Why Animal Control? How about Animal Services, Animal Welfare or Animal Protection, etc.? We could still be the dog whipper or the dog collector? Between the 16th and 18th century the dog whipper was employed by churches in England to keep stray dogs away from church gatherings. The dog collector was part of the 1811 “Law Concerning Dogs” in Manhattan. That law was enacted to help “control” the spread of rabies.

The dog collector would collect a $3 tax from the dog owner in the city. Talk about the first dog license! In that time anyone could kill stray dogs outside of the lamp district or any dog suspected of biting someone. By the 1830s the bounty for stray dogs was $1. In 1836, 8000 dogs were slaughtered. At that time most of the dog killers were children and many in of the affluent population were concerned that the children would grow up to commit other crimes. Though it was open season on killing dogs the population of stray dogs continued to grow.

In 1866 Henry Bergh created the American Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. That began to change the fate of animals in America. You may be asking yourself; what does this have to do with the name, Animal Control? I have gone back and forth on this and even created a list with over 30 names that define our profession. Animal Control is the most common, recognized, understood and accepted name in our profession. The truth is no matter what we are called it comes down to how we interact with our community, that is how we’re remembered.

I found a love for this job in 2009, I became a volunteer at a local animal shelter. A longtime family friend encouraged me to become an animal control officer. I started to do ride alongs and immediately fell in love with the idea of helping animals and people. This job has a purpose! My first job was a seasonal position with a Humane Society. I was an Animal Control & Protection Officer. I was trained by a metalhead who seemed to hate people but like animals. He was and still is an awesome guy but carried himself in way that could rub the community the wrong way. Once you get past the beard and the New York accident you see that he has a big heart and loves the job. The problem is the community only gets to see that on a small scale. I can imagine anyone he has contact with respects him and has a better image of our profession. But if you saw him from afar you may make an assumption which would be incorrect.

The seasonal job came to an end and I joined a local department as an “Animal Control Officer”. The department was under the facilities section of the county. I met with the facilities manager on my first day who was wearing a flannel button up shirt with a red hat that someone contained his mullet. The first thing he said to me was; “so you’re gonna catch dogs for us”.

That was the moment I knew I wanted to help our profession gain the notoriety it deserves. I was floored that the manager of the department that housed animal control was that ignorant. I came into this profession enthusiastic, ambitious, eager and dedicated. I am happy to say that I am still here and promise to keep that energy moving forward.

I have made several sacrifices for this profession and if I was asked to do it all again, I would. I know there are many amazing officers that represent our profession and I am grateful for every single one of you! I am hopeful our paths cross someday so I can give you a hug, fist bump, handshake or just a head nod to thank you for your service. I am grateful for the National Care and Control Association for asking me to write this blog. I appreciate their hard work in helping our profession grow.

In 2019 I was asked to join a podcast called, The Humane Roundup as a guest. They wanted to have me on to talk about my involvement in the community. They saw my social media posts giving matchbox animal control trucks to kids and thought it was a cool outreach item. That was the second (technically third) episode of the podcast. I was invited as a guest and never left! The podcast has now spanned over four years and on January 1, 2023 we changed the name to the Animal Control Report to be more consistent with our listeners. But more importantly to champion the name, Animal Control.

The podcast is hosted by Ashlee Bishop (also a guest at one point) a Humane Officer in Wisconsin and myself. I am an Animal Control Supervisor in Colorado. We have over 158 episodes and have interviewed several amazing guests. Our podcast can be found on Apple Podcast, Spotify, our website (www.humanemain.com) or where ever you listen to podcasts.

Here is a list of my top 10 favorite episodes:

6. Episode 118. City License Check Almost Turns Fatal – This is self-explanatory. Just an amazing episode with Halah Mir.

5. Episode 83. Carol F’n Baskin – Yep, Carol Baskin joins the show and talks about the Big Cat Rescue and more!!!!

4. Episode 79. Hunting Animal Fighters – The legendary David Hunt show to talk about dog fighting.

3. Episode 113. How to Become an Animal Control Officer – We discuss ways to break into the profession as our jobs don’t open that frequently.

2. Episode 87. Take a Bite – Dr. Ian Dunbar joins the show and talks all about bites, his bite scale and more.

Number 1!

Episode 149. The Misconception of PETA – Daphna Nachminovitch, the Senior VP of Cruelty Investigations blows us away with what happens behind the scenes of PETA. There are several parallels between Animal Control and PETA which you can hear on this episode.

These are my top 10 at the moment but the list is always changing. I encourage you to check out the podcast and please join us or send us a topic or guest you’d like to hear on the show. I am always available to help or just to chat with. Feel free to text or call me at 412-736-6263.

Keep it Humane Main! Daniel Ettinger

Louisiana Animal Control Association
Interview with Charles “Chip” Fitz
Director, Tangipahoa Parish Animal Control, LA

NACA recently sat down with “Chip”, Director of the Tangipahoa Parish Animal Control in LA and the is the President of the Louisiana Animal Control Association (LACA). LACA was recognized in 2022 by NACA as the State Association of the year and we wanted to share with you some of the brilliant insights he shared with us!

What value does having a state association bring to the members/officers in your area?

There are so many reasons for the association. We strive to raise the level of professionalism throughout the state. In our effort to achieve this, we offer specialized training in things like control pole training, bite stick training, pepper spray use, officer safety, humane trapping, safe handling of animals, report writing, field investigations, cruelty investigations, etc. We work diligently to have a general one-stop training to prepare new officers and kennel personnel alike as well as offer more in-depth training for seasoned officers and kennel personnel. We include topics like disease control, cleaning techniques, core vaccines, etc. However, for me, one of the most important aspects is networking. Networking not only gives local contacts but also boosts morale by being reminded that we are all in this together. It sets an atmosphere of statewide cooperation. I feel that this is one of the biggest assets of the program. We combine our conference with a chemical capture class to offer as much as possible.

What are some of the tips, and tactics that LACA uses to grow its state association?

Each year we try to reach out to all animal services organizations to help to get all included in the training. We offer scholarships for those that cannot afford to attend. We stay in contact with members to try and make sure that we offer training in the areas that are the most needed. We look for venues in different areas of the state and we try to offer some type of after-hours program as well to keep the training as interesting and fun as possible.

What do you think the future of state associations for animal control looks like or what would you like to see?

For the future, I feel that each state having an association is imperative. I would hope that one day we would even be having multi-state conferences where two or more states could combine with workshops on trends within jurisdictions and new strategies toward lifesaving for animals. Sharing success stories and programs that worked on decreasing intakes and on achieving owner compliance. As I mentioned previously this would also be a pathway to networking that would be valuable in times of disaster etc.

How does one become the NACA State Association of the Year? What guidance or advice do you have for other state associations aspiring for this prestigious recognition?

In becoming the Association of the year, the first step would be to make sure that you get nominated. On top of that make sure that you are offering good training in an organized program and working towards helping to raise the level of professionalism in your state. With us, we include NACA registration in our (state association) registration to help keep all attendees connected and informed on the national level as well.

In states with no state association for animal care and control, do you have any guidance on where to start or what they might want to consider/do before starting one?

For the states, without a state association, I would recommend that you attend a full conference of one of the states that do have an association and that is offering annual training. Talk to some of your jurisdictions and see about starting an interest. You could even start by partnering with an existing association for training and to get established before going all in. We periodically get attendees from our adjoining states. Anyone interested in trying to start a state association and training would be welcome to come to observe at one of our annual conferences.

Thank you “Chip”! NACA is honored to have recognized LACA and all the amazing hard work your state association does!