TheTimesTribune.com, Corbin, KY

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September 3, 2010

Animal control officer receives reprimand

TheTimesTribune.com, Corbin, KY

CORBIN — By Megan Williamson / Staff Writer

The Whitley County animal control officer, Wayne Perkins, who shot a stray dog in front of a woman who had been caring for the animal has received a written reprimand.

According to a Whitley County Fiscal Court Employee Warning Report obtained by the Times-Tribune with an open records request, Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White Jr. suggested Perkins could have trapped or attempted to dart the animal.

About two weeks ago, Perkins was called by employees of Whitley Pharmacy in the Highland Park area of Williamsburg about a stray nicknamed “Bugsy.” Pharmacy employees said they hoped Perkins would help Bugsy be adopted but Perkins shot the dog three times, killing it.  

In the warning, White wrote, “Euthanization of animals is supposed to be used only as an absolute last resort, under Whitley County Policy, even though Kentucky law seems to authorize its use in other circumstances. There were numerous complaints. The dog was large and appeared threatening to many neighbors and was also a threat to traffic in the area. The officer made numerous attempts to catch the dog. Maybe a trap could have been set or an attempt to dart the dog could have been made after business hours.”

Perkins disagreed with a written statement that read, “After exhausting every method of capture at my disposal on various complaints for a period of over a year, and due to safety concerns, both for potential traffic accidents and to neighborhood children whom the animal growled at, I followed KRS 2010 in my decision to legally euthanize the dog.”

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