Carroll works to silence nuisance dogs

HILLSVILLE — It appears that Carroll County officials may be moving toward a noise ordinance in order to deal with barking dogs.

The board packet for the Carroll supervisors’ November meeting contained a draft ordinance to deal with “risks to public health and safety posed by excessive an unreasonable noise...”

The supervisors said little about this matter at the meeting, except to set a public hearing in December to get input on it.

In a related matter, the supervisors also set a public hearing for 5:30 p.m. at the December meeting on a nuisance dog ordinance.

The Sheer family had asked the county officials at a meeting in September to use the nuisance dog ordinance to curtail excessive barking in their neighborhood, but that is addressed in a separate noise ordinance proposal, according to information in the board packet.

The ordinance would prohibit people from making “unreasonably loud or disturbing noise” in Carroll, the draft says. It would prohibit noises of such “intensity or duration as to be detrimental to the life or health of any person or to unreasonably disturb or annoy the quiet, comfort or repose...”

If passed, the proposal would make violations a Class I misdemeanor.

It goes on to name several possible sources of loud noises that would make for violations, including:

• playing car stereos, radios or musical instruments, particularly between midnight and 7 a.m.

• allowing animals or birds “to cause frequent or long-continued noise,” which is further specified as an animal that “barks, whines, howls” or makes other sounds.

• creating excessive amounts of noise on streets next to schools or hospitals.

• shouting or ringing of bells by vendors.

• using drums or loudspeakers to draw attention to shows or merchandise sale.

• making loud noises before 5 a.m. while collecting garbage.

The provisions of the nuisance animal ordinance would declare a nuisance animals that, when off their owners’ property, attacked or injured other animals, bothered individuals, chased vehicles, trespassed on school or other public grounds or private property and caused damage or repeatedly run at large.

Animals found to be a nuisance would be confined by the owner to its own property.

If the owner failed to restrain their animal, the owner could be called into general district court.

If the court found the animal to be a nuisance it could be seized and euthanized.