WITH AROUND 220 000 dogs and an unknown number of cats in Barbados, the island’s animal control officer and its chief veterinary officer want tighter controls and even a court to deal with various animal offenders.
If proposals are implemented, owners who allow their animals to roam; who walk them without a leash and do not “scoop the poop”; and who keep their dogs tied for extensive periods or otherwise abuse them, would be ticketed.
The calls come from Animal Control Officer Curtis Thompson and president of the Barbados Veterinary Council and the Animal Control Centre’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Gus Reader, as the centre prepares to start its inaugural 2013 Spay/Neuter Week tomorrow.
The two entities are ramping up efforts to not only bring a more humane face to the Black Rock, St Michael-based centre which was established in 1979, but to get more accountability and responsibility from pet owners.
