BY DAN HILDEBRAN
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office and the Clay Chamber’s Lake Region Prosperity Partners held a joint meeting on January 23 at Keystone Heights’s First Baptist Church. Detective Gary Winterstein and other deputies who investigate animal abuse and environmental violations were the spotlight speakers.
Also attending were County Commissioner Betsy Condon and the county’s Animal Services Director Ernest Hagan.
Winterstein said the most common animal abuse cases stem from underfeeding and tethering.
In 2022, Clay County Commissioners passed an ordinance to protect animals from abuse. Part of the new law restricted tethering or leashing dogs to a stationary object.
Tethering is prohibited for dogs under a year old and for pregnant or unhealthy canines. In addition, dogs cannot be tethered within five feet of a property line, must have access to food and water, and must be visible to the owner at all times while tethered.
When discussing the sheriff’s office environmental crimes investigations, the officers talked about restrictions on outdoor burning in the Keystone Heights area.
They said no outdoor fires are allowed within the City of Keystone Heights. Burning outside the city limits in Clay County is restricted to yard waste only. Residents may not burn garbage, particularly cardboard or plastic, because those materials contain potentially harmful chemicals that could be released when burned.
