Vicious dogs subject at Kaplan meeting

KAPLAN — Vicious dogs were the subject of Tuesday night’s Kaplan City Council meeting.
Alderman Randy Campbell of District A asked Captain Irvin Cates about a recent incident dealing with pit bulls at a resident’s home in Kaplan.
“What is happening with the dog ordinance in Kaplan?” Campbell asked Capt. Cates. “The leash law ordinance.”
Capt. Cates explained to Campbell that the police officers are doing their best to enforce the leash law ordinance. Capt. Cates gave one example of a dog biting a neighbor’s dog. Because of the bite, the police called the parish’s Rabies Animal Control to come to pick up the dog.
Capt. Cates told the council members that someone at the Rabies Animal Control told the Kaplan police officer that only one animal officer was working the entire parish that day, and the animal officer would get to the scene as soon as possible.
“Our officers are not trained to handle animals like Rabies Control. So it is getting them to come to calls in Kaplan. It is a fight with Rabies Control,” said Capt. Cates.
Typically, two animal control officers work in the parish, but one called in sick that day, explained Debbie Garrott, who runs the Rabies Animal Control. Garrot said the phone call from the Kaplan police came into their office at 3:30 p.m. According to Garrot, an animal officer was in Kaplan about a half hour after the phone call and began the investigation of the dog-biting incident.
According to Garrot, the animal officer talked to the neighbor whose dog was bitten by another dog.
The neighbor told the animal officer she did not want the parish to pick up the dog or press charges against the owner. Garrot stated the neighbor only wanted Rabies Animal Control to file a report of the bite.
The animal officer determined the neighbor’s dog was bitten on the tail. However, when the animal officer arrived, the neighbor had already washed and cleaned the tail.
The vicious dog or owner of the dog was nowhere to be found.
The animal officer left Kaplan at 4:23 p.m.
According to Kaplan City Attorney Woody Woodruff, dogs weighing more than 20 pounds must be in a fenced backyard or closed kennel.
Capt. Cates gave another example that there are times when the Kaplan Police Department will receive a complaint about a vicious dog, and the officer arrives on the scene at the house. However, the dog or dogs are chained in the front of the house, and the officer cannot walk to the front door due to the dogs.
Capt. Cates told the aldermen and Mayor Mike Kloesel that the police officers call the parish’s animal control for help. Still, an animal officer may be handling another call on the other end of the parish and can not make it in time.
“We can send the officers to try and handle the dogs, but if they get bit, that is another issue,” said Capt. Cates.