Chapter 6.20
LIVESTOCK, SMALL ANIMALS, AND FOWL
Sections:
6.20.030 Livestock and small animals or fowl – General.
6.20.040 Livestock, small animal or fowl shelter.
6.20.070 Harboring geese, ducks, pigeons, peafowl and guinea fowl.
6.20.080 Harboring rabbits, hens, and turkeys.
6.20.090 Harboring chinchillas.
6.20.100 Enforcement – Notification – Appeals process and penalties.
6.20.010 Scope.
This chapter shall apply to the harboring of livestock, small animals and fowl in the city. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.020 Compliance required.
It shall be unlawful for any person to harbor livestock and small animals or fowl within the city except as provided in this chapter. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.030 Livestock and small animals or fowl – General.
Any property owner or occupant of property (hereafter in this section referred to as “person”) in which livestock, small animals or fowl (hereafter in this section referred to collectively as “animals”) are harbored shall comply with the following requirements:
A. The animals shall be supplied with sufficiently good wholesome food, clean water, and proper shelter from the weather.
B. The property shall be kept in a sanitary and neat condition including, but not limited to, disposal of manure or other waste material from the animals. The animal control authority shall determine whether the property is maintained in a sanitary and neat condition. An unreasonable accumulation of flies or other insects or pests within the property, noxious or offensive odors, or unreasonable accumulation of flies, insects or other pests transcending into neighboring or vicinal property shall be presumed to be an inadequate sanitary and neat condition.
C. Sheds or shelters shall be kept free from rodents and shall be bedded daily with a fresh covering of straw, wood shavings, corn cobs, or other approved material.
D. Spillage and leftovers from feedings shall be removed and disposed of to prevent flies, rodents, and odors.
E. No animal sheds, shelters, pens or enclosures shall be kept within a one-hundred-foot radius of a well, nor shall they be located over a septic drainfield.
F. Drinking facilities shall have adequate overflow drainage to prevent saturation of surrounding soil.
G. In order to prevent insect and odor problems, manure must be collected on a regular basis (at least once per week), placed in concrete or metal fly-proof containers, and removed from the property at least once a week.
H. Pen fences, corral fences or similar enclosures must be of sufficient height and strength to retain animals.
I. The harboring of animals within the vicinity of any stream, water body, wetland, or environmentally critical area must comply with applicable requirements of BMC Title 18, and fencing shall be provided to prohibit access by the animals to these areas. The portion of the property within a “critical area” as defined in BMC Title 18 shall not be included in the calculation of the minimum area for the number of species allowed on the property.
J. Sanitary surfacing, such as wood chips, sand or gravel shall be placed on wet or muddy portions of the premises used by livestock. Runoff from overgrazed soil is prohibited.
K. The harboring of animals shall conform to all regulations of local and state health authorities.
L. After reasonable request by the city or other local and state health authorities, properties housing livestock shall be subject to inspection by the city or other local and state health authorities.
M. The harboring of animals at the time of adoption of this chapter that does not meet the dimensional requirements of this chapter may continue, unless the city or the animal control authority determines that the harboring of animals is a nuisance or is not in the interest of the public health, safety and welfare or either persons or the animals. The burden of proof shall be on the property owner or occupier to show that the animals were housed on the property prior to adoption of this title, and that the animals are harbored consistent with this chapter and applicable local and state regulations in effect at the time of adoption of this chapter.
N. Existing land owners, tenants or occupants who are found to be harboring livestock prior to the adoption of this title must prepare and obtain approval from the city of a pasture/waste management plan if the city or the animal control authority finds areas of concentrated use, erosion or adverse impact on water quality due to the harboring. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.040 Livestock, small animal or fowl shelter.
Livestock, small animal, and fowl shelter buildings shall comply with the lot coverage criteria in BMC Title 17 and the building code requirements of Chapter 15.04 BMC. A shelter building shall consist minimally of a roof and three walls, shall prevent the intrusion of wind and rain, shall provide adequate protection from heat and cold, and shall be adequately sized to permit animals to move about freely. Shelters shall be located at least thirty-five feet from front property lines and at least fifteen feet from side and rear property lines. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.050 Slaughtering.
No person shall kill, slaughter, or butcher within the city any animals, the flesh of which is intended to be sold or offered for sale, or which constitutes an act that is regulated by any other local, state, and or federal law.
Exception: A person may dispatch or destroy injured or vicious animals or fowl by any humane method, as defined by Chapter 16.50 RCW. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.060 Harboring livestock.
A. There shall be not less than ten thousand square feet of animal harboring area for maintaining and pasturing the first livestock animal on any property, and an additional five thousand square feet for each additional livestock animal. The livestock harboring area may contain accessory buildings for the sheltering and maintaining of livestock and associated equipment.
B. The harboring of livestock in an area that does not meet the dimensional requirements in subsection A of this section may be permitted as a conditional use in accordance with the procedures and criteria of BMC 17.36.050 and the following criteria:
1. A pasture/waste management plan shall be submitted to and approved by the city wherever an owner, tenant or occupant plans to keep livestock in an area that does not meet the dimensional requirements of this chapter. A pasture/waste management plan shall not be required for the harboring of small animals and fowl; however, if small animals and fowl are kept on the same property as livestock, they shall be considered in the development of the plan.
a. The plan shall be prepared by, or reviewed and approved by, a qualified professional.
b. The plan shall regulate the maximum animals supportable on the property, set forth minimum agricultural practices for each the property and follow guidelines set forth by the Snohomish Conservation District.
c. The plan shall be effective for a period of up to five years, subject to mandatory modification and reissue where the areas of concentrated use are found to be developing.
d. The plan should consider and address at a minimum the following factors: soil fertility, type of forage, seasonal growth rate of the vegetation, type of animal and animal needs, amount of supplemental feed, pasture rotation, use of confined areas in winter to reduce compaction and stress on poorer grasses and use of buffer zones and restricted accesses around water courses.
e. The owner, tenant or occupant shall submit a proposed modification to the plan for a change in the number or size of animals or any evidence of areas of concentrated use, for review and approval by the city.
C. Fees for the conditional use permit review and for any plan modification review shall be established by city council resolution. The fees shall be in addition to any applicable license, plan, or permit fees under this title.
D. It shall be a condition of any conditional use permit that the property shall be subject to follow-up inspections.
E. If the city determines that the terms and conditions of an approved pasture/waste management plan have been violated, the city may revoke the conditional use permit and the owner, tenant or occupant shall be deemed to have violated this title.
F. Any person whose conditional use permit approval is revoked shall within ten days thereafter humanely dispose of all animals by removing them from the property, for which a conditional use permit is required for keeping that are owned, kept, harbored or controlled by such person. No part of the plan review fees shall be refunded. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.070 Harboring geese, ducks, pigeons, peafowl and guinea fowl.
A. The number of geese, ducks, pigeons, peafowl and guinea fowl permitted shall be four geese, four ducks, four pigeons, four peafowl or four guinea fowl or any combination of geese, ducks, peafowl and guinea fowl and pigeons, not exceeding four in number for each per legal lot. For lots exceeding ten thousand square feet, one additional goose, duck, pigeon, peafowl or guinea fowl may be kept for each additional one thousand square feet of lot size. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.080 Harboring rabbits, hens, and turkeys.
A. Number of Rabbits, Hens, and Turkeys Permitted. The number of rabbits, hens, and turkeys permitted shall be eight hens or eight rabbits or eight turkeys or any combination of hens, rabbits, and turkeys not exceeding eight in number per legal lot. For lots exceeding ten thousand square feet, one additional hen or rabbit or turkey may be kept for each additional five hundred square feet of lot size.
B. It shall be unlawful for any person to harbor a rooster in the city. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.090 Harboring chinchillas.
The maximum number of chinchillas shall not exceed a total of six such animals for each single-family lot. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)
6.20.100 Enforcement – Notification – Appeals process and penalties.
A violation of this chapter shall constitute an infraction and shall be punished in accordance with the general fine and penalty provisions of BMC 1.28.030(C) for nontraffic civil infractions. Any person, firm or corporation who violates this chapter and fails to abate, correct, obtain permits or licenses after receiving notice of violation shall be issued a Class A infraction notice; provided, however, any violator who fails to abate, correct, obtain permits or licenses promptly after issuance of a first infraction notice shall be guilty of a second, separate violation, and failure to abate, correct, obtain permits or licenses shall be punished by a Class B infraction. A third offense shall be a Class C infraction. Continual failure to abate, correct, and obtain permits or licenses or failure to respond to any infraction as issued shall constitute a misdemeanor and shall be subject to the uniform fine and penalty for misdemeanors, in accordance with the general fine and penalty provisions of Chapter 1.28 BMC. (Ord. 433 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2016)