The City of Antioch will likely have a battle on their hand with animal groups in January after the City Council voted 5-0 on Dec. 10 to move forward with the adoption of a revised ordinance of the City Code regarding Animals.
In a letter written by Karen Kops, President, Homeless Animals Response Program (H.A.R.P.), she is calling the decision by the City Council a “inhumane solution to a community problem”. She argues this discussion occurred when folks were not pay attention and no advocates were in the audience to speak against it.
According to the City Staff Report, most of the Animal Municipal Code has not been updated since the early 1980’s. The staff report also states the intake of animals at the Shelter is trending higher each year and 50% of calls for service that are handled by Animal Control are for “dangerous animals”. The city says the ordinance has been updated to be consistent with state law.
Here are some of the highlights:
- It’s unlawful to keep more than 5-cats without a permit.
- It’s unlawful to feed feral cats off one’s own property
- It’s unlawful to allow a dog to bark unabated
- It’s unlawful to keep a roster without a permit.
- Redeeming impounded animals: Animals will now be micro-chipped before release to an owner and now will include a $22 fee. For a second offense, the dog or cat must be spayed or neutered before release to an owner.
- Multiple Pets or Kennel Permit: Animal Control will notify adjacent property owners and tenants within 300 feet of the applicant’s property. Adjacent property owners and tenants will now be given 10-days to provide Animal Control with any written/verbal comments regarding any animal nuisances. The applicant may now appeal the Animal Control Supervisors decision to deny a permit. No more than 10-dogs are allowed.
- Barking Dog: a dog that barks, bays, cries, howls or makes noise for 30-60 minutes within a 24-hour period may be impounded by Animal Control.
- Updated the Authority, Entry on Private Property, Procedures, Violations and Remedies for Animal Control and Antioch Police when going onto Private Property.
- Keeping Animals & Bees
- Number of dogs – unlawful to keep more than 3-dogs that are required to be licenses
- Number of cats – It is unlawful for a person to keep more than 5-cats without a permit
- Number of fowl – its unlawful for a person to keep or maintain more than 10 each of ducks, geese, chickens or other fowl. No person may keep a rooster without a permit under section 6-1.601.
- Number of rabbits – no more than 10 domesticated rabbits may be kept on any parcel within the city.
- Bees – Bees may only be kept in an agricultural or open space zoning district and with a permit from the Animal Control Supervisor.
Here is the letter written by Karen Kops, President, Homeless Animals Response Program (H.A.R.P.).
Hi All,
Are you aware that the Antioch city council voted a change to the city ordinance re animals? They did so on Dec 10 and there were no animal advocates present. Nobody from the public spoke against it. It was on the agenda and we were not paying attention. I read the staff report/recommendation and watched the video yesterday. It passed 5-0. You can find it on the city council agenda for Dec 10. It includes:
· It is now unlawful for a person to keep more than 5 cats without a permit.
· It is unlawful to feed feral cats unless it is on your own property.
· It is unlawful to allow a dog to bark unabated and includes the number of hours that is considered unabated.
· It is unlawful to keep a rooster without a permit.
· People who apply for a permit to own more than 3 dogs will have to have an inspection made of their property and signed off by animal control. Animal control will also notify neighbors within 300 yards that you have applied for the permit. They have 10 days to object to the permit.
The fees for the permits and/or violations are not given. They are to be determined by the city council. So now we are being taxed for taking care of our cats. Many people have stepped up and are caring for cats that were abandoned by their neighbors. Are these cats considered theirs?
There are other changes including the requirement to have an animal micro chipped after being impounded and to be spayed or neutered after two impounds. These particular two changes were recommended to the police department in 2007 by a subcommittee composed of animal welfare activists.
Animal welfare organizations that partner with the shelter to pull dogs and cats were not made aware of this. Many of the cats that are being fed by the river by one of our volunteers have been spayed/neutered with HARP money, blood, sweat and tears. Ray has been feeding for almost 10 years. He and Susan Smith have taken hundreds of kittens from the area and put them through our adoption program. Many of the cats are affectionate, abandoned pets and are not savvy about finding food for themselves. In summer it is 107 and Ray and his volunteers supply water to them daily. In my opinion, this is an inhumane solution to a community problem.
Please contact me if you would like to send a message to the city council and/or the newspapers.
Karen Kops, President, Homeless Animals Response Program (H.A.R.P.)
The agenda item will likely be on the consent calendar at the January 14 City Council meeting. Residents who are concerned about this issue may speak prior to the approval. Folks may also want to consider attending the January 7 (4:00 pm) Special Meeting of the City Council.
26 comments
my neighbor feeds a few abandoned cats in our neighborhood everyday n her driveway. these cats did not ask to b abandoned by their owners. i think it is a wonderful thing she does. how dare someone say she cant do that. are we to just let these poor animals starve to death. the city has bigger issues that citing someone for feeding a poor cat. shame one you antioch!!!
Jen while it may be wonderful,she is keeping cats around but she may be creating problems for the neighbors ie: cats pissin on their porches/property,fleas in the summer foot prints on vehicles cat shit,etc. i think she is adding to the problem rather than helping the problem,if she wants to help she should trap and have them fixed.
Not to mention them multiplying, and craping on lawns, once they mark a spot they stay, I would say great you feed them, take full ownership of them catch them, have them fixed and make them your in home pets ~~~
While I would like to support the police dept. and animal control on this, I would like to see what would happen if they actually ticketed someone for feeding a stray animal. Could you imagine the backlash? Maybe if enough residents speak up against these changes it will put some common sense back into our City Council.
Here I was thinking liberals were supposed to help animals, not make it harder on them to live. Another strike against the city council. Can’t wait for change.
What about people who already have more than 3 dogs or 5 cats? Do we now have to go down to get a permit? Just another way for them to collect money sheesh
I think as long as you are taking care if the dog/ cats AND THEY ARE FIXED you should be able to have as many as you want!
I agree there being cared for by the individual…..
There’s always a old man feeding stray cats by my house! I don’t like it at all,because it brings other wild animals to my house.
TNR would help eliminate continued growth of the river cats. Its called being responsible!! It’s the idiots of the world who release their cats that are the problem! The cats didn’t ask to be brought into this world, or left down by the river. Fixing your cat should be Mandatory for any cat and we would not have the problem. Unless you are part of the solution YOU are the problem!
Well said I completely agree.
No mention of pigs or other farm animals. Is there already regulations/codes for those types of animals.
I love my rooster and I will not give him up maybe he can be grandfathered in I have had him for over a year.
Antioch city council should concern themselves with the blighted neighborhoods getting cleaned up, crime, public safety in general, bringing business back to Antioch and animals (when they are being abused, neglected, a menace as in attacking other animals or people). I know how hard HARP, HALO and others are working to get these animals fed, spayed/neutered, adopted (if possible) and attended to by vets if needed. Putting these restrictions in place doesn’t help the problem but it certainly impacts solutions. If a neighbor has a problem with an animal, take it up with animal control but the city has so many, many other issues it needs to focus on, and this is not one of them.
As mean as it may sound, people have been taking care of the cat population in the south end of Antioch. I know of a guy that traps cats and releases them over by marsh creek road/morgan territory road then another gentlemen I know of actually does the unthinkable. But guess what, the cat population around here has dimensioned. At one point the population was so bad they were killing all the owls in the red woods in our area. That’s when people started using .177 against the cats and now people look at cats like rats.
I have a neighbor that has been feeding all of the cats in our neighborhood, both feral and domesticated, for the past 5+ years and all of the surrounding properties smell like cat shi!t. I cant go outside without smelling it in my plant beds, lawn and even on my driveway. All of the surrounding neighbors have talked about how to solve the problem, spreading animal deterrent products on our lawns etc .. but nothing works. Now they have begun to hand feed wild raccoons for the past 2 years and there have been viscous attacks on our dogs and cats. They have disease and are very dangerous. These are the types of people we do not need in our cities. Someone who cares for animals is not the target. It’s the irresponsible people we should and need to target. All of this cat sh!t is bad for our kids and our health. I’ve had family members and friends leaving after holidays and parties step in cat sh!t while getting into their cars and they are pissed off that they track it into their cars and homes. It has to stop!
Excluding roosters, which I love to hear I support this completely. One house by us has at least 20 cats and the whole neighborhood smells. We cannot even use the small park near us, the cat pee etc has ruined the lawn and it smells.
I completely agree with the Council’s decision. For once they did something right.
Look at the bigger picture people. This has to do with the quality of life for the residents of Antioch as a whole.
If you love cats so damn much then volunteer your F’n time at the local animal shelters.
I feel bad for all the people who have to live by these crazy neighbors who want to attract every homeless animal in the neighborhood to shit and stink up the place.
Everyone deserves a peaceful quiet sleep. No one wants to hear roosters or dogs barking all night long. No one wants their house or street to smell like cat or dog shit. If you do, then I suggest you go live in the country where you can do that crap all day long and wallow in the cat shit your 50+ cats and dogs produce every day.
Seriously, if you love animals so much make donations and volunteer YOUR time at the local shelter, but not at everyone else’s expense.
There are way too many hypocrites in this city. People who want positive change, but are too stubborn to accept it when it happens.
Please consider that this ordinance has to do with pet owner responsibility. Yes, oddly enough, if you own a pet, you are responsible for the pet.
Did everyone who opposes the ordinance forget about that poor little boy who was mauled by a dog? How about those two pitbulls on the trails who were attacking people?
Pet ownership responsibility is what we need and what will protect our children and residents from animal attacks.
I know some of you will say.. “well cats don’t attack people, they are magical, friendly, and help you with math” Here is my answer… Government cannot discriminate and we all know how many of you people in this city are so damn sensitive to “discrimination” and “racism” blah blah blah.. If they were to adopt an ordinance for pet responsibility it must apply to both cats, dogs, and any other creature that is currently relevant.
PET OWNER RESPONSIBILITY
Right, Antioch City Council. Now that you’ve solved the CRIME problem.
They need to spend more time on the real crimes. How will they enforce this? What a joke. Government at its best. Make new laws when they can’t handle the existing ones. Darrel knows what I’m sayin. All this crap is comin to Oakley. We can send them to Discovery Bay because we have no money.
I have fed feral cats in my neighborhood for years and became very fond of these animals, Most of them were abandon any don’t know how to find for themselves. If you feed them it keeps them in good health and out of the garbage. They need some one to speak for them too……
The city council members need to be voted out….we are living in a very cruel dictatorship with these sneaky people. We cannot feed the cats on public land and the last I heard was that public land belongs to all of us..cat lovers and non cat lovers. This amounts to abuse when you starve any animal and you know these cats will die if not fed and watered. You and I would be cited if we starved an animal…so should this horrible government. What is wrong with horribly inhumane people. A little power went to their heads. Let us vote these people out or impeach them. Antioch is a mess and has been for quite awhile.
Has crime rate been so reduced that the police have time to chase those people who kindly feed God’s creatures…..a large percent of these cats are domestic pets dumped by their owners. When you harm a cat or dog it is like hurting a small child. They have the intelligence of a 2 or 3 year old ….Shame on this city council and whoever is involved.
A law to not feed stray cats. That’s a doozy. I wonder what happens when you feed your own pet and a stray cat wonders in and eats some of the food. Will the stray cat police stop you from feeding your own cat or get a ticket. There are just too many redundant laws.
A righteous man cares for the needs of animals….but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel. Proverbs (12:10)
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