animal control

noun

|Updated on: 3 Aug 2018

Definition of animal control

: an office or department responsible for enforcing ordinances relating to the control, impoundment, and disposition of animals

Recent Examples of animal control from the Web

The police department posted a Facebook video of police officer Anthony Lattanzio and an animal control officer chasing (the aptly-named) Dodge, a runaway sheep from New England Rodeo, around East Mansfield.

— debora almeida, BostonGlobe.com, "Lamb on the lam: Police chase runaway sheep named Dodge in Mansfield," 9 July 2018
Sacramento County animal control officer Mechelle Crites said that facility’s population of German shepherds also has soared recently.

— cynthia hubert, sacbee, "Marijuana guard dogs strain animal shelter as illegal pot grows rise in Sacramento," 27 June 2018
The fawn wandered onto the deck of a Crows Pond Road home, where animal control officer Diane Byers and police Officer Christopher Vardakis arrived at 12:53 p.m., Chatham police said in a statement.

— laney ruckstuhl, BostonGlobe.com, "Chatham police rescue injured fawn," 26 June 2018
These trips are especially meaningful to the Vega family as all of their foster dogs have come from this city, which suffers from a lack of resources and animal control officers—leading to an abundant population of stray pets.

— kelly o'sullivan, Country Living, "The Humans Behind Famous Instagram Account 'Harlow and Sage' Are Part of the Sweetest Rescue Mission," 19 June 2018
Valor’s veterinarian and the animal control officer who picked up the confused 3-year-old dog believe the sweet canine was the victim of a botched euthanasia attempt.

— kelli bender, PEOPLE.com, "Dog Survives Botched Euthanasia, Wakes Up Abandoned and Blind," 15 June 2018
The workers – carefully – removed the python from the line and called animal control.

— megan janetsky, azcentral, "Ack! Surprise resident recycles 6-foot python," 27 June 2018
Bobcat family: On the edge of open space in Los Altos, William Warrior — a senior animal control officer with the Palo Alto Police Department — was called to a home where a mother bobcat and two cubs were lounging on the back deck.

— tom stienstra, San Francisco Chronicle, "Surprise visits in Bay Area backyards," 20 May 2018
After having a major heart attack, the veteran wasn't able to care for the pups, so they were picked up by animal control and held for a total of 20 days before being sterilized and put up for adoption.

— alexis hobbs, Woman's Day, "This Veteran Has the Sweetest Reunion With His Dogs After Being Hospitalized For Months," 21 Dec. 2015

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'animal control.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.