New Dog and Cat Ordinance in FM
From the Fargo Forum
An updated dog and cat ordinance was approved
5-0 on Monday by the Fargo City Commission with no howls of protest.
The law has more bite in identifying and controlling potentially dangerous and dangerous dogs.
If Bowser goes bad, the care, licensing and insurance costs are daunting, Police Chief Keith Ternes said.
“You’re going to find it pretty difficult to keep and maintain that dog in the city of Fargo,” Ternes said.
There are also provisions under the new law making it easier for animal control officers to enforce loud-animal complaints.
Under the updated ordinance:
Once a dog is declared potentially dangerous by a municipal court judge, the owner must prove it is sterilized and its vaccinations are up to date, get it implanted with a microchip with contact information, and pay a $200 annual licensing fee.
For a dog declared dangerous, the sterilization, vaccination and microchip rules apply, too, but the licensing fee jumps to $500.
In addition, the owner will need a minimum of $300,000 in liability insurance for the dog.
“It’s difficult, if not nearly impossible, to find that kind of insurance coverage,” Ternes said. “It puts an incredible onus on the owners of those animals.”
If the owner of a potentially dangerous or dangerous dog fails to register it or allows it to run loose, that person can be charged with a Class B misdemeanor, the ordinance states.
Ternes said potentially dangerous dogs can have the designation removed if the owner has the animal successfully complete mandated training.
Steve Candor, a southside resident, has been working on the issue for more than a year – ever since his German shepherd mix, Mischief, was mauled by a pit bull.
The attack badly injured the dog and cost Candor more than $2,500 in veterinarian bills.
“Basically, really what we’re trying to do is make the owners of animals more responsive,” Candor said. “You’ve got to have some common sense.”
Commissioner Tim Mahoney asked if other commissioners thought the fees were too high.
Commissioner Brad Wimmer said a significant cost is needed to bring inattentive owners to heel.
“You’ve got to have some teeth in it (the ordinance),” Wimmer said. “If we’re going to eliminate the problem of dangerous dogs in the city, it’s got to be somewhat high.”
Posted: January 12th, 2010 under Fun!.
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