[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of North Arlington as indicated in article histories.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-13-1984 by Ord. No. 1309 (Ch.
94, Art. I, of the 1984 Code)]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
DOG
Any dog, bitch or spayed bitch.
DOG OF LICENSING AGE
Any dog which has attained the age of seven months or which
possesses a set of permanent teeth.
KENNEL
Any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding
or selling dogs or breeding dogs for sale is carried on, except a
pet shop.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog, includes every
person having a right of property in such dog and every person who
has such dog in his/her keeping.
PET SHOP
Any place of business which is not part of a kennel, wherein
animals, including, but not limited to, dogs, cats, birds, fish, reptiles,
rabbits, hamsters or gerbils, are kept or displayed chiefly for the
purpose of sale to individuals for personal appreciation and companionship
rather than for business or research purposes.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
POUND
An establishment for the confinement of dogs seized under
the provisions of this article or otherwise.
SHELTER
Any establishment where dogs are received, housed and distributed.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
No person shall own, keep or harbor any dog
within the Borough of North Arlington without first obtaining a license
therefor, to be issued by the Borough Clerk upon application by the
owner and payment of the prescribed fee. No person shall own, keep
or harbor any dog in said Borough except in compliance with the provisions
of this article.
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog
of licensing age shall, in the month of January, annually apply for
and procure from the Clerk of the Borough a license and official metal
registration tag for each such dog so owned, kept or harbored, and
shall place upon each such dog a collar or harness with the registration
tag securely fastened thereto.
A. The person applying for the license and registration
tag shall pay a fee of either $5.20 or $8.20. N.J.S.A. 4:19A-3, along
with Chapter 442 P.L. 1979 (N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.15) provides that there
shall be a registration fee of $1 plus $0.20 for Pilot Clinic Fund
(additional fee of $3 for nonneutered/nonspayed dogs). For each annual
renewal, the fee for the license and registration tag shall be the
same as for the original license and tag, and said license and registration
tags and renewals thereof shall expire on the last day of January
in each year.
B. Dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly
known as "Seeing Eye" dogs, dogs used to assist handicapped persons
and commonly known as "service dogs" and dogs used to assist deaf
persons and commonly known as "hearing ear" dogs shall be licensed
and registered as other dogs hereinabove provided for, except that
the owners or keepers of such dogs shall not be required to pay any
fee therefor.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
The owner of any newly acquired dog of licensing
age or of any dog which attains licensing age shall make application
for a license and registration tag for such dog within 10 days after
such acquisition or age attainment.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
The application shall state the breed, sex,
age, color and markings of the dog for which the license and registration
are sought, and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety,
and whether it has been surgically debarked or silenced and also the
name, street and post office address of the owner and the person who
shall keep or harbor such dog. The information on said application
and the registration number issued for the dog shall be preserved
for a period of three years by the Clerk of the Borough. In addition,
the Clerk shall forward similar information to the State Department
of Health each month on forms furnished by the said Department. Registration
numbers shall be issued in the order of application.
A. Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough any dog licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag, and shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 90 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for each such dog, unless such dog be licensed under §
91-9 of this article.
B. Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough any unlicensed dog, and shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 10 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for each such dog, unless such dog be licensed under §
91-9 of this article.
No person except an officer in the performance
of duties shall remove a registration tag from the collar of any dog
without the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach a registration
tag to a dog for which it was not issued.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
Licensing of kennels, pet shops, shelters and
pounds shall be as provided in N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.9.
A. The annual license fee for a kennel providing accommodations
for 10 or fewer dogs shall be $10, and for more than 10 dogs, $25.
B. The annual license fee for a pet shop shall be $10.
C. No fee shall be charged for a shelter or pound.
No dog kept in a kennel, pet shop, shelter or
pound shall be permitted off such premises, except on leash, in a
crate or under other safe control.
A. License fees and other moneys collected or received under the provisions of §§
91-4,
91-9,
91-10 and
91-16 of this article, except registration tag fees, shall be forwarded to the Treasurer of the Borough within 30 days after collection or receipt. They shall be placed in a special account, separate from any of the other accounts of the Borough, and shall be used for the following purposes only: for collection, keeping and disposing of dogs liable to seizure under this article; for local prevention and control of rabies; for payment of damage to or losses of poultry and domestic animals, except dogs and cats, caused by a dog or dogs; and for administering the provisions of this article. An unexpended balance remaining in such special account shall be retained therein 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 the 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 Borough any amount then in such account which is in excess of the total amount paid into said special account during the last two fiscal years next preceding.
B. The registration tag fee and the Pilot Fund fees as provided in §
91-4A shall be forwarded within 30 days after collection by the Clerk of the Borough to the State Department of Health.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
The Clerk of the Borough shall forward to the
State Department of Health a list of all kennels, pet shops, shelters
and pounds licensed within 30 days after the licenses therefor are
issued, which list shall include the name and address of the licensee
and the kind of licenses issued.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
The Chief of Police of the Borough shall annually
or biennially cause a canvass to be made of all dogs owned, kept or
harbored within the limits of the Borough and shall report to the
Clerk of the Borough, to the Board of Health of the Borough and to
the State Department of Health the result thereof. The report shall
set forth, in separate columns, the names and addresses of persons
owning, keeping or harboring such dogs, the number of licensed dogs
owned, kept or harbored by each of said persons, together with the
registration numbers of each of said dogs, and the number of unlicensed
dogs owned, kept or harbored by each of said persons, together with
a complete description of each of said unlicensed dogs.
The Mayor and Council of the Borough shall from
time to time by resolution establish a pound, and the Mayor shall
from time to time as occasion may require nominate and, by and with
the advice and consent of the Council, appoint an Animal Control Officer,
who shall hold office at the pleasure of the Mayor and Council. Such
Animal Control Officer, any police officer or any person specifically
designated or appointed by the Mayor for that purpose may impound
or cause to be impounded unlicensed dogs running at large in violation
of the provisions of this article.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
A. The Animal Control Officer or any police officer of
the Borough shall take into custody and impound or cause to be taken
into custody and impounded, and thereafter destroyed or offered for
adoption as provided in this section:
(1) Any dog off the premises, excepting those on a leash
and attended, of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said
dog, which said official or the official's agent or agents have reason
to believe is a stray dog.
(2) Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person
keeping or harboring said dog without a current registration tag on
the collar.
(3) Any female dog in season off the premises of the owner
or of the person keeping or harboring said dog.
(4) Any dog or other animal which is suspected to be rabid.
(5) Any dog or other animal off the premises of the owner
reported to, or observed by, a certified Animal Control Officer to
be ill, injured or creating a threat to public health, safety or welfare,
or otherwise interfering with the enjoyment of property.
B. If any dog so seized wears a collar or harness having
inscribed thereon or attached thereto the name and address of any
person or registration tag of the owner, or the person keeping or
harboring said dog is known, the Animal Control Officer or the police
officer shall forthwith serve on the person whose address is given
on the collar, or on the owner or the person keeping or harboring
said dog, if known, a notice in writing stating that the dog has been
seized and will be liable to be disposed of offered for adoption if
not claimed within seven days after the service of the notice.
C. A notice under this section may be served either by
delivering it to the person on whom it is to be served, by leaving
it at the person's usual or last known place of abode or at the address
given on the collar or by forwarding it by post in a prepaid letter
addressed to that person at his/her usual or last known place of abode
or to the address given on the collar.
D. When any dog so seized has been detained for seven
days after notice, when notice can be given as above set forth, or
has been detained for seven days after seizure, when no notice has
been given as above set forth, and if the owner or person keeping
or harboring said dog has not claimed said dog and paid all expenses
incurred by reason of its detention, including maintenance, not exceeding
$4 per day, and if the dog is unlicensed at the time of the seizure
and its owner or the person keeping or harboring said dog has not
produced a license and registration tag for said dog, the Animal Control
Officer or the police officer of the Borough may cause the dog to
be destroyed in a manner causing as little pain as possible.
E. At the time of adoption, the right of ownership in
the animal shall transfer to the new owner. No dog or other animal
so caught and detained or procured, obtained, sent or brought to a
pound or shelter shall be sold or otherwise made available for the
purpose of experimentation. Any person who sells or otherwise makes
available any such dog or other animal for the purpose of experimentation
shall be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.
F. After observation, any animal seized under this section
suspected of being rabid shall be immediately reported to the executive
officer of the Board of Health and to the Department of Health.
Any officer or agent authorized or empowered
to perform any duty under this article is hereby authorized to go
upon any premises to seize for impounding any dog or dogs which he/she
may lawfully seize and impound when such officer is in immediate pursuit
of such dog or dogs, except upon the premises of the owner of the
dog if said owner is present and forbids the same.
No person shall hinder, molest or interfere
with anyone authorized to or empowered to perform any duty under this
article.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog
shall permit it to go upon any of the streets or public places of
the Borough of North Arlington or upon any premises other than those
owned or occupied by said persons unless such dog is confined upon
a leash of not greater than six feet and is accompanied by a person
over the age of 12 years.
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog
shall permit or suffer it to do any injury to or do any damage to
any lawn, shrubbery, flowers, ground or property.
[Amended 2-9-2006 by Ord.
No. 1953]
Except as provided in N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.19, any person who violates any provision of this article or any of the rules and regulations of the State Department of Health governing the sanitary conduct and operation of kennels, pet shops, shelters and pounds, to preserve sanitation therein and prevent the spread of rabies and other diseases of dogs within and from such establishments, shall be subject, upon conviction thereof, to the penalties provided in Chapter
1, Article
I, General Penalty. Each day that such violation continues to exist shall constitute a separate offense.
[Adopted 6-15-1992 by Ord. No. 1558 (Ch.
94, Art. II, of the 1984 Code)]
If a dog is declared potentially dangerous,
the owner shall apply, at the owner's expense, for a municipal potentially
dangerous dog license, a municipal registration number and a red identification
tag. The last three digits of each potentially dangerous dog registration
number issued by the municipality will be the three-number code assigned
by the state. The code for North Arlington is 062.
The owner shall have the registration number
tattooed upon the dog in a prominent location.
The owner must display a sign on his/her property
stating that there is a potentially dangerous dog on the premises.
A. The owner must erect and maintain an enclosure for
the dog.
B. If the dog is removed from the enclosure, the dog
must be securely muzzled and restrained with a tether, approved by
an Animal Control Officer, restricting the dog's movement to no more
than three feet.
The dog must be under the direct supervision
of the owner at all times.
The annual fee for a potentially dangerous dog
license will be in the amount of $500 (male/female).
A. The owner of a potentially dangerous dog who is found
to have violated any rule or regulation or has failed to comply with
an order shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 per day
of the violation, and each day's continuance of the violation shall
constitute a separate and distinct violation.
B. The Municipal Court shall have jurisdiction to enforce
this article. An Animal Control Officer is authorized to seize and
impound any potentially dangerous dog whose owner fails to comply
with any rule or regulation. The Municipal Court may order that the
dog so seized and impounded be destroyed in an expeditious and humane
manner.