When it comes to baby alligators, don’t forget, they grow up.

The Town of Beloit recently amended its wild and exotic animals ordinance to exclude residents from housing specific types of animals the town considers to be unfit to be domesticated.

Among the animals prohibited under the ordinance are: potbellied pigs, snakes, alligators, deer, elk, wolverines and ostriches, among others. The ordinance generally covers any animal over 25 pounds not considered native to Wisconsin, said town code enforcement officer Dave Garetson.

The language in the ordinance became an issue recently when a dispute arose between residents over the housing of potbellied pigs, said town administrator Robert Museus.

Though the town attempted to intervene and have the pigs removed, it lost its court case because the previous ordinance did not specify which animals were prohibited, Gareston said. Now that the ordinance has been amended, the pig owners have since been required to find new homes for the animals, he said.

“We created a definition that basically follows the state statute,” Museus said.

There have been animals more exotic than potbellied pigs taking up residence in the Town of Beloit before. Garetson said the original ordinance was put into place when a resident tried to house a full-grown lion.

“He bought it in Texas at a bar. There was no ordinance, so he just tied it up in the garage,” he said.
www.beloitdailynews.com/articles/2010/10/20/news/local_news/news2006.txt

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