Main Street resident
can keep her 11 dogs
due to grandfather clause
Dog rescue care prohibited;
number of dogs, cats capped
Main Street resident
can keep her 11 dogs
due to grandfather clause
By nida khan
Staff Writer
HELMETTA — After months of debate, the Borough Council has adopted two ordinances relating to homeowners and their housing of pets.
One ordinance permits residents to house no more than four dogs or cats or a combination of both, but through a grandfather clause allows owners to keep previously licensed animals.
The other prohibits the use of residential homes for the fostering or rescue care of domestic animals.
The governing body’s action comes after much public discussion regarding one particular Main Street resident, Gale Drysdale. The resident, who keeps several dogs as pets and who has also provided temporary shelter for other dogs until they could be adopted by families, was cited in the fall for running an unlicensed kennel after neighbors complained of nuisance issues.
Drysdale said she and her live-in partner, Ronald Baum, never ran a kennel but were volunteering for the St. Bernard Rescue Operation — a nationally run rescue organization. Both Baum and Drysdale said they were disappointed with the March 26 decisions by the council.
"A limit law, did they really need it?" she said. "They have noise and nuisance laws already in place. Why did they need to [implement] a limit law?"
The issue came into the public light when one of Drysdale’s neighbors, Mike Saleh, complained of noise and safety issues. According to Saleh, the dogs were disrupting his family’s peace and posed a threat to the safety of his children.
"These are enormous animals that are disturbing the neighborhood," Saleh said.
Drysdale disagreed and said the dogs became defensive only after being provoked.
Drysdale now has 11 dogs, all of whom are licensed and will be kept as pets. She will be allowed to keep all of them due to the grandfather clause in the ordinance.
At first, Drysdale was told she needed a use variance from the borough’s land use board in order to run the rescue operation, but was then told to wait until the governing body took action on the issue. With the council’s action last week, she will again have to consider whether to apply to the land use board.
"There hasn’t been enough communication between us [the council and Drysdale]," Drysdale said. "They privately decided that the use variance wasn’t an option."
Borough officials have said that operations such as a rescue would be too difficult to monitor and control, but that Drysdale could legally still seek relief from the board.
According to Mayor Frank Hague, the governing body practiced due diligence and passed both ordinances because of health and safety issues.
Drysdale said she and Baum are seeking legal advice and may take action against the borough.