NEW LONDON (WLUK) — Days after announcing a controversial new policy regarding its handling of stray dogs and cats, the New London Police Department says it is working to remedy the situation.
In a news release Tuesday posted on Facebook, police said they had been notified that the Wolf River Vet Clinic would no longer able to take in loose pets dropped off by the police department. The clinic cited the increased cost of caring for the strays and overcrowding due to the animals not being adopted.
NLPD said they “checked around” to find another local facility who could accept stray pets brought in by police, but they were unable to find a new partner. As a result, NLPD said it would be modifying its policy for loose dogs and cats.
“We will no longer be picking up stray cats or other domestic animals,” police wrote in the release. “If a loose dog is found, we will check for a tag or an embedded chip to try to find the owner. If we can identify the owner we will bring the dog back to you.”
If we can't identify the owner of the dog, the dog will be released in hopes that it will go home.
Police then offered several tips for residents, including making sure your animal is wearing a collar and is microchipped.
The police department's Facebook post announcing these changes has garnered nearly 400 comments. Community members are divided on how to approach the issue, with many expressing heavy criticism for NLPD's decision.
“Now you just announced to anyone in the area that doesn’t want a pet and doesn’t want to pay the surrender fee at a shelter to just drop it off in New London. What about all the new accidents that will come about because of hitting or swerving to avoid hitting loose pets?” one person commented.
“So if a dog that the police station released because they can’t find the owner happens to bite someone can we expect New London Police Department to pay for all hospital bills and everything associated with that situation?” another person said.
“Animals will starve, get injured, shot, suffer; humans may get bitten. You don't just turn a stray dog or cat loose if they have no ID or microchip,” said another commenter.
Other community members chimed in, saying it's not the police department's responsibility to serve as animal control, but rather, the job of pet owners.
“Not sure why everyone thinks it's the Police Department's job to track down stray and missing animals when it should be the pet owners responsibility to keep their pet on their property. I understand things happen, but that is also why they included tips to help owners get their pets back faster. The PD is simply notifying the public of these changed circumstances that are out of their hands. I don't want to see any animals or people get hurt because of this, but the PD is doing the best they can in this situation. They even purchased a chip reader to help track down owners. Maybe we as citizens should offer the PD some helpful options or solutions instead of slamming them for this situation that they can't control. They're serving and protecting our citizens, they're not animal control,” one comment reads.
On Thursday afternoon, police posted a brief update on their attempts to remedy the situation.
“The New London PD has been contacted by a couple organizations. We're currently in discussions with an organization trying to work out the logistics and a contract to help with the stray animals,” a Facebook post reads.
