WKRN, Nashville, Tennessee News, Weather, and Sports |Cold weather means more calls to Metro Animal Control

Cold weather means more calls to Metro Animal Control

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The coldest night of the season Saturday brought an increase in calls to Metro Animal Control.

Officers say they rely on calls from the public to let them know when an animal is potentially being neglected, which happens more often during the winter months.

Not having a shelter for any animal kept outside is a violation of both Metro Codes and Tennessee state law, according to Billy Biggs, Metro Animal Control's Field Operations Supervisor.

Biggs says in cold temperatures, it's important to make sure every dog has shelter:

"Hypothermia could set in [and] they could freeze to death," he told News 2.

On Saturday evening, Biggs showed News 2 one boxer dog that had just been brought in to Animal Control after being left out in the cold by its owners.

"[We] met with the owners and were going to issue them citations for no shelter, [but] they decided not to take the citation and just release the dog to us," Biggs explained.

To help pet owners meet the criteria to safely keep their animals protected from the cold, Metro Animal Control partners with the Davidson County Sheriff's Office.

Inmates build dog houses and paint them, which Animal Control then distributes to people.

As temperatures plummet, Biggs said officers give out a few houses every day.

With temperatures expected to fall to near 20 degrees at night, Biggs cautions that the best option is to bring your pet inside.

If that's not an option, Metro Animal Control said owners should, at the very least, put extra bedding in the dog's house during cold nights.