[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Trappe as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 5-1-1979 by Ord. No. 213 (Part
5, Ch. 3, of the 1987 Code)]
The position of Dog Control Officer is created.
Council shall appoint or contract with a suitable person, organization
or corporation as Dog Control Officer.
It shall be the duty of every citizen or inhabitant
of the Borough who is the owner of any dog or at whose home or on
his premises any dog is harbored or kept, to confine and secure that
dog and any such person shall be deemed to be the "owner" of the dog
for the purposes of this article. It shall be unlawful for the owner
of any dog on his premises, licensed or unlicensed, to permit that
dog to run at large, unaccompanied by the owner or person acting for
the owner, in the Borough. A person accompanying the dog shall be
considered as accompanying the dog only if the dog is on a leash not
more than six feet in length.
It shall be the duty of the Dog Control Officer
to seize and detain any dog, whether it be licensed or unlicensed,
which is found running at large either upon any public street or highway
in the Borough or upon property of other than the owner of the dog.
Before entering any private property to seize or detain any dog found
running at large, the Dog Control Officer shall first obtain permission
of the owner of the property; if the owner cannot be found, then permission
shall be obtained from the tenant or occupier.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to keep any pig
or hog or to maintain any pig pen or hog pen anywhere in the Borough,
except on a farm where the buildings are so located that the keeping
of pigs or hogs would not become obnoxious.
B.
It shall be unlawful and a public nuisance for any
person to keep, maintain, or allow to be kept or maintained upon premises
under the control of such person, any animal or fowl which creates
or causes audible noise or sound, which is audible off the premises
to such an extent that the sleep, rest, quiet, and repose of nearby
residents is disturbed or interrupted during the day or night.
It shall be the responsibility of dog owners
to keep their dogs from scratching, digging, defecating or urinating
upon any lawns, trees, shrubs, plants, buildings or any other public
or private property, excluding the property of the owner. The owner
of any dog, in the event such dog defecates on any property other
than that of the owner, shall immediately remove and dispose of all
feces so deposited in a sanitary manner. Also, it is the responsibility
of the owners of all animals to properly clean and otherwise maintain
his pounds, kennels, yards, and other areas in which such animals
are kept to prevent the creating of any nuisance, health hazard, or
odor.
Any expenses incurred by the Dog Control Officer
in seizing or detaining dogs which are not paid by the owner or owners
upon claiming those dogs, shall be paid by the Borough to the Dog
Control Officer, if incurred by him, and if not incurred by him, then
to the person to whom the same may be due and owing. Such costs or
expenses are declared to be the obligation of the owner or one who
harbored or kept the dog and may be collected from him by the Borough
by any appropriate legal proceeding.
It shall be unlawful for any person to interfere
with the Dog Control Officer while the Dog Control Officer is engaging
in the proper performance of his duties.
Any person who violates or who refuses to comply
with any provision of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary
proceeding, be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $15 or more
than $300 and costs of prosecution, and, in default of payment of
fine and costs, to undergo imprisonment for not more than 10 days.
It is the intent that this article shall be
supplemental to any laws of the commonwealth now in force or in the
future enacted relating to dogs.
[Adopted 7-7-1994 by Ord. No. 298 (Part
5, Ch. 7, of the 1987 Code)]
No person owning, harboring, keeping or in charge
of any dog shall cause or allow such dog to soil, defile, or defecate
upon any other person's private property without the permission of
such other person or upon any public property. Where such person shall
immediately remove all feces deposited by the animal and dispose of
the same in a sanitary manner, the nuisance created by defecation
shall be considered abated, and such person shall not be in violation
of this article.
Guide dogs accompanying a blind person, dogs
used to assist any other physically handicapped persons or animals
used in any police or fire activities shall be exempt from provisions
of this article.
A.
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by
the Code Enforcement Officer, his duly authorized representatives
or any officer of the Borough.
B.
In undertaking the enforcement of this article, the
Borough is assuming only to promote the general welfare. The Borough
is not assuming, nor is it imposing on any of its officers or employees,
an obligation for breach of which it is liable in law or equity to
any person who claims that any breach proximately caused injury.
C.
A violation of this article shall not be considered
negligence per se.
A.
For any and every violation of the provisions of this
article, the owner, agent or any party directly or indirectly violating
this article shall be liable upon conviction to a fine not exceeding
$300, plus costs of prosecution, for each and every offense, and,
in default of payment of such fine and costs, to imprisonment in the
Montgomery County Prison for not more than 30 days.
B.
Each day that the violation continues shall constitute
a separate offense punishable by a like fine or imprisonment.
