Commission approves hardwired cameras and internet for pound; health director urges stricter enforcement on dog vaccinations

Hardy County commissioners approved a hardwired camera system and Internet service for the county dog pound and heard pleas from the health department to strengthen enforcement of dog registration and rabies-vaccination requirements after a rise in animal-bite calls.

Bill Auerz of the Hardy County Health Department reported an increase in animal-bite complaints and urged the commission to more strictly enforce existing registration and rabies-vaccination rules. "Why are we not issuing tickets on every case that happens? Every case of an animal bite, and if they can't find rabies records… we ought to be finding these people," Auerz said. He described calls that keep the sheriff's office and 9-1-1 busy and noted that owners often cannot provide vaccination records.

Commission staff updated the commission on two camera issues. The commission previously purchased trail/game cameras to deter illegal dumping on Lost River Park Road; those cameras are in county custody but have not been installed and may not be cell-compatible. Separately, the county reviewed camera options for the dog pound. Vendor Tommy (contractor) provided a hardwired solution quoted at roughly $2,700 for an NVR recorder, four PoE cameras (4 MP), cabling and installation. Tommy indicated the system included four terabytes of storage (about two to four weeks of footage depending on motion activity) and could be expanded for an additional $300–$350 if greater storage were desired.

Hardy Telecommunications offered to install Internet at the pound at no installation charge in exchange for a two-year service agreement. The proposed base plan is a 250 Mbps Internet-only service at about $110 per month beginning June 11 under the carrier’s new Internet-only package.

County staff also compared an Arlo wireless alternative (Arlo XL Gen 2 units are roughly $300 each) that would require ongoing subscription storage ($7.99 per camera per month or $17.99 for unlimited cameras), battery recharging and spare-battery purchases. Staff recommended the hardwired solution to minimize maintenance and ongoing subscription costs.

The commission moved and approved the hardwired camera estimate and to accept Hardy Telecommunications’ Internet offer (motion and second were recorded; the vote was taken by voice and passed). The commission directed staff to coordinate installation timing with ongoing construction at the pound.

Separately, the commission received an update that the dog warden contract has been under review with the county prosecutor and that commissioners expect the contract may be signed by the second meeting in June.

Ending: The county approved a one-time installation (quoted at about $2,700) and an Internet service agreement (approximately $110/month) to improve security and monitoring at the dog pound and signaled a focus on stricter enforcement of dog registration and rabies vaccination records.