Laurens County to hold landlords responsible for abandoned pets

The Laurens County Commission adopted a change they hope will put more bite in their animal control policy.

The commission voted Tuesday to hold landlords responsible for pets abandoned by renters. In the past, animal control has sought to hold renters accountable but had a difficult time collaring offenders.

“Most of the time we can’t find these people,” County  Administrator Bryan Rogers said. “Ninety percent of the time we can’t locate them.”

The policy change holds property owners responsible for the costs of processing the abandoned pets, such as veterinarian bills, plus $50 if animal control officers have to trap the animals. “If they bring us the dog, that will save them some money,” Rogers said.

Also at the meeting, the commission voted to put up signs prohibiting big-rig truckers, especially log truck drivers, from using certain county roads as shortcuts.

“These roads are only 19 feet wide, and are really old roads,” Rogers told the commissioners. “They’re not set up to hold that weight.”

Big trucks will be prohibited on the following roads: Country Club; Marie Church; Blackshear’s Ferry;  Harry Green; and Chappell Mill.

“I know truckers are hurting as much as anybody else, but a lot of these guys will take any shortcut they can,” said Commissioner Trae Kemp. “We got to think about public safety and maintaining these roads.”

In other business, the commission approved the purchase of all-terrain vehicles for the W.H. “Bud” Barron Airport and for Laurens County Rural Fire. The airport and fire department have been sharing the same, small “worn-out” ATV, Rogers said.

The fire department’s need for a new ATV has been amplified recently by numerous fires in wooded and other hard-to-reach areas due to drought and dry conditions. The fire department has an 80-gallon tank attachment for the ATV.

The airport uses the ATV for “a lot of spraying” on the property and to drag areas to remove loose rocks.

The county received four bids from local vendors. The board approved buying a Honda ATV for the fire department, at $18,599, and a Polaris for the airport, at $15,280.