BROOKSVILLE — During a recent Bracken County Fiscal Court meeting, wording and numerical changes to an ordinance were discussed by magistrates and other county officials.
The ordinance that was discussed is pertaining to regulations and penalties for violations regarding loose animals in the county. According to County Attorney Beth Moore, the specific wording and numerical changes are regarding the number of days that dogs can be held at the animal shelter before being put up for adoption.
When the ordinance first went into effect, it stated the number of days a dog is held at the shelter before being “adopted out” was 10 days. According to Judge-Executive Tina Teegarden, the number of days was changed to seven days, to five, and is now being changed a third time.
Magistrates of the fiscal court wanted to change the number of holding days back to 10, Teegarden said. Magistrate Craig Miller went on to explain his reasoning for approaching the court with changing the number of days listed in the ordinance.
According to Miller, he has seen surrounding counties go through the process of adopting a dog out while an owner is on vacation. He said the situation has been known to occur when dogs get loose and the owners are not home to put them back on their property.
Magistrate Sandy Ruf shared her knowledge of a similar occurrence in a separate city. According to Ruf, the owner had asked someone to take care of and watch her dogs while she was out of town.
After returning home, it was apparent that her dogs had not been monitored and one of them got loose. Ruf noted the possibility of owners not always having control over whether or not their dogs get out of their yards.
According to Teegarden, there has never been a case, that she is aware of, where a dog has been adopted out before an owner has gotten back to town. She said she is aware of that happening in other parts of the state.
Miller noted that he brought up changing the number of holding days as a preventative measure. He agreed that he was not aware of any case in Bracken County where a dog has been adopted out before an owner knows they are gone.
“Never say that it won’t happen,” Miller said.
Magistrates agreed the number of holding days at the animal shelter should be longer. Miller made a motion to approve the change in the number of holding days from five to 10. Magistrate Debbie Mayfield seconded. The motion passed.
Moore expressed that a larger number of holding days would also mean a larger amount of care and cost for the animal shelter and county. Magistrate Heather Brumley suggested the fee charged after a holding period be increased in addition to the number of holding days.
The original fee was $10, which would equal out to $1 each day a dog is held at the shelter with the increase in holding days. Ruf initially suggested upping the fee to $10 a day. Brumley suggested a $50 cut off fee, or $5 a day.
Magistrates agreed that a $5 fee per day would be fair.
“Anybody that takes care of their dogs will gladly pay that a day to get their dog back. Somebody that doesn’t care is not gonna pay. It just is what it is,” Ruf said.
Ruf motioned to approve the increase in fees for holding dogs at the animal shelter. Brumley seconded. The motion passed.