KELLYVILLE, Okla. – Residents in Kellyville are searching for a solution to lower the number of stray dogs roaming the streets, putting pets and, some residents say, people in danger.
After a viewer in Kellyville reached out to 2 Works for You, we decided to check with City Hall to see how the animal control issue was going to be resolved.
The mayor, who did not want to speak on camera, told 2 Works for You she doesn’t think there is an animal control problem in Kellyville.
But more than a dozen people in the town of about 1,000 people insist it is a problem and it is getting worse.
"It’s scary, it's beginning to be a sad town because of this," said resident Kim Shelton.
Some Kellyville residents insist this small town is literally starting to go to the dogs.
"I’m feeding stray dogs because they're coming up injured, they're starving to death, you can't run around town without getting chased by a dog [or] almost bit by a dog," Shelton said.
Shelton is not alone. Her neighbor, Eugene Gibson, says the dogs recently busted through his fence, attacking and killing more than a dozen of his chickens.
“This was [sic] my feather babies. It could've been someone's fur baby, could've been someone's real baby. At this point, we need to do something now before gets worse," Gibson said.
Kellyville does not have animal control department or a shelter to take stray animals.
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But that wasn't always the case. The city used to take its stray animals to Creek Pet Adoption, a private non-kill shelter just outside of town. The mayor says it’s been several years since the city ended its contract with the private dog rescue.
“I still seem to be getting a lot of the calls and then of course people get mad at me when I won't fix Kellyville problems but that's a city problem not my problem," said Creek Pet Adoption owner Sharon Lawrence.
But it is a problem more than a dozen residents we spoke with insist should be addressed.
“There's dogs getting killed every day when they could be picked up, they could be at a shelter, they could be adopted and saved so when they're not doing anything it is a big deal,” Shelton said.
They worry the next time a dog attacks, the victim won't have feathers.
According to Oklahoma state law, only counties with a population of 200,000 or more are required to have an animal control division and a shelter to take stray animals.
