Animal Control or Animal Cruelty
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| 5/27/2009 |
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| Stray dogs have become such a problem on the Turtle Mountain Reservation that critics say animal control officers are ignoring the rules. Instead of locking dogs up and giving owners a chance to retrieve them, officers are simply shooting them and taking them to the landfill. The Turtle Mountain reservation covers a lot of area, and there are a lot of dogs. "It`s a big problem," says Ron Peltier, Executive Director, Turtle Mountain Housing Authority. Dogs are not allowed in Turtle Mountain Housing Projects. "You sign a lease agreement," says Peltier. If a dog is found in the housing projects, a dog catcher will take the dog away. Policy states that dogs must be held for three days before taking further action. "I don`t think we always wait a few days, maybe just one. We`re just running out of room," says Peltier. The action mean taking a bullet to the dogs head and dumping it in the landfill. "It`s a last resort," says Peltier. The Souris Valley Animal shelter says that`s not right. "The dogs are the ones that are suffering the most," says Souris Valley Animal Shelter Kennel Manager, Kristine Seabolt. Seabolt went to the landfill herself and took pictures of the dead dogs. One shows a dog that was still bleeding from the head. "It`s pretty upsetting to everyone in the area," says Seabolt. Seabolt says she has received complaints that the dog catcher immediately shoots the strays. "According to the paperwork they`re suppose to be impounded," says Seabolt. Peltier says he thinks getting rid of the dogs is the only solution. "I don`t like seeing it done. A dog`s a man`s best friend but what do you do to get rid of them," says Peltier. Peltier says euthanizing a dog is to expensive and there`s no money for it. The dog catcher shoots one to two dogs a day. "Dogs are being removed then they are coming back, there`s nothing being done to rectify it,"says Seabolt. |
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