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proposed City ordinance changes re: animal quantity limits

2

2ndChildhood

New member
wondering if anyone else here has City ordinances that restrict quantities of pets?

My City has proposed an ordinance change that limits dogs to not more than 3 dogs over six months of age, not more than 4 cats over three months of age, and "In addition to the limit on dogs and cats, no more than 3 other animals shall be kept on any one premise."

I'm undecide if I want to comment on the "other animals" restriction or if this would most likely open up a big discussion that creates more problems than it solves. Currently the ordinance only discusses dangerous dogs, no restrictions on "wildlife" or other "dangerous" animals that snakes can sometimes fall under for regulation.

Currently I only have 3 snakes and 1 cat, so I would be OK under this as written, but I have plans on getting a couple more snakes in the future. If you think about any bird or hampster having babies, that would violate this ordinance as proposed because they only allow for offspring of cats & dogs.

I'm on one of the other City commissions, so I shouldn't really ignore this because a couple of the people I serve with know I keep snakes. I'm just trying to decide if I want to speak up or shut up.
 
I heard about something like this going on in another state, Illinois I think. There they want to limit people to six pets total, including fish. So if you have a fully stocked 75 gallon fish tank, you're screwed. Which just proves that arbitrary limits are redonkulous.
 
In my city, it's complicated. Here's the basic summery:

*Up to four cats, dogs, or pot bellied pigs (any combination there of)
*Up to two female chickens (no roosters), unless zoned for agriculture
*Up to 12 small animal pets

Of course, there are a few other rules in there, but these are the only ones I can think of at the moment without going into the prohibited and licensed pets. I, obviously, am in violation. When I move from this apartment, I will have a problem. I am trying to get permits to excuse the number of animals I have, but it's slow going.
 
2ndChildhood said:
wondering if anyone else here has City ordinances that restrict quantities of pets?

My City has proposed an ordinance change that limits dogs to not more than 3 dogs over six months of age, not more than 4 cats over three months of age, and "In addition to the limit on dogs and cats, no more than 3 other animals shall be kept on any one premise."

I'm undecide if I want to comment on the "other animals" restriction or if this would most likely open up a big discussion that creates more problems than it solves. Currently the ordinance only discusses dangerous dogs, no restrictions on "wildlife" or other "dangerous" animals that snakes can sometimes fall under for regulation.

Currently I only have 3 snakes and 1 cat, so I would be OK under this as written, but I have plans on getting a couple more snakes in the future. If you think about any bird or hampster having babies, that would violate this ordinance as proposed because they only allow for offspring of cats & dogs.

I'm on one of the other City commissions, so I shouldn't really ignore this because a couple of the people I serve with know I keep snakes. I'm just trying to decide if I want to speak up or shut up.
Click to expand...

The questions I would be asking is..what right does the city have to impose this law? The numbers of animals people choose to keep inside their own homes is really none of the city's business!!
 
You should immediately contact the American Dog Owners Assoc. - ADOA.org

They fight these types of laws all the time and they rally their membership to attend meetings and voice their opinions. I have seen several towns/cities drop their proposed bans/limits in a heartbeat when they see their meeting rooms filled with enthusiastic, knowledgeable people that are very persistant.

It's not about you and your pets. It's about what's right.

Good luck.
 
look at what your city defines an animal as some have such strange definitions that snakes are sometimes excluded just by that.
 
Thanks for the info and responses everyone. I've contacted our local animal rescue as a start, I'll look into the ADOA.

Outcast: my county also regulates things like "dangerous dogs" where there isn't another authority such as a City, so just because you aren't in City limits doesn't mean you aren't under someone's regulation.

The ordinance defines an animal as "a multicellular. eukaryotic organism characterized by voluntary movement. Animal does not include human beings or fish." If Wiki is correct, this would also includes plants and fungus if I could find one with "voluntary movement". I'm pretty sure they just copied this ordinance language from some other city, it's poorly written in a few areas that I won't bore you with.

Public hearing isn't until March 7th, so I've got some time to get information together.
 
That is crazy about the "dangerous dogs" do they list specific breeds? Or, is someone supposed to go check out every dog in the county to see if it is a dangerous dog?

I used to own a dog that could be considered dangerous, if she felt threatened or someone came onto the property without permission... She was a family pet/guard dog, and she actually had bit a lady who she thought was going to elbow her. It is a wonder that we were never sued.

It is funny looking at city/county ordnance that no one really enforces, or there is no feasible way to enforce. It is only a matter of time that America is so regulated that we will not be able to use the restroom without punching a time sheet on a clock, in order to "make sure we are healthy".
 
I have yet to see a metropolitan area that doesn't place SOME sort of restriction on the keeping of animals. Here, there are no restrictions on the number of dogs one can keep, as long as they're licensed and well cared-for, but you can only have 3 hens, and no roosters. You aren't supposed to own any snake whose species' size generally gets beyond 8' in length. You can't own wild cat species, monkeys or apes, or alligators/crocodiles. Cats must be licensed, here, too. You can own livestock, but only if it has a stable of some sort, which must be a certain distance from ANY other structure or fence line. This effectively stops anyone keeping a goat, pig, or pony on anything less than an acre in size, and there aren't many 1+ acre lots available in this city.

In the beach community I want to buy a vacation home in, there is a limit of 3 dogs per household, and 2 cats. Anything more needs a permit. Monitor lizards aren't allowed. You cannot license a breeding kennel for dogs OR cats, unless the city recently annexed your area, in which case, you can get a permit to run a breeding kennel with a restricted number of animals.

In my home town, there was a 3 dog limit (I almost always had more, and was often on the verge of getting into trouble with the animal control peeps). Cats could run freely. Livestock weren't allowed--including fowl and rabbits. Fortunately for those of us whose children were in 4H, that law was never enforced.

And that's just the laws of the various cities. County, state and federal regulations may put even more restrictions on the keeping of certain numbers or kinds of pets.

That's why it's important that when one of these potential laws comes up for review, people who don't want the restrictions put on their choice of pet should show up and give their thoughts about it a voice. If people don't, it's almost guaranteed that an un-challenged proposed ordinance will pass.
 
We have dog ordinances. If you want more than three dogs you apply for a "kennel license." This is more expensive than normal dog licenses. Just a way for the .gov to extract more $$$ from its citizens.
 
Hypancistrus said:
We have dog ordinances. If you want more than three dogs you apply for a "kennel license." This is more expensive than normal dog licenses. Just a way for the .gov to extract more $$$ from its citizens.
Click to expand...

We have that same ordinance here. No limit on and no license required to own cats, but dogs must be licensed unless you have more then 3 dogs then you must apply for a kennel license.
 
I have had my fair share of fighting city ordnances and I have learned that the broader the brush the more people it affects. When my city wanted to impose a $500/year kennel fee if you bred anything mice to dogs the 4H and FFA parents helped fight it because their kids were raising animals for clubs. Work on getting the word out that it affects lots of people even if they don't fight for you those people will fight with you.
 
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