I attended the Aug. 31 Simi Valley City Council meeting hoping for some good news about this barking dog business. I walked away furious at Councilmember Becerra’s comments about those of us who are working to find a solution for incessant dog barking.

I am a dog owner. I am not a curmudgeon or crank living to “make others miserable” as Becerra dismissively stated.

Over the years, my husband and I have at times lost our ability to nap, to sleep at night with our windows open, to run my athome tutoring business, or to work or entertain in our yard. None of these has anything to do with an occasional neighborhood party or children playing in backyards or neighbors working on their cars or dogs barking at trucks pulling up or the mail carrier coming by.

This is due to incessant barking because people go to work or off for the weekend or out until all hours leaving a dog alone outside. I know the world is “a noisy place,” as Mr. Becerra unnecessarily reminded us, but incessant, continuous dog barking does not fall under the definition of the normal noise in our crowded world.

I am encouraged by some of the Aug. 31 progress, such as a shorter logging period and transferring the hearings for Simi residents from Ventura to Simi. This is progress, but we have a long way to go.

Fines for repeat offenders may have to be implemented. The new system may very well overburden the few available animal control officers, and increased complaints have already caused monthlong delays in getting the necessary paperwork and response from Animal Regulation.

We do live in a crowded world. The more congested our town becomes, the more important manners, common sense, consideration and kindness become. Yes, there’s more work to do, and the council needs to understand that anger and impatience are a product of living too long with a broken system.
Julie Harris
Simi Valley