Animal control 'appalling'

OUT AND ABOUT: A Chronicle photographer saw the animal control officer arrive and do a circuit around the area where the dog was spotted on London St. Photo/Stuart Munro

A local man who called animal control about a rottweiler roaming near Carlton School says the response time was "appalling".

Graham Cook rang animal control about the dog at 8.20am yesterday after he saw it on his London St property. He told the woman who answered the phone that he was concerned for the safety of the large number of children heading to school.

"I stayed there the whole time watching that dog," Mr Cook said. "I watched to make sure no school children actually got chased."

His wife rang animal control again at about 9am and, after being outside for an hour and 20 minutes, Mr Cook came in and called a third time. He was told animal control had been out looking for the dog.

"I said, 'Now, that's rubbish - it only takes 10 minutes to get from your office to where I am'."

Mr Cook had given them his name, number and address in the first call, and said a dog ranger could have contacted him if they couldn't find the dog.

He didn't see any animal control vehicles while he waited outside.

"I stayed out there from 8.20am - I had the dog in my vision the whole time.

"It's appalling - the dog may have been quite placid, but you don't know.

"I would have thought getting a phone call explaining it was a thoroughfare for lots of children, it would have been given priority."

Mr Cook, who describes himself as a dog lover, had read the recent coverage of roaming dogs in the Chronicle and had been "wondering why people were so upset about the dog rangers".

"I can now sympathise with those ladies who have put a petition out there."

He had seen comments from Wanganui District Council deputy strategy and development manager Jonathan Barrett saying educating dog owners was a priority.

"I don't think you can sit in your office and blame it all on the owners," Mr Cook said.

"Educating the owners has got nothing to do with an hour-and-a-half delay with going out looking for the dog."

A Chronicle photographer went out to London St at 9.50am and saw animal control pull into a driveway and do a loop of the area before leaving.

Returning to town, the ranger stopped to give a restraint to pedestrians who were walking along Purnell St with an unrestrained dog.