[Adopted 7-15-1987 as BH:VII of
the 1987 Code]
Kennels, pet shops, shelters and pounds shall
comply with the provisions of these regulations in the maintenance
and care of all animals subject to rabies and other diseases of dogs
as well as rules, regulations and ordinances enacted by the appropriate
agency or governing of the municipality wherein they are located.
The term "animal" used in these regulations means any animal subject
to rabies and other diseases of dogs.
A.
Structural strength. Animal housing facilities shall
be structurally sound and shall be maintained in good repair to protect
the animals from injury, to contain the animals, to restrict the entrance
of other animals, and location, construction, arrangement and operation
shall not constitute a nuisance.
B.
Water and electric power. Reliable and adequate electric
power, if required to comply with other provisions of these rules
and regulations, and adequate potable water shall be available.
C.
Storage. Supplies of food and bedding shall be stored
in facilities which adequately protect such supplies against infestation
or contamination by vermin. Refrigeration shall be provided for supplies
of perishable foods.
D.
Waste disposal. Provision shall be made for the removal
and disposal of animal and food wastes, bedding, dead animals, and
debris. Disposal facilities shall be so provided and operated as to
minimize vermin infestation, odors, and disease hazards.
E.
Washrooms and sinks. Facilities, such as washrooms,
basins, or sinks, shall be provided to maintain cleanliness among
animal caretakers.
F.
Housekeeping. Premises (buildings and grounds) shall
be kept clean and in good repair in order to protect the animals from
injury and to facilitate the prescribed husbandry practices set forth
in these rules and regulations. Premises shall remain free of accumulations
of trash, insects, ectoparasites, and avian and mammalian pests shall
be controlled effectively.
A.
General. Indoor animal facilities shall be provided
for all pet shops, shelters and pounds. Kennels must also have indoor
facilities, except for animals which are acclimated.
B.
Heating. Indoor animal housing facilities shall be
sufficiently heated when necessary to protect the animals from cold,
and to provide for their health and comfort. In the case of dogs or
cats the ambient temperature shall not be allowed to fall below 50º
F. unless acclimated to lower temperatures.
C.
Ventilation. Indoor housing facilities for animals
shall be adequately ventilated to provide for the health and comfort
of the animals at all times. Such facilities shall be provided with
fresh air either by means of windows, doors, vents, or air conditioning
and shall be ventilated so as to minimize drafts, odors, and moisture
condensation. Auxiliary ventilation, such as exhaust fans and vents
or air conditioning, shall be provided when the ambient temperature
is 85º F. or higher.
D.
Lighting. Indoor animal housing facilities shall have
ample light, by natural or artificial means, or both, of good quality
and well distributed. Such lighting shall provide uniformly distributed
illumination of sufficient light intensity to permit routine inspection
and cleaning during the entire working period.
E.
Interior surfaces. The interior surfaces of indoor
housing facilities shall be constructed and maintained so that they
are substantially impervious to moisture and may be readily cleaned.
F.
Drainage. A suitable method shall be provided to drain
water from indoor housing facilities if need is indicated. Drains,
when used, shall be properly constructed and kept in good repair to
avoid foul odors therefrom. Closed drainage systems, when used, shall
be equipped with traps and so installed as to prevent any backup of
sewage onto the floor of the room.
A.
Shelter from sunlight. When sunlight is likely to
cause overheating or discomfort, sufficient shade shall be provided
to allow animals kept outdoors to protect themselves from the direct
rays of the sun.
B.
Shelter from rain or snow. Animals kept outdoors shall
be provided with access to shelter to allow them to remain dry during
rain or snow.
C.
Shelter from cold weather. Shelter shall be provided
for animals kept outdoors when the atmospheric temperature falls below
50º F. Sufficient clean bedding material or other means of protection
from the weather elements shall be provided when the ambient temperature
falls below that temperature to which an animal is acclimated.
D.
Drainage. A suitable method shall be provided to drain
surface water rapidly.
A.
Definition. A primary enclosure is any structure used
to restrict an animal or animals to a limited amount of space, such
as a room, pen, run, cage or compartment.
B.
Primary enclosure structure. All primary enclosures
shall be constructed and maintained in such form and manner as to:
(1)
Protect animals from injury.
(2)
Keep predators out.
(3)
Enable animals to remain dry and clean.
(4)
Provide sufficient space for each animal to turn about
freely and to stand, sit and lie in a comfortable, normal position
with a minimum footage of floor space equal to the mathematical square
of the sum of the length of the animal in inches, as measured from
the tip of the nose to the base of the tail, plus six inches, expressed
in square feet.
C.
Removal of excreta. Excreta shall be removed from
primary enclosure as often as necessary to prevent contamination of
the animals contained therein and to reduce disease hazards and odors.
When a hosing or flushing method is used for cleaning, any animal
contained therein shall be removed from such enclosure during the
cleaning process, and adequate measures shall be taken to protect
the animals in other such enclosures from being contaminated with
water and other wastes.
D.
Cleaning of primary enclosures. Primary enclosures
for animals shall be physically cleaned often enough to prevent an
accumulation of debris or excreta, and to reduce to a practical minimum
agents injurious to the health of animals or humans.
E.
Classification and separation by species. Animals
housed in the same primary enclosure shall be maintained in compatible
groups, with the following additional restrictions:
(1)
Females in season (estrus) shall not be housed in
the same primary enclosure with males, except for breeding purposes,
unless otherwise requested by the owner.
(2)
Any animal exhibiting a vicious disposition shall
be housed individually in a primary enclosure.
(3)
Immature animals shall not be housed in the same primary
enclosure with adults other than their mothers, except when permanently
maintained in breeding colonies.
(4)
Each animal under quarantine or treatment for a communicable
disease shall be separated from other animals in order to minimize
dissemination of such disease.
A.
Frequency of feeding. Animals shall be fed at least
once each day except as otherwise might be required to provide adequate
care. The food shall be free from contamination, wholesome, palatable,
and of sufficient quantity and nutritive value to meet the normal
daily requirements for the condition and size of the animal. Immature
animals shall be fed in accordance with generally accepted procedures.
B.
Food receptacles. Containers of food shall be accessible
to animals and shall be located so as to minimize contamination by
excreta. Feeding pans shall be durable and kept clean. Disposable
food receptacles may be used but must be discarded after each feeding.
Self feeders may be used for the feeding of dry food and they shall
be cleaned regularly to prevent molding, deterioration or caking of
feed.
C.
Watering. If potable water is not accessible to the
animals at all times, potable liquids or potable water shall be offered
to animals at least twice daily, except as might otherwise be required
to provide adequate care. Receptacles for such purposes shall be kept
clean at all times.
A.
Veterinary care. Programs of disease control and adequate
health care shall be established and maintained under the supervision
and assistance of a doctor of veterinary medicine.
B.
Observation. Each animal shall be observed daily by
the animal caretaker in charge, or by someone under his direct supervision.
Sick, diseased, injured, lame, or blind animals shall be provided
with veterinary care or humanely disposed of unless such action is
inconsistent with the purposes for which such animal was obtained
and is being held; provided, however, that the provision shall not
affect compliance with N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16 which requires the holding
for seven days of all stray dogs.
C.
Rabies suspects. Any person operating or employed
at a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound who observes an animal which
he suspects of being rabid shall at once notify by telephone the executive
officer of the local Board of Health or the State Department of Health
and segregate such animal for a period of 10 days unless examined
and released by written statement of a veterinarian.[1]
A.
Protection of the public from rabies infection.
(1)
Impounded animals must be kept alive for seven days to give opportunity for rabies disease surveillance and opportunity for owner to reclaim. (See Subsection B.) (N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16).
(2)
Animals having bitten humans must be kept alive and
observed for 10 days. (N.J.S.A. 26:4-82). The bat is the exception
to the rule regarding ten-day confinement of biting animals. Bats
may live more than 10 days after the virus is present in saliva. A
ten-day confinement period may give a false impression that the bat
could not have transmitted rabies at the time of the bite. The biting
bat should be delivered to the State Department of Health laboratory
in a jar, or similar container.
(3)
Animals brought in for elective destruction may not
be killed until the person in charge of the facility has determined
the animal is not a stray, and that the person requesting the animal's
destruction is its owner or a representative of the owner, and the
animal has not bitten a human being within 10 days or evidenced other
aggressive tendencies compatible with symptoms suspicious of rabies.
B.
Opportunity to reclaim animals. Each shelter or pound
shall post a sign establishing specific hours during which persons
will be permitted to enter the facility to look at animals and records
for the purpose of seeking animals that are missing.
(1)
The sign must be clearly visible from the outside.
(2)
The hours must be at least one hour each business
day.
(3)
The person who is searching for a missing animal shall
identify himself by presenting a driver's license or other acceptable
identification document.
(4)
The person who is searching for a missing animal shall
furnish to the shelter or pound a written description of the missing
animal and a license for any dog which has attained the age of seven
months or which possesses a set of permanent teeth, or a bill of sale
or other proof of ownership of a younger dog or other animal.
(5)
The person who is searching for a missing animal shall
abide by all reasonable security measures required by the shelter
or pound to prevent the spread of disease.
A.
General. Vehicles used in transporting animals shall
be mechanically sound and equipped to prevent hazard to the health
of all animals being transported.
B.
Cargo space. The animal cargo space of all vehicles
shall be so constructed and maintained as to prevent the ingress of
exhaust from the vehicle's engine.
C.
Vehicle - primary enclosure.
(1)
Each animal in the vehicle has access to sufficient
fresh air for normal breathing.
(2)
The openings of such enclosures are easily accessible
at all times for emergency removal of the animals.
(3)
The animals are afforded adequate protection from
the elements. The temperature within such enclosures shall not be
allowed to exceed 85º F. or fall below 45º F. for a period
of more than four hours; provided, however, at no time may an animal
be transported longer than one hour at a temperature of more than
95º F. or less than 35º F.
D.
Species and sex separation. Animals transported in
the same primary enclosure shall be maintained in compatible groups,
and any animal exhibiting a vicious disposition shall be transported
individually in a primary enclosure. Further, any female animal shall
not be transported in the same primary enclosure with any male animal
unless otherwise requested by the owner.
E.
Primary enclosure size. Primary enclosures used to
transport animals shall be large enough to insure that each animal
contained therein has sufficient space to turn about freely, to stand
erect, and to lie in a natural position.
F.
Double decking. Animals shall not be placed in primary
enclosures over other animals in transit unless each enclosure is
fitted with a floor of a material which prevents animal excreta from
entering lower enclosures.
G.
Sanitation. Primary enclosures used to transport animals
shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition.
H.
Veterinary care. It shall be the responsibility of
the attendant or driver to inspect the animals to determine whether
they need emergency veterinary care, and if so, to obtain such care
from a doctor of veterinary medicine at the earliest opportunity.
A.
General. Each person in charge of a kennel, pet shop,
shelter or pound shall be responsible for compliance with these rules
and regulations by those facilities.
B.
Records.
(1)
There shall be kept at each kennel, pet shop, shelter
and pound a record of all animals received and/or disposed of. Such
record shall state the date each animal was received, description
of animal, license number, breed, age and sex; name and address of
person from whom acquired; date killed and method, or name and address
of person to whom sold or otherwise transferred. These records shall
be kept at the premises for 12 months after the date the animal is
killed or removed from the establishment and shall be available to
any agent of the municipal government, the local Board of Health or
the State Department of Health.
(2)
Except as otherwise provided in Subsection B(3), no kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall, within one year from the making thereof, destroy or dispose of any books, records, documents or other papers required to be maintained under these rules and regulations.
(3)
The records required to be maintained under these rules and regulations shall be held for such period in excess of the one-year period specified in Subsection B(2) as may be required to comply with any federal, state or local law. When the local Board of Health, or local regional Health Department, or the State Department of Health notifies a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound in writing that specified records shall be retained pending completion of an investigation or proceeding, such facility shall hold such records until their disposition is authorized by the local or regional agency or the State Department of Health.
(4)
A licensee shall promptly notify the licensing agency
of any change in his name and address or any change in his operations
which may affect his status.
