COEUR d’ALENE — Kootenai County commissioners voted unanimously this week to amend the county’s ordinance on barking dogs, making it more specific.

The previous version of the ordinance prohibited “harboring, keeping or maintaining a dog regularly and frequently howls, barks or is otherwise disturbing the peace.” 

County officials said the language was too vague. Civil deputy prosecuting attorney Pat Braden told commissioners that he worked with Kootenai County Animal Control to tailor the ordinance. 

“The current language could be susceptible to a finding that it’s unconstitutionally vague and that it would give law enforcement too much discretion in determining whether a violation occurred,” Braden said. 

The amended ordinance now specifically prohibits harboring, keeping or maintaining a dog that “barks, howls or makes repetitive sounds” for at least 15 minutes at a time, without being silent for at least one minute, between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. 

Between the hours of 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., the ordinance applies for dogs that bark, howl or make repetitive noises for at least 10 minutes at a time without being silent for at least one minute. 

Whatever the time, the noise must “unreasonably disturb or interfere with the peace, comfort or repose of any person within hearing distance of those sounds” in order to violate the ordinance. 

The ordinance does not apply to commercial kennels, animal shelters, dogs “that may bark excessively if a person is intruding or trespassing on a property on which the dog is located, or a neighboring property” or dogs used to control or protected domesticated animals or livestock. 

Commissioners agreed that more specific language was needed. 

“I think this is reasonable,” said Commissioner Leslie Duncan. “This was a member of the community who came forward and said they were of false accusations, so I think this is a good change to the ordinance.”