Clarendon resident faces charge of cruelty to animals

Clarendon resident Brandon Goodwin III is out on bond this week on a charge of animal cruelty.

The Donley County Sheriff’s Office and city employees were dispatched to Goodwin’s house at 223 S. Carhart St. on May 24 on a report of a dog hanging from the fence. The small female dog was dead when they arrived.

Following an investigation, Goodwin was arrested on May 25 on a Class A Misdemeanor; cruelty to non-livestock animals. If found guilty, he could possibly a maximum $4,000 fine and up to a year in jail.

“When we come up on something like this, we will prosecute to the full extent of the law,” City Administrator Lambert Little said. “There is absolutely no reason for this.”

The city also impounded two other dogs Goodwin had reportedly tied to a fence post. Little said that the dogs had no food and no water and were covered with ticks. One was so tangled around the post that it only had two feet of moving area.

“These dogs were so malnourished you could see their ribs,” Little said. “We will keep them in our animal control facility for ten days. If they are not adopted by then, we will have to euthanize them.”

Little said that the city will need to “pep up animal control” to encourage citizens to take better care of their animals.

“We’re not nearly as strict as we should be about people taking care of their animals,” he said. “The city rules concerning animal cruelty state that pets cannot run at large in the city, must have a rabies shot tag issued by the city, and must be provided food, water, and shelter.”
The city has the right to impound dogs that are tied up by anything but a leash.

“It is not permitted to have dogs chained up, and if your dog is tied up, you must be out there to watch it,” Little said. “It is permissible is they are tethered to something like a clothes line where they won’t get tangled up. There must be 150 square feet of playing space per animal.”
Pets picked up will have ten days of adoption time before getting euthanized.

“It will cost owners time and money to get their animals back,” Little said. “They can also face a fine for ordinance violation.”