Resident Cherie Phillips brought a petition to councilor Daniel Rist last year because she said the animal control officer has no official way to prevent or mitigate abusive tethering.
EASTHAMPTON – A City Council public hearing on a proposed dog tethering ordinance has been continued to allow more time for resident feedback.
Resident Cherie Phillips brought a petition to councilor Daniel Rist last year because she said the animal control officer has no official way to prevent or mitigate abusive tethering.
The ordinance would limit the amount of time a dog could be confined outdoors to eight consecutive hours a day. It also would require a tethered dog have ready access to food and water and the tether would “be long enough to allow the dog ample movement.”
There are two exceptions to the outdoor confinement section: “sporting or working dogs.” It was this language, which councilor Daniel Hagan said was vague, that inspired him to ask for a continuation of the hearing.
“We have 1,700 licensed dogs in this town and I’ve got to believe a lot of them are probably well-cared for dogs that are going to violate this ordinance ... especially under the confinement section,” Hagan said. He wants more time to talk to his constituents, he said.
As a dog lover and former owner, though, Hagan said he is not opposed to tethering regulations.
Phillips said she sees the ordinance as a good way to care for dogs, but also as an educational tool.
“We have a lot of good dog owners in Easthampton and maybe they don’t know what a dog needs,” she said.
The ordinance has the support of Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said Rist.
Penalties for violating the ordinance would be a written warning for the first offense, a $50 fine for a second and a $200 fine and impoundment of the dog for a third. There would be an appeal process for impoundment.
Animal control officer Robert Jackman said impounded dogs “definitely won’t go to be euthanized. That’s something I won’t do.”
Dogs would also not be allowed to be “chained, tethered, or confined outside between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.,” according to the ordinance, and Hagan said that could pose a problem for overnight workers.
Council president Joseph McCoy said enforcement would be “complaint-driven” and Rist said Jackman can interpret the ordinance based on the situation.
The next public hearing will be held Wednesday, May 18, at 6:15 p.m. in the music room at White Brook Middle School.