Coeur d'Alene police: Drivers must stop after striking pets

A Coeur d’Alene resident’s cat was struck by a vehicle on Mullan Avenue on the Fourth of July.

That might not sound like it's worth mentioning, except the driver drove away without checking on the injured animal, which is against the law.

Another driver stopped, picked up the cat and knocked on doors until she found the owner, who rushed the pet to an emergency animal clinic.

According to Coeur d’Alene Police Capt. Dave Hagar, city ordinance dictates that a driver must stop their vehicle and notify the owner of an animal or contact animal control, should the owner be unable to be determined, when a vehicle strikes and injures or kills “any domestic animal.”

Drivers who refuse risk committing a misdemeanor.  

“They need to give us a call. If they can offer aid, then that is great,” said Hagar.

Hagar said the police recognize the concerns about safety when dealing with injured animals.

“We also understand that injured animals can be dangerous,” he said. “They really should still call law enforcement or animal control.” 

Hagar also said that animal control is equipped to locate owners should the animal be microchipped. 

“Our animal control officers have the scanner, so if the animal is tagged, we can scan it and try to locate the owner,” he said.  

If the animal is injured, Hagar said police and animal control have emergency veterinarians they can transport injured animals to, or if lightly injured, they can be taken to Companions Animal Center.

In the U.S., more than 30 million cats and dogs are struck by vehicles every year, according to the ResQ Global Foundation. 

ResQ also says that many of the accidents that happen every year are hit-and-runs but official numbers are hard to gather. 

The collection of roadkill data remains inconsistent across the country, with many incidents going unreported, particularly those involving smaller animals, ResQ said in a report. 

Hagar said those wishing to report suspected animal hit-and-runs should call the police with both a license plate number and a description of the driver.

He also said the police try to be “reasonable” when it comes to dealing with animal hit-and-run situations. 

“We have to take the totality of the circumstances into consideration," he said.