Gone to the dogs: NC county’s animal control has been a pet peeve for many

by Lucas Thomae, Carolina Public Press
February 3, 2025

Whose job is it to protect local pets? State law is vague. Because of that, the implementation of animal control and other pet-related services is often left up to the discretion of local governments, Carolina Public Press has learned. 

Some counties have robust, well-funded departments that offer shelter and adoption services, rabies vaccination programs and dedicated officers to deal with cases of strays and abused animals. Others take a leaner approach.

And then there’s Rutherford County, which has attempted over the years to meet its residents’ demands for comprehensive animal services but seems to fall short.

With its latest change in management, the county hoped to overcome its long history of problems.

That hasn’t happened just yet.

Animal control controversy

In this rural Western North Carolina community, part of the issue, it seems, is one of identity. 

Rutherford County’s animal control has been in a state of flux for years, shifting from department to department. For a long time it was a division of the sheriff’s office. Then it had its own county department. And last year, it was moved once again — this time to the health department.

Each move has come with its own issues.

Residents have been frustrated that the problems persist, despite years of making complaints to elected officials.

Meanwhile, the welfare of local pets hangs in the balance.

‘Incompetence’

In mid-January, Rutherford County mail carrier Sheila Hooper shared an image on Facebook of a dead dog chained to the front porch of a seemingly abandoned house. Hooper said that her co-worker had reported the apparent case of cruelty to local animal control. But nothing had been done about it.

The post garnered hundreds of comments and reactions. Some shared their own stories of witnessing animal abuse and neglect in their neighborhoods. Many questioned the county animal control’s seeming lack of response to these incidents.

The sheriff’s office did open an investigation soon after Hooper shared her post. That led to an arrest just over a week ago. 

Still, some residents felt as if nothing would have been done if the Facebook post hadn’t gotten so much attention.

The discourse inspired resident Diane Bahrenburg to start an online petition, demanding Rutherford County’s animal control personnel be replaced. It has since accrued more than 900 signatures.

“We can no longer sit by as animals in our care suffer due to bureaucratic incompetence,” the petition read. 

‘Heartbreaking’

Bahrenburg told CPP she’s worried that employees of the Foothills Health District — the regional public health department that manages animal control services for Rutherford County — and interim Health Director Jason Masters don’t have the skills needed for the job.

“(Masters) may be good at his job for being director of the health department, but he has no knowledge of animal control whatsoever,” Bahrenburg said. 

In a statement, Masters defended his department. He noted that the two animal services officers employed by Foothills Health District don’t carry the authority of sworn law enforcement. Meaning, they do not have the power to arrest people or charge them with a crime.

“While the situation surrounding animal neglect and cruelty in Rutherford County is heartbreaking and unacceptable, both of our animal services officers are completing as many complaint responses as possible given their scope of jurisdiction,” he said. “We are operating with a nearly full shelter of law enforcement-related animals that we cannot adopt out, foster or euthanize, limiting our ability to house other animals.”

Making the switch

The public health department has only managed Rutherford County Animal Control since February 2024, when the county agreed to transfer operations to Foothills Health District.

From 1995 to 2018, the sheriff’s department managed animal services, including maintenance of the county animal shelter. 

And in the intervening years before the health department took over, animal services was its own department under the umbrella of county government. 

Each iteration has faced controversy and public scrutiny over the years.

UNC School of Government Dean Aimee Wall, who co-authored a textbook on animal services law in North Carolina, was not surprised to hear about the situation in Rutherford County. Similar stories can be found all over the state, she told CPP.

“The issue of animal cruelty and citizen concerns about its enforcement is pervasive,” Wall said. “It swells in different areas of the state at different times, and it swells around different issues.”

Wall painted a picture of local animal services that is often disjointed and messy. There are few guidelines for local governments to follow in terms of creating an organized animal services department.

“In some jurisdictions it is more coordinated and cohesive, but in others pieces of this work are shared across the municipality or the county in a way that creates some disconnects at times,” she explained.

Animal services may be housed under a health department because the state mandates that local governments mitigate the spread of rabies through tags and vaccination programs. 

Other counties organize their animal services as a division of the sheriff’s department.

Sometimes, a county might create an animal services department that is wholly separate from other county departments. 

Regardless, each variation has its own limitations.

“One of the things that we see when they’ve been housed in health departments, for example, is if they’re responsible for dangerous dog enforcement or going and seizing animals, they’re not sworn law enforcement officers,” Wall said. “So they’re not able to go in there with that weight of authority.”

Lack of animal control oversight

Wall told CPP that state oversight is relatively minimal and limited to only certain functions of local animal services. Those functions do not include animal cruelty investigations, making that responsibility, for the most part, a discretionary duty.

The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services oversees county health departments and ensures they are following rabies vaccine and tagging mandates.

Meanwhile, the state Department of Agriculture has a veterinary services division that annually inspects licensed animal shelters. Counties are not required to maintain an animal shelter under state law, but many choose to do so.

CPP learned through public documents that the Rutherford County Animal Shelter has been fined by the Department of Agriculture at least twice since 2014 for failed inspections. 

The most recent violation occurred in 2023, shortly before the county shifted its animal services to the health department. One inspection revealed that the shelter housed dead and sick puppies in its euthanasia room, failed to keep accurate records and did not administer rabies vaccines. 

The county was fined $6,100 for the violations.

The conditions at the animal shelter seem to have improved since being taken over by the health department. Masters provided CPP with annual inspection reports from 2024 and 2025 that showed the shelter was better maintained.

The county is also finishing construction of a new shelter, which will have better ventilation and more space for animals.

As for resident concerns regarding animal cruelty, the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office signaled its commitment to investigating complaints by making a public announcement after arresting the man charged with six counts of felony animal cruelty.

However, the arrest might not bring an end to the drama. Several outspoken residents have said they plan to voice their concerns during this week’s county commissioners meeting.

This article first appeared on Carolina Public Press and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.