Cats, dogs and the Golden Rule

"A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his."

Marley & Me

"No family or person shall own, harbor or keep in its possession more than two dogs or cats on any residentially zoned lot without the prior approval of the Common Council, which may be conditional, except that a litter of pups or kittens or a portion of a litter may be kept for not more than eight weeks from birth. If more than one family resides on a residential lot, then only a total of four dogs or cats shall be allowed on the residential lot unless prior approval is obtained from the Common Council."

Section 18-32 (c) of the City of Chetek Code of Ordinances

He was a great dog

Pets. They make our lives richer and fuller by having them. In our nearly twenty-seven years in Chetek we've been blessed with a number of them – a couple of dogs, a couple of cats, some goldfish, a guinea pig and a rabbit to boot. Our first dog, Buster, though he was a runner by inclination and we frequently were bailing him out of the pokey, was amazing. It broke our hearts the day he died. Jack, our other dog, well...not so much but that's another story.

More often than not lately, pets have been an agenda item at the city council meeting in the form of a pet waiver. Like so many other things in our lives as members of this community, even the number of pets we own is governed by the Code.

The physical Code of Ordinances is pretty thick. The on-line version is far more user-friendly

How many?

Two. That's what we're allowed. Not two cats and two dogs but a cat and a dog or two dogs and no cats or two cats and no dogs. However you do the math at the end of the day if you have more than two critters you are not legal.

Why only two?

Well, I think you can figure it out. Some of us are just bleeding hearts for our canine and feline friends and when no limits are enforced, we collect them out of compassion for their welfare. But what about your neighbors? People bristle at that question because frequently their first response to that question is that their neighbors “should mind their own beeswax”. But according to our Code,  

The keeping of a large number of dogs or cats within the City for a considerable period of time detracts from and, in many instances, is detrimental to, healthful and comfortable life in such areas. The keeping of a large number of dogs or cats is, therefore, declared a public nuisance. Sec 18-32(a)

The truth is we may live in a rural area but if you live in town you don't live in the country. We just live too close to each other to allow small packs of dogs or prides of cats to proliferate next door. So years ago the limit was set at two.

Waiver needed:

As someone who has run for public office twice now, I can verify this for certain: many individuals in our city do not comply with the two pet rule. I know. I've met several of their canine members of their households at more than a few homes as I have gone door to door. Now it could be that some of these individuals have waivers on file at city hall which allows them to have more than two pets at their home. My hunch is, however, that a lot of folk just don't bother to go through the relatively painless process of securing a waiver which would allow them to legally have more than two pets at their address.

It works like this. A certain household member who already has two pets suddenly has to take in two more as her son, who serves in the military, just was deployed overseas for the next year and has no where for his dogs to go. She fills out the waiver explaining what kind of dogs they are and how long she plans on holding them. It then goes before the council for approval. In every case thus far that I've been serving as mayor the council has never denied a reasonable request. They frequently set limits to the waiver (e.g., the mother may keep her sons' dogs until the son returns from his deployment overseas) but they usually accommodate the pet owner's request. The fee per waiver is $25.

License required.

If your pooch is five months old or older, he needs to have a license (per Sec 18-93(a)). That's not our rule. That's the State's. At the present time there are no licenses required for cats (but you still can only have two). As part of licensing you need to show proof that your dog has been immunized against rabies (18-93(d)). Licenses are good for a year. $6/if your dog is spayed or neutered. $12 if they're not fixed. Again, those fees are set by the State with which the city fully complies with.

But what about dogs running loose?

Well, of course, they're not supposed to be (18-25) but as an owner of a former “runner”, sometimes they break their leash while tied up in the back yard or pull out of their collar and go out on a lark. We don't have a city dog catcher so who do you call if a dog comes sniffing into your yard? As much as City Clerk-Treasurer Carmen Newman loves dogs, don't call her. Call the police. Through email, I asked Chief Ambrozaitis about this very thing and this is what he wrote back:

“We handle all dog complaints on a call by call basis. We have a policy concerning dangerous dogs, and [we handle this] when receiving a call on them. As far as dogs at large we handle them the best way we can. We try to find the owners via social media, word of mouth, etc... If this does not work and if a county deputy is available they will transport to Happy Tails in Barronett. We no longer take them to Barron as the Humane Society does not have a contract with the county anymore. Handling animals in the city has become some what of a problem but so far we have been able to handle them without any issues.”

(Note: Chetek PD will not take any dogs to Happy Tails Pet Boarding & Daycare as Barronett is 38 miles away and that would mean the only officer on duty would be gone a couple of hours making sure Fido is taken care of. It's not a very good use of police resources.) I recently spoke with Officer Jessica Larson about this and she told me that when she gets a loose dog call she tries to coax the wandering pup into the back of her squad and take it to the shop. Then via Facebook the word gets out and soon after the owner usually stops by the PD to pick up their lost dog  - usually.

And what about other animals?

Well, in case you were wondering, if you live within the city limits you can't own a polar bear or an alligator let alone any other federally protected animals (18-213a). You can own a snake so long as its not poisonous but otherwise all dangerous critters such as cheetahs, elephants or hippos are verboten (18-213e) (see the extended list in the Code, if only for your own amusement). You can own bees (which, strictly speaking, are not animals) but if you do and you do not live in a neighborhood that is zoned agricultural you're going to need to obtain a conditional use permit which often includes a public hearing so your neighbors can weigh in on the matter (see 18-263 thru 18-265). And let me state for the record that you can't shoot those pesky squirrels that get into your bird feeder. They may deserve it but the Code deems that cruel and unusual punishment (see 18-184). Sorry, dear wife, but you can't do it.

For the time being

You can own rabbits but you can't raise them to sell them (18-214). And at the present time the City does not allow anyone to own chickens (although every year we are approached by individuals who query if the council will ever reconsider that position). Otherwise all other farm animals – pigs, cows, horses, goats - are not permitted within the city limits (see 118-84c). Again, if you want country air then maybe looking for property in the surrounding townships is your best option.

There are reasons that all these rules are on the books. Not only are they similar (or identical) to other communities like ours but they also generally govern our civil interaction with each other. If we lived in a more perfect world, “love thy neighbor” and “the golden rule” would suffice, regardless of your individual religious persuasion. But we don't. So in the interim we live by the laws set by the State and the Municipal Code. It helps keep our town from truly going to the dogs.