Animal control response

Regional Animal Services of King County is dedicated to promoting and protecting the health, safety, and welfare of people and pets in our contract cities and unincorporated King County. We provide a 24-hour public safety response to dangerous animals, loose livestock on public roadways, as well as animal injury and abuse.

We respond to non-emergency calls seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Animal Control Officers (ACOs) conduct investigations, enforce state and local laws related to animals, as well as educate the public about animal welfare, restraint, and licensing. Our ACOs respond to more than 5,000 calls each year in both unincorporated King County and our 24 contract cities, covering nearly 1,100 square miles and a population of more than one million people.

If you need help from our animal control officers, call 206-296-7387 (PETS). If it's an emergency that is threatening the health or safety of a human or animal, call 9-1-1.

Reporting an animal complaint

In order to submit an animal complaint, please follow these steps:

1. Verify that RASKC serves your area
2. Fill out an animal complaint form online or download the form and send it to RASKC in one of the following ways:
• Email: pets@kingcounty.gov
• Mail: Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC), 21615 64th Ave. S, Kent, WA 98032
• Fax: 206-205-8043
• Call: 206-296-7387 (PETS)
3. A call center representative will create a case number for an animal control officer to investigate

For questions about healthy or nuisance wildlife, please contact the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for more information:

• Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
  425-775-1311

Filing an animal noise complaint

People living in urban and suburban areas of King County should expect to live with some level of noise. Even rural areas can be impacted by noise. Traffic, neighborhood children, lawn equipment, and barking dogs are just a few examples. As a resident, you are expected to tolerate most of these noises within reason. However, in the case of excessive noise caused by a pet, there are several things you can do.

1. Communicate with the pet owner
   Try to talk to the pet owner about the problem. Sometimes owners are not aware of the problem, especially when they are not at home. A neighborly discussion can be helpful. Try to work out a mutually agreeable solution, and allow the pet owner a reasonable amount of time to remedy the situation. Make note of the dates and times of your contacts with the pet owner and responses received.
    
2. Provide noise nuisance prevention materials to the owner
   Share links to online resources from the Humane Society of the United States and PetMD, as well as a copy of our Noise Nuisance Letter. These materials are designed to help pet owners understand the problem and offer some ideas about correcting a noisy pet issue.
    
3. Document and submit a Noise Complaint Petition
   If you have tried unsuccessfully to solve the problem by talking to the pet owner, and you have identified other neighbors who are also disturbed by the noise, we can assist you. Fill out the Noise Complaint Form online. Make sure to carefully follow the instructions. Document your experiences thoroughly and honestly, as you may need to testify at an appeal hearing. Please note that you must have the exact address where the nuisance pet lives, a minimum of three complainants, and the form must be signed. You can also download the form and send your completed petition using one of the following methods:
   • Email: pets@kingcounty.gov
   • Mail: Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC), 21615 64th Ave. S, Kent, WA 98032
   • Fax: 206-205-8043

   RASKC will contact the pet owner to let them know a complaint was filed and that they must take action to correct the problem.

   If the noise continues, do not stop documenting the issues. If the steps above do not resolve the problem, RASKC can take escalating enforcement action. In order to do so, contact us with updated documentation of the continuing problem. We will continue to work on the noise disturbance as long as you and your neighbors continue to document the ongoing problems and submit information to us. As necessary, animal control officers will be dispatched and may issue additional notices of violation until the problem is resolved.