Lawmakers move to repeal outdated law requiring police to kill unlicensed dogs

By NICK STANEK
Capital News Service
LANSING — Officers would no longer be required to euthanize unlicensed dogs if a bill sent to the governor’s office is signed. The bill would remove a requirement that is rarely followed, said Rep. Margaret O’Brien, R-Portage, the bill’s sponsor. It changes an antiquated part of the dog law of 1919 that legally requires officers to euthanize unlicensed dogs. In other words, dog owners who fail to get their dogs registered risk having their dogs killed. “We never do that,” said Wendy Frosland, an officer from Mackinac County Animal Control.