Thanks to a collaborative effort between the City of Amarillo (COA) Animal Management and Welfare Department (AAMW), the Amarillo Police Department and the COA Municipal Court, more than 80 warrants related to animal control were cleared in the span of a week in March.
“Community awareness and complying with city ordinances are essential to the health and safety of our neighborhoods,” said AAMW Director Victoria Medley. “Pet owners must be aware of their responsibilities and comply with city ordinances to ensure both public safety and the well- being of animals.
“This is our collective goal of the AAMW compliance campaign.”
The compliance campaign consisted of 988 active AAMW warrants to 308 defendants. Of these 308 defendants, 206 defendants were identified as residing with the city limits. APD officers served warrants at defendant residences.
APD cleared 45 warrants, and an additional 38 warrants were cleared by the Municipal Court – resulting in the clearance of 83 total warrants in the span of a week.
Of these warrants, 74 percent were in the category of Animal At Large (an animal not on a leash outside of the owner’s yard) or related to rabies vaccination (either not vaccinated or the animal did not have a rabies vaccination tag). The remaining 26 percent were in various categories, including Animal Surrender Bite (failure to surrender an animal to AAMW that has bitten a human or another animal) or improper animal tethering.
“Education is the primary goal. We want pet owners to be aware of city ordinances pertaining to their animals. These ordinances are for the safety of the public and their pets,” Medley said.
Chapter 8-2 of the COA Municipal Code pertains to animal ordinances.
For information, go to the COA Municipal Code at : bit.ly/42EUCsG
For more information contact City of Amarillo Media Relations Manager Dave Henry at 806-378-5219 or by email at david.henry@amarillo.gov.
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