Spirit Lake Council passes loose dog ruling

The City of Spirit Lake is putting some bite behind its bark.

Residents who let their dogs run loose will face stiffer fines under a resolution the City Council passed June 10. First-time offenders will be fined $50 – an increase of $25.

Fines for a second offense are $100, a third offense is $150 and the fourth offense will result in a criminal misdemeanor citation, police Chief Wiley Ronnenberg said.

The city also increased the cost of licensing dogs and added a $25 fine for people who don’t license their dogs.

Complaints about dogs on the loose are one of the most common gripes the police department hears. Police were picking up dogs, but they had nowhere to bring them until the City Council reached an agreement last month with the Kootenai Humane Society.

To offset some of the impound fees the Humane Society is charging – about $60 per dog – the city decided to increase fees and fines, Ronnenberg said.

Councilwoman Shelley Tschida believes some of the dogs in town don’t necessarily belong to locals. She said she believes people throughout the county are using the Spirit Lake area as a dumping ground for unwanted pets.

Tracking down and ticketing those owners isn’t so easy.

But Tschida said Spirit Lake residents might think twice about letting their pets run loose if they take a hit in the pocketbook.

“It’s just not a safe situation to allow rogue stray animals to roam the streets,” Tschida said, “especially with our kids on summer vacation.”