[Adopted 5-28-1974 by Ord. No. 628 (Ch. 31, Art. I of the 1966 Code)]
The following terms, wherever used or referred to in this article, shall have the following respective meanings, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
CLERK
The Borough Clerk of the Borough of Emerson.
COURT
Includes any court having jurisdiction over any offense committed under this article, and shall include any judge, recorder, magistrate, police judge or other officer presiding in said court.
DOG
Any dog, either male or female, over the age of six months.
KENNEL
The conducting of the business of harboring, raising or otherwise dealing in and with dogs, and any person harboring more than five dogs shall be presumed to conduct a kennel.
PERSON or PERSONS
Includes any individual, partnership, association or corporation.
PET SHOP OPERATOR
A person who owns or operates a pet store, or both.
[Added 6-14-2016 by Ord. No. 1524]
PUPPY MILL
A commercial dog-breeding facility in which the health of the dogs is disregarded in order to maintain a low overhead and maximize profits.
[Added 6-14-2016 by Ord. No. 1524]
A. 
It shall not be lawful for any person within the limits of the Borough of Emerson to own, keep or harbor any dog or dogs without having the same registered or licensed in the manner hereinafter provided.
B. 
It shall not be lawful for any person to maintain a dog kennel without obtaining a license as hereinafter provided.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218]
Any person owning, harboring or keeping any dog or dogs within the Borough of Emerson who shall fail, neglect or refuse to register each and every dog so owned, harbored or kept, or any person who shall own, harbor or keep any dog or dogs which shall have no license tag attached to the collar, as hereinafter provided, shall, upon conviction thereof, be liable to a fine of not more than $500 or shall be imprisoned in the local or county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days, or both.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218]
No dog, whether licensed or unlicensed, shall be permitted to run at large within the limits of the Borough of Emerson. Any dog found upon any public streets or places in said Borough or upon the property of other than the owner of said dog in said Borough in violation of this section shall be impounded by an animal shelter, or such other agency as may be designated by the Mayor and Council, and destroyed, unless redeemed as hereinafter provided.
Any person desiring to have a dog registered shall present a signed application to the Clerk upon blanks to be furnished by him, which shall set forth:
A. 
The name and address of the applicant and owner.
B. 
The breed, sex, age and color markings of the dog.
C. 
The place where the dog shall be kept.
D. 
An agreement that the dog proposed to be registered and licensed will be confined in the place designated in the application and will not be permitted to run at large and, when not so confined, that said dog will be kept under strict control of its master or other responsible person by leash.
E. 
That a metal tag with the registration number stamped thereon shall, at all times, be fastened to a collar or harness on said dog and that said registration tag or number is not transferable and will be used on the registered dog only.
F. 
That, should said dog so registered or licensed as aforesaid be found at large within the Borough of Emerson and apprehended and taken to the public pound and notice thereof sent by postal card to the registered owner as indicated by the metal tag found on the dog when so impounded, said owner shall redeem said dog from the pound within seven days from the mailing of said notice and pay therefor the sum of $4 for the use of the Borough. In the event that said owner shall fail or neglect to redeem said dog from the public pound within the time aforesaid, said tag or license shall be taken up and the same shall thereupon become immediately void, and said dog may be destroyed or disposed of as herein provided.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
When such application has been properly executed and delivered to the Clerk, the Clerk shall issue to said applicant a proper registration certificate, which shall be numbered in accordance with the consecutive numbers of all such certificates, and also a metal dog license or registration number of suitable design and bearing the same number as the certificate, which shall at all times be affixed to the collar or harness of said dog.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by Ord. No. 1524]
A. 
License. Any person desiring to obtain a license to conduct a dog kennel shall apply to the office of the Clerk of the Borough of Emerson for a license entitling him to keep or operate such establishment.
B. 
Application. The application for a kennel shall set forth the name of the owner of the proposed kennel and the location where the same is to be conducted within the limits of the Borough of Emerson; include an agreement that all dogs kept in said establishment by permission of said kennel license will, at all times, be kept upon the premises for which said license has been issued; include the number of dogs which the owner intends to keep at said dog kennel, which number shall not, at any time, be exceeded; and shall be accompanied by the written approval of the Animal Control Officer of the Borough showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations governing the location of any sanitation at such establishment.
C. 
Content of license; expiration. All licenses for a kennel shall state the purpose for which the establishment is maintained, and all such licenses shall expire on the last day of June of the following year.
D. 
Issuance or denial of kennel license. When such application to conduct a dog kennel has been properly executed and delivered to the Clerk, the Clerk shall present the same to the Borough Council and, after the Borough Council has considered the same and considered the place where said kennel is to be located and the number of dogs which are to be maintained therein, the Council may grant said license, or, if the public interest demands, the Borough Council may refuse to grant the same.
[Added 6-14-2016 by Ord. No. 1524[1]]
No kennel shall sell, offer for retail sale, barter, auction, or otherwise, dogs bred in puppy mills. Every kennel will comply with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 56:8-95 (or as same may be amended) requiring the owner or operator offering dogs for sale to post in a conspicuous location on the cage or enclosure for each dog the following:
A. 
The date and place of birth of each dog, and the actual age, or approximate age as established by a veterinarian, of the animal;
B. 
The sex, color markings, and other identifying information of the animal, including any tag, tattoo, collar number, or microchip information;
C. 
The name and address of the veterinarian attending to the animal while the animal is in the custody of the kennel, and the date of the initial examination of the animal;
D. 
The first and last name of the breeder of the animal, the full street address of where the breeder is doing business, an email address, if available, by which to contact the breeder, the breeder's USDA license number, and, if the breeder is required to be licensed in the state in which the breeder is located, the breeder's state license number;
E. 
If the broker is different from the breeder, the first and last name of the broker of the animal, the full street address of where the broker is doing business, an email address, if available, by which to contact the broker, the USDA license number of the broker, and, if the broker is required to be licensed in the state in which the broker is located, the broker's state license number; and
F. 
The statement "know your rights" in bold type face and no less than twelve-point type, followed by the statement in no less than ten-point type, "state law requires that every shop offering dogs for sale post in a conspicuous location on or near each dog's cage or enclosure the USDA inspection reports for the breeder and broker of each dog for the two years prior to the first day that the dog is offered for sale. If you do not see a required inspection report, please request the report from the shop. If you have any concerns, please contact the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, 124 Halsey St., Newark, NJ 07102, (973) 504-6200. You may also view these and other USDA inspection reports for the breeder and broker of each dog on the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) website. You are entitled to receive additional information from APHIS about the breeder's or broker's history through the federal Freedom of Information Act."
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former § 140-8, Issuance or denial of kennel licenses.
[Amended 12-23-1975 by Ord. No. 656; 12-28-1976 by Ord. No. 665; 12-8-1981 by Ord. No. 789; 12-14-1982 by Ord. No. 811; 8-23-1983 by Ord. No. 830; 12-18-1990 by Ord. No. 977]
A. 
License fees.
(1) 
The annual fee for registering each dog shall be the sum of $10. This total shall include the following:
[Amended 11-20-2007 by Ord. No. 1339; 6-15-2010 by Ord. No. 1408]
(a) 
License fee: $8.80.
(b) 
State of New Jersey Department of Health as per P.L. 1983, c. 181[1]: $0.20.
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.3c.
(c) 
State registration: $1.
(2) 
Effective January 1, 2011, the municipal dog license official shall collect $13 for any dog of reproductive age which has not had its reproductive capacity permanently altered through sterilization in accordance with P.L. 1983, c. 172.[2] Of this sum, $3 shall be designated for the Animal Population Control Fund. Rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provision of this subsection are to be in accordance with those promulgated by the State of New Jersey, Community Health Services, Consumer Health Services.
[Amended 6-15-2010 by Ord. No. 1408]
[2]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.3b.
(3) 
The annual fee for a kennel shall be as prescribed by the Board of Health in § 294-1 of this Code.
[Amended 4-20-2021 by Ord. No. 1627-21]
B. 
Renewal of licenses. All licenses, registration tags and renewals thereof shall expire on the last day of January in each year and shall be applied for and procured from the officer authorized to issue the same during the month of January in each year.
C. 
Late renewal. In the event an expired license is not renewed prior to February 1, there will be a grace period until February 10 of each year. If your payment is not postmarked by February 10 or delivered by hand and marked received by the Borough with a date stamp of February 10, an additional charge will be imposed in the amount of $25. A court fine may be imposed by the court through the issuance of a summons after the current year has ended.
[Amended 11-20-2007 by Ord. No. 1339; 6-15-2010 by Ord. No. 1408; 4-23-2013 by Ord. No. 1456; 10-18-2022 by Ord. No. 1657-22]
[Added 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218[1]]
Animal services may be contracted for by the Mayor and Council for a period not to exceed three years.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed original § 31-10, Dog Warden.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Any owner of any dog which has been licensed and which may be impounded shall pay the sum of $4, which sum is to be paid to the animal shelter, to redeem any dog so impounded. All impounded licensed dogs shall be destroyed by humane methods within not less than seven days after notification of such impounding shall have been given by the animal shelter to the registered owner of said dog. All impounded unlicensed dogs shall be destroyed by humane methods within not less than seven days after such impounding, unless the owner thereof shall procure a license therefor, as herein provided, and pay, in addition thereto, a fee of $4 for redeeming said dog, and such owner of such unlicensed dog shall also be subject to the other provisions of this article violated by such owner.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
It shall be the duty of the animal shelter, immediately following the taking and impounding of any dog, pursuant to the provisions of this article, to cause a notice, in writing, to be mailed to the registered owner of said dog of the taking and impounding of any such dog and that the same will be destroyed unless claimed by said owner within seven days from the mailing of said notice. The procedure for impoundment of dogs shall be as prescribed by N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218]
The animal shelter shall report monthly to the Council the number of dogs impounded, redeemed or destroyed by him, together with fees collected by him, and the same shall be paid by said animal shelter to the Treasurer of the Borough.
[Amended 2-18-2003 by Ord. No. 1218; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Except as otherwise provided in § 140-3, any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be liable to a fine not to exceed $500 or to confinement in the county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days, or both, in the discretion of the court before which said complaint shall be heard and conviction obtained.