Headlines

Family Fights to Keep Highly Unusual Emotional Support Pets

A neighbor claims the animals are a nuisance.

Published

5 years ago

February 10, 2019

PETS+ Staff

A family in Stow, OH, is fighting to keep two alpacas as emotional support animals despite a neighbor’s complaints.

Scott Westberg says his fiancee, Sigga Jackson, and her 12-year-old son have conditions that are helped by the alpacas, MyTownNEO.com reports.

After petting the animals, “she comes back in a different person,” he said of his fiancee.

But a neighbor says the alpacas are a nuisance, in part because of the odor they create.

The city has given the family a deadline of Feb. 17 to find a new home for the alpacas. A violation of the nuisance ordinance could trigger a $150 fine, according to MyTownNEO.com.

One of the alpacas, Scooby, is registered as an emotional support animal, according to the publication. The family is seeking to obtain similar registration for the other, Loratta.

Westberg said he’s willing to take steps such as planting tall evergreen trees or extending a fence in order to keep his neighbor happy and keep the alpacas.

Read more at the WCPO-TV

P.L.A.Y. Media Spotlight

At P.L.A.Y. — Pet Lifestyle & You — toy design is definitely a team effort! Watch PETS+ interviewer Chloe DiVita and P.L.A.Y.’s Director of Sales Lisa Hisamune as they talk about the toy design process, the fine-tuning that makes each toy so special and why every P.L.A.Y. collection is made with independent retailers top of mind.