Uncontrolled dogs can be costly

The death of an elderly Calgary woman has put a spotlight on animal control.

The head of Protective Services for the Town of High River Cody Zebedee says there are bylaws dealing with how dogs are to be controlled.

"We certainly do get dog complaints whether that's barking dogs or aggressive dogs, it's interesting to date we've actually taken eight dogs to Heaven Can Wait so far this year which is up dramatically and those are typically the running at large or the dog has escaped the back yard, those sorts of things," he says. "But we do get dog complaints, we haven 't had anything fortunately like what happened in the city but they do occur."

He says pet etiquette is important for dog owners when they take them to the dog parks in town.

"This time of year when people frequent the dog parks more are out and about there is that piece where we really encourage people to be respectful of other animals and other animal owners and the big thing is picking up after your dog, and that goes for anywhere whether it's on the Happy Trails on any of the pathway systems, even down in some of those areas like the Mercer or Beachwood properties that we see people frequent all the time." Zebedee says.

There are fines that can be levelled if a dog is off its leash since one animal may be behaved off leash but another may not and could create problems.

If a dog attacks a person the owner could be fined $1,500.

The Animal Control Bylaw and penalties are on the Town's website.