By Mother Tracy
Rector
After an incident this spring in which a dog belonging to a
woman staying in her RV on St. John’s property allegedly bit one of the church’s neighbors,
the vestry decided to take a look at how and when animals are present on St.
John’s campus. We decided it would be wise to put in place clear guidelines and
expectations for the behavior of animals and their owners while they are on our
property.
A subcommittee was formed to look more closely at the issue,
which consisted of vestry members Eileen Fernald, Suzanne
Krakover-Nickel, and Gina Muller and members-at-large Nancy Shephard,
Karen Greenleaf, and Janet Duncan. I also served on the committee.
Our office manager, Chrys Sparks, very helpfully compiled a list of sample
policies from other churches and universities and after reviewing and
discussing those samples, the subcommittee drafted a policy for St. John’s that
was approved by unanimous vote of the vestry at the August meeting.
The full text of the policy is printed below, and will be posted on the parish website, the parish bulletin board, and other areas around the campus. Please draw pet-owners' attention to this policy if they plan to bring their pet with them to St. John's.
Animal Policy
Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist, Aptos, CA
Approved by the Vestry on August 15, 2017
Our animal policy aims
to take into consideration both the needs of animal owners and people who may
be allergic to or fearful of those animals, in order to create a welcoming
atmosphere for all people and creatures on our church grounds.
Animal owners are
welcome to bring their dog, cat, or other pet to St. John’s grounds and in the
church's facilities, under the following conditions:
1. The animal must be on a six foot (or shorter)
leash or crated, and it must be under the control of the owner at all times.
2. Employees and volunteers may have a pet with
them in their office while doing church work, but must have a sign on the door
notifying others that an animal is present and must provide an alternative
meeting space if someone prefers a pet-free zone.
3. No animals are allowed in the kitchen or the
nursery.
4. If bringing an animal to a group meeting, the
pet owner must ask the other members of the group ahead of time if they are
okay with the animal being present.
5. The animal should be well-behaved. This means
that the animal can sit quietly and not distract the owner or the rest of the
people present from the tasks at hand. If the owner has to constantly interact
with the pet, or if the pet is interacting with others in the room such as to
cause a distraction, others present may ask the owner to remove the animal.
6. Owners must clean up after their animal. This
includes disposing of pet waste (i.e., scoop the poop), cleaning up any other
messes made by the animal while on St. John’s campus, and removing hair or
dander from areas where the animal has been sitting (to try to keep the area as
allergy-free as possible for the next people who use the space).
7. All animals must be tagged, registered, and
vaccinated in accordance with appropriate state and county regulations. This
includes being up-to-date on anti-flea medications.
8.
If you have a complaint or concern about an animal present at St. John's,
please contact the rector.
This
animal policy may be expanded or revised in the future as needs arise.
