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Supervisors discuss tougher local enforcement for roaming livestock; staff to draft nuisance-oriented code changes
Summary
Board discussed repeated complaints about cattle roaming onto roads and properties; staff outlined Virginia's "no-fence" default and limits on local fines, and supervisors asked staff to prepare ordinance language mirroring Loudoun's focused public-nuisance approach.
Fauquier County supervisors spent a substantive portion of their Sept. 11 work session examining the county code on animals and fowl after repeated complaints about cattle roaming onto roads and private property in one neighborhood.
County staff explained Virginia operates under a statutory approach often described as a “no‑fence” default: owners must keep livestock on their own property but are not always required to construct a physical fence. That places responsibility on the owner to prevent trespass; enforcement tools include misdemeanor citations and injunctive relief. Staff told the board the maximum criminal penalty under the state code for allowing livestock to run at large is a class‑4…
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