CD: Starkville OKs new animal rules, considers bicycle helmet ordinance

TIM PRATT

The Starkville Board of Aldermen on Tuesday approved amendments to the city’s animal control ordinance aimed at improving living conditions for pets.

One of the most prominent amendments limits the amount of time domesticated animals can be chained or tethered to a permanent fixture outdoors. Under the revised ordinance, animals such as dogs can only be bound to a permanent fixture for three hours over any given 24-hour time span.

Another amendment requires pet owners to allow animals to have access to a shelter or climate-controlled area when the National Weather Service issues a cold, winter weather, or heat advisory for the city. The amendments passed unanimously.

Several citizens voiced their opinions on the amendments during a public comment period.

The father and son duo of Dennis and Patrik Nordin both spoke in favor of the ordinance amendments.

“The best way to turn a nice dog into a mean dog is to tether the dog,” Dennis Nordin said. “Dogs are not meant to be tethered. They’re free in nature and they should be free, period.”

“Tethered dogs are dangerous dogs,” he added later.

Ward 7 resident Alvin Turner, however, spoke out against the amendments because he believed it would lead to more dogs running wild in the streets, which, in turn, would create a dangerous situation for city residents.

“If you try to please some, you make enemies with others,” Turner said.

But Patrik Nordin, who spoke immediately after Turner, said Turner’s interpretation is not correct because the city still has a leash law and it would be illegal to let dogs run free. Nordin urged aldermen to approve the amendments.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.