Wilmington emotional support animal ordinance moves forward
Christina Jedra
A Wilmington City Council committee moved ahead with a proposal to allow farm animals to be used for emotional support.
The Community Development and Urban Planning Committee discussed the idea at a meeting on Thursday and allowed it to advance to a council vote scheduled for Sept. 21.
"This is an opportunity for our city to assist many of its residents by addressing a need for individuals who have mental or emotional needs," said Councilman Nnamdi Chukwuocha, the ordinance's sponsor.
If passed, the law would allow city residents to find consolation in animals currently off limits in their own backyards — including chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, donkeys, horses, cattle, goats, sheep or oxen.
Currently, animals "suitable for slaughter or for the production of milk, eggs or fiber" are banned. Chukwuocha wants to allow residents and visitors with a Delaware doctor's note to relieve their ailments with domesticated livestock or fowl they believe can "help cope and alleviate their symptoms."
At the committee meeting, Council Legislative and Policy Director David Karas said the proposal was driven by research and will allow reasonable accommodation for those in need.
STORY: Wilmington may allow chickens, oxen as emotional support animals
Asked by Councilman Vash Turner how many residents have expressed a desire to use a farm animal for their emotional well-being, Karas couldn't say. Chukwuocha said last month that he was proposing the change on principle, not with any particular constituents in mind.
Karas emphasized that the law would be a "limited exception" for people with a demonstrated need.
"This treatment is becoming more popular," he said. "You often see news stories about support animals on planes and other public places as individuals try to seek support for everything from depression to (autism)."
Turner expressed concern about the range of animals the law would allow. He voted against moving the legislation out of committee.
"It’s very broad," he said. "I think we've got to rethink that."
While the law could create potential problems, Karas said there are already "minor abuses" of the city's prohibition of wild animals, and those are enforced.
"I don't believe this ordinance would lead to the city seeing any sort of an influx of large oxen or any significant-sized animals," Karas said. "There are a number of reasons for that. They're not typically used as support animals. Second, they cannot be domesticated, to my understanding."
He added: "You can't fit a wildebeest in a studio apartment."
The Fair Housing Act allows for reasonable accommodations for renters, Karas said, so the current ban on barnyard animals in the city creates a problem.
"You could have a renter who is entitled to have a teacup pig, a miniature pony or any of the other commonly used support animals, a homeowner would not be able to have that same protection. ... That hold in code could lead to a reasonable (legal) claim."
The discussion comes as municipalities and private companies consider allowing emotional support animals.
The Baltimore City Public Schools’ board of commissioners voted this week to approve the use of miniature horses, smaller than 34 inches tall, on school grounds, The Baltimore Sun reports.
STORY: Baltimore schools approve miniature horses as service animals
Airline passengers have reported seeing support animals like a turkey, a marmoset monkey and a 70-pound pig.
There is no weight limit mentioned in the legislation, which Karas said is intended to leave it up to doctors' discretion.
Public nuisance rules already in the code would still apply. Karas said the law would be enforced by the Police Department, the Licenses and Inspections Department during weekdays or the state office of animal welfare.
Contact Christina Jedra at (302) 324-2837, cjedra@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @ChristinaJedra.