Monday, October 09, 2006
 
Is There Anything Jail Cannot Solve?
Walk a dog without something to clean up after it? Go to jail in St. Charles:
    Like many municipalities, St. Charles for years has had a pooper-scooper law requiring pet owners to remove their animal's droppings while in public places.

    However, Councilman Jerry Reese says the new measure, which he got the council to pass last week, will make it easier for police and animal control officers to deal with the problem. No longer will a witness to the droppings be needed to make a case, he said.

    From now on, the ordinance books also will say that simply walking a pet without "waste removal equipment" in itself is a violation. Those convicted could be fined up to $500 or get up to three months in jail. The measure will take effect when Mayor Patti York signs it; she says she'll do that sometime this week.
Now the government wants to micromanage the minutiae like a subdivision association with SWAT teams standing by. Why don't we just get body armor and automatics for the building inspectors and get it done with?


- posted by Brian J. @ 8:41 PM
Comments:
GOOD! I know I'm in the minority on this one, but dog owners typically have zero consideration for others. I know more than a dozen dog owners who "claim" to pick up piles, but I can watch them out the window all day long and they never do.

People don't spend hours taking care of their yard in order to provide a beautified toilet for your mutt. If your dog isn't happy doing his business in your yard, then you damn well better pick up after it.

Your dog is not a natural part of the ecosystem in which you live. You introduced it, and you are responsible for its impact. Just as fishermen are banned from using non-native minnows as bait, dog owners should minimize the impact of their pets on the environment and its natural inhabitants.

I'd demand no less if you squatted and did your own business on my front lawn.... and yes, I'll call the police if you try. (I'll also take a picture and put it on the Internet.)

Since the current legal environment has not generated change among the habits of dog owners, I completely agree that it is time to increase the penalties.

Don't like it? Buy more land for your dog. Or better yet, move to a wilderness region where nobody cares.

W.S.
# posted by Anonymous Anonymous : Tuesday, October 10, 2006 9:32:00 AM
 


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