Camarillo man wants to muzzle barkers
By Michelle Knight knight@theacorn.com

John Carter

Camarillo resident John Carter wants to change a city ordinance to give people bothered by neighbors' barking dogs more flexibility. Carter has 60 signatures so far on a petition he plans to present to the City Council.

For barking animals to be considered a nuisance, current law states they must deprive people living in two or more residences in the neighborhood "of the comfortable enjoyment of their homes." If two residents sign a complaint, the matter could go before the poundmaster and the dog's owner could be ordered to keep the animal quiet.

Carter wants to eliminate the portion that requires two neighboring residents to be disturbed by the noise. He said the present law heavily favors the dog owner and can leave an irritated neighbor with little recourse but to move.

Carter would have the code require a second resident only to confirm that the barking disturbs the neighbor who complained.

He said there are many reasons why relentless barking may disturb neighbors on one side of a home but not the other. The dog may be kept on the opposite side of the house; the noise could be toned down by double-paned windows or the owner of the animal could be at work during the day.

"It's just about . . . impossible to get a second party interested in that situation," said Carter, a retired electrical engineer.

Deputy city manager Gail Doi said requiring that excessive barking disturb two or even three neighbors is a common standard among city ordinances. Camarillo previously allowed one person to complain about barking but changed the law in 2002 because it became a matter of one person's word against another's, she said. "We can resolve cases a lot better because of that second voice validating the fact that there is a problem," Doi said.

A recent situation in Carter's Mission Oaks neighborhood moved him to launch the petition drive. A man annoyed by a barking dog next door could get none of his immediate neighbors to join him in a complaint. Carter, who lives three houses away from the animal, sympathized with the irritated man and signed on as the second complainant. The poundmaster reviewed the complaint but said Carter lived too far away to be bothered by the dog. No action was taken.

The dog's owners have cooperated and tried to quell their dog's barking. But they're not bound legally to do so. That worries Carter.

"It could change any time at their whim, of course," he said.

Carter said he empathized with his neighbor because he had been in a similar situation 10 years ago. Carter complained to his neighbors for months about their dog's incessant barking and even to animal control but to no avail. The situation was resolved only when the neighbors moved away.

Kathy Jenks, who has served as poundmaster for 20 years, defended the law's standard of requiring that two persons be directly affected by barking. The law is written that way to prevent someone from lodging an invalid complaint, she said.

"Most of the time if it's bad, it's going to bother more than one person," she said. "If it bothers several people then it's probably pretty loud."

A number of reasons could account for excessive barking. The dog could be anxious, fearful or bored; certain breeds just bark more than others, Jenks said. She suggests dog owners consult an animal behavior specialist to find out why their dog is barking too much.

Even when Jenks determines a dog is a public nuisance, her reach is limited. She can't order a dog destroyed for barking, and she can't fine its owners, she said.

To get permanent relief and satisfaction, people often take the dog owner to civil court, she said.

Carter said that when he states his case to the City Council, he plans to show hundreds of names on his petition. He said he'll spend however long it takes to get the signatures because he has the time and no deadline.

"I want to show them I'm just not coming with a onetime situation that affects only me," Carter said. "I'm feeling confident this is a fair compromise proposal."

People wishing to sign Carter's petition can call him at (805) 4824922, or contact him via e-mail at kt6r@adelphia.net.