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One of life’s simple joys is taking the family dog for a stroll around the block. Now, thanks to community member Dawn Davenport and members of the city and police department, those strolls will be a bit safer.
Davenport, a lifelong dog lover, has welcomed many four-legged friends into her home over the years but, unfortunately, has witnessed four attacks on her beloved pets by other, unleashed and uncontrolled animals.
“I feel like there should be a safe place for us to walk our dogs,” she said. “Everybody thinks they have a nice dog … but if my dog growls, even though my dog’s on a leash, then we have a problem.”
The most recent attack occurred earlier this year on her 10-pound rescue dog and enough was enough for Davenport.
“Your voice does matter here,” she said. “You’re the solution to your problem — don’t complain about anything unless you’re willing to do the work.”
“Nothing can change unless you speak up,” she added.
She began the process of change by approaching the Cañon City Council in April and also reached out to Chief of Police John Schick.
Davenport was delighted to hear from Schick, and the two dove into working toward a possible solution together. A focus group on unleashed and/or uncontrolled dogs was put together and a two-pronged approach to the issue was formulated: education/awareness and enforcement.
Police Commander Chase Leonard was also an integral part of the process and coordinated between the PD and the public works department to design and build signs that are slated to be installed at every public park in Cañon City.
The signs, which are already visible at Veterans and Centennial Park, detail the already-existing city ordinances associated with public pet care and provide a visibility that citizens will hopefully take into account.
In addition to listing the ordinances about leash and waste disposal expectations, the signs also note that violations of those municipal codes could result in a fine of up to $2,600.
“We want to remind our citizens that, as responsible pet owners, we have an obligation to keep them under control and that means being leashed,” said CCPD Community Engagement Coordinator Kathy Herrin. “We’re not trying to minimize or reduce opportunities for people to enjoy their dogs but, when you’re in public, you do have a certain level of responsibility as a pet owner.”
“We also want to remind people that we have a really nice dog park,” she added. “If people want their dogs to run free, if they make that choice, we have a nice park that is run by the rec. district.”
Alongside educating the public about the expectations of leashing and picking up after their dogs, the PD also wants to allow the citizens time to voluntarily comply with established ordinances as they will continue enforcing said ordinances.
“Part of the education is that we have an agreement with the sheriff’s office and, regardless of where people are, we are happy to respond and we want people to be heard,” Leonard said.
“If they have a concern or issue that comes up, they can call dispatch and dispatch can ascertain whether it is within city limits or county,” Herrin added.
Leonard noted that a more formal enforcement plan will be enacted on the part of the PD as they move into 2025 and, as part of that plan, they encourage citizens to assist them by letting them know when an ordinance is not being followed.
“We want people to understand the significance of the ordinances,” Herrin said.
Both code enforcement and police officers will continue to watch for unleashed pets but they encourage the community to lend additional sets of eyes.
“We don’t have the staff to be able to sit in every park or on the river walk so if people can help us when they see these occurrences…that would be great,” Herrin said.
For Leonard, the productivity of the partnership between Davenport and the PD doesn’t just lie in the creation of the new signage. It goes much deeper.
“A lot of times…it has very much been a lot of concern but not a lot of solution, not a lot of follow-up,” Leonard said. “If we’re going to achieve anything…we have to have a partnership…We’re very fortunate to have the community we work for and partner with because we have a lot of folks who come forward.”
“People are motivated by positive affirmation,” Davenport agreed. “It’s so important to know that our voice matters.”
The police department’s non-emergent number is 719-276-5600 and can be called to report occurrences of unleashed or aggressive animals.
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