Here kitty, kitty, kitty ... kitty, kitty. L.A. may raise cat limit from 3 to 5

Ever want to snuggle on your living room couch with five cats instead of three?

Well, soon you may be able to do that in the city of Los Angeles — legally.

The city’s Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee unanimously approved a proposal Wednesday to raise the household limit from three cats to five.

The next step is for the L.A. City Council to vote on the proposal.

Officials are pushing the change in the city code to encourage Angelenos to adopt more cats and help reduce the number of animals being euthanized. It’s currently illegal to own more than three cats without a kennel permit.

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Under the proposal, if a person owns up to three cats may keep them indoors or outdoors. In households with four or five cats, all would have to live solely indoors.

“The department believes that this change will allow city residents who are willing and able to house and care for more cats to be able to bring them into their homes in compliance with the law,” Dana Brown, assistant general manager for the Department of Animal Services, told the committee.

Brown said the “modest increase” would probably result in the increased placement of current shelter animals who might otherwise be euthanized.

“We determined that a small increase would allow more cats’ lives to be saved in the community,” Brown told committee members.

The proposal would help save cats that are at risk in city shelters because of limited space, said Brenda Barnette, general manager of animal services.

“What we’re talking about is asking for the opportunity for people who love cats and who care about cats and who want cats to have two more cats in their home, which will also help us,” Barnette said Wednesday. “If some good, law-abiding citizens want two more indoor cats, making a total of five, I think we should let them do it.”

A few speakers expressed concerns over the increase -- saying it could encourage hoarding and nuisance issues.

“While we do respect the idea of saving these pets from euthanization ... our current position is that this be restricted to single-family homeowners,” said Jim Clarke, executive vice president of the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles. “Multiunit buildings in close quarters could present a problem with regard to quiet enjoyment of other tenants.”

City officials point to cities with no cap on cat ownership, such as San Diego and Santa Monica, as proof that the plan would work. Both the county and city of San Diego have no limit, or very liberal limits, on how many cats may be kept in a residence, according to the Department of Animal Services.

Santa Monica does not limit the number of indoor cats, according to the department.

If the committee’s proposal is approved by the council, the city attorney’s office would be asked to draft an ordinance to raise the cat limit.

Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia

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