Four dogs? In Wausau? Get outta town!
James and Melissa Lecker moved to the Wisconsin town of Wausau three months ago, along with their two children, two 13-year-old golden retrievers, their 1-year-old Yorkie, and a 3-year-old shih tzu.
In Wausau, that’s two dogs too many.
While the town is letting them keep the children (it hasn’t sought to limit those), it’s insisting the Leckers get rid of two of their dogs, or get out of town.
James, 29, a website developer for Midwest Communications, and Melissa, 32, who works in social services, moved to Wausau from Stevens Point for job reasons in January, and bought a house.
They were unaware that local law prohibits residents from having more than two dogs — and they didn’t learn that was the case until a police officer mistakenly stopped at their house while investigating another matter.
They’ve requested an exception from the city and been told there’s no chance of that.
So now they’ll be leaving, even though they expect to lose $15,000 on their home.
“I couldn’t sleep for a week. I’m not eating; there’s just so much stress,” Melissa Lecker told the Green Bay Press Gazette. “I know that sounds kind of crazy, but I either have to get rid of two family members or lose $15,000, and either way it’s stressful.”
City officials say the ordinance was passed in 1989 to curb animal nuisance complaints, and there seems little interest on their part in either changing the law, or granting exceptions. The law also limits pet owners to three three cats, three rabbits or three gerbils.
(We can only guess that’s to cut down on nuisance gerbil complaints.)
Jim Brezinski, the city council member whose district includes the Leckers’ home, said he doesn’t plan to intervene and that the issue should “go through the appropriate channels.”
But there aren’t really any channels to go through.
“Our current ordinance doesn’t allow for a variance,” Wausau city attorney Anne Jacobson told WAOW.com.
Lisa Rasmussen, chairwoman of Public Health and Safety, said she opposes increasing the number of allowable dogs, Fox News reported.
“I hope we can work something out,” Melissa Lecker said. “But they are just being so mean. My dogs didn’t bother anyone.”
A petition on Change.org, supporting an exception for the Leckers, says the family went before Wausau’s Public Health and Safety Committee to request a one-time variance that would allow them to keep all four of their dogs long enough for the two eldest ones to die, but that the committee denied the Lecker’s request.
“Now, because the Leckers innocently opened their door to accommodate a police officer who stopped by the family’s property accidentally, they are in danger of having to pay a $300 fine for each day that all of their dogs, their family members, remain in their home … a daily fine that could add up to more than $9,000 in a given month … fines they will face simply because they love their pets, or, as Wausau sees it, too many of their pets,” the petition says.
(Photo: Green Bay Press Gazette)
Posted by jwoestendiek March 16th, 2012 under Muttsblog.
Tags: animals, city, council, dog, dogs, fines, four dogs, government, james lecker, law, liberty, limits, melissa lecker, move, moved, officials, ownership, pet, pets, restrictions, two dog limit, two dogs, wausau, wisconsin
Comments
Comment from anon
Time March 16, 2012 at 9:46 am
Any way to curb the number of Wausau elected city officials?!
….until a police officer mistakenly stopped at their house …..
Suspect it was a Wausau good citizen-neighbor that ratted them out….
**Stop it! You’re sooo cynical!!**
Comment from Al Abel
Time March 16, 2012 at 11:41 am
How can we help? I have a lot of friends who love animals and I have already circulated the news item. Anything else?
Comment from Oldstyle
Time March 16, 2012 at 5:26 pm
This title is deliberately misleading. They are not going to “lose” their home. They may choose to sell their home instead of following the local law on pet ownership. This is nothing more than an attempt to scare people into thinking their freedom is under attack. All societies have rules we agree to live by, here in Wausau you can only have 2 dogs. These people are looking for special treatment which, hopefully, will not be granted. Simply absurd that this is considered newsworthy by people outside (or in for that matter) our community.
Comment from Sue
Time March 17, 2012 at 4:47 pm
Thanks for the heads up about Wausau. Definitely not our kind of town.
Comment from Jo
Time March 17, 2012 at 8:06 pm
We have a similar bylaw in our town and I must admit, I find it ridiculous. The people across the street have 8 kids that they can’t feed or clothe appropriately, they are never supervised and they are often found vandalizing town property. I have personally called social services a handful of time. I have two well behaved dogs, who rarely make a sound, are well trained and well cared for, but in the eyes of town We have the space and funds to savee more from the shelter, but can’t due to the bylaws, but the neighbors are expecting their 9th snotty human any day now…Sometimes laws don’t make sense.
Comment from debbie
Time March 19, 2012 at 12:15 am
Jo said..” Sometimes laws don’t make sense”… hmmmm… I for one am very thankful for those folks ( Martin Luther King, Rosa Park etc etc) that had the courage to change ‘laws that don’t make sense.. ..
Comment from anon
Time March 19, 2012 at 6:52 am
Sometimes laws don’t make sense.
It’s because humans are in charge. But when dogs rule……..
Comment from bryan
Time March 20, 2012 at 6:20 pm
Bravo Wausau, another sign of how worthless a city you actually are. How about worrying about the scuzzy parts of town instead of people’s dogs
Comment from Marino
Time April 26, 2012 at 10:02 am
Really? Seriously? This is becoming more common, you open the door to a cop expecting to just. Expecting to be a good citizen and the next thing you know is that valuable crime fighting resources are now being spent on you. As a realtor I would definitely warn a person buying a house in any place like wasau that their dogs are not welcome. As for me I live in crime ridden Miami where you can have 4 dogs and as many guns as you feel you need in a stand your ground state. Yes that’s pretty sad…. Good luck to these people losing 15k hurts but playing with your dogs and knowing no town Gestapo can take them away is priceless! Wasau is a stepford town. Run fast and don’t look back!
Comment from wolfdogged
Time March 16, 2012 at 8:02 am
This time, at least one of the city’s elected officials is expressing more flexibility. Lisa Rasmussen, the council member who is chairwoman of the Public Health and Safety Committee, said she’s optimistic that the city can work something out with the Leckers. One idea is to form a subcommittee to review the pet limits and their rigidity — to look for at least some wiggle room.
http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/article/20120303/WDH06/203030429/Mark-Treinen-column-rat-favors-discussion-pet-rules