The question of animal control in Ymir has come up again after a property owner said his dog suffered injuries from another dog on New Year’s Day.
“My dog was viciously attacked in Ymir and required 27 stitches at the vet,” said Harlan Thomas. “This is not the first time that this has occurred, including a dog attack on my father that broke his hip. My father never came home from the hospital. The dog problem in Ymir needs to be addressed.”
On the Ymir Town Facebook page, there were several comments made about the issue of dogs running at large at various times of the year, leading one parent to bring a baseball bat while going for a walk with her children.
“[Dog control] is not an uncommon issue,” said Area G director Hans Cunningham. “There have been quite a number of incidents.”
Ymir is part of Electoral Area G in the Regional District of Central Kootenay and currently has no animal control bylaws. Any new services, which can include dog control, must be voted on by residents.
Cunningham estimates that with roughly 113 families, the cost to enforce an animal control bylaw would likely amount to a $50 to $60 annual tax increase for residents.
“We can’t force people to pay for a service they don’t want. Even when it was $35 years ago, residents voted against it. From my reading, 80 per cent of Ymir residents are against dog control,” said Cunningham. “I can’t go against the peoples wishes.”
Another option is Section 49 under the community charter which allows the RCMP to “take care” of dangerous dogs. However, training and time taken from the police force to deal with animal control issues in remote areas runs the risk of drawing RCMP resources from priority calls. The costs incurred could be charged back to the electoral area as well.
Speaking to the injury of Thomas’ dog, Cunningham said, “I understand the issue with the dog, I really do. That’s pretty awful.”
He added that if he was the owner of the injured dog, he would do his best to find the other dog owner, and present the [vet] bill.
Cunningham said the other option is for residents to talk to people in town and convince them to vote for animal control bylaw as it is a people-driven process.
“There are good dog owners and bad ones,” he said. “You can put up all the signs you want but people are going to do what they are going to do. You always have the civil route too.”
Thomas has since filed a complaint with the RCMP. “Maybe letting dogs run at large may not be a good idea,” he said.
In the RDCK, animal control bylaws are in place in defined areas of Electoral Areas I, J (only Brilliant, Raspberry Village and Robson) and K (rural Nakusp) and all of Areas E (rural Nelson) and F (North Shore) only.
Nelson bylaws require dogs to be leashed unless otherwise posted. Another bylaw which bans dogs entirely from the downtown core was brought up during the November municipal elections as one to review.