Evansville commission backs shorter stray holds, fee-waiver option tied to spay/neuter; changes to go to City Council

The Evansville City Animal Control and Education Commission voted to recommend several changes to the city’s animal-control ordinance, including shorter stray-hold periods and a discretionary fee-waiver for first-time reclaimers who choose spay/neuter instead of paying daily shelter fees.

Council liaison Missy Mosby and commission members discussed three related topics during the meeting: stray-hold periods, reclaim fees and enforcement for repeat offenders, and who may issue citations. Missy Mosby said Best Friends recommends shorter stray holds and commissioners revisited an earlier board position setting stray holds at four days for dogs, three days for cats (three days for cats with microchips or collars), and 24 hours for community cats that qualify for the community-cat program.

Commissioners voted to approve the change in stray-hold timeframes: four days for dogs, three days for cats, and 24 hours for qualifying community cats. The commission approved the motion by voice vote and directed staff and legal counsel to draft ordinance language for City Council. The commission’s support will be introduced at the City Council’s first meeting in June with a final vote scheduled for the council’s second meeting in June.

On reclaim fees, commissioners reviewed the shelter’s existing reclaim schedule (a $7 fee for the first day, $5 for each additional day) and discussed public feedback that fees discourage owners from reclaiming animals. Staff described vouchers and community offers to pay reclaim fees, and noted that in practice many owners still fail to follow through on vouchers or appointments. The commission voted to give Animal Control discretion to waive daily reclaim fees for first-time offenders who opt to have their animals spayed or neutered; in such cases staff will issue a voucher and monitor follow-up. The motion passed by voice vote.

Commissioners also discussed enforcement and repeat offenders. Under current ordinance language discussed during the meeting, a second offense (a dog running at large a second time) triggers a requirement to have the animal altered; enforcement may include citations. Staff and law-enforcement representatives explained that while citations can be issued, practical limits exist because the new computerized citation system requires a printer/computer; the commission discussed strategies to document warnings and escalate to citations or warrants where appropriate.

Commission members asked staff to work with legal counsel (Buddy) to draft the ordinance language, including clarified authority for Animal Control officers to release animals and to document and issue warnings or citations. Staff said the first reading will be presented at the City Council’s second Monday meeting in June, with the final hearing and vote on the fourth Monday in June.

During the discussion commissioners stressed a preference to focus enforcement on repeat offenders and to preserve options for first-time offenders — including the new spay/neuter voucher option — to reduce pet overpopulation while addressing public-safety and nuisance concerns.

The motions to recommend the stray-hold changes and to allow fee waivers for first-time reclaimers opting for sterilization passed by voice vote of the commission members present.