In addition to taking reports for thefts, disturbances and tra◊c accidents, Pea Ridge Police are responsible for infractions of the city’s ordinance governing dogs running at large. Both police and Street Department personnel pick up dogs and take them to Pea Ridge Veterinary Clinic, with whom the city has a contract.
The city’s ordinance requires dogs to be restrained either in a fenced yard or on a leash or chain and limits the number of dogs to four per household. All dogs in the city must have a city dog tag and have current rabies vaccination.
In the past six months, police issued 48 citations relating to animals, according to Pea Ridge Police Chief Tim Ledbetter. The city has been billed for 29 dogs in the past six months, refl ecting the number of animals not claimed by their owners. When a dog is impounded, then claimed, the owner is charged for the bill, Ledbetter explained. The bill includes a daily boarding fee and an additional fee if the animal has to be dipped for fl ea infestation.
City dog tags are issued beginning in April. So far this year, 204 city dog tags have been sold.
By the end of September, there were 153 animal complaints reported to Pea Ridge Police. Some of those were dogs running at large, but some involved aggressive and threatening dogs and a few involved dog bites. There had been 1,006 reports total to the Pea Ridge Police by the end of September 2013. The highest incidents year to date were suspicious circumstances, 207; assisting other agencies, 168; animal complaints, 153; disturbances, 102. Police also are involved in incidents that do not result in reports, including 106 motorist assists, 740 public assists and 471 school activity.
“If the owners would build secure fences or chain their dogs on their own property, and get city tags, it would help,” Ledbetter said, adding that all the city’s taxpayers pay the cost for dogs running loose.
“Come buy your dog tags,” he said, explaining that if there is a tag on a dog found running loose, police can call the owner and return the dog.
“We recently had a report of a dog that jumped a fence and chased a lady walking her dogin the City Park. We had another where a dog had an elderly man pinned in a corner of his garage with a dog growling at him. We answer calls of dogs putting fear into residents believing dogs are going to bite or attack them,” he said. “Recently, we had a group of several dogs running through a neighborhood growling and nipping at people in the neighborhood.”
“We had several o◊cers who have been charged by growling dogs when theyanswered a dog at large call. We had another officer bitten by a dog while she was trying to catch a dog,” he said.
One resident of Standing Oaks recently said she carries a plastic golf club to swing at dogs that come near her when she is walking with her child.
Dog tags are not expensive, he said. A tag is $4 for males and spayed females and $10 for unspayed females. Each animal, regardless of how many in a household, must have atag. In order to receive a tag, the dog owner must also show proof of current vaccinations.
Of the 204 city dog tags sold in Pea Ridge so far this year, 36 were to homes with two dogs, 12 to homes with three dogs and three to homes with four dogs, leaving 84 to single-dog homes. There are 1,794 residences inside the city limits that have city water, according to city Water Department records.
The city building o◊cial did not have information about the number of residences inside the city limits.
“In my years here, the animal complaints have increased, much like everything else - more people, more issues. It can be a very taxing time issue when we’re tied up answering these calls and we have higher priority calls come in,” Ledbetter said.
Basically, the residents can help alleviate some of the problems by buying tags and having secure fences for their pets.
News, Pages 1 on 11/06/2013