Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Animal Control topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Animal control: Washington Terrace lacks authority to force cat feeder to stop; citizens urged to trap and contact county
Summary
City animal control told the council that Washington Terrace has no leash law for cats and limited authority to compel a resident to stop feeding community cats. Staff advised neighbors to trap animals for county intake, and said the city will follow up with Weber County about trap availability and county capacity.
At the Oct. 21 Washington Terrace City Council meeting, animal control staff described an ongoing nuisance problem caused by free‑roaming cats and said current city code limits what staff can compel.
"In Washington Terrace there's no leash law or anything on cats," the animal control officer said, explaining the practical reasons: adopting a leash or containment law would require impounding stray cats, raise licensing questions and increase costs. The officer added that collars can be unsafe for cats and that impounding every roaming cat would be a major undertaking.
Animal control said the usual path is for neighbors to trap unwanted cats and take them to Weber County. The officer noted uncertainty about the county’s current capacity and whether residents can rent traps under the county contract: "Right now, with county transitioning to a new director and everything like that...we need to find out who's given your citizens traps and if county has a limit on if they're accepting them or not," staff said.
Staff said they have spoken to the county and will follow up with the new county animal services director, Siri Maine, to clarify trap availability and the county’s intake procedures. The officer also described a past practice in which trapped cats were returned to the same address after TNR (trap‑neuter‑return), and said the city objected to that when it led to repeat nuisance problems.
No ordinance or formal code change was proposed or adopted at the meeting; staff said they will report back after checking county procedures and trap availability.
