Dog Catchers

We pointed this out years ago, probably more than a decade:

• Amid excessive overtime and a lack of recruitment by the Chicago Police Department, new data show that CPD police officers have been bogged down with answering animal-related calls for service despite the fact that a city department is dedicated to providing the service.

  Whether it's Chicago police officers loading stray dogs into their patrol cars, or officers spending their own money on leashes and dog food, they've been busy with animals. The problem is putting a spotlight on the city's embattled Department of Animal Care and Control.

Animal Control - if you're lucky - has two vans on the street - one north and one south. They do all sorts of complaints, removals (dead and alive), assist on search warrants, and occasionally an investigation (barking animals, dog being abused, tied up outside with out water/shade, etc) along with chasing strays, which is a low priority job. After all, if the dog is gone when they get there, that's a successful resolution (19-paul).

Cops end up picking up some of the slack, 800 animals the first six months of the year, many placed in foster homes or adopted by cops themselves. But it takes cops away from police responsibilities. 

No one is campaigning on animal control issues, and at a billion dollars short next year, no relief is on the horizon.