[Adopted 3-6-1990 by Ord. No. 3-90; amended in its entirety 10-5-2009 by Ord. No. 11-2009]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ANIMAL
For the purpose of this article, animal shall mean cat.
ANIMAL CONTROL AUTHORITY
Any person or agency designated or certified by the State of New Jersey to enforce the provisions of this article.
CAT
Any member of the domestic feline species; male, female, or altered.
CAT OF LICENSING AGE
Any cat which has attained the age of seven months, or which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
CATTERY
Any room or group of rooms, cage, or exhibition pen, not part of a kennel, wherein cats for sale are kept or displayed.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, shall include every person having a right of property (or custody) in such cat and every person who has such cat in his/her keeping, or who harbors or maintains a cat or knowingly permits a cat to remain on or about any premises occupied by that person.
NEUTERED CAT
Any cat which has had its reproductive capacity permanently altered through sterilization.
UNNEUTERED CAT
Any cat which has not had its reproductive capacity permanently altered through sterilization.
The owner of any newly acquired cat of licensing age, or of any cat which attains licensing age, shall make application for a license tag or sleeve for such cat within 10 days after such acquisition or age attainment. This requirement will not apply to a nonresident keeping a cat within the Borough for no longer than 90 days.
A. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into this Borough any cat licensed in another state for the current year and bearing registration tag or sleeve, and who shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 90 days, shall immediately thereafter apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat.
B. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into this Borough any unlicensed cat, and who shall keep same or permit same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 10 days, shall immediately thereafter apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat.
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color and markings of the cat for which license and registration are sought, and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety; also the name, street and post office address of the owner, and the person who shall keep or harbor such cat. The information on said application and the registration number issued for the cat shall be preserved for a period of three years by the Borough Clerk or other official designated to license cats in the Borough.
License forms and official tags or sleeves shall be furnished by the Borough and shall be numbered serially and shall bear the year of issuance and the name of the Borough.
A. 
The Borough Clerk or other official designated by the Borough Council to license cats shall not grant any such license and official registration tag or sleeve for any cat unless the owner thereof provides evidence that the cat to be licensed and registered has been inoculated with a rabies vaccine of a type approved by and administered in accordance with the recommendations of the United States Department of Agriculture or has been certified exempt by a duly licensed veterinarian who certifies in writing that such cat is at significant risk of adverse affects from the proposed inoculation because of an infirmity, other physical condition, or regimen of therapy. The rabies inoculation shall be administered by a duly licensed veterinarian or by such other veterinarian permitted by law to do the same.
B. 
Except as otherwise exempted above, the Borough Clerk or other official designated by the Borough Council to license cats shall not grant any such license and official metal registration tag for any cat unless the cat owner provides evidence that the cat to be licensed and registered has been inoculated against rabies with a vaccine having a duration of immunity which extends through November 1 of the licensing period. Cats with a duration of immunity against rabies that expires prior to November 1 of the licensing period shall be revaccinated prior to issuance of a license.
Every person owning or harboring a cat of licensing age within the Borough shall, before May 1 of each year, apply to the Borough Clerk for a license and official metal registration tag for each cat so owned or harbored, whereupon, after payment of the fee hereinafter set forth, the Borough Clerk shall issue to such person a license together with an official tag which shall be fastened to the collar of such animal. In the event of a cat being acquired after April of each year, a license and tag shall be obtained as prescribed within 10 days from the date of acquiring the cat. Effective as of the date of the adoption of this article, the fee for each license and registration shall be $15 for each unneutered cat and $12 for each neutered cat. Licenses and registration tags shall expire April 30 of the succeeding year.
A. 
On or after April 1, 2009, if application shall not be made within the time limit set forth hereinabove, there shall also be assessed a late charge in accordance with the schedule below:
Months
License Fee Neutered
License Fee Unneutered
Late Fee
Total Neutered
Total Unneutered
Jan.-April
$12
$15
$0
$12
$15
May-June
$12
$15
$20
$32
$35
July-Sep.
$12
$15
$25
$37
$40
Oct.-Dec.
$12
$15
$30
$42
$45
B. 
For cats acquired after April in any year, if the application is not made within the appropriate time frame prescribed above, then a late fee shall be imposed as follows:
From Time of Acquisition
Late Fee
Within 10 days
$0
Between 11 days and 2 months
$20
Between 3 months and 5 months
$25
Between 6 months and 8 months
$30
C. 
The term of any license lawfully obtained during the year this article is enacted shall expire April 30 of the succeeding year.
A. 
Confining a cat that has attacked or bitten a person. If a cat has attacked or bitten a person, the Board of Health through its Animal Control Officer shall serve notice to the owner requiring such cat be either confined on the owner's premises or removed from the owner's premises to a veterinary hospital, at the expense of the owner, for a period of ten days, for the purpose of observing the animal for the development of signs of rabies. An animal confined under order of the Board of Health shall not be released until a certificate of release has been issued by the Animal Control Officer.
B. 
Management of cats bitten by a known or suspected rabid animal. If a cat is known to have been, or is suspected of having been, bitten by an animal which is known or suspected of being infected by rabies, the Board of Health through its Animal Control Officer shall serve notice to the owner requiring that such cat be either strictly confined for a period of six months (the maximum period of incubation for rabies) or destroyed.
Any person who violates any provision of this article shall, upon conviction, be liable for a penalty as provided in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article I, General Penalty, herein. Each violation shall be considered a separate offense.