6 rules for unincorporated Clay County, Missouri.
Verified from official government sources
Unincorporated Clay County is generous: agricultural parcels keep livestock with no head-count limit, residential lots of a half-acre may keep up to twelve hens with no roosters, and Missouri's Right to Farm shields established farms.
Missouri has no statewide leash law, so Clay County's cities set their own; Gladstone, Liberty, and Kearney require dogs restrained in public. Statewide, an owner is strictly liable when their dog bites, even on a first bite.
MO Rev. Stat. §273.036
The owner or possessor of any dog that bites, without provocation, any person while such person is on public property, or lawfully on private property, including the property of the owner or possessor of the dog, is strictly liable for damages suffered by persons bitten, regardless of the former viciousness of the dog or the owner's or possessor's knowledge of such viciousness.
Missouri lets cities pass breed laws, and Clay County is split: Gladstone presumes pit bulls dangerous under a 2007 ordinance, while Liberty repealed its long-standing pit bull ban in 2019 and now judges dogs by behavior.
MO Rev. Stat. §578.024
A person commits the offense of keeping a dangerous dog if he or she owns or possesses a dog that has previously bitten a person or a domestic animal without provocation and that dog bites any person on a subsequent occasion.
Beekeeping is legal across Clay County and treated as agriculture. Missouri requires no apiary registration; the state Department of Agriculture inspects hives on request. Unincorporated lots allow hives set back twenty-five feet from property lines.
MO Rev. Stat. §264.041
Inspection of bees for bee diseases or pests shall be made by the director or an authorized inspector upon the request of any beekeeper, directed to the office of the director, for inspection of bees owned or managed by that beekeeper.
Clay County restricts ownership of exotic and wild animals. Many species require special permits or are prohibited entirely for public safety.
Clay County restricts or prohibits intentional feeding of wildlife including deer, coyotes, and bears. Feeding wildlife creates public safety hazards and nuisance conditions.
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