Gilroy Police Chief Denise Turner said that she wanted to see
the city
”
put a little more teeth
”
into its animal control ordinance. The City Council did just
that on Monday – unanimously voting not only to approve changes
recommended by city staff but adding even tougher provisions.
Gilroy Police Chief Denise Turner said that she wanted to see the city “put a little more teeth” into its animal control ordinance. The City Council did just that on Monday – unanimously voting not only to approve changes recommended by city staff but adding even tougher provisions.
The council’s vote came after council members heard horror stories from residents about how they and their animals had been chased or mauled by dangerous dogs.
“Gilroy definitely needs to toughen its dog laws,” said Zinnia Street resident Sharon Pepper, whose adopted terrier mix, Sammy, was killed by a neighbor’s pit bull and bulldog on Nov. 16.
Gilroy resident Alan Spofford recalled a pit bull chasing his dog into his kitchen before biting off a portion of its ear. Resident Yvonne Hyatt showed photos of scars where a pit bull terrier had bitten her nearly eight years ago after attacking her and her dog. Hyatt said after the meeting that hospital staff told her that the pit bull came extremely close to biting into a main artery in her hand, a scenario that could have proved fatal.
At the time, Hyatt said the city classifed the dog as a Level 2 dangerous dog – whose owners are cited and fined – rather than a Level 3 dangerous dog that is worthy of euthanization. The only reason the dog eventually was euthanized was because the owner released the dog to police.
But council members toughened those standards on Monday, including “vicious” dogs in the category of those that can be euthanized, at the request of Councilman Peter Arellano. Other additions to the nearly 15-year-old ordinance include a “strict liability” provision, in which the owners of dogs who bite people or attack other pets will be penalized regardless of the circumstance. In addition, dogs that are a menace will be required to be spayed or neutered and microchipped at the owner’s expense, council members decided.
Owners of dogs that are deemed dangerous because of behavior now will be required to carry liability insurance for their pets, in accordance with a city staff request.
In addition, Gilroy Police Department will now require proof of registration and vaccination for all dogs and cats on all animal control calls. In cases where proof is not available, owners will be cited.
Council members agreed that they could reexamine some of those suggestions when they give the ordinance a second reading.
Council members also approved a staff recommendation to prepare a cost-benefit analysis to determine how easy it would be for the City of Gilroy to have its own animal licensing service. Gilroy residents must now go to the Morgan Hill Police Department’s animal control officer to obtain those services.
Local resident Patty Kahn described how she sent a check to the Morgan Hill Police Department to license her dog, but she never received her license and the department said they had no record of her check. She said she began trying to obtain a license in May and did not receive one until September.
“Not many people will go through so much effort to license their dog,” she said.
Monday’s vote came after the council requested during its Oct. 19 meeting for city staff to review a San Francisco pit bull ordinance and report back to them. The San Francisco ordinance imposes fines of up to $500 on a first offense for dog owners who do not spay or neuter pit bulls. The City of Santa Monica also requires that pit bulls be muzzled and on a leash by an able-bodied person if they are on public property.
State law only allows cities and counties to enact dog breed-specific ordinances that pertain to mandatory spay or neuter programs and breeding requirements. In these instances, such ordinances must not label specific dog breeds or mixed dog breeds as potentially dangerous or vicious.
Turner believed that state law prohibits all breed-specific ordinances, and recommended only making changes to the ordinance that were not specific to breed.
Councilman Dion Bracco, who owns a pit bull himself and said it was a loving animal, made it clear that he opposed breed-specific laws. Still, he said there needs to be stiffer penalties for dogs that act dangerously.
“Once an animal kills, it will kill again,” Bracco said. “We need to enforce the laws that we have.”
Mayor Al Pinheiro asked during the meeting that Turner have more time to look at suggestions that Hyatt listed on a sheet of paper. Turner read those suggestions on the spot and said she agreed with most of them with the exception of some that were breed-specific.
Pepper also recommended that the city charge an administrative fee for owners of dangerous dogs, so that the city could collect money to help pay for animal control services. Most money from fines now goes to Santa Clara County.
Turner noted that it has been difficult to enforce some of the laws that already are on the books because of a reduction in staff. Still, she said believed certain changes could be made in terms of stepping up enforcement.
Hyatt said after the meeting that she was pleased with the council’s actions, although she recommended even tougher actions, such as making it a misdemeanor to own a dangerous dog and mandating that pit bulls be sterilized.
“At least they’re changing the dangerous dog laws,” she said.
