Finance Committee - 07/10/2019 Page 8
basically the NRO 93.6 is specifically titled “Impoundment of Dogs, Cats, Ferrets and Chickens” and | believe
that there is an implied intention of being able to seize cats and ferrets as well. But the items listed underneath
it specifically talk to dogs and chickens. It doesn’t specifically talk to cats and ferrets. And | have spoken to
legal about getting that changed, having an item put in under there. | also want to talk to the licensing of cats.
If we license cats we would probably need 2 plus people downstairs. And it would be a nightmare and I’ve
talked to the State about this and the State has legally said that we can license them. There is a 436 which is
an RSA that talks to cats with suspected rabies. And much like what Dr. Stephanie Wolf Rosenblum had
spoke to, cats transmit saliva and so on on their fur and they can have disease that we don’t know about. The
idea of licensing a cat and having it hang down where cats get in and out of everything we create a health
issue for them. So that becomes an issue.
So do we require that they be chipped, do we require this and so on. The current 436 says that all cats by the
age of 3 months must get a rabies shot. They don’t have to show proof of it unless the cat is picked up. So
because of all of these things it literally becomes a logistical nightmare to try to license them for municipalities.
There has been one City and offhand | cannot recollect which one it was that did it and then pulled back and
said they weren’t going to license anymore because it became an absolute nightmare. But they still have on
their books that they will pick up cats that are strays or nuisance or so on. So | think we do have the legitimate
right to do it but | think our regulation, there is lack of clarity in it. So | have asked that we get that language in
there. So | would like to see this tabled or held off until Legal can take that and then we can put it through.
MOTION BY ALDERMAN KLEE TO HOLD IN COMMITTEE
ON THE QUESTION
Mayor Donchess
Well obviously you have looked into this in some detail.
Alderman Klee
Oh yes | have.
Mayor Donchess
So you are suggesting what? That we wait for — we bring Legal in at the next meeting?
Alderman Klee
| think we should bring Legal in and in the meantime also for the next Board of Aldermen | am hoping that we
have an Ordinance update that will have the language of being able to, that cats and ferrets will fall under that
particular category of NRO 93-6. There is an ABC which talks about cats and a D that talks about chickens.
We are going to have an E that will talk about cats and ferrets also and picking them up.
Mayor Donchess
So in essence this is a motion to hold in Committee and invite Legal to come to the Committee at the next
meeting?
Alderman Klee
| think so.
