Should backyard hens be allowed in Red Deer-area hamlets? How about keeping goats on small rural acreages? And how many dogs are too many?
Red Deer County is asking the public to help determine the answers to these questions by weighing in on a proposed Animal Control Bylaw through an on-line survey.
Development and planning manager Treena Miller said callers regularly ask county staff what kinds of animals can be kept on rural acreages, or within the hamlets of Springbrook, Benalto or Spruce View.
“Some people have this image of country life having benefits,” such as keeping chickens or horses, she said.
They’re disappointed to learn that the county doesn’t have a bylaw that allow people to keep backyard hens, for example. Miller said this effectively means hamlet residents can’t have them.
An existing county bylaw allows horses, goats or sheep to be kept on rural properties at least three acres in size — and some people question why a goat can’t be kept on a smaller property, said Miller.
Red Deer County’s proposed Animal Control Bylaw will not govern livestock operations or farms.
But it may set a limit on the number of dogs that can be kept on a property. While there’s no current limit, Miller said public complaints have come in about dogs barking, roaming or causing a nuisance.
She assures dog owners that their existing pets will be grandfathered in, if the county sets a limit that’s below their current number of canines. “We won’t make anybody give their dog away.”
Miller would like Red Deer County residents (including dog breeders) to express their opinions in a survey that’s available before Nov. 30 on www.rdcounty.ca (click on the changing picture when the proposed animal control bylaw notice comes up), or in paper form from the county office.
Two public open houses will also be held — on Wednesday, Nov. 22, at the Red Deer County office, and on Thursday, Nov. 23, at the Springbrook fire hall. Both go from 4 to 6:30 p.m.
lmichelin@reddeeradvocate.com
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