L.A. DOG-BARK RESPONSE NEEDS FIX.

Byline: PHYLLIS M. DAUGHERTY

Local View

A dog poisoning in the San Fernando Valley recently evoked surprising responses of empathy for the perpetrator, who was reportedly eliminating a long-standing barking problem. Anyone who has experienced days and nights of living near a constantly barking dog can sympathize with the mental and emotional debilitation and extended sleeplessness which often result in physical illness.

Still, it is shocking when obviously caring, responsible animal lovers say they can understand being driven to the point of murdering "man's best friend."

California law has long protected residents against neighbors who create undue noise or other nuisances. At issue is more than just personal comfort, but also property values. The California realty transfer form, for example, requires agents to disclose any influence that could negatively affect the livability of a property sold. In order to avoid any future liability, sellers are obliged to disclose known nuisance situations, -- including barking-dog complaints -- to potential buyers.

Why is it, then, that property owners and renters can't remedy a nuisance as obvious as a barking dog in the city of Los Angeles -- sometimes for months or even years?

Los Angeles has 4.9 million people with an estimated 1.2 million dogs living in close proximity to each other. Dogs bark from loneliness -- they are pack animals that need companionship. Isolating them in backyards engenders fear because their basic instinct is to bond together for protection. Once they have a human "pack," they grieve and suffer when separated.

Dogs bark when they are tethered, because the forced confinement leaves them vulnerable and robs them of the chance for "flight." Chaining or tethering also results in greater aggression and barking at any perceived threat. (Recent state and city ordinances prohibit long periods of chaining.)

Dogs bark because they have inadequate food, water or shelter -- all required by law.

And some dogs just like to bark. Even with access to indoor living and modern creature comforts, they assert their existence in the community vocally at every opportunity.

Often, too, there are just too many dogs in one household. L.A. city zoning laws allow only three dogs per residential property, but this is not regularly enforced by Animal Services.

L.A. Animal Services hearing examiners advise that they are able to stay "current" on their cases, but still the process for an official hearing may easily take four months from the initial complaint. A major cause for additional delay is that the offending dog may not be licensed. Action then must start to license the dog so that a hearing for revocation can be held.

There's also an even greater glitch that can drive those who have pursued legal channels to the point of desperation. The dog owner has the right to appeal any decision. During the appeal period, any determination that would address remedying the barking is stayed. Appeals are required by law to be heard by the L.A. Animal Services Commission within 30 days; however, the average wait can be up to a year, with another 75 days to issue a decision.

Once a barking-dog issue comes before the ultraliberal Animal Services Commission, the ensuing discussion strays widely from the facts of the case to a gamut of solutions, up to and including whether the complainant is willing to pay for a dog walker to exercise his neighbor's yapper and a frequent public declaration by commissioners that, regardless of the facts, barking-dog issues are really neighbor disputes and the animals are not a problem.

Rarely is a license revoked.

Usually incessant barking is a sign that something is wrong for the dog. It is impossible for a truly loving owner to be oblivious to the distress of a pet on an ongoing basis.

Having personally had to file a barking-dog complaint, I know it is true that some owners don't care enough about either their dogs or their communities to do the right thing. In these cases, the dog should be given the opportunity for better treatment -- and so should the neighbors.