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DeWitt considering limit on dogs, cats

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By Steven Martens | Wednesday, July 09, 2008 |

DeWITT, Iowa — DeWitt residents may have to limit the number of cats and dogs they can have as the City Council considers adopting an ordinance regarding pets.

The consideration of the ordinance came at the request of Police Chief Gene Ellis. He said that while most of the owners of DeWitt’s 800 registered cats and dogs are not a problem, police have had problems with being called to more than one residence multiple times to address animal complaints.

City Administrator Steve Lindner said having too many pets in one home, neighbors can be affected by noise, odor and the destruction of the pet owner’s property.

“When you have a bad situation, it can destroy the property inside and out,” Lindner said.

One residence that has been the source of several recent complaints is in the 1200 block of 5th Avenue, where the residents have 18 dogs, 10 of them are licensed, Ellis said.

A resident at the home initially agreed to talk about the situation but this morning said she did not want her name used for this story.

Ellis said the residents are among the 13 pet owners in DeWitt with more than four licensed cats or dogs. While researching pet ordinances in other Iowa communities, Ellis said he found that many communities set the limit at four or five licensed pets and said any ordinance in DeWitt likely would include a grandfather clause that would exempt any currently licensed pets that exceeded the limit.

Lindner said a proposed ordinance for city council consideration could be drafted within a few weeks.

Steven Martens can be contacted at (563) 659-2595 or smartens@qctimes.com.