Calgary considers changes to manage weed harmful to pets

The City of Calgary is considering amending a bylaw to require residents to manage a noxious weed if it pops up on their property because of the harm it can have on dogs and cats.

The plant in question, according to a report set to go before council Wednesday, is Foxtail Barley — a perennial grass species native to North America.

Although it provides many benefits to the land, including erosion control, the city says the weed has “increasingly become a reported concern as it poses a danger to animals, especially dogs, when its seeds (also called awns) are ingested, inhaled or embedded in fur.”

City administration is proposing changes to the Community Standards Bylaw as a way to manage the plant and mitigate concerns.

If the amendment were to pass, Calgarians who own a “nuisance property” — land that shows signs of “serious disregard for general maintenance and upkeep, adversely affects the safety or health of surrounding residents, or is used in a manner that interferes with the use or enjoyment of surrounding properties” — would be responsible for controlling the Foxtail Barley before it seeds and poses a hazard to pests.

Current rules say grasses and plants must be kept under 15 centimetres, but the new bylaw, should it pass, will require them to be cut down to eight centimetres.

The city explains this is essential because it prevents the plant from maturing.

Mowing the weed once it matures and gone to see will likely result in additional spread, it added.

Individuals who don’t comply with the changes could be subject to a $500 fine, which the city says is in line with penalties for other violations of the Community Standards Bylaw relating to unkept yards.