Margie Smith-Simmons, Mayor's Office, [317] 327-3690
Media Wilson, Animal Care and Control, [317] 327-1396
City boosts public safety efforts with additional animal control presence
Increased presence will benefit children before and after school
Indianapolis – Mayor Bart Peterson today joined law enforcement from the city's Animal Care & Control Division to announce an increased public safety presence on the streets during the hours children will be going to and from their bus stops.
The presence will exponentially increase the number of Animal Care & Control officers available to respond to stray and at-large dogs that may threaten children. The affected hours are 6:30 to 8:00 a.m. and 1:30 to 4:00p.m, Monday through Friday.
This measure only involves shift changes of Animal Care & Control officers and will not require any increase in expenditures.
"Innovative staff management will allow our city to benefit from increased protection without spending any additional tax dollars," said Peterson. "We will do everything in our power to keep our children safe as the new school year begins."
The most common victims of dogs bites are children between the ages of 7 and 10 years old. So far this year, 32% of Indianapolis dog bite victims are under the ages of 18.
"We use a system of prioritizing our runs, and those situations that pose a danger to children are the highest priority," said Public Safety Director Earl Morgan. "We will send as many resources as necessary to respond to those situations immediately when the call comes in."
Any citizen with information on a stray or at-large animal is urged to call the Mayor's Action Center at 327-4MAC (327-4622) so IACC can respond.
