[Adopted 4-11-1974 by Ord. No. 0-7-74;
amended in its entirety 10-22-1987 by Ord. No. 0-16-1987 (Ch. 22 of the 1967
Code)]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A cat of any age which shall be left unattended and at large
for a period of 72 hours or more.
Any animal of the feline species, male or female.
Any person having custody or control over a cat or permitting
a cat to remain on the premises under his control.
Rendered permanently incapable of reproduction as certified
by a licensed veterinarian.
Every person having a right of property in such cat, and
every person keeping or harboring such cat or feeding such cat for
more than 48 hours.
An individual, firm, partnership, corporation or association
of persons.
An establishment for the confinement of cats taken into custody
by the Animal Control Officer.
A cat that damages either public or private property or harms
the lawful users or occupants thereof.
A cat having no known owner or custodian or known place of
care or shelter.
The Animal Control Officer is hereby designated
as the official charged with the enforcement of the provisions of
this article.
No person shall own, keep or harbor any cat
over four months of age within the Township of River Vale unless such
cat has been licensed and 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.
A certificate of vaccination shall be issued
to the owner of each cat vaccinated on a form recommended by the state.
A.
Written application for a cat license shall be made
to the Township and shall include the name and address of the owner
and the name, breed, color, age and sex of the cat. The applicant
shall pay the prescribed licensing fee and provide proof of current
rabies vaccination.
B.
The licensing period shall be for one year. Licenses
shall be renewed by January 31 of each year. Application for a license
must be made within 30 days after obtaining a cat over four months
of age. New residents must apply for a license within 30 days of establishing
residence. All other cats must be licensed upon or prior to the cat
reaching four months of age.
[Amended 10-24-1991 by Ord. No. 0-22-91; 8-26-2004 by Ord. No. 0-9-04; 3-14-2005 by Ord. No. 101-2005]
A license shall be issued after payment of a
fee of $10 for each unneutered cat and $7 for each neutered cat. A
late charge of $5 shall be charged for any license issued after January
31.
A.
Upon acceptance of the license application and fee,
the Township shall issue a durable license tag, including an identifying
number, the year of issuance, the municipality and the state. The
license tag shall be attached to the collar of the cat so as to assist
in the identification of a lost cat.
B.
In case a license tag is lost or destroyed, a duplicate
will be issued by the Clerk upon presentation of a receipt showing
the payment of the license fee for the current year and the payment
of a fee of $1 for such duplicate.
[Amended 8-26-2004 by Ord. No. 0-9-04; 3-14-2005 by Ord. No.
101-2005]
C.
License tags shall not be transferable from one cat
to another, and no refunds shall be made should any owner leave the
Township before expiration of the license period.
D.
The provisions of this section shall not be intended
to apply to cats whose owners are nonresidents temporarily within
the Township.
Any person who owns, keeps or harbors any cat
located within the Township of River Vale or permits a cat to enter
the corporate limits of the Township of River Vale shall exercise
sufficient and proper care and control over such animal at all times
so as to prevent the animal from becoming a public nuisance or otherwise
violating this article.
No person owning, keeping or harboring any cat
shall permit it to soil, defile or commit any nuisance on any place
where people congregate or walk or upon any public property whatsoever.
This provision shall apply to all privately owned property in the
Township except the property of the owner or keeper of the cat and
the property owned or controlled by persons who have invited or permitted
the owner or keeper of a cat to bring such cat upon the premises.
No person owning or keeping a cat shall permit
such cat to become a public nuisance as defined herein.
No person shall abandon any cat of any age or
permit a cat to become a stray.
Every female cat in heat shall be confined in
a building or secure enclosure in such a manner that such female cat
cannot come into contact with another cat except for planned breeding.
The Township Council may, by resolution, establish
a pound and appoint an Animal Control Officer whose duties shall include
the enforcement of the provisions of this article. The Township Council
may, when authorized by resolution, contract with the Animal Control
Officer for the collection, keeping, redemption or disposition of
cats when taken into custody in accordance with the provisions hereof.
The Animal Control Officer or authorized agent shall be empowered
to take into his custody and impound cats reasonably believed to him
to be stray or abandoned as defined herein and otherwise enforce the
requirements of this article.
The Animal Control Officer designated and authorized
by the Township Council to enforce the provisions of this article
shall, upon receipt of a complaint that a violation has taken place,
investigate the complaint and, if a violation is found by him to exist,
issue a summons to the owner or keeper or, if the cat is a stray or
abandoned cat, take such cat into custody for a period of seven days
prior to disposition by him in accordance with the provisions of this
article. In addition, any cat that is the subject of a complaint may
be taken into custody if it bears any identification of ownership
and has a known owner or keeper but such owner or keeper cannot be
located after reasonable efforts are made by the Animal Control Officer
to deliver such cat to the owner or keeper.
If a cat bearing identification or evidence
of ownership or place of abode is taken into custody pursuant to the
provisions of this article, the Animal Control Officer or other authorized
person shall immediately thereafter notify the owner or occupant of
such place where the animal was found and taken into custody and that
it may be claimed at a designated location subject to the charges
and fees hereinafter set forth. The Animal Control Officer shall maintain
a record of such notifications, including the date and name and address
of persons notified.
[Amended 8-26-2004 by Ord. No. 0-9-04; 3-21-2005 by Ord. No. 101-2005]
During the aforementioned seven-day custodial
period, any cat so taken into custody may be claimed by its owner
upon payment to the Animal Control Officer or other authorized person
of all reasonable expenses incurred by reason of its detention and
care, not to exceed the sum of $5 for the taking into custody and
maintenance of the said cat for the first 12 hours, plus the sum of
$1 for each additional day or any fraction thereof that said cat has
been in custody. In addition to the foregoing fees and charges a summons
may be issued for the violation of a person who claims such cat as
its owner or keeper.
Any cat which has been taken into custody pursuant
to this article and which has not been reclaimed during the custodial
period may be claimed by any person willing to assume the responsibility
of ownership and custodial charges as set forth above. Otherwise,
the cat may be disposed of in as humane a manner as possible and in
accordance with euthanasia procedures recommended by the American
Veterinary Medical Association.
The Animal Control Officer or his authorized
agent or any municipal officer or agent authorized and empowered to
perform any duty under this article is hereby authorized to enter
upon any premises to enforce the provisions of this article.
No more than four cats shall be kept, maintained
or harbored for more than 90 days in any residential housing unit
or on its grounds. This provision shall not apply to cats which have
been owned prior to the effective date of this article.
[Added 1-23-1992 by Ord. No. 0-29-91]
