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Resident urges action on loose dogs; Wasco council agrees to compile data and agendize animal-control discussion
Summary
A Wasco resident told the council loose, unrestrained dogs are a public-safety and quality-of-life problem and asked what steps the city is taking; council agreed to compile data and include animal-control policies and capacity on a future agenda.
Resident Laura Lopez addressed the Wasco City Council during public comment on Feb. 4, 2025, saying repeated encounters with large loose dogs have affected her family's ability to use parks and perform work duties. "I personally call twice a week to report large loose dogs," Lopez said. She described two recent incidents in which a pit-bull mix attacked dogs while she and friends were at parks and said clients have been fearful to exit vehicles when she shows houses as a realtor.
Lopez asked what steps the city is taking to address the problem, whether animal-control officers are authorized to tranquilize animals and what plans exist to reduce shelter population. The mayor replied that the Brown Act limits responses during public comment but asked Lopez to leave contact information so staff could follow up.
Later in the meeting Council Member Martinez asked that the council agendize a future discussion on animal control to consider policy and procedure changes and to receive data on shelter capacity and the number of apprehensions versus surrenders. Martinez said, "I'd like to ask that we agendize for a future meeting discussion about animal control, and that we can kind of discuss maybe some policies and procedures. ... I'd be curious to know is ... our capacity that we actually have." City staff said they could compile that information in advance so the strategic meeting could focus on policy discussion.
Why it matters: residents described recurring safety and access problems at parks and in neighborhoods; council directed staff to assemble data and schedule a dedicated discussion so policy options and resource constraints can be considered.
