City Council passes ordinance to stop inhumane tethering of animals

The Birmingham City Council — at its regular meeting for Tuesday, July 21 — unanimously approved an ordinance to amend the city’s code to prevent animals from being inhumanely tethered.

It will now be against the law for anyone to tie up a dog or other animal with a chain or to a fixed point, and owners will be required to provide a running line for their animals, according to a news release from the Council.

In addition, the ordinance states that “the tether must be attached to a properly fitting collar or harness worn by the dog, with enough room between the collar and the dog’s throat through which two fingers may fit.”

The changes are needed to prevent the passive abuse of animals, said Councilor Hunter Williams, chair of the Council’s Public Safety Committee.

“Our committee has received a large number of complaints about individuals chaining dogs to trees and never taking the dog off the chain, essentially using them as a cheap alarm system and causing them real harm in the process,” Williams said in the release.

The ordinance also makes it illegal for dogs to be tethered for more than eight consecutive hours. The first offense will be a $150 fine. The second and third offense within a 12-month period will carry fines of $250 and $400, respectively.

‘If you aren’t willing to responsibly take care of your animal you shouldn’t have one and we want to make that clear in the city’s code,” Williams said.

The ordinance was approved by the Public Safety Committee on July 8, at which time Williams said, “When I drive through our city, I’ve grown increasingly disturbed by the number of animals that I see inhumanely chained and left unattended.”