[Adopted 12-30-2009 by Ord. No. 09-25 (Ch. 53 of the 1970
Code)]
A.
BOROUGH
CAT
DOG
HABITUAL BARKING
KENNEL
LEASH
LICENSING AGE
OWNER
PERSON
PET SHOP
POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS DOG
POUND
RUNNING AT LARGE
SHELTER
VICIOUS DOG
Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
The Borough of Runnemede, County of Camden, New Jersey.
Any cat, male or female.
Any dog, male or female.
The creating of a noise disturbance from a habitual barking,
yelping or howling dog continuously for 15 minutes or intermittently
for one hour.
Any establishment, location or premises wherein or whereon
more than four dogs or cats, or combination thereof, are harbored,
kept or maintained, or the business of boarding, selling or breeding
dogs or cats for sale is carried on. This shall not apply to the temporary
(until weaned) keeping of dogs or cats which have been born to a female
dog or cat kept on the same premises. Kennels and breeding of dogs
or cats are prohibited in all residential zones.
Any rope, chain, strap or other restraining device.
Any dog or cat which has attained the age of seven months
or which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog or cat, includes
every person having a right of property in such dog or cat and every
person who has such dog or cat in his keeping.
An individual, firm, partnership, corporation or association
of persons.
Any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part
of a kennel, wherein dogs or cats for sale are kept and displayed.
Pet shops are prohibited in all residential zones.
Any dog or dog hybrid declared potentially dangerous by a
municipal court pursuant to Section 7 of P.L. 1989, c. 307 (N.J.S.A.
4:19-23).
An establishment for the confinement of dogs or cats seized
either under the provisions of this article or otherwise.
The presence of any dog or cat, whether licensed or not,
off the lands and premises of its owner and unrestrained by a leash
or otherwise not accompanied by a person who is capable of controlling
it.
Shelters where dogs or cats are received, housed, kept, maintained
or distributed without charge are prohibited in all residential zones.
Any dog or dog hybrid declared vicious by a municipal court
pursuant to Section 6 of P.L. 1989, c. 307 (N.J.S.A. 4:19-22).
B.
Word usage. The singular shall include the plural.
No person shall keep or harbor any dog or cat within the Borough
of Runnemede, in the County of Camden, without first obtaining a license
therefor, to be issued by the Borough Clerk upon application by the
owner and payment of a prescribed fee, and no person shall keep or
harbor any dog or cat in said Borough except in compliance with the
provisions of this article.
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog or cat of licensing
age shall, in the month of January of each year, apply for and procure
from the office of the Borough Clerk a license and official registration
tag for each such dog or cat owned, kept or harbored and shall place
upon each such dog or cat a collar or harness with the registration
tag securely fastened thereto.
A.
The person applying for the license and registration tag shall pay
a fee of $22.20 for the registration of each spayed or neutered dog
or cat and $25.20 for the registration of each unspayed or neutered
dog or cat, before January 31 of each calendar year, effective January
1, 2010. A late fee of $20 shall be charged for each license not applied
for by March 31 of each calendar year.
B.
Any person applying for a license and registration tag for a dog
determined to be potentially dangerous pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-17
et seq. of the laws of the State of New Jersey shall pay an annual
fee of $700.
Dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly known as
"Seeing Eye dogs" shall be licensed and registered as other dogs hereinabove
provided for, except that the owner or keeper of such dog shall not
be required to pay any fee therefor.
The owner of any newly acquired dog or cats of licensing age
or of any dog or cat which attains licensing age shall make application
for a license and registration tag for such dog or cat within 10 days
after such acquisition or age attainment.
A.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough
of Runnemede any dog or cat licensed in another state for the current
year and bearing a registration tag, and who shall keep the same or
permit the same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more
than 90 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration
tag for each such dog, unless such dog or cat is licensed under another
section of this article.
B.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough
any unlicensed dog or cat, and who shall keep the same or permit the
same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 10 days,
shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for each
such dog or cat, unless such dog or cat is licensed under another
section of this article.
A.
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color and markings
of the dog or cat for which the license and registration are sought,
and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety; also, the name,
street and post office address and telephone number of the owner and
the person who shall keep or harbor such dog or cat.
B.
The information on said application and said registration number
issued for the dog or cat shall be preserved for a period of three
years by the Borough Clerk. In addition, the Borough Clerk shall forward
similar information to the State Department of Health each month,
on forms furnished by said Department. Registration numbers shall
be issued by the order of the application.
A.
No person in the Borough of Runnemede shall own, possess, harbor
or have in custody any dog or cat over seven months of age unless
such dog or cat has been vaccinated or inoculated against rabies by
a licensed veterinarian. Such vaccination or inoculation shall consist
of an anti-rabies vaccine of standard and accepted quality and formula,
the duration of which shall be noted on the vaccination certificate
or tag.
B.
No license or registration tag will be issued unless proof of rabies
vaccination or inoculation has been presented to the Borough Clerk.
C.
Registration numbers shall be issued in the order of the applications.
The Borough Clerk shall annually cause a canvass to be made
of all dogs and cats owned, kept or harbored within the limits of
the Borough and shall report to the State Department of Health the
result thereof.
Any person appointed for that purpose by the governing body
of the Borough shall take into custody and impound or cause to be
taken into custody and impounded and thereafter destroyed or disposed
of as provided in this section:
A.
Any dog or cat off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping
or harboring said dog or cat which said official or his agent has
reason to believe is a stray dog or cat.
B.
Any dog or cat off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping
or harboring said dog or cat without a current registration tag on
its collar.
Any officer or agent authorized to perform any duty under this
article is hereby authorized to go upon any premises to seize for
impounding any dog or cat which he may lawfully seize and impound
when such officer is in immediate pursuit of such dog or cat, except
upon the premises of the owner of the dog or cat if said owner is
present and forbids the same. No person shall hinder, molest or interfere
with anyone authorized to perform any duty under this article.
It shall be unlawful for any person to own, keep, maintain,
harbor, or have in possession any dog which, by frequent or habitual
barking, shall cause a nuisance by creating a serious annoyance or
disturbance to any individual or to the neighborhood.
[Amended 4-5-2011 by Ord. No. 11-04]
A.
No person
owning, keeping or harboring any dog or cat shall suffer or permit
it to run at large upon the public streets or in any public park or
in any public building or in any other public place within the Borough
or upon any private premises outside the premises of the owner.
B.
Dogs and
cats shall be permitted within the confines of Beaver Branch Park
during the period when the park is open to the public provided that
said dogs and cats be restrained by a leash at all times while within
the park.
C.
Any person
owning, possessing, harboring, keeping, walking or in custody or charge
of any dog or cat within the confines of Beaver Branch Park shall
comply with all other requirements of this chapter, including but
not limited to registration, property damage and control and cleanup.
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog or cat shall permit
or suffer it to do any injury or to do any damage to any lawn, shrubbery,
flowers, ground or property.
A.
No person owning, possessing, harboring, keeping, walking or in custody
or charge of any dog or cat shall cause, suffer, permit or allow such
dog or cat to soil, defile, defecate on or commit any nuisance on
any common thoroughfare, sidewalk, passageway, bypath, play area,
park, school ground 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; provided, however,
it shall be a complete defense to a violation of this section that
such person immediately shall have removed and disposed of all feces
and droppings deposited by said dog or cat in a suitable and sanitary
manner.
B.
Any person owning, possessing, harboring, keeping, walking or in custody or charge of any dog or cat shall have in his or her possession appropriate sanitary means to remove immediately any feces and droppings which may be deposited by such dog or cat or in the areas enumerated or described in Subsection A above. Such means shall include, but are not limited to, a scooper, shovel, container, disposal bag, wrapper or other implement.
C.
Disposal in a suitable and sanitary manner shall include but shall not be limited to taking the removed feces and droppings home in a container, disposal bag or wrapper and placing the same in a trash can or removing the same from the container, bag or wrapper and depositing the same in the sanitary sewer. In no event shall disposal in a suitable and sanitary matter include the placement of unwrapped feces or droppings in a trash can, or the placement or disposal into a storm sewer or the burial of said feces or droppings on or in property or areas enumerated and described in Subsection A above.
No person owning, possessing, harboring, keeping or in custody
or charge of any dog or cat shall cause, suffer, permit or allow the
accumulation of dog or cat feces or droppings upon his or her property
or upon property occupied by him or her to the extent that the odor
may be noticeable to any adjoining property owner or owners or that
it creates or results in an attraction for vermin breeding or any
other public health nuisance to adjoining property owners and neighbors.
Complaints for the violation of §§ 82-16 82-17 of this article may be filed in the Municipal Court of the Borough of Runnemede by any citizen, special officer or member of the Police Department.
No person, except an officer in the performance of his duties,
shall remove a registration tag from the collar of any dog or cat
without the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach a registration
tag to a dog or cat for which it was not issued.
A.
Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish a kennel
or pet shop shall apply to the Borough Clerk for a license entitling
him to keep or operate such establishment, which application shall
describe the premises where the establishment is located or is proposed
to be located and the purpose for which it is to be maintained and
shall be accomplished by the written approval of the governing body,
showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations
governing the location of and sanitation at such establishment.
B.
All licenses issued for kennels or pet shops shall state the purpose
for which the establishment is maintained, and all such licenses shall
expire on the last day of June of each year and shall be subject to
revocation by the governing body on the recommendation of the State
Department of Health or the Mayor of the Borough of Runnemede, for
failure to comply with the rules and regulations of the State Department
of Health or the ordinances of the Borough governing the same, after
the owner has been afforded a hearing by either the State Department
of Health, or the governing body or as may be required by N.J.S.A.
4:19-15.8.
C.
Any person holding such license shall not be required to secure individual
licenses for dogs or cats owned by such licensee and kept at such
establishments. Such licenses shall not be transferable to another
owner or different premises. Kennels and breeding of dogs or cats
are prohibited in all residential zones.
The annual license fee for a kennel providing accommodations
for 10 or fewer dogs or cats shall be $10 and for more than 10 dogs
or cats shall be $25. The annual fee for a pet shop shall be $10.
No fee shall be charged for a shelter or pound.
No dog or cat kept in a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall
be permitted off such premises, except on a leash or in a crate or
under other safe control.
A.
License fees and other money collected or received under the provisions
of this article, except those fees which are forwarded to the State
of New Jersey, shall be forwarded to the Treasurer of the Borough
and shall be placed in a special account separate from any of the
other accounts and shall be used for the following purposes:
(1)
For collecting, keeping and impounding of dogs or cats liable to
seizure under this article.
(2)
For local prevention and control of rabies.
(3)
For payment of damage to or losses of poultry and domestic animals,
except dogs and cats, caused by an unknown dog or cat.
(4)
For canvass of licensed dogs and cats as prescribed by the State
of New Jersey.
(5)
For administering the provisions of this article.
(6)
For providing for dog and cat control in the Borough.
B.
The registration tag fee of $1.20 for each dog or cat, and all other
fees collected in connection with dog or cat licensing and registration,
shall be forwarded within 30 days after collection by Borough Clerk
to the State Department of Health.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Police Department or Animal Control Officer
of the Borough to receive and investigate complaints against dogs,
in accordance with N.J.S.A. 4:19-1 through 4:19-37.
B.
The Municipal Court of the Borough of Runnemede is charged with determining
whether a dog is vicious or potentially dangerous based on criteria
provided by state statute, N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 through 4:19-37. No dog
which has been so determined to be a vicious or potentially dangerous
dog shall be permitted to run at large or be upon any street or public
place in the Borough of Runnemede, except while securely muzzled and
under leash; and the owner or person harboring any such vicious or
potentially dangerous dog who shall suffer or permit such dog to run
at large or be upon any street or public place in said Borough while
not securely muzzled and under leash shall be guilty of a violation
of this article.
A.
No owner or person in charge shall fail to provide his animals with
humane care and treatment, sufficient, good and wholesome food and
water, proper shelter and protection from the weather and veterinary
care, when needed to prevent suffering.
B.
No person shall beat, cruelly ill-treat, torment, overload, overwork
and otherwise abuse any animal or cause or permit any fight between
animals or between animals and humans.
C.
No owner of an animal shall abandon such animal.
A.
Any person who violates or refuses to comply with any part of the provisions of this article or with the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Department of Health governing the sanitary conduct and operation of kennels, pet shops, shelters or pounds to preserve sanitation therein and prevent the spread of rabies and other diseases of dogs and cats within and from such establishments shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to the penalty as provided in § 1-15, General penalty, of this Code.
B.
Except as provided in N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.19, any person who fails to obtain a dog or cat license and registration tag as herein provided shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to one or more of the following: a maximum fine of $2,000, a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days, or a period of community service of not to exceed 90 days. Any person who violates or fails to comply with any part of § 82-15 or 82-17 shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to the penalty as provided in § 1-15, General penalty, of this Code.
C.
License denial. Any person found violating or refusing to comply
with any part of the provisions of this article, resulting from a
complaint filed in the Municipal Court of the Borough of Runnemede,
by any citizen, special officer or member of the Police Department,
on three or more occasions, shall be denied the issuance of a license
to keep or harbor any dog or cat within the Borough of Runnemede,
and any dog or cat shall be removed by order of the Municipal Court
of the Borough of Runnemede.
