There are definitely Scrooges around this holiday season, and McKamey
Animal Center is definitely a Scrooge.

Some dear friends of mine had their dogs picked up by McKamey. There
were no complaints against their animals. There were no legal issues
with the animals. The animals were in their own yard. So what does
McKamey do? Scares the dogs out of their own yard, then picks them
up.

Why, you ask? Because there is no money in collecting stray animals. No one is going to shell out big bucks to bail out a stray. But people definitely can and will shell out big bucks to bring their beloved pets back home.

McKamey has a reputation for doing this. I guess this is the only way they figure they can get much needed money to care for the animals at their shelter. So watch your pets
Chattanooga, your beloved pets might be next on their list.

I have a message for you McKamey Animal Center. Stay the heck out of
my yard and my neighborhood/

Mariah Smith

* * *

On what facts do you base your editorial on? Do you have some vested
interest in the local pet shops? Do you have any vested interest in
local politics that use McKamey as a scapegoat?

Sounds to me like you do.

If this is such an issue with you, why not call the press? I'm sure
they would be glad to get involved if your story were true. What about those dear friends of yours? Are they linked to local politics as well? Is there any possibility that they may be animal abusers? If so, McKamey has every right to intervene.

It is not in McKamey's best interest to trespass on others' property
unless they were in pursuit of other animals at large. Even then, I
doubt if they would go onto private property without letting the
owners know it first.

Summing it up, I think you are angry because your "dear friends" are
animal abusers and got reported or you have political interests
against McKamey. Maybe you have stock in a pet store company and
you're mad because McKamey takes away from your business. McKamey
does not break the law by trespassing.

Kevin Boone
Chattanooga

* * *

I am a Chattanooga city resident myself, and I have animals as a lot of city residents do. Some people can't or don't want children
so they get pets as children so say.

I am all for McKamey Animal Care and Adoption Center and believe they
do their job right and the way it should be done. I don't think the
McKamey Animal Center are Scrooges. They have a job to do to the
irresponsible owners who own dogs in Chattanooga that let their dogs
run loose when they're supposed to be contained at all time.

People who don't know this, there are city codes for animals in
Chattanooga. You can look these city codes up on internet. City code
states any animal found RAL (running at large) in the city of
Chattanooga is capable of being impounded. This means if your dog is
in the middle of the street (city property) and the Animal Services
sees this, your animal is able to be impounded.

The animal has to be contained (either by a leash and or fence
or chained in the yard) when the animal is outside in your own yard.

I don't see that McKamey would impound dogs when they're on someone's
property. The employees there, I'm sure, have better things to do like deal with cruelty cases and dogs that have been abandoned by their own owners than to go out and impound a dog in someone else’s yard.

I think people in Chattanooga need to be more responsible for their
actions and blame issues they have on themselves when they're in the
wrong. They should not push the problem on someone else. I have driven through Chattanooga plenty of times and seen dogs running through the streets barely making it to the other side because their owners are not responsible.

Last comment: McKamey has a good reputation to me and other people I
know who live and don’t live in Chattanooga. McKamey is trying their
best to do what they do, and they do a great job in their work for the
city of Chattanooga.

McKamey, keep your heads up and don’t let other people put you down in
the opinions they may have. Remember, do it for the animals because
they appreciate it even though they can't talk and say thanks. That
wagging of the tail means they appreciate you saving their life.

Scott Kephart

* * *

That's funny, I couldn't get anyone to pick up stray dogs in our
neighborhood if I paid them. We have called everyone in town about
picking up stray dogs wandering the neighborhood, and they all say is
that if they are not an immediate danger to people or property there
is nothing they could do. They won't even come look for themselves.

Barry L. Abbott

* * *

Ms. Smith, you mention that there were no complaints regarding your neighbor's dog - now how do you know that? No one is required to call you with complaints or concerns regarding an animal. Maybe the dog was not taken care of, and a neighbor or someone else passing by called Mckamey concerned with the dog's welfare. I have seen so many chained/neglected dogs in my neighborhood, and it always makes my heart sink. I don't understand how people can do that to a living, breathing, feeling creature. I have called McKamey in the past regarding neglected dogs and will do so again if needed. Kudos to McKamey for their hard work and dedication.

Shannon Wheeler
shanollie2003@yahoo.com

* * *

I saw the title to this opinion post, and thought, "Oh my gosh, this
is an outrage." Now I am just laughing. Number one, because I have a really hard time believing that McKamey is out scaring dogs out of
their own yards and then apprehending them; number two, because I have
some very "dear" friends who have some dogs next door to them that
have been basically running wild throughout their entire neighborhood
for months on end and McKamey has yet to show up. And number three, I am pretty sure McKamey doesn't rely solely on money from "pet bail"
to keep them afloat.

I have some pretty strong opinions about McKamey; both good and bad, but I think there is most likely another
side to your story and you may want to get filled in on that before
you play judge and jury. To your "dear" friends, let this be a
lesson to them, they should take better care of their animals or find
decent homes for them with people that would actually love and take
care of them.

Two sides to every story...always. But seriously, doesn't the thought
of representatives from McKamey lying in wait in the bushes for your
Jack Russell to be innocently playing out in the yard and then cuffing
the puppy like a perp on Cops just make you laugh?

Anna Creer

* * *

In response to Ms.Mariah Smith's letter "Stay Out of My Yard, McKamey" and as a local veterinarian in Chattanooga, I felt compelled to voice my thoughts in support of McKamey Animal Center. How is it possible that someone, especially a stranger, can "scare a dog out of his own yard" if he is properly restrained in the yard or within a fence? Does she honestly believe McKamey officials would open a fence on someone's private property and scare the dogs towards them? That would be a tough job for even Cesar
Milan.

Seriously, with the amount of flagrant pet owner irresponsibility and only a 7% reclaim rate, I doubt McKamey did any such action- even if, as Ms. Smith alleges, for monetary purposes. But I can tell you as a vet, I see the results of people not keeping their dogs properly restrained or securely contained within their yards, and they usually involve the dog(s) being hit by cars, attacking other dogs and cats and subsequently injuring or killing their innocent victims, along with various other situations which
could have been completely avoidable had the owners been responsible.

Lay off McKamey, people.

Dr. Jennifer Kolb

* * *

How do any of you know what happened concerning the friends of Ms.
Smith? Were any of you there? I can vouch for this story in that my own mother has been the victim of McKamey in exactly this type of situation.

My mother has a dog, a chocolate lab to be exact. The animal is well
cared for, has plenty of room to run around in a fenced in backyard,
is healthy, loved and has never caused problems in the neighborhood.
One day, as I was repainting my mom's front porch, with the dog sitting in the front yard, McKamey came cruising through the neighborhood. They slowed down in front of my mom's house, but didn't stop, and continued on. I thought they were looking for stray
animals. I went inside for 5 minutes tops to get something to drink.

I knew my mom's dog would be ok, because she never leaves the yard on
her own. I came back outside just in time to see the two jerks from
McKamey walking my mom's dog down the path of her front yard. I went
over to them and asked them what the problem was, and was told the dog
was a "stray" they had just picked up. I knew that was a lie, since
my mom's dog was wearing her collar with her tags on it. So, I told
them that. Then their story changed from the dog being a stray to
the dog having wandered outside her yard. Another lie. She never leaves the yard on her own, because she's too scared to, and because she's been trained.

They refused to give back my mother's dog. So, after a heated argument, with my mother in tears, they carted her dog off. It cost me $95 dollars to bail out the dog. Meanwhile, two
stray dogs, who look nothing at all like my mom's dog, continue to
roam her neighborhood without a care in the world. Because McKamey
knows they aren't going to get a $95 dollar bail out fee for those
stray animals.

So for those of you who jump to McKamey's defense, I suggest you get
all the facts before you jump to their defense. Just because you like
them doesn't make them or you automatically right. You weren't there the day my mom's dog was taken away for no reason, and you weren't
there the day they did the same thing to Ms. Smith friends. McKamey
does have a reputation for doing this, like it or not. So since none
of you actually saw the events that occured, unlike myself who have
witnessed McKamey doing this, you really have no way to defend them,
other than your biased opinions.

Adam Buchannon

* * *

Despite what some might want to believe, McKamey does have a
reputation for snatching pets out of their yards. They tried to do it
to me.

I have a mutt that I rescued a couple of years ago from the pound.
Great dog. She's in good health, is loved, has a properly enclosed
area, has her tags, the whole shebang. One day I was in my front yard talking with my neighbor. My dog was in my front yard, a little bit
away from us. McKamey came driving through my neighborhood, and
stopped in front of my house. Two guys got out of their van, didn't
say a word to me, or my neighbor, and headed straight for my dog, who
was still standing in my yard. She didn't move, but she did bark at
them, because after all, they were invading her yard. I rushed over
to her and asked them what was going on. I was told they were going
to take my dog because she wasn't on a leash. Excuse me? My dog
doesn't have to be on a leash in her own front yard when I'm standing
right there supervising her. So, I told them that, and I also told
them they had no right setting foot on my property, and they were
taking my dog over my dead body.

My neighbor walked over to us, and
the situation didn't escalate any further. I thought that would be
the end of it. I was wrong. For the next 3 days, McKamey drove by my
house, a few times a day, just waiting for an opportunity to snatch my dog. I finally called the center and told them I'd file legal action
against them if they didn't stop. Funny how threatening legal action
always makes people see the light.

I never have supported McKamey. There are already two other animal
shelters that have been in Chattanooga for years who have pets needing to be adopted, and needing donations to help them care for the
animals. You don't see either of those shelters haunting
neighborhoods waiting to snatch pets to make a quick buck. But they
actually do come out to collect strays when you call them. And as
one other person mentioned, McKamey never seems to show up to collect
truly stray animals, no matter how many times you may call them.

Ryan Mitchell