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Dog-lovers manifesto

While it is difficult to count precisely how many dogs live in Sonoma (not everyone bothers to buy a license) it has been estimated by at least one dog-loving local that there are as many, if not more, dogs here than children.

Whatever the actual count, Sonoma dog owners are a passionate breed, with enough numbers to pack the City Council chambers whenever a sensitive dog issue is on the public agenda.

That happened last year when the council took up the issue of vicious dogs and debated whether and how pit bulls – as a specific example – could or should be better regulated.

No action was taken on that front, but in September, then-Mayor Pro Tem Joanne Sanders suggested that the council consider amending the city ordinance governing vicious dogs.

Police department statistics indicate there is no vicious dog problem in Sonoma and numerous citizens spoke in opposition to any effort to develop a breed-specific ban. But representatives of SVDOG (Sonoma Valley Dog Owners and Guardians) and Pets Lifeline offered to explore Sonoma’s dog issues in greater detail and to develop recommendations addressing policy and resource changes that could improve the local canine climate.

On Feb. 6, SVDOG co-founder Bob Edwards and Pets Lifeline Executive Director Nancy King delivered a 23-point list of recommendations to the council, including a host of suggestions for improving access to places where dogs and their owners could romp, recommendations for improving the city’s dog laws and making Sonoma more inviting to tourists who bring their dogs with them.

Among the recommendations:

Amend Sonoma’s vicious dog ordinance to better protect both dogs and people. Edwards suggested adopting language from a Healdsburg ordinance that better defines vicious dog behavior and excludes situations in which dogs are “provoked, tormented, teased, abused or assaulted,” or in which the attacked person was committing a crime, trespassing or threatening the dog’s owner.

Edwards also urged the city to adopt a “no kill” policy, meaning that unwanted dogs not terminally ill, not guilty of confirmed vicious behavior, or dogs with sanctuary or adoption options, would not be euthanized.

Sonoma Police Chief Bret Sackett rose to the podium to explain that the police department, which takes in about six dogs each month, “is not an adoptive agency” and that municipal code only allows the department to keep dogs for seven days. But, he assured the council, of the 70 dogs taken in last year, “98 percent were returned to their owners.” Police work closely with Pets Lifeline when adoption is an option, Sackett added, and concluded, “I probably can’t think of any animal that was put down that wasn’t terminally ill or vicious.”

Add a “traffic school” educational component to dog law enforcement. Dogs judged to be a public safety concern, or dog owners who violate dog ordinances like leash laws and licensing, would have the option of attending educational classes designed to socialize dogs and owners.

Consider contracting dog licensing to Pets Lifeline, relieving the police department of the responsibility, adding a small revenue stream for the animal shelter and allowing for the inclusion of educational and resource material to promote responsible dog ownership at the time of licensing.

Adding a dog-related information page, or useful links to the city’s website. There is currently no dog information on either the City of Sonoma’s website or the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau website.

Other suggestions included:

• Establishing annual dog behavior and safety presentations in local elementary schools.

• Encourage and promote dog-related events to enhance tourism.

• Amend the tethering ordinance to permit brief tethering of dogs in public places, allowing owners to briefly enter shops that do not allow dogs inside.

• Amend the city’s leash law to prohibit flexible-length leashes that extend beyond the current eight-foot leash limit.

• Encourage micro-chipping of all dogs.

• Initiate a program called “Operation Socialization,” in cooperation with the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce, the visitors bureau and local businesses to promote socialization of dogs through training, marketing and socialization protocols.

And close to the heart of most Sonoma dog owners, the suggestions include a set of proposals for expanding off-and on-leash access to more exercise areas, including school playing fields for specially licensed dog owners during non-school hours.

“Sonoma,” states Edwards’ written recommendation, “is along among nearby destination towns in virtually excluding dogs – on- or off-leash – from public recreational space.”

Edwards acknowledges the difficulty in allowing dogs access to the heavily-visited Plaza, but argues that special occasions, such as the Fourth of July, should be exceptions.

Edwards also argued that the city’s three-dog rule – limiting single households to a maximum of three dogs – is arbitrary and should be expanded to four.

No action was taken by the City Council in response to the recommendations, but council members expressed interest in exploring the suggestions further.