A young girl from Los Angeles, California, reaches out to her local animal control office with an unusual question:
Dear LA County
I would like your approval if I can have a unicorn in my backyard if I can find one. Please send me a letter in response.
A rather surreal and sweet response was sent back to her from the Los Angeles County Animal Control:
Dear Miss Madeline:
UNICORN LICENSING
Thank you very much for your letter requesting permission to have a unicorn in your backyard. I am pleased to tell you that the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control does license unicorns under the following conditions:
1. The unicorn must be cared for in compliance with all animal caretaking regulations set forth in Los Angeles County Code Title 10.
2. The unicorn is given regular access to sunlight, moonbeams, and rainbows.
3. The unicorn is fed one of its favorite treats — watermelon — at least once each week.
4. The unicorn’s horn must be maintained to be in good health. This requires polishing at least once a month with a soft cloth.
5. Any sparkles or glitter used on the unicorn must be nontoxic and biodegradable to ensure the unicorn’s good health.
It is always rewarding to hear from young people who thoughtfully consider the requirements of providing a loving home to animals. I commend your sense of responsible pet ownership to seek permission in advance to keep a unicorn in Los Angeles County.
Enclosed is a preapproved unicorn license for when you can find one. In the meantime, because they are indeed very rare to find, we hope you will enjoy this enclosed unicorn with our compliments and appreciation for reaching out to our department.
Warmest regards,
How sweet of them to send a response. They even included a stuffed unicorn for her, too. This entire exchange is pretty American – from the care & respect given to the child’s seemingly silly inquiry, the child’s desire to check with a government bureaucracy on whether something is allowed, and down to the idea of little girls liking unicorns. I like the interaction between this little girl and the LA County animal control very much, but it’s also interesting to think about how different this exchange would go in some of the other countries I have experience with.
Below is a screen shot of the original response they sent:
Madeline’s original inquiry to the LA county animal control:
Originally from social media:
Temple of Zagan 