Evening star., 1952-11-10
District Police ProwI
Back Yards and ALLEYS
In Yearly Dog Census

It's census time in the Districts
back yards and alleys.
Policemen are on the prowl,
counting noses and asking ques-
tions. as they patrol their "dog
beats"
Under District law, every dog
owner must have license and an
anti-rabies inoculation certificate
for his pet. The badge costs So
per dog. If the pet was taken to
one Of the Districts incubation
clinics last summer. the anti
rabies shot was given free.
If a dog-owner refuses to buy
a badge or have his pet inoculated,
he is subject to a fine Of not
more than $500 and not more than
80 days in jail.
Since the middle Of August,
every foot patrolman in the resi-
dental areas has been canvassine
the neighborhoods for compliance.
When the survey is completed
some time next month, there'll be
about $4,000 canine residents of
the District recorded by name. sex
and breed. Their license badge
numbers and incubation certifl-
Gates will be listed, along with the
names and addresses of their
owners.
Big Police Problem.
This business Of a yearly dog
census is a big problem for police.
Capt. Charles Langley Of the 14th
Precinct, says. His precinct. third
largest in area and fourth in hu-
man population. probably has the
most dogs per square mile.
The dog license fee is due on
July l each year. District officials
usually wait about IS days and
then issue orders for police to en-
force the law. Every day and
night, foot patrolmen knock on
every door in search of dogs.
After they get the vital statistics.
they must return to precinct head
quarters and make up typewrit-
ten list in quadruplicate for police
files.
Capt. Langley estimates that
each call on a dog beat consumes
about one man-hour per dog. And
after the first visit, his men must
recheck the dog beat about 10l
days later to see that owners whol
did not have tags have purchased
them.
Detection Device.
In some sections of the city, |
policemen have worked out a fool |
proof system for locating houses
that have dogs. It seems dogs that
normally don't bark at the aver
age passerby have peculiar aver
sion to anything wearing a blue
uniform and bright badge. So. a
couple Of patrolmen stroll into an
alley bisecting block. They stand
by, awaiting action. Suddenly the
tir is ripped by sharp yelys and
barks as each animal takes up the |
Cry.
There's one over there" a
policeman tells his buddy, who
jots down the location of the
house. 1.-TWO in that back yard and
another up there on the corner"
And so it goes until every animal
is spotted.
Then the dog-hunterS visit the
houses. A few residents deny exis-
tence of a pet and are somewhat
embarrassed when the policeman
brings a bark from his quarry by
some noise or other provocative
action. According to Capt. Lang
ley, the system is almost 100 per
cent perfect.
Most Just Careless.
When a dog-owner refuses to
comply with the license law, a
warrant is issued, but Capt. Lang
ley says they are few and far be-
tween. Most owners are just care
less about getting the badges. he
explains. They aren't anxious to
face $500 fine.
This dogbeat job serves a two
fold purpose. Police are con-
stantly plagued with biting cases,
and a badge on pet permits
instant identification of the owner
if the bite victim wants to pros
ecute. And if a pet is injured in
the street or lost, it allows policeI
to get him home again.
The dog population isn't con-
fined to any particular area OF
the city. The Petworth area is
only 100 or so behind a large
section of the Northeast. and only
the downtown business sectionI
ehou,s narked absence 0f