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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 1959)
rvn fir CinresthDve AeftDOin) Sesuii oft Overcrowding, Sanitation Lack Faced by Dogs Br ERIC WENTWORTH Mail Tribune Staff Writer A visit to the Jackson coun ty dog pound in Medford shows a real need for correc tive action. The county owns the prop erty, at 2872 Howard ave. But, as part of Berrydale, it was annexed to Medford in May, 1957. Some 300 dogs are im pounded there each month, ac cording to Chris Hagler, 25-year-old county dog . control officer. Of these, about orie third are claimed. The others are electrocuted. Lack of Sanitation All dogs brought to the pound endure, however brief ly, overcrowding and a lack of sanitation. , The pound itself is situated behind the small white house where Hagler lives with his wife and four children. It is approximately 100 yards northwest of the playground of Howard school. It consists of an aluminum shed with outdoor enclosures at each end, set on a concrete base. Cyclone fencing divides it into four pens. The shed Is unheated. Hagler hoses the concrete at least once a day, without disinfectant, and , the water bears its burden of filth into a shallow ditch alongside. Beyond this, Hagler says, was once a trench three feet deep. This trench is now fill ed to ground level with dung and sawdust, mushy to the foot and foul to the nose. Drainage Problem The drainage problem i bad for the entire area. Water stands in the ditch and in pools nearby. After a bad rain, Hagler reports, the dogs are wading. Children from the nearby school come often to visit the animals, he said. Hagler segregates the dogs as best he can in the four pens. One group include! "strays," or dogs that from breed or possession of a col lar appear to have owneri . Some Hagler recognizes at sight. : , A second pen Is reserved for females in heat. The other two are for "dogs to go." These are the death cells. Crowding too many animals into one pen is dangerous, with fights - occasionally fa tal - the result. Hagler be lieves that two dogs to a pen is proper. But there were 35 dogs at the pound Friday .v : Disease is another danger from overcrowding. Distemp er and infectious hepatitis are especially vicious. Possibly because of the rapid turnover, however, Hagler says he has never seen any real epidemic break out. He says he has learned to recognize distemper symp toms, and places any diseased animals he notices in tne "kill" shed. But, he admits, "lots get In there I don't know about He says veterinarians take dogs from the pound to pro vide blood for transfusions. Hagler kills an average of kBA wmmmwmmMMmim - , Kapers Advertising Program Starts The 1959 Kiwanis Kapers advertising solicitation pro gram is under way according to Fred Morlan. advertising chairman. The Kapers, a musical and minstrel review, "Now and Then " will be produced Mar, 4 through 7 at Medford High school featuring the entire membership of the Medford Kiwanis club in choral and novelty acts. Proceeds from this show will be used to maintain and further the under-privileged children's work in this com munity. Captains in charge of the five general solicitation teams are Robert Little, Robert Rix, Jim Ambler, Fred Sears and John Nuich. A special committee to call on various professional groups through out this area has also been appointed. t CORN REMOVER Cht Mutant from mnj papillomas, dwb naflt. I contains ral HMt aih shot seAsst, nd dan nor covm rhn ii.;ii.i,. fe strong ood mixtutt. , Wfcm fl otW havu faiUd try this on. Try our Bunion R.fif. wnicii riirrs pain, sormoss, swotling fin or icond application. Soth romodios soM njr bock guaratitM. - Exclusively at 1 WESTERN THRIFT . DOGS AND BOG - A morass of manure lies them, in some places three feet deep. Chil- directly beside the dog pound pens. The dren from nearby Howard school must walk pens themselves are hosed at least once a across it when they come to visit the dogs, day, but the sewage accumulates next to t chance of getting back a lost dog," Hagler said Friday. "But most times they don't want them. '"' very year we kill more dogs." Dispose of Dogs He said that more than half the dogs are brought in , by owners who wish to dispose of them. These people, he ex plained, have found their, ani on a 1 s vicious or unmanage able, or are financially unable to provide for them. Hagler and his wife keep a list . of people who want a dog, and notify them when one appears to fill their speci fications. But this means, at least a few homeless dogs are spared execution. Hagler will have worn the dog control officer's badge for three full years by the end of March. His current salary is $225 a month. He receives the house rent-free, utilities, tele phone and an 8 cents a mile allowance for the panel truck. His wife, Fern, who helps with many of his duties at the pound, receives $20 a month for 10 months of the year. Hagler said she has also been allowed to keep the 25 cents a day boarding fees paid by people who pick up dogs Many Duties He drives the truck as much as 2,400 miles a month Among his many duties be sides managing the pound are collecting license fees, im pounding unlicensed dogs, re ducing damage by dogs to livestock shooting the mar auders if necessary - and in vestigating claims of those who have suffered livestock losses caused by dogs. ' These claims are made against the dog license fund. ; Demand on Hagler's time, both day and night, are heavy. He will answer calls tfrom farmers reporting mo lesting of livestock, or from town constables asking him to come pick up a stray ca nine, at all hours. ."When farmers call me late at night they know I'm not very busy," he says, "and they know I have no excuse not to come.". This winter he spent the early hours of both Christmas and New Year's mornings out in the fields. He has yet to take a vacation in the nearly three years he has worked. Handle Whole Operation Hagler and his wife must handle the whole operation practically alone. The one exception is a boy who helps with killing and cleaning the ditch on Saturday mornings. Despite the Hagler's indus- HOMELESS DOG - Chris Hagler, Jackson county dog control officer, carries one more orphaned canine to the pound. Some 50 dogs a week are empounded, over half of them brought by owners wishing to dispose of their charges. Hagler himself keeps a beagle and a dachshund at his house as pets. 50dogs a week, most of them on Saturday morning. He electrocutes them with two wires in the "kill" shed, next to the pound. - '. Killed in Week - Those killed during the week he hauls to the garbage dump at Camp White. Satur day's bodies go to a tallow company. "The tallow com pany has to have fresh dogs," Hagler remarks. Dogs brought to the pound are kept several days, and are advertised in the Mail Tribune.' "People have a pretty good Small Worlds Around Us By Lynn M. Watkins Odd-Looking Timber Doodle Looks Down-Sees Up It's not surprising that the oddest looking American land bird should have such a ridic ulous name as "timber doodle." Had Mother Nature made the slightest miscalculation in placing the eyes in the woodcock, she would have missed the head entirely, as the woodcock's eyes are. at the very top of the head, and placed back farther than would seem necessary. Perhaps Nature was experi menting, and came up with a good idea, for the wood cock can see up at the same time its head is down, and the extreme down position is the normal feeding posture. The eyes are beautiful, very large, coal-black, soft and gentle, and used mainly for watchmg for danger rather than for food location. Stout. Dumpy Body The woodcock's body is stout and dumpy as if the bird were hump-backed. It is just about the oddest looking fea thered creature of any marshy swampland,, or woodlet. The woodcock has hardly any neck at all, giving the body, the humped appearance. The tail is very abbreviated; the legs are too short, the bill is too long, and a complicated se ries of zigzag markings dec orate the feathers on the un derside of the squat body. The upper body cover is brown, with markings so cleverly arranged as to make the bird just about invisible on the leaf-covered' forest floor. This odd-ball of the iwood- lands has more names than it can shake a feather at, such as Big-eyes, night-part ridge, hookum pake, Labra dor twister, whistler, timber doodle, and of course, wood cock. It is a member of the , snipe family, and because of its delicate flesh is hunted as a game bird. When alarm ed it springs straight up into the air for several feet, flies but a short distance and again seeks cover. Feeds at Night The woodcock feeds most ly at night, probing in rich, soft soil for earthworms, or other soft bodied insects, with its sensitive bill. The lower section of the three-inch bill is somewhat shorter than the upper half; the uppe r, or longer part, is exceedingly sensitive, acting like a flexed finger in probing in the soft earth. The nest of the woodcock is built on the floor of the forest or swampland. The nesting female depends on her perfect coloration and will sit perfectly still until she is almost stepped on be fore taking wing. Before she moves she is nearly invisible. Woodsmen and hunters, as well as some naturalists claim the female woodcock carries her babies between her feet, or legs, transporting them to choice feeding grounds. It wouldn't be surprising if she did, for this odd-ball 'of the forest is downright peculiar, as well as very beautiful, in a dumpy sort of way. (Released by The Register and Tribune Syndicate, 1959) BRILL METAL WORKS ' Commercial ' Industrial Residential Sheet Metal Work Stainless, Galvanized and Copper Fabrication 2287 West Main PHONE SP 2-4440 uvciuuwuiug, urdiiiage ciiiu sanitation grow if anything more serious. The three-man county dog control board has failed to solve them. Hagler reportedly asked the board for a septic tank to contain the sewage, but this was considered impractical. He has only one truck in serv ice and cannot use it for both transporting dogs and hauling away, excrement. - The proposed Berrydale sanitary sewer, when install ed, may help alleviates this particular problem. Bad Drainage But bad drainage could prove more difficult, especial ly since it exists over a con siderable area. Overcrowding, of course, can only be helped by new facilities. County Judge Earl Miller and County Commissioners Chester Wendt and Ralph James visited the pound Thursday, Hagler reported. This was one day after a com plaint about the pound ap peared in the Mail Tribune's communications column. Hagler said the three coun ty court members discussed possible relocatidn of the pound and said they would order wood chips for the in terior of the aluminum shed. The chips would absorb moisture and provide a more comfortable floor surface. Relocating Pound Relocating the pound may even the boss j won't know j ' You're at your best in any sit uation with Sonotone s latest a slim-trim eyeglass hearing aid. Only eyeglass hearing aid with exclusive AVC- (Auto matic Volume ControH to soften sudden, loud noises. Fashion-thin temples for both ,. men and women. Also latest "Tuck-A-Way" styles for those who don't wear glasses. COME IN. SEE AND HEAR SONOTONE C. R. ADAMSON, Mgr. 839 L Jackson SP 2-5904 8 MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Oregon, Sunday, January 18, 1959 ARE WE YOURS? - This downcast pair, a spindly husky and a brindle boxer, are confined in the pound's "stray" pen, reserved for dogs who appear to have homes. If they are not claimed, however, they will be killed like the others. Dogs at the pound are subjected to overcrowding, bad drain age .and lack of sanitation. ultimately prove the best so lution. But until this occurs, it remains within Medford's city limits. , Medford has no specific regulations relating to pounds, according ' to City Manager Robert A. Duff. But, Duff said yesterday, the city coun cil could probably "develop" requirements. There are, at any rate, general provisions on the city's books for sani tation standards. Dry 24" Hardwood $20 Cord SPIIT UTILITY PEELER CORE $13 Cord EAGLE WOOD CO. TA 6-4081 T You'll DO A ROOM IN A JIFFY! When you use I "t J WE GIVE S&H GREEN STAMPS The 100 Latex Paint! Spred Satin brushes or rolls ea to easily, with no lap marks dries in minutes to a tough, washable surface vno need to paint again until you want to change colors. Comes in dozens of shades, ' too. . Come in tomorrow and let us help you get started. FRAKE & SMITH Artists Supplies Custom Picture Framing 315 EAST MAIN PHONE SP 2-4564 VRfl JANUARY 18fh-25fh fit USE A World of Happy, Healthy Youngsters! the Milk Producers League Urges You to Attend ii mi TODAY at the Y.M.C.A. Your family and friends won't want to miss this huge presentation of YMCA activities. Something for each member of the family. 2 P.M. to 5 P.M. r ' i 'om:HOUjT : j SCHEDULE OF. EVENTS - .j, P I 2:45 Girls' and Boys' Flounder Class 1 1 4:15 Swim Team Demonstration 11 I GYMNASIUM II I 2:00 Girls' Baton, Acrobatic, Trampoline II I 2:45 Beys' Basketball Game II I 3:45 Women's Volleyball Game 1 1 I 4:30 Handball Game Demonstration, Weight If I Lifting, Boys' Gym Demonstration fl I LOBBY PROGRAM 1 1 I 2:00 Lobby Games In Progress Free Activity I TELEVISION LOUNGE II I I 2:00 Accordion Soles Singing Groups Special Ml I I Music Numben . I j SOCIAL HALL I ,1 2:00 Induction Ceremony I 3:00 Indian Guide Meeting f I 3:30 Tri Hi-Y, Hi-Y Discussion l 4:00 Square Dance Demonstration 1 REFRESHMENTS XT l w 2:00 Service in the Social Hall r I league and don't forget HEALTH AND HAPPINESS can be guaranteed by a steady consumption of nourishing milk! DRINK AT LEAST 3 GLASSES A DAY! MILK producers1 - -j '3
