neighbors' neigh-bors' dogs is difficult and one of the major roadblocks to control. "If a person would go to his neighbor openly and ask him to control his dog or be taken to court, handling it on a man-to-man basis, the problem would be solved," said Mr. Fox. MANY people want to control con-trol their neighbor's dog but don't want to confront their neighbor so they do it backhanded by trying to get the animal control to pick the dog up and impound it. The judicial system and people must work together or it can't be effective. "1 would like to see an escalating fine system where people would be fined double for each successive suc-cessive violation involving their dogs," said Mr. Fox. HE SAID the Humane Society handles a tremendous volume of dogs, killing 50 to 125 dogs a day. Davis County destroys six to eight per day. Both facilities keep animals for a five-day period to locate the owner or find a new home. MR. FOX foresees the need in the future for licensing felines and providing larger facilities for animal control. He says the Humane Society in Salt Lake is in the process of building a $100,000 spaying and nutering clinic. He suggests that Boy Scouts be used to help patrol the dog problem, getting people to license their dogs. "It is for the benefit of animals in the long run," he said. MR. MASON, a Bountiful resident, put in a claim for veterinary charges for his Shepherd Collie when it was quarantined at the county center and contracted bronchitis and kennel burns. He complained of the harsh disinfectant that was used to clean kennels, causing burns on the underside of the dog's body. Mrs. Mason said the dog had been taken there as a strong verile dog and came back mangey, matted and hardly able to stand up. THE DOG bit a meter reader going through the owner's garage by mistake. Davis County's ordinance requires quarantine to determine deter-mine if the animal has rabies. Mr. Fox took exception to a few sections of the animal control ordinance. He picked out of word "mischevious" used in the section describing reasons for disposing of dogs. "A dog could be destroyed for being vicious or fierce but all dogs are mischevious," he said. MR. FOX recommended the purchase of a live capture trap. County Attorney Milton Hess warned that it may cause a legal problem if dogs are enticed off their own premises to the meat in the trap. Mr. Fox said it would be used only in farm areas where livestock killing is a problem. "It is safer than the nicotine nico-tine gun," he said. "Like anything else, it should be handled right to prevent a dog from freezing to death over a long, cold weekend." HE SHOWED pictures of a nicotine gun used to tranquilize dogs. There is no effective and safe method of tranquilizing dogs," he said. The guns are for large circus animals and it is next to impossible im-possible to tranquilize a dog without injuring it. Parke-Davis Chemical Company is working on a drug for that purpose now. "If they develop a successful drug, we will be the first to buy it," he said. HE WARNED against the use of mace spray, saying it could cause permanent injury to canine eyes. "It is usually carried only by people who are afraid of dogs and dogs sense fear and react to it," he said. No one at the Humane Society uses mace, he pointed out. |