By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — City Council members on Monday decided they will not limit the number of dogs you can have per household from four to three.
They did approve other changes to the city’s code designed to strengthen the city’s ability to act when pets are kept in unsafe or unsanitary conditions.
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Alderman Mark Bonne, who had presented the original proposal to limit the number of dogs, put forward an amendment Monday to maintain the current four-pet limit and move forward with other elements of the proposal. The limit is now four dogs older than four months old. If a pet owner’s dog has a litter, they can keep those puppies for the first four months without violating the limit.
Aldermen voted 12-0 to approve the amendment. They then voted 12-0 to approve the overall code with changes that address animal waste, limit the hours in which animals cannot be left unattended, and address other health and safety measures.
The initial measure was brought forward by Bonne, a 14th Ward alderman, after a dog in his ward was killed by three others while they were left unattended in October. Bonne said he still has concerns about the potential danger for incidents like the one that happened in October, but now was not the right time to have that debate.
“The timing is wrong. This is an emotional issue, as has been said, that grew out of a brutal incident back in October that occurred in the same neighborhood where we’re now mourning the loss of four human lives,” Bonne said. “I just don’t feel like we need to have this debate tonight or in two weeks.”
A compromise had been brought forward last week that would have allowed owners to keep four dogs so long as the fourth was adopted from a shelter or humane society. That was scrapped in exchange for the amendment approved Monday.
Opponents of the measure said reducing the number of dogs allowed didn’t improve pet safety because the real issue is responsible pet ownership.
“Whether three or 30 dogs, neglectful ownership remains the core issue,” Jennifer Arias said during the public comment portion of the City Council. “Punishing responsible pet owners due to the actions of a few is unjust. Instead of proposing blanket restrictions our focus should be on hiring more animal control specialists to enforce existing and new laws to prevent irresponsible pet ownership.”
The approved changes give Winnebago County Animal Services authority to impound animals that are not being kept in healthy or sanitary conditions, city legal staff said. There are also rules that restrict animals from being left unattended outside between the hours of 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. for more than 20 minutes.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas