By Jessica Kerman
August 17, 2008 12:13 am
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ANDERSON — After months of work, the Animal Control Commission presented its revised ordinances regarding animals to the Anderson City Council on Thursday night.
The 12 pages of amendments and additions recreates the Animal Control Commission, renames the animal shelter to Animal Care and Control, and increases fees for licenses, adoptions and surrenders at the city facility. It also elaborates on animal cruelty and adds fines for multiple offenses that result in impounding the animal.
The ordinance passed only one reading, with David Eicks, D-at-large, and Ollie Dixon, D-District 4, dissenting, because several council members brought up issues they had with the proposed amendments. The ordinance must pass three readings to become part of city codes.
Mike Welch, R-District 1, said he disagreed with the addition of surrender fees at the shelter. The amendments call for a $50 fee for dogs and a $35 fee for cats if an owner drops the animal off for surrender or euthanization.
“With those, before someone will take it in for disposal, they’ll just go dump it in the country,” he said.
Abby Ramsey, an Alexandria resident, echoed Welch’s concerns.
“At least eight animals have been dumped in our yard, thrown in a box over the fence,” she said. “And what you’re saying is your going to charge them to bring it to you.”
Dick Wiley, chairman of the Board of Public Safety, the body that oversees the Animal Control Commission, said the fees were needed to pay for euthanizing an animal and transporting it to Plymouth, Ind., for disposal.
Councilwoman Donna Davis, D-District 2, expressed concern about people who drop off animals they find abandoned.
Tim Lanane said he would add language that clarifies the fee applies to owners of the animals, not simply concerned citizens.
Councilman Joseph Newman, D-District 6, had a problem with how the term “kennel” was defined in the ordinances. According to the proposed codes, a house with more than four dogs and/or cats is considered a kennel.
“At my house, we have two dogs and two cats, and that qualifies my house as a kennel,” he said.
Lanane said that altered — meaning spayed or neutered — cats did not count, so Newman’s home would not be considered a kennel. However, Michael Widing, building commissioner, pointed out a discrepancy between the animal codes and the zoning codes about the definition of the kennel. Lanane said he would change that before the next reading.
Katherine Harvey, an Anderson resident, also voiced concerns about several issues, including who is on the Anderson Control Commission and the higher license and adoption fees.
Harvey said she felt like people on the commission should be from the city because the laws only apply to the city.
“Why should we subject ourselves to the rulings when the people who set those rules don’t live here?” she said.
The license fees, which currently range from $1 to $5 for animals, increase to between $10 and $40, depending on what kind of animal it is and whether it is spayed or neutered.
The adoption fees will also increase from $5 for cats and $10 for dogs to $85 and $100, respectively. The fees will go toward getting the animal altered before it goes to the owner, Wiley said.
On Friday, Wiley said animals that come into the shelter already altered would not cost as much. However, he said, he did not know how much it would cost because it would depend on how much veterinarian care the animal would need.
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BREAKOUT:
Highlights of the amendments:
— The name of the shelter will officially be changed to Animal Care and Control
— The Animal Control Commission will be reinstated, and it will have the authority to issue kennel permits and review the operations of the shelter
— Adoption fees will be increased from $5 for cats and $10 for dogs to $85 for cats and $100 for dogs
— License fees will increase from between $1 and $5 to between $10 and $40, depending on the type of animal and whether it has been altered.
— Permit fees will increase from between $25 to $100 to between $100 and $250.
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