The vast majority of Hinsdale residents who have responded via email, social media and face-to-face conversations are in favor of requiring dogs to be on leashes whenever they are on public property, said Village Board member Jerry Hughes.
The law now allows owners to control their dogs via voice command. A change up for a vote June 11 would state all dogs on the public way must be restrained by a leash, no more than 10 feet long, at all times.
Peter Lantero is one of the dog owners who urged the Village Board not add such a requirement.
Lantero wrote in an email that during 25 years in Hinsdale, he and his wife have owned and trained three dogs, two of which completely obeyed their voice commands.
He regularly plays Frisbee with his dog on the lawn in front of the Memorial Building, he said. Other people and children enjoy watching them and, at times, throw the Frisbee or a ball for the dog to return, Lantero said.
People, like him, who do not have a fenced yard no longer will be able to play catch with their dog except at Katherine Legge Memorial Park, Lantero said.
Dogs are allowed on or off a leash only north of the creek in the park, at 5901 S. County Line Road, and only from 5-9 a.m. and 7-10 p.m. from March 1 to Oct. 31.
From Nov. 1 to Feb. 28, dogs are allowed in KLM from 5-10 a.m. and 5-10 p.m.
Residents still will be allowed to have their dogs loose on their own property, such as their front lawn, or confine them via an electric fence, as long as the dogs do not go on the public street or sidewalk, Police Chief Brian King said.
People no longer could put an electric collar on their dog and take it for a walk, however, relying on the remote control to direct the dog.
King said the village checked 10 other towns and found all but Clarendon Hills and Burr Ridge have leash laws. Western Springs, for example, requires dogs be kept on a leash no longer than 7 feet.
Lantero and at least one other resident argued dogs on leashes can still pull away from their owners, and often dogs are loose because they suddenly ran out of a house or a car, not because they were let out.
Stricter leash laws would do little if anything to address those problems, Lantero said.
Village Board member Luke Stifflear said he understands those arguments and said he likes to walk his dog without a leash in the evening.
But what convinced him the village should require leashes is that there are residents who are very scared of dogs. Seeing someone approach with an unleashed dog could cause such a resident great anxiety, no matter how well behaved the dog. People should not be put in that situation, Stifflear said.
Resident Chris Vaughan and his wife, Lisa, urged the Village Board May 21 to give the police the authority they need to enforce the leash law and impound dangerous animals.
“I would venture for every 10 residents who believe they have their dog under (voice) control, nine of them really don’t,” Chris Vaughan said.
The Vaughans’ 11-year-old daughter was walking their Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in November 2016, when an unleashed dog grabbed their spaniel, shook her violently and injured her to the extent that she needed more than $1,000 in veterinary care.
The dog owners, who paid the Vaughans’ veterinary bills, continued to walk the same dog without a leash. Those residents’ dogs were the ones that attacked and injured a woman in August.
Village staff plan to distribute information about the leash law to pet owners when they come to Village Hall to renew their annual license for the animal.
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New Village Board member Laurel Haarlow questioned whether a fine would be sufficient to deter someone who is willing to pay hundreds of dollars for the medical care of pets their dogs have injured.
King said the importance of the citation is it will establish a record that could be used in court to show a dog owner’s past history.
Municipalities are required to report all dog bites to the DuPage County Animal Services or Cook County Animal Control, depending on where the bite occurs.
Chris Vaughan believes the record keeping must be improved so the county can properly identify and respond to repeat offenders.
The new law also would give the police chief discretion to temporarily impound a dog that is a danger to the public health, safety and welfare until DuPage County Animal Services or Cook County completes an investigation.
As proposed, the police chief could consider whether the dog bit a human, whether the dog or dog owner has past incidents of similar behavior and whether the county has initiated an investigation into the dog or its owner. The dog owner would have the right to appeal the impoundment.
Hinsdale can now impound a dog after a bite or attack, but the owner may take the dog home once he proves the dog does not have rabies.