Washoe County Animal Services officers are inviting the public to comment on proposed changes to existing county ordinances that govern how they ensure public safety and animal protection in our community. To make it convenient for the public, the County is offering multiple ways to provide comment:

Attend Our Open Houses. On Saturday, January 22nd from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Washoe County Animal Services will host an open house at their facility located at 2825 Longley Lane. Staff will be available to offer tours, demonstrate new technology which enables pet owners to claim their pets 24/7 (even on holidays), and answer any questions citizens may have about the proposed ordinance changes. The Nevada Humane Society, the County’s partner and neighboring tenant in the building, will also be on hand with lots of adorable animals available for adoption.

A second open public meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 1st from 5:30 to 7:00 pm at the RASC although this event will not offer tours.

Comment online. Just by visiting the County’s website at www.washoecounty.us, you can let us know your thoughts on the proposed ordinances as well as read what your fellow citizens have to say about them. Click on the “read more” link on the cute photo of the dog and cat located on our website’s frontpage.

Attend A Meeting. Any proposed ordinances must be read into public record at a County Commission meeting twice before being adopted. Citizens who wish to comment on these particular proposed ordinance changes may attend the County Commission meetings for the first and second readings of the amended ordinance. The judicial process changes to the ordinances are scheduled on the BCC meeting of January 25th, and February 8th ; and the general changes on February 8th and February 22nd . Ordinance changes are typically heard at 5:30 p.m., but please check our website to view the agendas which will be posted the Thursday before the actual meeting.

What are the proposed changes? In addition to giving citizens lots of choices on how they can comment on the proposed changes to our animal services ordinances, we obviously want citizens to know about them first, and we’ve made that easy for you too! Just go to our website at www.washoecounty.us/animal and click on the links to “Frequently Asked Questions” and the actual proposed ordinance.

In general, the proposed changes will allow your Washoe County Animal Services staff to better ensure public safety and animal protection. The specific changes involve twelve categories which are dangerous dogs, exotic animal permits, dog variance permits, kennel and cattery permits, animal control officer powers and duties, found animals, animal cruelty, tethering, dog licensing, redemption of impounded animals, definitions and miscellaneous modifications and civil penalties. Please visit our website for more complete descriptions of these proposed changes, or call Washoe County Animal Services at 353-8900.
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EVENT DATES

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Saturday, January 22, 2011:
Washoe County Regional Animal Services