Animal Services in Montgomery County

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Impoundment Facilities or Shelters in Montgomery County

Montgomery Humane Society is a nonprofit organization that contracts with Montgomery County, the City of Montgomery, and the Town of Pike Road. Steve Tears has directed the organization for 20 years.

• Stray Hold is 7 days for dogs picked up in the county, or 5 days if in the City of Montgomery.
• Spay/Neuter is performed on all animals prior to adoption.
• Animal Census Reports are published online, and are up to date as of this writing.

Animal Control in Montgomery County

Animal control for all of Montgomery County is handled through Montgomery Humane Society. Report concerns via tel or webform.

Officers are on duty or on call 24/7. Six ACOs are on the street at a time serving Montgomery County of a total of 11 sworn humane officers. The five who are off duty can be brought in to help if needed, such as on hoarding or dogfighting cases. In explaining the “sworn” designation, Director Steve Tears said that the Commission can designate human officers who by law have the same powers as a deputy sheriff. However, carrying this out also depends on the sheriff in question: previously, HS ACOs were armed, for example, but now (after a new sheriff was elected) they are not.

Within the municipal limits of the City of Montgomery and the Town of Pike Road, ACO duty also includes the enforcement of the state’s animal laws and Montgomery’s municipal ordinances (Pike Road has no animal ordinances).

Dog Confinement Requirements in Montgomery County

County Adoption of Alabama’s Dog Confinement Statute: Dog confinement is required in Montgomery County because the Montgomery County Commission adopted Alabama Code § 3-1-5, which requires that dogs be confined to the owner’s premises or kept in the charge of a responsible person if off-premises. The adoption was done in 2004 via Resolution.

Citation for violation of Alabama Code § 3-1-5 is rare, said Montgomery Humane Society Director Steve Tears, because all misdemeanors must be witnessed by an officer in order to cite. Steve offered the parallel example of a citizen reporting a speeding car: unless an officer witnesses, there is no citation; residents can bring their evidence to the magistrate. If a loose dog has no rabies tag, ACOs can impound.

Dog Confinement Requirements Within Corporate Limits & Police Jurisdiction: The dog confinement requirement extends to Montgomery County’s two municipalities. The statute is applicable in both the City of Montgomery and the Town of Pike Road because neither municipality requires license tags. The City of Montgomery also requires confinement by ordinance (§ 4-13).

How to Report: See How to Report an At-Large Violation.

Low-Cost Spay & Neuter in Montgomery County

• Non-profit clinic: Alabama Animal Alliance Spay/Neuter Clinic in Montgomery is a non-profit clinic specializing in low-cost sterilization. The clinic is open to everyone regardless of income or place of residence.
• Shelter Intervention Program: no-cost sterilization may be available to low-income residents of the City or County of Montgomery. For details, see the Montgomery Humane Society website.
• $10 sterilization may be available to residents who receive Medicaid or food stamps. See information at Alabama Animal Alliance Spay/Neuter Clinic or call 334-239-7787.
• Carmichael Road Animal Clinic in Montgomery participates in the ALVMF license plate program, which offers $10 cat sterilization or $20 dog sterilization for Medicaid recipients.
• Licensed veterinarians: The Montgomery Humane Society recommends several local vets and clinics.

See Low-Cost Spay & Neuter in Alabama for additional resources.

Access to Information & Public Records in Montgomery County

Animal Shelter: Steve Tears, long-time director of Montgomery Humane Society, returned my call on his vacation day, spoke frankly and compassionately and intelligently about his experience and philosophy in sheltering and animal control, and encouraged ongoing communication.

Commission: Alabama Code § 3-1-5 research began Mar. 26, 2025 with an email to Ken Ward, Public Affairs (which bounced) and a vm for Capt. Whitmore at the SO (I did not hear back). On Mar. 28 I spoke with Kindell Anderson, County Administrator (334-832-1212), who did not know and asked me to email him and also County Attorney Michael Armistead; Kindell said I could expect to hear back early next week. I left a vm on Apr. 3. On Apr. 5, I called Montgomery Humane Society where the representative answered affirmatively that residents of the unincorporated area must keep their dogs on their own property or on a leash. She did not know the adoption year. When asked to note her name as a source for that information she offered “DHO Animal Services.”

I submitted a records request on Apr. 11 via the County’s online portal. After the 10-day initial response allowance had passed without any communication from the County, I called on Apr. 28 and spoke with Tammy Nix, executive assistant at the Commission who stated that due to the new law [Open Records Act 2024 amendments], “records requests can't be submitted electronically” and she had been trying to get the software company to remove the online request system. Tammy said that the county attorney was supposed to have replied to my request with the new Montgomery County records request form (the original is a docx; here is a PDF); however his last day was Friday. Tammy said I would have to resubmit — in person, no exceptions. When I stated that an in-person requirement is in violation of the Act, Tammy acknowledged that she was “just following policy.” A few minutes later, she called back apologetically and stated that she agreed about the issues I had brought up regarding an in-person requirement and would look into getting the policy changed (though that may have to wait until there is a new county attorney). Tammy earned my respect and commendation for thinking for herself and having the integrity to be true to her beliefs rather than blindly following policy. After a month of seemingly dead-end research, Tammy’s call felt like a miracle. I mentioned attorney J. Evans Bailey and emailed his memo regarding the Open Records Act, in case it may be useful for a revision of the Commission policy.

Tammy said she believed that the county has no confinement requirement but was curious to find out for herself also, stating that she would begin research and asking that I mail her a records request to make it official, which I did the same day. She mentioned that the County had tried to obtain Home Rule (to allow the County more flexibility in animal control, presumably among other reasons) but residents voted against it. Later the same day (Apr. 28) I spoke with the knowledgeable Steve Tears, who said that the County adopted about 25 years ago, and passed that info on to Tammy. Just an hour later, Tammy provided the Resolution.

Montgomery County Documents

• Montgomery Humane Society Animal Census
• Alabama Code § 3-1-5 Adoption Resolution
• County Commission Public Records Request Form

Sources

• Steve Tears, Director of Montgomery Humane Society: Steve and I spoke on Apr. 28, 2025. In addition to the shelter, AC, and § 3-1-5 info above, we spoke about HB149, about Steve's commitment to serving the community, his empathy for people living in povery and their right to the companionship of a pet, his understanding that sometimes caring people use a chain or tether out of desperation when their dog keeps escaping, his emphasis on finding solutions so that residents can keep their pets, pressure from BFAS to improve stats at the expense of actually serving animals, and other topics. I appreciate that he chose to share so openly.
• Tammy Nix, Executive Assistant at the Montgomery County Commission, provided the § 3-1-5 adoption resolution on Apr. 28, 2025.
• Darrell Rigsby, Pike Road planning administrator, said in a June 26, 2025 call that to the best of his knowledge, the town has no dog-related ordinances.

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