New Braunfels considers updates for the Ordinance of Dangerous Dogs

New Braunfels, Texas: As cities like San Antonio deal with problems related to dangerous and aggressive dogs, New Braunfels is contemplating significant changes in its ordinance on the matter.

Christopher Looney, director of city planning and development services, said: “New Braunfels is always in a position of continuous improvement and update of our ordinances … so this is one of those opportunities.”

Looney explained that the changes proposed to the “Dangerous Dogs Ordinance” of the city are minor, but could have a substantial impact.

“Currently, we have a category of dogs that are bad, so to speak, and it is only called a vicious dog … the proposal is to take that category of ‘vicious dog’. Rominate it on two levels for two levels, dangerous dog and aggressive dog,” he said.

If approved, this would mark the first amendment to the city’s ordinance in dangerous dogs since its inception in 1961.

Looney elaborated: “If there is a situation of a dog that was considered aggressive, which is the lightest of the two levels, they would not need to enclose them sufficiently and record them, but it is a shorter window, a classification period. If the year passes and there have been no other complaints or concerns, then that can be raised.”

The city aims to establish a new framework to classify the threats and incidents of dogs, being “dangerous” the most severe designation.

Looney said: “If someone does not have a pet, but a neighbor does it, and there is an incident, creates a more fair process, one that is also more predictable for our residents … and we know that our residents appreciate that consistency and that predictability.”

There is currently no timeline for when these ordinance changes can be approved.

Looney added: “We try to be consistent where it makes sense, at the same time that we address local needs when appropriate.”