Some Alexander City officials are working to find a solution to a stray dog problem after repeatedly hearing from residents over the past month.
This week, citizen Teresa Moten addressed the city council about an issue that has been widely discussed on social media and in local news stories. Moten said there is a real issue with feral, stray dogs posing a serious public safety risk to residents.
"We have children, some people have dogs, and there's nothing wrong with dogs, but we don't want people to get bitten," Moten told the council.
Moten said between October 27 and November 3, she documented 11 free-roaming dogs in Districts 1 and 2.
Moten said one dog that has already attacked a person, and another dog was previously picked up but is back out on the streets. Another dog is pregnant, making her fear the problem will only grow.
However, Alexander Police Chief Jay Turner said he isn't hearing from a "whole bunch of people" about the issue. He said that if people want animal control to help, they have to call the proper authorities —not the city council or social media.
Further, Turner said he doesn't think the community really understands what it takes to remove dogs.
"With animal control, I think there's a misunderstanding," said Turner. "They can't just go out and take dogs. They have to try, at first, to find the owner of the dog, get consent from the owner to remove the dog. If not, then we've got to go through a court action."
Turner said officers cannot go onto private property without the owner's permission.
However, the police chief's comments were not wholly accepted by District 2 Councilman Bill Young. Young said he has already talked to the police chief about the issue.
"This is a problem," Young responded. "We've got a leash law in Alex City. We've got a leash law. And as I talked to the chief earlier about this, he said, 'We've got our hands tied on certain things,' but it doesn't mean we can't try new things."
Young said he is working with other cities to find out what they do to address stray dogs. He said he hopes to have a proposed plan in place in two weeks.
The Alexander City animal control officers have recently purchased a new net gun to aid in capturing dogs.
Turner told 1819 News that live traps have been set, and one dog was already captured on Wednesday. The proper way for residents to report stray dogs is to call animal control at 256-234-3421.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email [email protected].
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every day or become a member to gain access to exclusive content and 1819 News merch.
