What's The Right Number Of Pets To Have?
MayorBob.
Posted to Etcetera on Mon Jul 28, 2008 at 06:50:08 AM EST (promoted by port1080). RSS.
A man's home is his castle, so the saying goes. If that's true where does the state get the right to tell the lord and master how many pets he can house in his castle? That's the issue of the moment in one Wisconsin town where residents are debating a proposed ordinance limiting the number of pets a household can have.
Brookfield, Wisconsin is one of six communities in the Milwaukee area which does not currently put a cap on the number of pets you can have in your house. Most of the communities with limits have limits of two to three pets per household. But, because of one household the city is debating enacting its own limit. Some people might call Don and Jean Rhoten's actions noble. Rescuing sick and abused dogs, providing them with vet care and shelter, and finding permanent homes for them seem noble when viewed from a distance. But, if you're a neighbor of the Rhotens apparently you get tired really quick of the barking, the dogs straying off the Rhoten's property and defecating throughout the neighborhood. Things have reached the point where Brookfield city council is considering limiting household pets to a limit of four, with a further limit to no more than three of one species of animal among the four pets allowed.
The problem, which has a lot of Brookfield residents troubled at the prospect of codifying limits on pets, is that many residents already have more than four pets. And most of the complaints about the Rhotens have been about the dogs (and they have housed as many as nine dogs at a time) has been their barking. According to Karen Sparapani of the local humane society, barking is a nuisance which neighbors might experience if there's one or ten dogs living in a house. But Mary Scaffido says the dogs at Rhoten's house "bark for hours" and it's more than a nuisance. One alderman noted that, with 13,000 residences, there are likely more than the 1,192 dogs which are licensed in the town considering that a number of houses with licensed dogs are home to multiple canines. Another neighbor said having nine dogs under one roof is "unsanitary" and agrees with the move toward limits.
Should one person, who let things get out of hand like the Rhotens apparently did, mean communities should place arbitrary limits on pet ownership? Those who are active in animal rescue (or are just pet lovers) would respond, no! And some might say it's unconstitutional to be placing limits on pet ownership. Some people are taking their local government to court over this issue. Some communities with limits seem to be wavering on the numbers (and a solid majority of those polled disagree with limits altogether). Of course, stories are legion about pet lovers who do let things spiral hopelessly out of control.
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