BENTON - When a bull mastiff attacked and killed Cindy Bowden’s dog in January, she made it her mission to change this city’s animal control ordinance. Six months later, an updated and stricter set of regulations was approved by Benton’s Community Service and Animal Control committee Tuesday.
The drafted 16-page ordinance will go before the full City Council for a vote June 24.
Among the changes are additional regulations for “vicious dog” owners, including the requirement of the owner to have a $500,000 liability insurance on the dog and pay a yearly $1,000 registration fee.Under the ordinance, a Saline County District Court judge has the sole authority to determine whether a dog is vicious.
A “vicious dog” is defined as any animal that causes a wound to any person without being provoked, that kills a domesticated animal while off the property of its owner, or that chases or approaches someone unprovoked in “a menacing fashion or apparent attitude of attack” when off the property of its owner, according to the ordinance.
“We have some of the strictest vicious dog regulations in the state. We just wanted to go a little further with it and make it a little harder to keep vicious animals in city limits so something like [Bowden’s dog being killed] doesn’t happen again,” said April Hawley, manager of Benton Animal Control.
When Shelby, Bowden’s bichon frise, was killed by Norman, a bull mastiff, Bowden’s life “was turned upside down,” she said, adding that she felt Norman’s owners didn’t have enough consequences imposed on them for their dog’s action. She went on a campaign to change how vicious dog cases are handled in Benton.
“I called my alderman and I wanted to raise the question: Is Benton as progressive as it can be? Are we maxed out on what we can do for restrictions, penalties, fines, that type of thing?” Bowden said. “Do we enforce those things? Are we as good as we can be?I wanted my city to be as good as it can be. I just felt like Shelby was worth it. “
Under the ordinance, a vicious dog would also be required to be microchipped, so it could be identified in the future. Several fees were added or increased, including an annual $35 kennel fee for any owner who has more than four animals at his home for 30 days or longer.
Many of the regulations - such as the $500,000 liability insurance - were aimed at deterring Benton residents from owning vicious dogs, Bowden said. Bowden and a group of residents suggested the changes based on surrounding cities’ ordinances. Benton City Attorney Brent Houston then took those changes and guidance from City Council members and created the draft.
The majority of additions are focused on vicious dogs, Houston said. The other changes were primarily reorganizing the document so it is easier to read and categorized by topic.
One suggestion from Bowden’s group was that city dog tags, required to be renewed annually, be available at several locations in addition to veterinarian offices, where they are sold now. But because certain documentation is required to get the tag, aldermen said they felt it would be best to keep that process at vet offices.
Bowden said many dog owners don’t know they have to have a tag and asked for more promotion of the new regulations if they are approved. About 150 tags are bought every year, Hawley said, adding that many don’t buy the tags and there is no real way to enforce it.
“One of the things we were hoping was [for the city to] push, push, push [this ordinance] out there. Get out there and say, ‘This is the law,’” Bowden said.
She is also hoping that once Benton updates its animal control ordinance, the Saline County Quorum Court will form a similar ordinance.
“It’s a shame something so tragic has to happen to bring change,” she said, “but if you think about it, that is the way it is with everything.”
Arkansas, Pages 10 on 06/12/2013