This chapter shall be known as and may be cited as the "Dorchester
County Dog Control Ordinance."
The following words, when used in this chapter, shall have the
meanings respectively ascribed to them in this section, unless otherwise
specifically defined in other parts of this chapter:
ANIMAL SHELTER
A facility designated or recognized by Dorchester County
for the purpose of impounding and caring for dogs.
AT LARGE
A dog shall be deemed to be "at large" when off the property
of the owner and not under restraint.
DANGEROUS DOG
A.
A dog that attacks without provocation and kills or inflicts
severe injury on a person, domestic animal; or
B.
A dog which, after having been deemed a potentially dangerous
dog under this chapter, subsequently engages in one or more behaviors
prohibited by this chapter.
DEPARTMENT
The Dorchester County Sheriff's Office.
DOG CONTROL OFFICER
The person or persons employed or designated by the County
Council to enforce this chapter.
DOGHOUSE
A structure with secured sides and tops to protect the animal
from the weather. There must be a floor, free from rot, dry and clear
of debris that could endanger the animal, with the exception of bedding
materials. The doghouse should not be considered sufficient for shade
from May 1 to October 1. The doghouse must be of a size appropriate
to the size of the dog living in it.
DOMESTIC ANIMAL
An animal of a tamed species commonly kept as a pet, such
as a dog or cat.
FENCED AREA
A fully contained area that is comfortable and safe for the
animal to walk around in.
IMPOUNDMENT
The act of taking physical possession and control of an animal
by an animal control officer or other officer empowered to act by
law and transporting it to the animal control facility.
OWNER
A person having the right of property or custody of a dog
or who keeps or harbors a dog or knowingly permits a dog to remain
on or about any premises occupied by the person.
PET SHOP
Any person, entity, sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation,
whether operated separately or in connection with another business
enterprise, that sells or offers to sell two or more species of animals
to the general public with the intent that they be kept as pets.
POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS DOG
Any dog that without provocation attacks, bites, or injures
a person, or domestic animal, either on public or private property.
PROVOCATION
The act of hitting, kicking, taunting or striking a dog by
a person with any object or part of a person's body, or the act
of pulling, pinching or squeezing any part of a dog's body by
a person.
PUBLIC NUISANCE
A dog shall be deemed a public nuisance when it is a danger
to any person or when it engages in activities which disturb the peace
and quiet of any neighborhood, including, but not limited to, excessive
barking, whining or howling, chasing vehicles, attacking other domestic
animals or damaging property.
RESTRAINTS
Secure chain, cable or trolley, invisible containment system,
or other tether of sufficient strength to prevent escape. If a dog
is confined on a tether, excepting periods of time that are brief
and incidental, the tether shall be sufficient in length and positioned
to prevent tangling and hanging.
SECURE ENCLOSURE
Two chain-link mesh enclosures, one which fits inside the
other, both having the following:
A.
A chain-link mesh or wood ceiling and chain-link mesh sides.
B.
The ceiling of the inner enclosure must be securely attached
to the sides of the inner enclosure and the ceiling of the outer enclosure
must be securely attached to the sides of the outer enclosure.
C.
The gates for both enclosures shall be securely locked.
D.
The inner enclosure must also have a solid impenetrable floor.
SEVERE INJURY
Any physical injury that results in broken bones or disfiguring
lacerations requiring multiple sutures or cosmetic surgery.
STRAY DOG
Any dog for which ownership is not established or for which
the owner disclaims future responsibility.
TETHERED
Fastening a dog to a stationary object or stake as a means
of keeping the animal under control.
VICIOUS DOG
Any fierce or dangerous dog which constitutes a physical
threat to persons or other animals by virtue of its specific demonstrated
behavior, with the exception of dogs belonging to a government agency
acting in the official performance of authorized duty.
The provisions of this chapter shall apply throughout the unincorporated
area of Dorchester County, and services provided hereunder are available
to any incorporated area upon request; subject, however, to the availability
and appropriation in the annual budget of the County Council. The
County Council is not under any legal obligation to provide animal
control services to any incorporated city or town within Dorchester
County.
Any person having knowledge of a person being bitten or otherwise
exposed to rabies by a dog shall report these facts immediately to
the Dorchester County Sheriff's Department. Confinement, quarantine
and disposition of the biting dog or a clinically suspected rabid
dog or a dog exposed to an animal known or suspected of having rabies
shall be in accordance with current adopted regulations of the State
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene entitled "10.06.02 Communicable
Diseases - Rabies."
The licensing provisions of this chapter shall not apply to
dogs actually confined to the premises of educational and research
institutions or incorporated benevolent societies devoted to the care
or hospital treatment of lost, straying or homeless animals.
All dog fees collected by the Dog Control Officer(s) and any
and all other moneys received by him from fees, charges or sales,
etc., shall be accurately accounted for and an annual audit performed
to the satisfaction of the County Council. The moneys thus collected
shall be used by the County Council to defray the expense and costs
of the enforcement and administration of this chapter.