SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Animal Care Services is investigating more and more potentially “dangerous” dogs — a label that carries strict requirements for owners.
But ACS officials say that increase is also partially responsible for a drop in the rate of owners complying with those requirements, along with staffing turnover in the unit responsible for both investigating the cases and ensuring compliance.
ACS officials doubled the number of ACS dangerous dog investigator positions from two to four in the 2024 fiscal year. But officials say two of those positions are currently vacant.
“In regards to the job itself, it’s very demanding. They see a lot of things and it’s not for everybody which is understandable,” said Lt. Bethany Snowden, who oversees the ACS investigative units.
Snowden thinks more education and policy changes have helped lead to an increase in dangerous or aggressive dog affidavits — the sworn complaints that prompt ACS investigations into attacks or threatening behavior.
In FY 2024, ACS investigated 301 such cases. That jumped to 523 in FY 2025, and ACS has already worked 207 cases in the first four months of FY 2026.
The city’s online registry currently lists 210 “dangerous” dogs and 94 “aggressive” ones.
The labels come with extra requirements for the animals’ owners, especially for those labeled “dangerous.”
Dangerous dog owners’ responsibilities include maintaining a license with the city, purchasing a $100,000 liability insurance policy, posting a special warning sign, keeping the dog in a secure enclosure, muzzling it when outside, using a special collar and allowing an annual inspection.
Kristin Cooper is trying to fight the “dangerous” dog designation her six dogs, five of which are still puppies, were tagged with.
In the meantime, she has to comply with the requirements.
“You want your dog home, that’s what you have to do, you know? It’s a lot, but I mean, it’s worth it‚" she said.
Snowden said an owner is considered “noncompliant” if they don’t reach out and provide everything they need on the anniversary of the dangerous dog investigation.
Without enough investigators to go out, check and push them into compliance, she said they’re having a problem.
After keeping the compliance rate for dangerous dog owners above 80% for the past two years, ACS has seen it fall to just below 71% so far this fiscal year.
“We’re pulling at all ends,” Snowden said. “So honestly I’ve had supervisors essentially helping with additional duties as far as helping out with those compliance rates to do those inspections for the dangerous dog owners that are currently deemed so that way we can get them into compliance or hold them accountable at municipal court, whether it be through hearings or citations."
Snowden said the vacant positions have been “open a while,” but she has two people for whom she’s only waiting on a start date.
Having more people will help, Snowden said, “because of the fact that not only are we getting more affidavits, more cases can be done, but then we can actually address more noncompliant owners at once."
Having investigators follow up instead of supervisors would mean “you’re having people actually go out to properties instead of just making a phone call, instead of sending an email saying, ‘You need to come into compliance,’ we’re having the staff actually make face and showing up saying, ‘OK, this is what I need.’ So more babysitting, essentially.”
A dangerous dog designation and the associated requirements last for life, and city code forbids the animals from being put up for sale, rescue or adoption.
The only alternative is to relinquish them to ACS, which would have to euthanize them.
Cooper said putting her dogs down is “never an option” and she would “absolutely not” surrender them, even if her attempt to appeal their “dangerous” designation fails.
“They will never go back to that place ever, like ever,” she said. “I mean, if that happens, then, like I said, we’ll have a big, big home of puppies, won’t we?"
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