[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough of Rutherford
Council 12-18-1945 by Ord. No. 1464, effective 12-18-1945. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Amended 8-18-2020 by Ord. No. 3532-20]
For the purpose of this chapter, the following
terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings
stated herein unless their use in the text of this chapter clearly
demonstrates a different meaning. When not inconsistent with the context,
words used in the present tense include the future, words used in
the plural number include the singular number, and words used in the
singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always
mandatory and not merely directory.
Any dog, bitch or spayed bitch.
The pet solid waste is removed at once, without delay.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
Any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding
or selling dogs or breeding dogs for sale is carried on, except a
pet shop.
Any person who shall possess, maintain, house or harbor any
pet or otherwise have custody of any pet, whether or not the owner
of such pet.
[Amended 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
Any individual, corporation, company, partnership, firm,
association, or political subdivision of this state subject to municipal
jurisdiction.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
A domesticated animal (other than a disability-assistance
animal) kept for amusement or companionship.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
Any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part
of a kennel, wherein dogs for sale are kept or displayed.
Waste matter expelled from the bowels of the pet; excrement,
feces.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
An establishment for the confinement of dogs seized either
under the provisions of this chapter or otherwise.
Placement in a designated waste receptacle, or other suitable
container, and discarded in a refuse container which is regularly
emptied by the municipality or some other refuse collector; or disposal
into a system designed to convey domestic sewage for proper treatment
and disposal.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
Any establishment where dogs are received, housed and distributed
without charge.
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog
within the limits of the Borough of Rutherford, which has attained
the age of seven months or which possesses a set of permanent teeth,
shall apply for and procure from the Chief of Police a license and
official metal registration tag for each such dog owned, kept or harbored.
Said registration tag shall be securely fastened to a dog collar or
harness to be worn by the dog at all times.
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915; 5-17-1966 by Ord. No. 1958-66; 1-17-1967 by Ord. No. 1970-67; 2-7-1984 by Ord. No. 2363-84; 12-30-1996 by Ord. No. 2785-96]
A.
Applications for licensing and registration of dogs
shall be made during the month of January of each year. In addition,
any dog that has not been previously licensed or registered shall
make application during the month that the dog has been inoculated
with a rabies vaccine pursuant to the regulations of the Start Department
of Health or by June 30 of the year of inoculation, whichever occurs
first. The applicant shall pay an annual fee of $7 per year for a
license for each neutered or nonneutered dog owned, kept or harbored.
If a license tag is misplaced or lost, the Police Department may issue
a duplicate license for that particular dog for a fee of $6. The fees
shall not be apportioned pro rata.
[Amended 9-14-2004 by Ord. No. 3062-04]
B.
Applications for licensing of potentially dangerous
dogs shall be made annually during the month of January to the Chief
of Police. The applicant shall pay a fee of $700 for a license for
a potentially dangerous dog. All licenses shall expire annually on
January 31.
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
Each application shall state the breed, sex,
age, color and markings of the dog for which license and registration
are sought and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety 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
recorded on a card record in the office of the Chief of Police and
be preserved for a period of at least three years.
No dog, whether licensed or not, shall be permitted
to leave the premises of the person who owns, harbors or keeps such
dog unless securely held by a leash in the hands of a person able
to control said dog.
[Added 3-18-1958 by Ord. No. 1735; amended 5-6-1980 by Ord. No. 2279-80; 9-26-2006 by Ord. No.
3120-06]
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons owning,
harboring or having the care, custody or control of any dog to permit
such dog to soil, defile, urinate on, defecate on or commit any nuisance
upon any common thoroughfare, sidewalk, passageway, public street,
play area, park or any place where people congregate or walk or upon
any public property whatsoever or upon any private property without
the permission of the owner of said property.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons owning,
harboring or having the care, custody or control of any dog to permit
such dog to walk upon or play, roll, or run, on any Rutherford Board
of Education property, or to soil, defile, urinate on, defecate on,
or commit any nuisance upon any sidewalk, passageway, play area, park
or any place owned by the Rutherford Board of Education, including
the following properties:
C.
The restriction in this § 26-6 shall not apply to that portion of a street lying between the curblines, which portion may be used to curb such dog, provided that such person shall immediately remove all feces deposited by such dog as follows:
(1)
In no event shall any feces be deposited in any refuse
container or any other place or item owned by the Rutherford Board
of Education. In no event shall any feces be deposited in sewers
or drains, whether storm or sanitary.
(2)
Feces shall be picked up with a scoop, shovel, broom, tong or other similar implement and be deposited directly into an airtight container, plastic or otherwise, and then subsequently deposited in a container used for the disposal of refuse or by any other method approved by the Board of Health, except as stated in § 26-6C(1) above.
(3)
All pet owners and keepers are required to immediately
and properly dispose of a pet's solid waste deposited on any property,
public or private, which property is not owned or possessed by that
person.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07[1]]
(4)
Exemptions. Any owner or keeper who requires the use
of a disability-assistance animal shall be exempt from the provisions
of this section while such animal is being used for that purpose.
[Added 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07]
D.
Enforcement. The provisions of this chapter shall
be enforced by the Police Department and the Health Department of
Borough of Rutherford.
[Amended 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 3140-07; 8-18-2020 by Ord. No. 3532-20]
E.
Exemptions.
Any owner or keeper who requires the use of a disability assistance
animal shall be exempt from the provisions of this section while such
animal is being used for that purpose.
[Added 8-18-2020 by Ord. No. 3532-20]
The Mayor and Council shall establish a dog
pound and appoint an Animal Warden.[1]
The Animal Warden shall take into custody and
impound and thereafter destroy or dispose of as provided in this section:
A.
Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person
keeping or harboring said dog which said Warden has reason to believe
is a stray dog.
B.
Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person
keeping or harboring said dog without a current registration tag on
his collar.
C.
Any female dog in season off the premises of the owner
or of the person keeping or harboring said dog.
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
If any dog so seized wears a collar or harness
having inscribed thereon or attached thereto the name and address
of any person, or a registration tag, or the owner or the person keeping
or harboring said dog is known, the Animal Warden shall immediately
notify the office of the Chief of Police in writing, setting forth
the full information available. The Chief of Police shall forthwith
serve notice upon 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 or destroyed if not claimed within seven
days after the service of the notice.
A notice under this chapter may be served either
by delivering it to the person on whom it is to be served or 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 usual or last known place of abode
or to the address given on the collar.
[Amended 5-17-1966 by Ord. No. 1958-66, effective
1-1-1967]
The owner or person entitled to the custody
of any dog so seized and impounded may redeem said dog upon making
payments for a certificate of release at the office of the Chief of
Police in accordance with the following schedule:
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
When any dog so seized has been detained for
seven days after notice or for seven days after seizure when information
is not available for serving a notice, the Animal Warden may cause
the dog to be disposed of or destroyed in a manner causing as little
pain as possible and file a written report of such disposal immediately
at the office of the Chief of Police.
[Amended 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
Any person who keeps or operates or proposes
to establish a kennel, pet shop or a shelter shall apply to the office
of the Chief of Police for a license entitling him to keep or operate
such establishment.
A.
The application shall describe the premises where
the establishment is located or is proposed to be located and the
purpose or purposes for which it is to be maintained and shall be
accompanied by the written approval of the local health authorities
showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations
governing location of and sanitation at such establishments.
B.
All licenses issued for a kennel, pet shop or shelter
shall state the purpose for which the establishment is maintained,
and all such licenses shall expire on the last day of January of each
year and be subject to revocation by the municipality on recommendations
of the State Department of Health or the local Board of Health for
failure to comply with the rules and regulations of the State Department
or local Board governing the same after the owner has been afforded
a hearing by either the State Department or local Board.
Any person holding such license shall not be
required to secure individual licenses for dogs owned by such licensee
and kept at such establishments. Such licenses shall not be transferable
to another owner or different premises.
The annual license fee for a kennel providing
accommodations for 10 or fewer dogs shall be $10; and for more than
10 dogs, $25. The annual license fee for a pet shop shall be $10.
No fee shall be charged for a shelter.
[Added 4-22-1964 by Ord. No. 1915]
A.
License fees and other moneys collected or received
under the provisions of this chapter, except registration tag fees,
shall be forwarded to the Borough Treasurer within 30 days after collection
or receipt and shall be placed in a special account separate from
any of the other accounts of the Borough which shall be used for the
purpose provided by law.
B.
The registration tag fee required by law for each
dog shall be forwarded within 30 days after collection by the Chief
of Police, the official designated by this chapter to license dogs,
to the State Department of Health for disposition pursuant to law.
No dog kept in a kennel, pet shop or shelter
shall be permitted off such premises, except on a leash or in a crate
or other safe control.
Any dog running at large and acting in a vicious
manner or showing signs of rabies may be destroyed by any police officer
or Animal Warden without capture and removal to the pound.[1]
[Amended 8-6-1991 by Ord. No. 2610-91; 5-7-1996 by Ord. No. 2758-96]
Any person who shall interfere with, hinder
or molest said Animal Warden or any person or persons in the performance
of the duties imposed upon them under this chapter shall be punished
by a fine of $50 for each offense.
[Amended 5-7-1996 by Ord. No. 2758-96]
A.
No vicious dog shall be permitted to leave the premises
of the person who owns or harbors it unless securely muzzled as well
as held by a leash. Any person who shall suffer or permit any such
vicious dog, owned, kept or harbored by him, to go upon the streets
or any public place in the Borough of Rutherford or upon any premises
other than those owned by the person owning or harboring said dog,
unless said dog shall be securely muzzled and held by a leash, shall,
upon conviction, be subject to a fine of $40 for the first offense.
B.
Any person who shall suffer or permit any such vicious
dog owned, kept or harbored by him to go upon the streets or any public
place in the Borough of Rutherford or upon any premises other than
those owned by the person owning or harboring said dog, unless said
dog shall be securely muzzled and held by a leash, shall, upon conviction,
be subject to a fine of $100 for the second and each subsequent offense.
[Amended 8-6-1991 by Ord. No. 2610-91; 5-7-1996 by Ord. No. 2758-96]
Any person found guilty of violating any provisions of this chapter other than those contained in §§ 26-20 and 26-21 herein shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine as listed below, except that, when a person is found guilty of violating any provisions of this chapter other than those contained in §§ 26-20 and 26-21 herein and the involved dog has bitten a person or persons within three days of the violation, the person shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine as listed below in § 26-22C and D respectively:
Ordinance No. 54, entitled "An Ordinance to
Provide a Public Pound Within the Borough of Rutherford and the Appointment
of a Poundmaster Therefor," adopted on June 17, 1889, and Ordinance
No. 1389, entitled "An Ordinance to Provide for the Licensing and
Regulating of Dogs in the Borough of Rutherford," adopted March 16,
1937, be and they are hereby repealed.
[Amended 8-18-2020 by Ord. No. 3532-20]
Each section, subsection, sentence, clause and
phrase of this chapter is declared to be an independent section, subsection,
sentence, clause and phrase, and the finding or holding of any such
portion of this chapter to be unconstitutional, void, or ineffective
for any cause, or reason, shall not affect any other portion of this
chapter.
