Editorial: Leopards are fine — but not next door

Wednesday, June 11, 2003 | 8:57 a.m.

It should go without saying that a residential neighborhood is no place for leopards and chimpanzees. Three years ago, however, Clark County allowed a woman in the valley's northwest to have the exotic animals. Last week the commission reversed itself after her neighbors complained about how the menagerie had grown and an animal control officer testified that the chimps had bitten several people.

The issue of exotic animals in residential areas arises periodically. We hope the County Commission remembers the experience of this woman's neighbors and approves an ordinance that would clarify what exotic animals are and aren't allowed in neighborhoods. Big cats, chimps, large reptiles -- they're wondrous animals but they clearly don't belong next door to people trying to live normal, urban lives.

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