Until recently, Bellevue kept a pretty long leash on its animal control regulations, enforcing no limits on the number of barnyard, domestic and wild animals kept in the city.
That changed Thursday night when the City Council adopted an amended animal control ordinance that regulates the keeping of dogs, horses, chickens, cats and just about any other animal one might think of keeping at home.
"Until now, our ordinance only pertained to dogs and other animals running at large, and there were no limits on the number of animals people were allowed to keep," said Planning Director Craig Eckles.
Eckles incorporated comment from five public hearings into the final draft of the ordinance. City Council Chairman Chris Koch applauded the efforts of the Planning Department in gathering input on the new ordinance.
"That's how every ordinance should go from here on out," he said.
Animals of high concern to Bellevue residents are horses and dogs. The new ordinance allows four dogs and two cats per household without a kennel license. Horses can now only be kept at the proportion of one per 6,000 square feet of lot size.
The new ordinance allows for keeping up to four chickens on city lots of 6,000 square feet or more. Roosters are not allowed because they are too noisy.
The 30-page long ordinance also addresses the care of animals, including regular feeding and watering.
City Administrator Tom Blanchard wanted to place a cap on the total number of farm animals permitted per parcel, but citizens testifying at the Oct. 8 meeting said proportional restrictions were enough.
At Thursday's meeting, Bellevue residents Barb Patterson and Cathy Clark thanked the Planning Department and the City Council for a job well done.
"Your process has made us feel like we have been heard and are part of the end results," Patterson said.
Tony Evans: tevans@mtexpress.com
