Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Animal Control topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Thomasville plans animal-control ordinance updates to align with new state tethering law
Summary
Town attorney told council staff will update the local animal-control ordinance to address recent chicken and goat incidents and to implement a new state 'tethering' law that becomes effective Oct. 1; council signaled it will enforce the state requirement locally.
Town attorney Glenn told the council staff is drafting an update to the local animal-control ordinance after several complaints about chickens, goats and tethered dogs.
"We're working on an updated animal control ordinance because of a couple of chicken incidents," Glenn said. He added the town must also account for a recently enacted state "tethering" law that changes how animals may be restrained and that it becomes effective Oct. 1.
The mayor said residents should use the intervening months to check compliance and make necessary changes. "State law is changing Oct. 1. You cannot do that anymore," he said, referring to chaining animals in a way that restricts normal movement. Council discussed balancing residents' desire to keep animals with neighbors' concerns about containment and smells.
Next steps: staff will continue drafting ordinance language to align with state requirements and return proposed language to the council for review before the Oct. 1 effective date.
