Whether they sleep in the bed with their owner, are trained to perform a task or job or are bred to run the open fields of farmland, animals are seen in many different perspectives.
This poses the discussion of whether people see animals as their companion or their property.
Either way, ordinances are put in place to inform and enforce those with animals to provide the adequate care needed.
Some, however, have questioned if the public is adequately informed, so let’s take a look at the Seymour and Jackson County ordinances regarding animals.
According to the city ordinances Chapter 97 Section 67, it is declared a nuisance for any person to keep or harbor within the limits of the city any dog which howls or barks to the annoyance of the inhabitants of the city, and it is declared unlawful for any person to create, continue or contribute to or suffer this nuisance to exist within the limits of the city.
James Baurle, who became the animal control officer for the Seymour Police Department in 2020, responds to any type of animal calls, from dogs and cats to bats and raccoons, except for spiders.
“There are some days where I hardly get any calls, and there are other days where that is all I do,” he said. “Sometimes, by the end of the day, my radio is dying.”
Baurle said he will investigate every call he receives between during normal hours of operation, which are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Regarding excessive barking and nuisance complaints, Baurle said it helps when the city receives calls from multiple people about the situation occur, because from there he can gather a record.
“Some of the time, it’s just neighbors who don’t get along with each other,” he said. “I’ve had a call about an animal with its water bowl turned over, and I would drive there to investigate the situation, and it has water.”
Baurle said in the case there is a violation regarding the animal being a nuisance, he gives the owner 24 hours to correct the problem and then returns to see if the problem has been fixed. If the problem is not fixed, they receive a $50 fine and if the violation continues, each day’s violation shall be deemed a separate violation.
In Section 99 of the ordinances, if any person who has been cited on two separate occasions and fails to make corrections as directed, they will be subject to confiscation of their animal(s) until the corrections are made.
While barking can be a concern for some residents, a lack of general animal care and neglect are issues that have some residents worried for the life of that animal.
In Section 19 of the ordinances, the owner shall see that their animal is kept in a clean, sanitary and healthy manner and is not confined so as to be forced to stand, sit or lie in its own excrement.
The ordinances also allowed for enforce that the animal shall have adequate shelter, which needs to have five sides, including a top, bottom and three sides of adequate size to allow the dog to stand up and turnabout, have a floor constructed so as to protect the animal’s feet and legs from injury and to keep animals dry during inclement weather and have adequate shade during hot sunny weather.
The shelter also must be constructed to have convenient access to clean food and water.
Seymour resident Kaylee Beed said she believes the laws regarding general animal care should be more enforced based off of certain situations she has witnessed.
“A dog should not be tied outside walking and sleeping in their own feces,” she said.
In situations where the animal could be neglected or harmed, Beed said she believes the city would greatly benefit from having an animal control officer every shift, including weekends.
“Animal abuse and neglect doesn’t have a curfew, so when we have nobody to call in times of need, the animal suffers,” she said.
Even though Baurle has a period of time where he is on the clock, he said he is not opposed to going out and fixing a problem that is urgent.
“I give people my cell phone number, and they know they can call me if there is an issue,” he said. “It’s part of the job.”
While Baurle operates within the city of Seymour and works the city ordinances, the county ordinances are not much different.
In Section F of the Jackson County ordinances regarding animal care and control, any chain or tether must be at least 10 feet in length and the chain or tether must be attached to a fitted collar and not wrapped around the animal’s neck.
Jackson County Animal Control Officer Andy Wayman operates the new Jackson County Sheriff’s Department K9 Control behind the jail in Brownstown and already has a full shelter since it opened in September of last year.
“In the seven months we have been opened, I have answered 128 calls and have picked up 81 dogs,” he said.
Wayman picks up stray dogs that are roaming through the countryside or those that have been dumped and left to fend for themselves.
Both Baurle and Wayman said when investigating calls about possible neglect, there are two things that they do — assess the condition of the animal and investigate the dog’s living environment.
“You can tell just by looking at the dog if it’s malnourished or injured,” Wayman said.
Baurle also said different breeds of dogs have different body types and weights, which can lead people to believe it isn’t being fed enough.
“Some people think a dog should be a barrel with legs, and that’s not healthy,” Baurle said. “It just depends on the type of animal and how they are built.”
As the county shelter continues to fill up, agencies often have to work with other private shelters to find these animals a home.
The Humane Society of Jackson County is a private nonprofit animal welfare organization that accepts animals only within the city limits of Seymour. The society did not return a phone call for comment on this story.
Baurle works with the Humane Society taking any stray animals he picks up in hopes of them finding a home or returning them to their home soon.
While Wayman has some connection with Red Sky Rescue, he mainly takes in all of the animals he picks up to the 16-kennel county shelter.
Red Sky Rescue, a nonprofit animal shelter, was based in Medora and had a contract with the county to provide a home for stray and abandoned dogs. Because of underlying health concerns of owner Ruth Riley, the contract with the county expired in 2021, and Red Sky operations moved to the home of Gary and Karen McDonald at 241 S. County Road 1125E, Seymour.
The McDonalds have volunteered with Red Sky Rescue for more than 10 years and are currently fostering 40 dogs.
“Especially out in the county, we see a lot of dogs get dumped out here,” Gary said.
Flea-riddled, skin and bones, injured or scared, Red Sky has seen many different conditions animals have suffered. The McDonalds have taken in animals from all over the county and provide care and treatment needed for these animals to get adopted.
“Some people have the mentality that if a dog is neglected or being a nuisance that the solution is to shoot it,” Gary said.
The McDonalds said the way an animal is treated usually depends on how the owner sees that animal, as a companion or a piece property.
Baurle said some people let their animals sleep in bed with them, while others believe the animal should be outside.
“Some people see their animal as just that, an animal,” he said. “We see our animals like family to us. I mean, they sleep in our bed, so it really just depends on the person and their attitude toward the animal.”
Baurle said as long as the owner follows the ordinances, there is not much for him to do. Yet, he said he would not be opposed to see the city’s ordinances improved.
“There have been times where you see a situation in which the owner has everything they are supposed to have according to the ordinance, but you wish you could do more,” he said.
Baurle said if the ordinances were to change or improve, he is not sure where they would begin without causing tensions.
“Unfortunately, you can’t force everyone to treat their animal like a person,” he said. “In the city ordinances, animals are considered property with life, so they are responsible for them, but technically, they are only required to give them whatever the ordinances say.”
The question of whether an animal is seen as a companion or property is still a debate many people have today. For the sake of an animal’s welfare, it can be shown that it’s important to know the local ordinances so these four-legged creatures can keep their tails wagging happily.