‘Code Blue’ needed for city’s
backyard blizzard dogs
Pexels/Tanika
COURIER LIFE, JANUARY 8-14, 2021 23
OP-ED
BY JUSTIN BRANNAN &
EDITA BIRNKRANT
Every winter, like clockwork,
animal protection organizations
and elected offi cials
are inundated with frantic
pleas from people all over the
fi ve boroughs, desperate to
get help for howling, suffering
dogs left outside of homes day
and night during snowstorms,
freezing temperatures, and
even as blizzards hit. These
dogs aren’t strays, homeless
or lost. They are instead purposely
and cruelly being kept
outside in backyards by their
owners in all types of extreme
weather — often all year long.
All too often, when concerned
neighbors call 911 worried
that dogs might die if not
brought inside, there is little,
if anything, the police can do
by law to do to protect the imperiled
souls from freezing to
death. If you are shaking your
head asking, “How can this
be?” we are right there with
you!
Guess what: In the greatest
city in the world, it is perfectly
legal to force man’s best
friend to languish outside during
a raging blizzard. As long
as the dog is not visibly starving
to death, and any kind of
“shelter” is available, even if it
is fl imsy and unheated.
This is a citywide problem
that needs to be addressed, and
we have a simple solution. Antiquated,
inadequate laws that
allow merciless treatment of
animals must be transformed
in a city that calls itself progressive
and compassionate.
This is a Canine Code Blue situation
and requires an appropriate
response.
The recent snowstorm that
dumped nearly a foot of snow
across the city brought numerous
emergency Code Blue
cases of outdoor dogs that
needed help, and most sadly
did not get it. Both of our offi
ces were fl ooded with messages
from desperate residents
alarmed that several dogs in a
Bay Ridge backyard were kept
outside while snowfl akes and
temperatures fell. Photos and
calls to actions were posted all
over social media – the phone
number of the local precinct
was posted instructing people
to politely beg NYPD offi cers
to go to the house and get the
dogs inside.
Offi cers did respond to the
scene, but were told by the dog’s
owner that they were “hunting
dogs” meant to stay outside
year long. Offi cers noted
that there were shelters in the
backyard where the dogs were
left outside. It took dozens of
calls to the precinct and a New
York City Councilmember getting
personally involved to ensure
that offi cers returned to
the scene to convince the dog’s
owners to bring them inside
for the night.
However, according to the
NYPD, it was done “on his
own accord,” not necessarily
because NYPD determined a
law was being broken. This is
just wrong. And had a Councilmember
not personally
made this request, we doubt
the dogs would have been
brought inside at all. This was
not an isolated incident. The
next day, people contacted our
offi ces begging for help for the
exact same kind of Code Blue
dog situation in other parts
of Brooklyn and Queens.In
many of these cases, the dog
owners say that their dogs
are year-long “outdoor dogs,”
meaning they are not allowed
inside — even during blizzards
and heatwaves. It is important
to note that no dog
should ever be kept outside in
extreme weather — regardless
of what justifi cation their
owner makes.
You’re probably wondering
why there aren’t already laws
on the books prohibiting dogs
from being kept outside in the
harsh elements all year long.
The problem is that the laws
that do exist are unclear and
therefore hard to enforce. New
York State Agriculture and
Markets Law section 353-a
and 363-b address cruelty to
animals and “appropriate
shelters for dogs left outside.”
But what constitutes appropriate
shelter? When cops show
up to a house during a snowstorm
and see fl imsy shelters
in a backyard, how can they
know if it constitutes “appropriate
shelter?” These lifeor
death situations cannot be
left up to interpretation and
guesswork.
We don’t blame the NYPD
for this — they’re being
thrown into situations they
are not equipped to handle.
We blame needlessly vague
and toothless laws. Only a
handful of NYPD offi cers are
part of the important NYPD
Animal Cruelty Investigation
Squad, the only unit with any
formal training on animal
cruelty laws.
Regular New York City
cops are not trained in how
to enforce these laws, and in
fact, the animal cruelty laws
are not even in the penal code —
they are in the New York State
Agriculture and Markets Law
— which cops are not expected
to learn or even know exist!
So, this means that the overwhelming
majority of the time,
the NYPD offi cers responding
to an animal cruelty call are
not even aware of these laws
or how to enforce them. This
makes no sense!
Our proposal to solve this
problem is to introduce legislation
that mandates that any
time there is a “Code Blue” for
winter nights when the temperatures
drop to 32 degrees
or below, or a winter storm
hits the city, and anytime
there is a New York City heat
advisory in effect — backyard
dogs must be brought inside a
home or be taken away.
As another winter is upon
us, we cannot let more dogs
suffer in the brutal cold and
die. We must take steps to provide
them with the mercy they
deserve. They say the greatness
of a society and its moral
progress can be judged by the
way its animals are treated.
It starts here. Let 2020 be the
last year on record that the
cruelty of dogs forced to endure
treacherous weather
conditions outside is allowed
in New York City.
Justin Brannan is a New
York City Councilman who
represents the neighborhoods
of Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights,
Bensonhurst and Bath Beach.
Edita Birnkrant, is the executive
director of New Yorkers for
Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets
(NYCLASS).