Resident urges clearer outreach and enforcement on animal-cage and shelter requirements; police chief pledges education campaign

At the Citizens Forum, resident Ed Myers urged the city to increase enforcement and public information about state and local animal-protection requirements for animals kept in outdoor cages, citing sanitation, shelter and temperature protections and requesting improved follow-up from animal control when complaints are filed.

“My concern about citizens of Newton when they have a animal in their backyard in a cage...we must provide food that is kept from freezing or being contaminated. We must provide potable water that must be kept from freezing during the winter months,” Myers said, adding that cages and shelters must protect animals from extreme heat and cold and that animals must have adequate space to exercise.

Myers said he had complained to animal control and was unsure whether the complaint had been investigated. He asked that animal control consider calls as probable cause to investigate and that the city report back to complainants with findings. He also suggested distributing requirements in adoptive paperwork or a water-bill insert so new pet owners know legal obligations.

Police Chief Dunleavy responded that the department and the public information officer are preparing an outreach campaign with the animal control officer and that the officer will be at the city’s Open Streets event to assist with public education. “We are in the process of putting that campaign out as we speak,” he said. Dunleavy also encouraged partnering with the Humane Society and other local partners on handouts and noted the city has previously used the water bill for notices.

The exchange was recorded as discussion and a commitment to an information campaign; no formal policy change or enforcement protocol was adopted during the meeting.