[Adopted 5-21-1990 by Ord. No. 11-90]
As used in this Article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ANIMAL
Dog or 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.
LICENSING AUTHORITY
The Department of Health of the City of Hackensack or any designated representative thereof charged with administering the issuance and/or revocation of permits and licenses under the provisions of this Article.
NEUTERED
Rendered permanently incapable of reproduction as certified by a licensed veterinarian.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, includes 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.
PERSON
Any individual, corporation, partnership, organization or institution commonly recognized by law as a unit.
A. 
Vaccination and license requirements. No person shall own, keep, harbor or maintain any cat over seven months of age within the City of Hackensack unless such cat is vaccinated and licensed. The provisions of this section do not apply to cats held in a cattery or those held by a state or federal licensed research facility or a veterinary establishment where cats are received or kept for diagnostic, medical, surgical or other treatments or licensed animal shelters, pounds, kennels or pet shops.
B. 
Vaccination. All cats shall be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian in accordance with the latest Compendium of Animal Rabies Vaccines and Recommendations for Immunization published by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, except as provided for in Subsection D.
C. 
Vaccination certificate. A certificate of vaccination shall be issued to the owner of each animal vaccinated on a form recommended by the state.
D. 
Exemptions. Any cat may be exempted from the requirements of such vaccination for a specified period of time by the local Board of Health, upon presentation of a veterinarian's certificate stating that because of an infirmity or other physical condition or regimen of therapy, the inoculation of such cat shall be deemed inadvisable.
A. 
Cats must have license number displayed. Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a cat of licensing age shall annually apply for and procure from the Health Officer of the City of Hackensack a license and official registration tag with license number or a registration sleeve for each cat so owned, kept or harbored, and shall place upon such cat a collar or other device with the license number securely fastened or displayed thereto. Acceptable methods of displaying the license number shall include, but are not limited to, break-away or elastic collars. License tags or sleeves are not transferable.
B. 
Time for applying for license. The owner of any newly acquired cat of licensing age or of any cat which attains licensing age shall make application for 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 city for no longer than 90 days.
C. 
Cats brought into jurisdiction.
(1) 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the city any cat licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag or sleeve and who shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the city for a period of more than 90 days shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat.
(2) 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the city any unlicensed cat and shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the city for a period of more than 10 days shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat.
D. 
Application, contents, preservation of information. 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 application and the registration number issued for the cat shall be preserved for a period of three years by the Department of Health of the City of Hackensack.
E. 
License forms and tags. License forms and official tags or sleeves shall be furnished by the city and shall be numbered serially and shall bear the year of issuance and the name of the municipality.
F. 
Evidence of inoculation with rabies vaccine or certification of exemption; requirement for license. The Health Officer or his designate 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 and the United States Department of Human Services, or has been certified exempt as provided by § 52-32D of this Article. The rabies inoculation shall be administered by a duly licensed veterinarian or by such other veterinarian permitted by law to do the same.
G. 
License fee schedule. The annual fee for the license required under this Article shall be as set forth in Chapter 107, Licenses and Permits.
H. 
Renewals; expiration date of license.
[Amended 8-17-1992 by Ord. No. 8-92]
(1) 
A license from another municipality shall be accepted. The person applying for the license and registration tag and/or sleeve shall pay the fee fixed or authorized. The fee for the renewal shall be the same as for the original, and said license, registration tag or sleeve and renewal thereof shall expire on January 31 in the following year.
(2) 
Only one license and registration tag or sleeve shall be required in the licensing year for any cat in this city. Any valid New Jersey license tag or sleeve issued by a New Jersey municipality shall be accepted by the Health Officer or his designate as evidence of compliance.
(3) 
The expiration date of any license which was due to expire on September 30, 1992, is hereby extended to January 31, 1993.
(4) 
The expiration date of any license issued between September 1, 1992, and January 31, 1993, shall be January 31, 1994.
I. 
Proof of licensing. Proof of licensing shall be produced by any person owning, keeping, maintaining or harboring a cat, upon the request of any health official, police officer, animal control officer, or other authorized person.
J. 
Interfering with persons performing duties under this Article. No person shall hinder, molest or interfere with anyone authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this Article.
K. 
Disposition of fees collected. License fees and other moneys collected or received under the provisions of this Article shall be forwarded to the Treasurer of the city, and shall be placed in a special account separate from any of the other accounts of the city and shall be used for the following purposes only: collecting, keeping and disposing of cats liable to seizure, for local prevention and control of rabies, providing antirabies treatment under the direction of the local Board of Health for any person known or suspected to have been exposed to rabies, and for administering the provisions of this Article. Any unexpected balance remaining in such special account shall be retained until the end of the third fiscal year following, and may be used for any of the purposes set forth in this section. At the end of said third fiscal year following and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, there shall be transferred from such special account to the general funds of the municipality any amount then in such account which is in excess of the total amount paid into the special account during the last two fiscal years next preceding.
Opportunity will be given from time to time to every resident of the City of Hackensack, New Jersey, owning or in possession of a cat or cats, to have said cat or cats inoculated with antirabic vaccine, one-injection method, as often as the Health Officer shall designate. The certificate of vaccination shall be presented to the Health Officer for registration immediately after vaccination. Inoculations provided by the city, free of charge, shall be made by such person or persons as the city shall designate. The city will not pay for inoculations made by veterinarians other than those designated by the city.
Except as otherwise provided in this Article, any person who violates or who fails or refuses to comply with this Article shall be liable to a penalty of not less than $25 nor more than $500 for each offense, to be recovered by and in the name of the local Board of Health or by and in the name of the municipality.
All other ordinances of the city which are in conflict with this Article are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict.
If any part of this Article shall be invalid, such parts shall be deemed severable and the invalidity thereof shall not effect the remaining part of this Article.