WORTH COUNTY, GA -
A Worth County man who shot and killed a neighbor's dog is free Tuesday night after being arrested Monday night.
Jason Morefield posted $2,000 bond on charges of reckless conduct and discharging a firearm near a public street after he killed a one and a half year old Shih Tzu mix over the weekend.
The case left many wondering what laws are out there to protect animals in southwest Georgia.
Roddie the Rottweiler is just one of an average of 10 dogs taken in every week by the Best Friends Humane Society in Worth County.
"It's just one example of many cases. We get calls everyday where dogs are thrown out of cars and the car keeps going, somebody will call it in. I think it's just the economic times right now. People just can't afford the animals so the ones that they already have they're just putting them out on someone else," says Worth County Animal Control Officer Sherri Hendley.
She says her unit responds to around 150 calls per month. Most of those calls concern stray animals like an 8-month-old dog named Lizzie.
"She was thrown out of a moving vehicle and someone saw it. We came to pick her up and when we arrived there we found that someone had tried to chop her tail off with a sharp object before they tried to throw her out of the car" says Hendley.
Georgia doesn't have a statewide leash law. But, the state does allow you to protect yourself from an animal that poses a threat.
"The law says you have the right to protect your property and your person - to defend yourself if a dog is attacking your or aims to attack you," says Hendley.
It's up to local communities to come up with other animal control rules. And while Worth County doesn't have a leash law, some cities in the county including Sylvester, Poulan, Warwick, and Sumner all have specific leash laws.
"There are leash laws, if your dog is off your property it must be on a leash and must be companied by an adult over 18 years old," says Hendley.
Hendley says last weekend's dog shooting should not have happened. She's hopes to get animal cruelty charges filed against the man who shot Cookie with an .30-06 riffle.
Worth County Animal Control filed a report with the state Department of Agriculture. If state investigators charge Jason Morefield with felony animal cruelty, he could face up to five years in prison and a maximum fine of $15,000.
Morefield will appear before a judge in December for the two misdemeanor charges.
Copyright 2012 WALB. All rights reserved.
Worth Co. Animal Control Director says 8 month old Lizzie was thrown out of a moving car
Worth Co. Animal Control responds to 150 calls per month
Sylvester, Poulan, Warwick, and Sumner all have specific leash laws
Officials say harsh economic times lead to more stray animals
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