Are Barking Dogs Driving You Crazy . . .

. . . don't bother calling the WCH Police Department.

This afternoon, around 2 PM, I called the police department to make a complaint about a barking dog at the residence of Tony Sword, 932 S. Main St..  This isn't the first time I've complained about Mr. Sword's dog; the history goes back for well over a year.

It is no wonder the dog barks; "it's a outdoor dawg", according to his wife, and it is kept outside, day and night while their "indoor dawgs" get to stay inside.  Dogs are social creatures and need to be a part of the pack.  This dog is neglected and is lonely for companionship.

A few minutes later, an officer drove slowly by the house, and dept on going, even though the dog was barking.  I called back and asked the dispatcher why the officer did not stop.  She told me that the dog was barking behind the neighbor's house, and not the one I had called about.

First of all, I've listened to that dog bark for over a year and know exactly which house it is coming from.  Second, there is an ordnance against barking dogs and the officer should have stopped, anyway.  When I tried telling this to the dispatcher, she put me on hold.

After a few minutes, Sgt. Shoopman gets on the phone and tells me a different story.  He said the dog was barking at the neighbor and her dogs, who were in the back yard, at the time.  Someone isn't being straight, here.  Apparently, I told him, his officer doesn't think a barking dog complaint is worth bothering with.

For one thing; where the barking dog is kept, it cannot see the neighbor's back yard.  For another, it doesn't matter for what reason the dog is barking.  And, how would the officer know how long the neighbor had been there with her dogs, if even that is what was causing the other dog to bark?

When I tried to explain this to Shoopman, he told me not to yell at him.  When I told him to stop making excuses for his officers, he hung up the phone!

Apparently, he has very thin skin and a contemptuous attitude toward the residents of the community, who's tax dollars pay his salary.

It seems some police officers in Washington Court House have an exceptionally high opinion of themselves; they are too important to be bothered by something as trivial as a barking dog complaint.  Perhaps they think of themselves as Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot, when Inspector Clouseau would be a more appropriate comparison.

Last year I made dozens of call complaining about Tony Sword's dog and others.  The police did nothing about it until one day, one of the dogs was left barking outside all day.  They then wrote a simple warning ticket.

One officer, Philips, told me he has dogs and they bark, too; so he wasn't going to write anyone a ticket for it.  I got that on video, which you can see, here: https://youtu.be/tmtXyMs9T10

One of my neighbors told me he had complained about this particular dog, but quit calling the police because they never did anything about it!  This is intolerable.  This is a quality of life issue; one supported by city ordinance.  Police need to understand they are engaged to serve the public in all capacities, not just to write speeding tickets and give out Narcan injections.  And whether or not they like a citizen's attitude, they should listen and not contemptuously hang up the phone.