[Adopted 4-6-1971 by Ord. No. 1971-2]
As used in this article, the following
terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The harboring, keeping and having any right of property in
a dog or dogs within the Township of Shamong.
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog, it shall include
any person or persons, partnership or corporation harboring, keeping,
owning or having a right of property in a dog or dogs in the Township
of Shamong.
Any dog or dog hybrid declared potentially dangerous pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 4:19-23.
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
Any dog or hybrid declared vicious pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-22.
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
A.
No dog, whether licensed or unlicensed, shall be allowed
upon the streets or roads of the Township of Shamong or in public
places such as hotels, restaurants, theatres, public conveyances and
the like, or on any property other than that of the owner without
the consent of the property owner, unless on a suitable, sturdy lead
not more than six feet in length, held by its owner or other person
capable of controlling said dog.
B.
A female dog in season must be confined to the house
or pen. When she is being exercised or walked, she must be on a lead
with a responsible adult. During this period in season, said dog shall
not be chained in an open yard or area at any time.
A.
No person shall keep, harbor or own any dog which
by habitual barking, yelping or howling, or by the creation of obnoxious
odors or by constant threat of biting, shall cause clear annoyance
to people passing to and fro upon the public streets or to people
on neighboring properties. The foregoing behavior of any dog is declared
to be a nuisance.
B.
No person shall be cruel or inhuman to a dog, said
cruelty and inhumanity consisting of torturing, mutilating, cruelly
killing or clear failure to provide food, drink or shelter for a dog
or abandoning an old, sick or disable dog.
A.
Any dog running at large or any dog off the premises
of the owner of said dog and not on a leash, or any dog off the premises
of the owner of said dog without a current registration tag on his
collar, or any dog reasonably suspected of being rabid, shall be seized
promptly by any police officer or by the Animal Control Officer and
impounded in the dog pound or shelter.
B.
The owner of said dog, if licensed, and if unlicensed,
the owner of the dog if known, or if it can be ascertained upon reasonably
diligent inquiry, shall be notified that the dog has been seized and
will be liable to be disposed of or destroyed if not claimed within
five days after notice.
C.
Where any dog has been seized and detained for five
days after giving notice, or where no notice has been able to be given
and the dog has been detained for five days after seizure and said
dog has not been claimed by its owner and all expenses incurred by
reason of its detention, including maintenance, in the amount of $2
a day and costs of picking up and detaining the dog in the amount
of $5, have not been paid, and if the dog be unlicensed at the time
of its seizure and the owner of said dog has not produced a license
or registration tag for said dog, the Animal Control Officer may cause
the dog to be destroyed in a manner causing as little pain as possible.
The Animal Control Officer shall be paid by the Township for the boarding
of the unclaimed dog during the mandatory five-day period.
D.
A dog impounded on account of being or reasonably
suspected of being rabid or having been bitten by a rabid dog shall
be held for a period of 10 days after seizure. If the dog survives
the quarantine time of 10 days, it shall be returned to its owner
promptly on the day after and without any cost to its owner, having
been properly fed and cared for during the ten-day period.
E.
The Animal Control Officer may segregate from unclaimed
dogs to be put to death such worth or valuable dogs as may be purchased
because of their value or because previous request have been received
to purchase the same.
A.
The Animal Control Officer shall keep a careful record
of all dogs received by him, describing each dog carefully, describing
clearly and fully the disposition of each dog.
B.
A pound or shelter shall be kept at all times in a
sanitary manner, be managed efficiently and humanely, and the dogs
shall be fed properly.
A.
Any person or persons, partnership or corporation
owning a dog within the Township of Shamong, which by its noise-making
or threat of biting, or any person who allows an animal to run at
large throughout the Township, or any person who is cruel or inhuman
to a dog or anyone who violates any provision of this article shall
be subject to a penalty of not more than $200 or 30 days in jail,
or both.
B.
Liability of owner for costs of impoundment and destruction.
If a dog is declared vicious or potentially dangerous pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq., and all appeals pertaining thereto have
been exhausted, the owner of the dog shall be liable to the Township
of Shamong for the costs and expenses for impounding a vicious or
potentially dangerous dog in the municipal pound in the amount of
$35 per day and of destroying a vicious dog in the amount of $35.
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
C.
The owner shall incur the expense of impounding the
dog in a facility other than the municipal pound, regardless of whether
the dog is ultimately found to be vicious or potentially dangerous.
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
The state statute governing vicious and potentially
dangerous dogs, N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq., is hereby incorporated in
this article by reference.
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
A.
The owner of a dog declared to be potentially dangerous
pursuant to 4:19-23 shall apply to the Township Clerk for a potentially
dangerous dog license, municipal registration number and red identification
tag. The Township Clerk shall issue same upon written verification
from the Municipal Animal Control Officer that the owner has complied
with the orders of the panel convened pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-21.
The owner shall annually renew said potentially dangerous dog license.
B.
The fee for issuance of a potentially dangerous dog
license and each annual renewal thereof shall be $1,000.
[Amended 7-10-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-06]
[Added 12-4-1990 by Ord. No. 1990-12]
The Township Clerk shall publicize a telephone
number for reporting violations of the Act establishing requirements
for owners of vicious and potentially dangerous dogs, N.J.S.A. 4:19-17
et seq., and shall forward this number to the State Department of
Health.
