All bark, no bite; few residents attend Animal Bylaw Open House in St. Paul

After a lot of commotion on social media, the Town of St. Paul council anticipated a large turnout for its Animal Bylaw Open House on May 23rd. However, it was quite the opposite, with only a small number of residents attending to express their views.

“It’s definitely been a social media frenzy,” explained the mayor of St. Paul, Maureen Miller. The town sees a lot of posts on community opinion pages regarding feral cats and/or cats that wander about. “There’s a lot of questions as to who’s responsible.”

The Town started discussions on how to change the Animal Bylaw to better serve the community’s needs in August of 2022. From there, some changes were proposed, and an open house was planned.

Since the Council had seen a lot of feedback via social media regarding animal control, they anticipated a much larger turnout at the open house. After advertising the event, only three residents submitted letters and only two residents attended.

Mayor Miller wanted to express the importance of attending open houses. “Come and help find solutions, so we can make a decision. To make a really good bylaw, you need feedback.”

Open houses are the formal way of getting your views heard. The Town can’t take social media feedback due to a number of factors surrounding the legitimacy of the feedback. For example, the Town needs to ensure the person providing the feedback is a resident of the community and a ratepayer.

“It was very disappointing not getting the feedback,” said the Mayor.

Changes to the Bylaw

Among the changes, the bylaw would state that no one can own more than three dogs, or more than three cats, or more than a total of four cats and dogs combined that are six months of age or more at any one property within Town.

The cat and dog bylaws will be combined with the completion of the second and third readings. Both readings are anticipated to go through at the next Town Council meeting.

Other changes in the bylaw read that: no person shall beat, feed, or take any actions that may attract feral or wild animals, except for bird-feeders.

Plus, the definition of a “feral” cat could allow officials to consider euthanizing an unclaimed animal after advice from a veterinarian.