What to do about dangerous dogs? Meridian wants to change who decides about euthanasia

The decision to euthanize a dog, or order a vicious dog to be removed, from the city of Meridian falls on the Meridian Police Department. But police say these cases should be decided by the Idaho Humane Society.

So the Meridian City Council just gave an initial green light to a proposed ordinance change that would expand the definition of a dangerous dog and an at-risk dog, and would give the authority for deciding whether a dog is dangerous to the Humane Society.

“Currently in the city of Meridian, if a dog is declared dangerous, it’s euthanized,” said Tiffany Shields, director of animal control services with the Humane Society, during the Meridian City Council meeting on Tuesday. “Or it has to be removed from the city. Euthanasia isn’t always the only solution, and moving it out of the city just makes it someone else’s problem.”

The change would add two definitions, for a dangerous dog and an at-risk dog.

An at-risk dog would be defined as a dog that bites or attacks a person without causing a serious injury, or has injured another domestic animal.

A dangerous dog would be any dog that has seriously injured a person, has been determined to be at-risk, and has again bitten or attacked a person or another domestic animal outside of the owner’s property.

The change would also streamline the process and “get that process in the hands of the subject-matter experts at Idaho Humane Society” and out of “the chief’s office or council chambers,” said Meridian Police Capt. Berle Stokes at a Tuesday City Council meeting.

Any claim that a dog is at risk or dangerous would go through an administrative hearing with the Idaho Humane Society, with the burden of proof on the society and the dog owner’s ability to argue that the dog is not dangerous. The owner could bring witnesses and evidence.

The ordinance would align Meridian’s code about dangerous dogs with Boise’s, Kuna’s and Ada County’s codes, Shields said.

The ordinance is scheduled to come before the council for a public hearing in November.

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