Owners of pit bulls and other so-called “bully breeds” in 27 municipalities in Washington are certainly celebrating a new state law that says certain breeds or categories of canines cannot be banned without giving owners a way to prove their pet is a good dog.
Those cities, which include Auburn, Pasco, Prosser and Cathlamet, must allow owners of pit bulls or other dogs that fall under a “dangerous” category to show, through the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen test or a similar procedure, that their pit or Rotty is a safe, loving member of their family.
The change in state law was championed by Democratic Rep. Sherry Appleton of Poulsbo, according to the state House Democrats’ website. “Washington is the latest state to get rid of this exclusionary and ill-considered prohibition,” Appleton said, “and I’m honored to have helped. I also want to applaud the cities in our state that have previously banned breeds but recently repealed those laws. We have effective dangerous-dog laws throughout Washington, and they work. We can now simply enforce those laws as intended, and stop persecuting people based on what breed of dog they’ve chosen to love and have in their family.”
While no city or town in Clark County currently has laws that specifically target any dog breed, there are still laws owners of the approximately 103,000 dogs in Clark County are expected to follow, for both the safety of their pet and the community at large.
First off, pets in Clark County need to be licensed if they are 6 months or older. Licenses are valid for 12 months. Costs are: Cats: fertile $40, altered $20; dogs: fertile $50, altered $25; wild animal $100. The county and city of Vancouver offer assistance with licensing fees for low-income residents. There’s also a senior discount available for those 65 or older.
The fine for having an unlicensed dog or cat in unincorporated Clark County, the city of Vancouver and town of Yacolt is $100 per animal. If an owner who receives a citation licenses the animal within 10 business days, the fine will be reduced by half, according to Clark County Animal Control’s website. A second fine will cost $200 and a third is $400. Failure to pay a fine could create a lien against the owner’s property, so these requirements should not be taken lightly.
When off their owners’ property, dogs must be kept on a leash. Dogs may walk on a leash at any public park or trail in Clark County, except Klineline Pond and the Vancouver Lake beach area.
Dogs are not allowed to be off the leash at any park or trail except the four off-leash dog parks managed by the nonprofit organization DOGPAW (Dog Owners Group for Park Access in Washington).
In addition, Clark County Animal Control reminds us at its website, owners are expected to clean up after their pets. This includes at any public park, natural area, or trail, including the off-leash dog parks. People who do not honor the leash and scoop laws may be fined up to $250.
Most pet owners are loving toward their animals and respectful of their community, but it only takes a few irresponsible people with badly behaved pets to ruin things for everyone. This has certainly been an issue for DOGPAW, which has struggled with those who bring their dogs to its off-leash parks and then don’t monitor their pets or clean up after them.
State legislators were right to ease laws regarding dog breeds. But owners have an obligation to ensure their canine is a good dog.
