Marshall County, a dog-eat-dog community?

Even though the term “dog-eat-dog” is used to describe a person who will do anything to be successful or get ahead, it can also be used to describe cities that have a more than robust dog population. Currently, this describes the Town of Oakland.

Many residents are lodging complaints about the dog population in the town. Some residentsareevenhavingrun ins with the canine crew.

The Marshall County Sheriff’s Office said that a woman was attacked on December 8. Sheriff Donald Yowsaidthatawomancalled the office to report that she was being attacked by dogs and needed assistance. Even thoughadeputywasenroute, a Madill officer was heading to the scene to help and witnessed the attack.

The owner exited the residence to retrieve his dogs and allegedly told the deputy that he was having issues keeping the dogs from getting out. The deputy advised the dog owner that the pets needed to be quarantined for 10 days to make sure the victim didn’t get sick from the bites. The owner stated that he had no way to make that happen. So, the deputy contacted Madill AnimalControlandarranged for the dogs to be quarantined there at the owner’s expense.

Yow said that since the dog owner is a tribal member, paperwork is being submitted to the tribal prosecutor’s office for possible charges. He could also face civil action from the victim.

The dog attack spurred residents of Oakland to voice their concerns about the disencumbered dogs.

“My son got bitten by a pit bull and I was told Oakland has no animal control,” one resident who wished to remain anonymous said.

One resident inquired as towhythetownwasusingthe building that was supposed to be the animal shelter as a storage building. Other residents questioned if the Town of Oakland still had an animal control officer, to whichsomerepliedthatthere was none.

Even visitors to the area noted the issues with loose animals.

“We were visiting from Arizona and Oakland Grocery is a favorite fried food spot that we stop at every time we visit, when we pulled up to the store there was a tan female Chihuahua and we thought she might belong to someone there but we were the only truck around,” Cher Cendejas-Pence said. “She washungryandthirsty,sowe gave her a little water and a chicken tender, then we left.” She said that she noticed many residents posting on Facebook about the issue.

“When we got back to Arizona, I saw a post of a tan male Chihuahua at the same location.” “It’s a shame someone thinks Oakland is a good place to dump dogs,” she continued, “but it’s dangerous by the road and even we were afraid we might run the little female over because she stayed in the way of the tires.”

Another resident, who also wished to remain anonymous, said it is hard to walk in the area.

“I live in Oakland,” the resident noted. “We can’t walk four blocks without almost getting attacked four times.”

Crystal, a resident in Oakland, said the dog issue is bad.

“There two separate packs of dogs, one pack on each side of the highway,” she said. ”Both will run at you if you try to walk by them.”

Shesaidsheisfriendswith the victim of the dog attack, and she doesn’t feel safe in the town.

“Dogs run free here in Oakland. It feels very unsafe. If by chance I had to walk to work or to the store I would carry a weapon a big stick or something.”

Crystal said she reached out to Oakland and was informed that it was “too expensive to pay fees to transport them to a shelter.” This means the town doesn’t currently have a dog catcher.

Some residents said that it isn’t just loose dogs that are a menace, it is also pets that are being abused by their owners. Another resident, who wishedtoremainanonymous said that there is a dog near her residence that is tied up outside without any signs of foodorwater.Sheandsomeof herfamilymembersbringthe dog food and water whenever she gets a chance.

Even though the entire county is currently plagued with loose and abused dogs, it seems that the Town of Oakland is the current hub of activity with the recent dog attacks.

Yow said that the Town of Oakland is not a remnant of the lawless Wild West and there are animal ordinances for the town. He encouraged residents to reach out to the Town of Oakland to check the animal ordinances.