Lily Rosenberg, 13, is a true animal lover. Her collection of pets has included fish, a hermit crab, and even a rat. But it was her desire for a more common pet – a dog – that inspired her to write to Wyoming City Council about its law regarding the number of dogs per household.
Her quest actually started several years ago, during fourth grade, when she wanted a pet goat. In order to pursue the idea, she first needed to show her parents that it was legal to own a goat in Wyoming. She checked Wyoming’s ordinances about animals on the City website and goats were definitely not allowed.
But she made another surprise discovery while researching the information. Wyoming residents were also limited to the number of dogs they could have in their homes – two was the legal limit.
Since dogs weren’t on the top of her list at the time, Lily did not concern herself with that detail further.
Fast forward several years and Lily had new plans for pet ownership. She now wanted a dog of her own even though her family already had two dogs. She remembered the research she did, and knew that her parents, Amanda and Dov Rosenberg, would not break any City laws, even when it comes to a pet. She needed to find a way around this.
After talking it over with her parents, Lily decided to write to City Council about changing the ordinance. She didn’t really expect much to happen, but she felt she had to try and do something.
“I didn’t think it was fair that you could only have two dogs,” she says about the letter she wrote. “I didn’t understand why you couldn’t have as many dogs as you wanted as long as they’re in your house.”
She was astonished when she received a prompt reply to her letter from former City Council member Pamela Kamm stating that the Council appreciated her concern and they would open the matter for discussion.
Now, as a little background, while the dog ordinance technically was on the books, it was pretty rare for City police to enforce the rule, unless there was a nuisance issue, says City Manager Lynn Tetley. So, while it was true that having more than two dogs was illegal, it was hardly a concern, and many a Wyoming household had broken the rule without worry for many a year.
But Lily knew her family wanted to do things by the book.
So last fall, Lily and her family, which also includes sisters Abby and Avi, met with the Committee of the Whole to discuss the matter.
“I met with them and answered their questions,” she says of the committee. “But there were also people there from the police department to talk about their side of it. They said they hadn’t really had any problems because of pets, though.”
The committee recommended that the ordinance be changed to abolish the two-dog limit, and instead prohibit kennels. It was voted into law Nov. 21, 2016 by City Council.
The victory meant that Lily was able to adopt her new dog, Vivi, a rescued Boston Terrier/Beagle mix, last year.
And while she doesn’t necessarily see herself as a hero to Wyoming dog lovers, she does think it was pretty cool that her efforts at civic activism got results. “That was awesome,” she says of the experience.
Her mom, Amanda, had a bit more to say on the issue: “It’s pretty cool that they took this kid’s letter seriously. She saw that she could make a difference.”
As far as her life now with her new pet, Lily says, “It’s awesome.”
