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Allgood & Altoona join county dog confinement requirement

With their May votes to require dog confinement, Allgood and Altoona town councils joined a now countywide commitment to public safety and quality of life.

“No one should have to worry about getting bit,” said Altoona Clerk Teresa Hutchens regarding the council’s action. “We want to abide by state laws and be sure that all our citizens are safe and not harassed by loose dogs.”

To enact the change, councilmembers in Allgood and Altoona amended their towns’ dog ordinances to make Alabama’s dogs-at-large law applicable within their municipalities. Although the state’s dogs-at-large law was adopted last August by the County Commission, a conflict with local laws had blocked the statute in the two towns prior to the update.*

Now, dog owners across all of Blount County are required to keep dogs on their own premises. It is a requirement that reduces the risk of harm to residents and their pets and livestock. It protects dogs from being hit by cars (and endangering drivers), from fighting with other animals, and from being shot.

Dog confinement laws provide residents and law enforcement with a nonviolent, legal means of addressing conflicts and mitigating potentially dangerous situations. Without such laws, residents and officers could only request the consideration of the dog owner. No action could be taken until a dog attacked.

Fewer roaming dogs also means fewer litters, fewer dogs abandoned or surrendered at the shelter, and fewer dogs killed due to shelter overcrowding.

For the Animal Adoption Center of Blount County, the countywide requirement arrived at a critical time. Dog intake increased 20% from 2022 to 2024 according to shelter data. Shelter killing of dogs, whether for health, behavioral, or space reasons, doubled in the same period.

Dog owners who have not yet complied with the confinement law may consider keeping dogs inside or installing a fence, pen, run, or trolley line. Sterilization is critical to reduce the urge to roam. A microchip with current contact information greatly improves the odds of reunion should a dog escape a fence or slip outside.

If a neighbor allows a dog to run loose, residents can take photos or videos that show the dog off of the owner’s premises, and then report the violation. Within municipal limits of Blountsville, Cleveland, Hayden, Highland Lake, Oneonta, or Snead, report to local police for quickest response and to ensure that the violation is charged under the municipal ordinance where applicable. In all other areas, call Blount County Dispatch at 205-625-4913.

For a first offense, the dog owner may be warned or cited. If he continues to allow the dog to roam, the resident may pick up the Incident Report and bring it and the photos or videos to the presiding municipal or county courthouse during magistrate hours to press charges. It is not possible to press charges anonymously.

If there is sufficient evidence to charge the dog owner, he will be summoned to court. The reporting resident, who is considered the victim in the case, may be required to go to any court proceedings as a witness.

A dog can be impounded only if the officer witnesses the dog running at large and is able to capture the dog while the dog is off-premises, said Dep. Brock Echols, animal control officer at the Blount County Sheriff’s Office.

Violation of Alabama’s confinement statute is a misdemeanor which, upon a guilty plea or conviction, carries a fine of up to $50 and court costs of $332, according to Blount County Circuit Clerk Cindy Massey. Violation within several Blount County municipalities carries a higher fine and the possibility of imprisonment. For details, see BlountAnimals.com.

*A correction: I learned later that the “license tag” referred to in the 1915 statute was actually a pet registration tag, not the rabies vaccination tag, as I had originally believed. A deep dive into Alabama history revealed that at the time (1915), pet registration was required statewide and common in counties and municipalities as well, and the canine rabies vaccine had only recently become available. Today, the canine rabies vaccine is required and mandatory pet registration has become far less common in Alabama. In Blount County, for example, only Oneonta requires registration.