LONGVIEW, Texas — The Longview Animal Shelter Advisory Committee met this week to determine what steps need to be taken to address the loose animal population. These meetings were tasked to the committee by Mayor Kristen Ishihara.
This comes after 46-year-old Kenneth Pierson was attacked and killed by loose dogs while riding his bike in February.
The Longview Animal Shelter Advisory Committee then set three follow-up meetings where they are hearing from residents and they are discussing the ideas they want to bring back to council for consideration.
The first of those meetings was on Tuesday. Three possible solutions came out of that meeting including requiring residents to microchip their pets, spay and neuter their pets and hiring more animal control officers.
"One piece of the discussion circled around animal control officers, do they have enough, are they where they need to be," City of Longview spokesperson Richard Yeakley said.
The committee hopes to have the answers to these questions in their next two meetings before bringing their final solutions to council. Derrick Conley serves as council liaison to the Longview Animal Shelter Advisory Committee.
"What’s the way to stop that pipeline of animals that don’t have a home," Conley said. "Some type of ordinance that solves the problem, but manageable to enforce the problem. That’s the dilemma and that’s the discussion that will move forward and hopefully the committee can bring something to city council."
Spaying and neutering is another possible solution that was brought up during Tuesday’s meeting.
"Could we require residents to spay and neuter their animals? We’ll see if that committee wants to bring those recommendations," Yeakley said.
However, the problem the city is having is how to make sure residents follow a new ordinance if passed by the council.
"An ordinance is only as good if it's enforceable," Yeakley said
The Longview Animal Shelter Advisory Committee will meet again on Aug. 15 and Aug. 27 before making their recommendations to city council in the fall.