From the City of Raleigh E-Newsletter
RALEIGH CITY COUNCIL TO CONSIDER DOG TETHERING LIMITS
The Raleigh City Council on Feb. 3 received a draft ordinance to regulate the unattended restraint or tethering of dogs.
Under the proposed ordinance a dog may not be tethered for more than three hours total in any 24-hour period. The ordinance defines tethering as a means of tying out or fastening a dog outdoors on a rope, chain or other line for restraining a dog. The term does not mean the restraint of a dog on an attended leash. The purpose of the ordinance is to prevent the possibility of strangling when a dog becomes entangled in ropes and chains or surrounding objects. The ordinance also seeks to prevent dogs being left exposed to harsh weather conditions without access to shelter, and being unable to reach a supply of food and water;
Any device used to tether a dog must be at least 10-feet long and attached in a manner that prevents strangulation or other injury to the dog or entanglement with objects. A cable trolley system may be used to tether a dog for the allowed period as long as the stationary cable is at least 10-feet long and the dog can move perpendicularly at least 10-feet away from the stationary line. The line should be attached to the dog with a buckle-type collar or a body harness. The device used to tether can weigh no more than ten percent of the animal’s body weight and must allow the dog access to food and water. In addition to being a misdemeanor, a violation is subject to a civil penalty of $100.00 per day for each day of violation.
Comments - I’d be curious to see how the ordinance is going to be enforced and what department (RPD, Inspections, etc.) will be enforcing it. The draft ordinance obviously has good intentions for animal safety, but this seems like it will be another complaint driven enforcement issue.
I might have liked to have seen something about the invisible fences in this ordinance, particularly, adding a distance from the sidewalk / public right-of-way that invisible fences can be installed from. How many of those fences come right up to the sidewalk?
These types of ordinances are typically enforced through community reports & either animal control or police departments. In the city of Raleigh there are humane officers in the police force that deal with the enforcement of animal ordinances or cruelty complaints – so I assume they would investigate reports from community members that such an ordinance is being violated. Other areas in North Carolina with similar laws have shown that over time these types of laws reduce the number of cruelty complaints a community recieves.