Animal Control Frequently Asked Questions

The ACO unit deals ONLY with calls in the unincorporated parts of the county. 

If you live inside the city limits of your town, you should contact your local police department or your town hall for these problems. As a general rule, if your city or town has a mayor, then our ACO does not handle calls in your town. 

Areas and towns not covered by Weld County ACO include:

Ault, Brighton, Broomfield, Dacono, Eaton, Erie, Evans, Firestone,  Frederick, Ft. Lupton, Gilcrest, Greeley, Grover, Hudson, Johnstown, Keenesburg, Kersey, La Salle, Lochbuie, Longmont, Mead, Milliken, New Raymer, Northglenn, Nunn, Pierce, Platteville, Severance, Thornton, Windsor

The towns not covered by Weld ACO’s will have an animal control officer, an appointed person to handle animal calls or calls will be handled by any on-duty police officer. If the town person in unavailable, the duty falls to the mayor.

Weld County ACO does however cover the following unincorporated towns:

(As well as many other subdivisions and developments throughout the county.)

Barnesville, Briggsdale, Carr, Camfield, Deerfield, Gill, Galeton, Hardin, Masters, Peckham, Prospect Valley, Wattenberg

Our officers are available 7 days a week, including all major holidays. As a general rule, officers are on

duty from about 8am – 6pm. Any calls outside of these hours will be handled at the discretion of deputies, as calls allow.

Yes, Weld County has adopted an ordinance, 14-4-20; that reflects the necessity to keep your dog on your own, rented, or leased property. A dog is considered at large when not under the control of the owner, which means physical restraint of a leash or containing device.

Go to MuniCode Sec. 14 Health and Animals for more information

A summons may be issued with a first offense of $35 and can increase in amount for subsequent offences. Five or more offenses will result in a mandatory court appearance. These are all within a 36 month time period.

A dog is not considered in control of the owner if it harassing, chasing or attacking people, livestock or wildlife. A dog bite is reported to the Weld County Health Department, and the dog is quarantined for 10 days. This can be done on location at the owners’ home, or at a private boarding kennel, vet clinic or shelter, at the owners’ expense. It is unlawful for anyone to allow a dog to inflict bodily injury while the dog is running at large. It is a Class 2 Misdemeanor. If the dog is off the owner’s property when the bite occurs, a summons may be issued to the dog owner requiring a court appearance.  If a dog is off the owner’s property and injures another animal, a summons may be issued requiring the dog owner to pay a fine. The fine is dependent upon the the number of previous incidents and can range from $35 to a mandatory court appearance.

If a dog is caught running at large, it will be picked up and taken to the:
Humane Society of Weld County
1620 42^nd Street
Evans, CO 80620

Phone: 970-506-9550

Hours:
Monday - Friday 11am – 7pm
Saturday - Sunday: 11am – 5pm
All animal transactions stop 1 hour before close

Weld County Humane Society

The owner is responsible for the charges of the impoundment and necessary vet cost. This fee is set by the shelter. A dog will be kept for a minimum of 5 days. If your animal is found and had a collar and tags, or microchip, every possible effort will be made to contact you. If we cannot reach you, the animal will be taken to the shelter.

The law requires all animal bites that break the skin (with the exception of rodents) be reported to the animal control office in the jurisdiction where the bite occurred. If there is any question, please contact us at 970-356-4015 x2849

Q. What happens if my animal bites someone?

A. If your animal bites someone, Animal Control will need to meet with you and place your animal on a 10 day quarantine. This can be done at your home, at a humane society, private boarding kennel or vet clinic. The location of the quarantine will depend on your ability to keep the animal confined during the 10 days. If at any time during the 10 days your animal breaks the quarantine and leaves your property, for anything other than a medical emergency, we may quarantine it at the Humane Society of Weld County at your cost.

If the dog is off the owner’s property when the bite occurs, a summons may be issued to the dog owner requiring a court appearance.

If an injured animal is picked up by our officers we will take it to a vet for appropriate treatment, or in the case of livestock, we may have a vet respond to the location of the injured animal. We will try to take the animal to the vet clinic closet to where the animal was found. Some of those clinics include but are not limited to:

Eaton Animal Den  231 S Elm Ave  Eaton 970-454-1700
PETS Emergency Clinic - 3629 23rd Ave Evans - 970-339-8700
Carbon Valley Animal Hosp. - 521 Sherilynn Cir Firestone - 303-833-2244
Coal Ridge Animal Hospital - 6171 CR 20 Firestone - 303-833-1137
CSU - 300 W Drake Rd Ft Collins - 970-297-5000 (Livestock)
Ft Lupton Vet Hosp. - 1025 1st Street Ft Lupton - 303-857-6860
Alpine Veterinary Hospital - 131 N 35th Ave Greeley - 970-352-8835
Countryside Large animal - 3765 W ‘O’ St Greeley - 970-351-7045 (Livestock)
Mackey Vet Service - 1901 1st Ave  Greeley - 970-353-0995 (Livestock)
Westridge Animal Hosp - 8225 W 20th St Greeley - 970-330-7283
Animal Emergency & Critical Care 104 S Main St - Longmont - 303-678-8844

Weld County does not require you to license or register your animals, if you live in unincorporated areas of the county. Each city and town has their own laws regarding this however, so be sure to check with your city or town to find out their regulations! We highly recommend all dogs have a collar and tags with owner information, however we understand that these are not always practical and suggest having your pets’ microchipped. We carry microchip scanners and can easily return an animal to an owner if we are able to locate one.

Q. Does Weld County require my animal have a rabies vaccination?

A. No. If you live in an unincorporated area of Weld County, you are not required to vaccinate for rabies, however, it is highly recommended. If you live in a city or town, you will need to check with them, as each city and town has their own rules and regulations regarding vaccinations.

While Weld County does not require rabies vaccinations, cities and towns may. To help keep you, your family and pets safe and healthy, we recommend pets stay up to date on all vaccinations

YES! Weld County has zoning ordinances that reflect the number of animal units allowed in a particular zoned area of the county. Zone A agriculture may have up to four (4) dogs/cats on a property between 1 and 10 acres, and no more than eight (8) dogs/cats on a property of 10 acres or more. Having more animals than that requires a special use permit for kenneling practices. These cases will be referred to the Weld County Planning and Zoning Services Department.

NO!

Weld County does not have a cat ordinance. If you find a stray cat, it is your responsibility to take it to an appropriate animal rescue or shelter or to a veterinarian. Our officers will not pick it up.

No. Weld County does not have a barking dog ordinance. Barking dogs are exempt from the Noise Ordinance. Each town however, does have its own rules and ordinances regarding barking dogs. Our Animal Control Officers do not deal with this problem, neither do our deputies.

Q. Does Weld County pick up wildlife?

A. Our officers have limited resources available to deal with wildlife. Sick/Injured wildlife calls are handled on a case by case basis. If the animal can get around (walk, fly, swim, etc.) on its own then it should be left alone. If the animal is unable to move or has a life threatening injury an officer may respond to pick up the animal depending on size and animal type. If you have general questions or problem wildlife issues you should contact the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife at 303-297-1192. If you have a wildlife emergency you should contact the Colorado State Patrol at 303-239-4500. For more wildlife related issues or questions please visit http://cpw.state.co.us/

You can also contact Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at 303-823-8455. Please visit http://www.greenwoodwildlife.org/ for more information.

If you have found an injured bird of prey (owl, hawk, eagle) you can contact the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife, The Birds of Prey Foundation or the Rocky Mountain Raptor Program.

http://cpw.state.co.us/

www.birds-of-prey.org

www.rmrp.org

You can also contact Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at 303-823-8455.

~To keep your pets and family safe, it is recommended that you avoid handling any wild animal and make sure your pets are up to date on all vaccinations~

Q. Does Weld County pick up dead wildlife?

A. No. We do not pick up dead wildlife. If it has been hit in the roadway and is causing a hazard we will move it off of the roadway but we will not pick it up.

Dead Animals

Q. Does Weld County pick up dead animals?

A. Our officers will pick up dogs that have been hit on the road only. If your pet dies, we will not pick it up from you. We do not pick up dead wildlife.