Okolona, MS – Animal Ordinance Amended, Pit Bulls Defined

Posted on October 4, 2012 by | 3 Comments

The Okolona Board of Mayor and Aldermen tweaked the city’s new animal ordinance earlier this month to change the number of dogs allowed on a single piece of property and inserted the word ‘nuisance’ instead.

Originally, the number of animals an owner had was the target of the ordinance, but according to Okolona Mayor Louise Floyd-Cole the amendment was made to better suit city concerns.

“Five dogs that are quiet and don’t cause problems are not a nuisance, but one dog that barks and is dangerous could be a nuisance. We just wanted an ordinance that addressed our concerns so police can deal with it.”

With the language of the new ordinance, police can write a ticket for any animal deemed a nuisance.

Chief of Police, Tommy Leff, said he welcomed the new law and felt pit bulls should be banned.

“We went to a house recently and there was a bulldog there that was about to eat our guy up,” said Lee. “If those dogs get loose and threaten our officers, we have no option but to shoot it and we don’t want that.”

According to City Attorney Gene Barton, “The key issue is dogs and specifically those that might hurt someone.” Barton went on to state, “This ordinance defines what a pit bull breed is, what a vicious dog is and the regulations and penalties for letting dogs run loose.”  He went on to explain that while the definition of ‘dangerous animal’ does address pit bulls, it also includes hogs, bulls, snakes and horses.

The ordinance doesn’t ban dangerous animals, but owners are required to register them with the city and obtain a $1000 permit to keep the animal (pit bull).  In Barton’s opinion, the ordinance does not target anyone group or type of animal.

 

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3 responses to “Okolona, MS – Animal Ordinance Amended, Pit Bulls Defined”

  1. Charles Cherry | October 4, 2012 at 8:33 am |

    asinine is the only thing I can think of to define BSL. Pit bulls are therapy and ADA Service Dogs

  2. Sherri Dolph | October 4, 2012 at 11:04 am |

    As with most BSL laws, this doesn’t “define” anything…it leaves it to the interpretation of those enforcing. A dog barks at the mailman on a daily basis, the mailman comes during the time a neighbor child takes a nap (making it a nuisance to the neighbor) while another barks at every person or car that goes by while everyone in that neighborhood is at work. What is considered a nuisance to one person, can merely be a distraction to someone else.

    If someone comes to my door, my bulldog is going to bark. It’s one of the reasons that I have dogs. It’s intimidating, but my dogs have never shown aggression…they are just doing their job. In addition, $1,000 a year is ridiculous and will only encourage unlicensed dogs. The key is to make the owner responsible for the dog’s actions, not to break the bank.

  3. Penny Brumfield | October 5, 2012 at 9:09 pm |

    Make owners responsible for the dogs actions. Any dog can bit, and all dogs bark. Figures that humans always want to blame something else for their problems they cause. So the pit is the escape goat.