By Renee Castro

In an effort to make Alachua County safe place for dog owners and their pets, the Alachua County Commission has unanimously approved a new ordinance.

Since September, there have been a number of dog attacks and thus pushed for the Alachua County Commission to do something about it in office.

The irresponsible pet owner ordinance puts responsibility on the owners of the animals that are causing harm, Ed Williams, director of Alachua County Animal Services said.

The clause will create a new section in the Alachua County Animal Services code, and is meant to protect community members and animals from the dog owners who are not sufficiently caring for their pets, the most recent attack was on March 22.

According to WUFT news, “under the ordinance, there are minor and major violations. Minor violations include pets creating a public nuisance, dogs escaping or being unleashed, failing to obtain a rabies vaccination and tethering your animal. Major violations are violent dog attacks and having a dog that is classified as dangerous. If a person accumulates more than two minor or more than one major violations, he or she will be labeled irresponsible.”

He or she will need to microchip and sterilize all of their pets within 30 days, and if they are labeled then they will be unable to obtain animals for three years.

For more information on the subject, please visit https://www.wuft.org/news/2019/04/10/alachua-county-commission-unanimously-approves-irresponsible-pet-owner-ordinance/