City council has had to postpone its discussion on a limit on pets for another day. Council's agenda is jam-packed and it can't squeeze it in.
One councillor in the City of Calgary wants to limit the amount of pets people can have in their homes, but experts say a bylaw is a knee-jerk reaction to a single extraordinary case.
Dianne Colley-Urquhart is asking that administration consult with key stakeholders and other cities about limiting the number of pets residents can own in their homes.
The move comes after a high profile hoarding case in Acadia back on May 13.
About 33 dogs were seized from squalid conditions in a home in the neighbourhood which was owned by Bev Creed, a woman known as a reputable breeder of many years.
The proposal was up for discussion at the last council meeting, but it had to be tabled because Colley-Urquhart was ill and not at the meeting.
Many Canadian cities already have pet limits in place. For example, residents in Toronto can only have three dogs and six cats in their homes.
However, a recent report from consultancy group KPMG recommended moving away from that limitation and going towards a ‘no limits’ policy like Calgary.
Toronto rejected the recommendation.
Critics, many of whom work with animal rescue societies, say that any sort of bylaw would be a knee-jerk reaction to what happened in Acadia.
"A family can have one dog that is a nuisance. I know people with five dogs that can take care of them just fine and people with one that can't," said Deanna Thompson, the executive director of the Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society (AARCS) last month.
Colley-Urquhart is seeking to have the report with recommendations presented to the Community and Protective Services Committee no later than December.
