Common Council discusses animal control for City of Norwich
NORWICH – After having one too many skunk encounters, Alderwoman Linda Kays-Biviano requested the common council consider hiring an animal control person for the city of Norwich.
At Tuesday’s meeting Kays-Biviano raised public safety concerns, citing her own recent encounter with a skunk.
Kays-Biviano recounted a recent run in with a skunk that entered her daughter's home, chased her granddaughter, and sprayed the inside of the house. She stated that they tried to call the Norwich Police Department, but no one was available to assist them.
"All three of us had to have a series of rabies shots which cost $13,000 to the county. If we had an animal control officer that could have come and captured the skunk and tested it, we could have saved the county that $13,000,” said Kays-Biviano.
She said her friends and neighbors have also been terrorized by skunk encounters and were unable to get assistance from police. She said others had also ended up receiving rabies shots.
"I really think this city needs an animal control officer that can take care of the dogs, take care of the cat problem, and take care of animals. I really don't want it to be called just a Dog Warden," said Kays-Biviano.
Currently the Norwich Police Department is the cities designated dog warden. However the department is understaffed making animal nuisance calls low on the priority list. Police Chief Rodney Marsh informed the council that animal control is a separate license from dog warden and it would have to obtain through the Department of Environmental Conservation.
Emergency Management Office Director A Wesley Jones explained why many cities stick with a dog warden rather than an animal control officer saying, "Just keep in mind one reason a lot of places shy away from animal control as opposed to dog warden is because with animal control you're opening up that box with cats. All of a sudden you're taking cats to the SPCA. Once you're animal control, you are animal control. You're responsible for all animals."
Youth Bureau Director Robert D. Mason suggested hiring an outside private company to handle the skunk problem, stating that's how the city managed it years ago.
Alderman Brian Doliver was supportive of investigating how the city could better provide animal control services to its residents.
"I don't want to drop the idea, I want to continue to investigate. That's my opinion. But maybe the immediate action is to look into a private company. Maybe that's where we should go to start," said Doliver.
After further discussion, the council agreed to investigate and compare costs of hiring a private animal control company versus creating an animal control position.
"I think that its worth discussing as far as how to do it," said Alderman Matthew Caldwell. "It's going to take time for us to put this together."
At Tuesday’s meeting Kays-Biviano raised public safety concerns, citing her own recent encounter with a skunk.
Kays-Biviano recounted a recent run in with a skunk that entered her daughter's home, chased her granddaughter, and sprayed the inside of the house. She stated that they tried to call the Norwich Police Department, but no one was available to assist them.
"All three of us had to have a series of rabies shots which cost $13,000 to the county. If we had an animal control officer that could have come and captured the skunk and tested it, we could have saved the county that $13,000,” said Kays-Biviano.
She said her friends and neighbors have also been terrorized by skunk encounters and were unable to get assistance from police. She said others had also ended up receiving rabies shots.
"I really think this city needs an animal control officer that can take care of the dogs, take care of the cat problem, and take care of animals. I really don't want it to be called just a Dog Warden," said Kays-Biviano.
Currently the Norwich Police Department is the cities designated dog warden. However the department is understaffed making animal nuisance calls low on the priority list. Police Chief Rodney Marsh informed the council that animal control is a separate license from dog warden and it would have to obtain through the Department of Environmental Conservation.
Emergency Management Office Director A Wesley Jones explained why many cities stick with a dog warden rather than an animal control officer saying, "Just keep in mind one reason a lot of places shy away from animal control as opposed to dog warden is because with animal control you're opening up that box with cats. All of a sudden you're taking cats to the SPCA. Once you're animal control, you are animal control. You're responsible for all animals."
Youth Bureau Director Robert D. Mason suggested hiring an outside private company to handle the skunk problem, stating that's how the city managed it years ago.
Alderman Brian Doliver was supportive of investigating how the city could better provide animal control services to its residents.
"I don't want to drop the idea, I want to continue to investigate. That's my opinion. But maybe the immediate action is to look into a private company. Maybe that's where we should go to start," said Doliver.
After further discussion, the council agreed to investigate and compare costs of hiring a private animal control company versus creating an animal control position.
"I think that its worth discussing as far as how to do it," said Alderman Matthew Caldwell. "It's going to take time for us to put this together."
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