Bill advances to allow petting zoos, pony rides at parks

A bill moving through the City Council would allow petting zoos and pony rides at Oahu parks, despite reservations raised by two city department heads.

Parks Director Gary Cabato and Emergency Medical Services Director Jim Ireland cited health concerns in their opposition to Bill 43 during a Council Parks Committee meeting last Tuesday.

The bill is up for a public hearing, and the second of three needed approvals, before the full Council at its meeting at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Councilman Tom Berg said he introduced the measure to promote business for those who raise farm animals and to give the public, youth in particular, opportunities to interact with cows, chickens, horses, goats and other animals.

While laws prohibiting petting zoos and pony rides at city parks have been on the books for a number of years, it wasn’t until 2002 that the city began enforcing such regulations, Berg said. When it did, three petting zoos or pony ride purveyors went out of business, he said.

"Now you can’t have a pony in the park at a birthday party," Berg said at the most recent Parks Committee meeting.

The bill allows the parks director to designate areas in city parks for petting zoos and pony rides operated by vendors who obtain permits. The parks director would consider a park’s size, design, location and extent of public use in judging its suitability for animal activities.

A vendor would need to put up "enter at your own risk" signs that say the city is not liable for any injuries that occur within the area being used for petting zoos or pony rides.

Ireland, a physician, said he does not object to petting zoos. But he said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control emphasizes that people who touch farm animals need soap and running water to wash their hands to guard against bacterial diseases.

Those include E. coli, salmonella and Campylobacter, a common cause of diarrhea.

The Honolulu Zoo, for example, has a good hand-washing station, Ireland said.

Berg asked Ireland if he would support the bill if it were changed to require a hand-washing station, but Ireland said there are other considerations.

"My concern is if we had this type of event at certain parks that maybe the next day people would be in the very same spot where the animals have defecated, and have a picnic," Ireland said.

Young children, he said, are especially vulnerable because they tend to put their hands in their mouths.

"At a park or a picnic 24 hours later, you may not even know to wash your hands because you didn’t even know there were animals there," Ireland said.

Cabato said current rules allow the parks director to OK petting zoos and pony rides that are part of a carnival.

Berg said he could not see why it is OK to have petting zoos and pony rides with carnivals but not independent of them.

Two owners of farm animals submitted written testimony supporting the bill.

Along with Berg’s yes vote, committee members Breene Hari­moto and Romy Cachola voted, with reservations, to advance the bill.