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Animal control agency has work cut out for it
| Monday, Apr 24 2006 10:55 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Apr 24 2006 10:59 PM
I recently added a new phrase to my vocabulary: animal hoarding.
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Not that the practice is new. We've all read news stories about eccentric cat ladies or shelter owners who take in more animals than they can care for.
We've all seen the sickening results -- starving and diseased animals living in filthy, over-crowded crates and yards.
Stories of such cruelty and accompanying images featuring dozens, sometimes hundreds, of sick and dying dogs never fails to capture national attention. Sadly, it's a growing problem right here in Kern County.
Which is why David Price III, head of the Kern County Resource Management Agency that oversees the Animal Control unit, goes before the Board of Supervisors today looking for authorization to work with the newly formed animal control commission to find a solution.
Even with supervisor approval, which he should certainly get, finding the answer won't be easy. Price's resources are limited. His current staff of 16 animal control officers is expected to enforce animal cruelty laws and health requirements while investigating complaints -- including the 2,000 or so dog bite complaints it gets each year -- for the entire county.
It doesn't help that many county residents have zero tolerance when it comes to limiting the number of dogs they can own.
"The last time we went before the supervisors suggesting a limit on dogs -- we even talked about going as high as 20 -- people showed up at the meeting to protest," Price says. "No one wanted to deal with limits."
That's especially true of those independent types who move to the more rural areas of Kern County precisely so they won't be bothered with intrusive government regulations. One of those individuals is Cindy Bemis, a Mojave animal shelter operator and the bane of animal control officers in three counties.
Bemis, who is feuding with animal control officers in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties as well as Kern, has kept as many as 200 dogs, many of which had to be euthanized by authorities because of health problems. Even so, Bemis was able to provide authorities with evidence her dogs are under a vet's care.
Once administrative remedies are exhausted in these cases animal control officials typically refer violations, such as Bemis' multiple zoning violations, to the Kern County District Attorney's office, which may be the next step, Price says.
On the upside, the Bemis case is forcing local animal control officers to take a hard look at animal ordinances and how they're enforced. With the influx of new residents in nearly every corner of our county, it's time for an open discussion on reasonable limits. Limits that will protect our vulnerable dogs and cats while respecting the needs of farmers, dog breeders and able shelter operators.
Incidents like the Bemis case are rare, but not rare enough for Price who says animal cruelty is an issue of growing concern. As a result of the increased interest, Animal Control is developing a volunteer program to work with the animals in the county's two kennels, to follow up on spay and neuter certificates and to complete license checks.
Want to be part of the solution to animal cruelty in Kern County? Call Margaret Kalar volunteer coordinator at 868-7104 and ask how.
Marylee Shrider's column appears Tuesdays and Saturdays. For comments or questions, please contact her at mshrider@bakersfield.com or leave a voice mail at 395-7474.