[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of
the City of North Tonawanda 3-2-1999.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance was originally
adopted as Ch. 34 but was renumbered to maintain the alphabetical
order of the Code.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A cat of any age which shall be left unattended, unclaimed,
unlicensed or at large for a period of 72 hours or more.
An officer or agency designated by the Common Council.
[Added 10-7-2014]
A cat not confined, outside an area of escape such as a pen,
corral, yard, cage, house, vehicle, or other secure enclosure, unless
otherwise under appropriate human control.
[Added 10-7-2014]
Any animal of a feline species.
A group of one or more community cats.
[Added 10-7-2014]
Any cat that is:
[Added 10-7-2014]
A cat that is social towards humans, that currently lives
within the residence or on the property of a person or persons accepted
as the cat's owner and that is considered appropriate as a companion
for humans.
[Added 10-7-2014]
A straight-line cutting of the tip of the left ear of a cat
with the cat is anesthetized.
[Added 10-7-2014]
To permanently sterilize male cats to render them incapable
of impregnating female cats by means of either surgery performed to
remove the reproductive organs or chemical sterilization by which
the cats are injected with a drug approved by the United States Food
and Drug Administration for that purpose.
[Added 10-7-2014]
Every person having a property right in a cat and every person
keeping, harboring or feeding a cat for more than 48 hours. This provision
shall not include a person who keeps or feeds a cat on behalf of an
owner at the owner's request to accommodate the owner's temporary
needs.
An individual, firm, partnership, corporation or association
of persons.
A cat that causes damage to public or private property or
causes harm to any person.
To permanently sterilize female cats to prevent estrus (heat)
cycles and eliminate their ability to become pregnant by means of
either surgery performed to remove the ovaries and uterus or chemical
sterilization by which the cats are injected with a drug approved
by the United States Food and Drug Administration for that purpose.
[Added 10-7-2014]
To spay or neuter a cat.
[Added 10-7-2014]
A cat having no known owner or custodian.
A program in which community cats are humanely trapped, evaluated,
vaccinated, sterilized and ear tipped by a veterinarian and returned
to the trap location with the intent of controlling or reducing feline
population and reproduction.
[Added 10-7-2014]
A person licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the
State of New York.
[Added 10-7-2014]
It shall be the duty and responsibility of every
owner of any cat to exercise and maintain such care and control over
it that it does not become a nuisance, as set forth in this chapter,
within the confines of the city.
A cat shall become a nuisance whenever it shall
engage in or conmlit any of the following within the confines of the
city:
A.
Injure or threaten injury to persons or other domestic
animals or birds.
B.
Injure property, including lawns, flowers, shrubs
and trees.
C.
Upset or otherwise interfere with garbage receptacles.
D.
Be found in any commercial establishment without the
consent or permission of the owner thereof.
E.
Be kept or placed by its owner under cruel, unsanitary
or otherwise inhumane conditions or be abandoned by its owner.
F.
Defecate, urinate, dig or otherwise damage property
other than the property of the owner.
G.
Engage in loud or habitual crying or whining or conduct
itself in such a manner as to unreasonably and habitually disturb
the comfort or repose of any person other than the owner of such cat.
A.
The owner of every cat shall be responsible for maintaining
such animal in safe, sanitary and healthful surroundings and in such
a manner as will not constitute a nuisance to neighboring property
owners or to the public.
B.
It shall be unlawful to keep, harbor, maintain or
permit more than an unreasonable number of cats on any premises, regardless
of the number of owners. For the purposes of this subsection, an unreasonable
number of cats shall mean a number in excess of the number that may
be safely maintained in sanitary and healthful conditions on the premises
without constituting a nuisance to neighboring property owners. The
existence of noxious odor unsightly litter or violations of other
provisions of this chapter shall be deemed to constitute such a nuisance.
For the purposes of this subsection, proof that more than five cats
are kept, harbored, maintained or permitted at any premises shall
constitute prima facie evidence of an unreasonable number in violation
of this subsection; however, the owner of such cats may refute such
evidence by showing to the court that such cats are, in fact, maintained
in a safe, sanitary and healthful condition and do not constitute
a nuisance to neighboring owners, and such proof shall constitute
a defense to a charge under this subsection.
No cat shall be sheltered, maintained or harbored
that is not domesticated. The area where cats are kept shall be clean
and sanitary and shall not create a disturbance by reason of noise,
odor or other causes. No person shall abandon any cat or permit a
cat in his custody to become a stray.
No cat shall cause damage to any person or property.
Any person who owns, maintains or harbors any cat that causes such
damage shall be strictly liable for the damage and may be prosecuted
for a violation of this chapter.
No person shall harbor, maintain or feed any
unlicensed or stray cat. Any person who shall do so following receipt
of a notice from the Animal Warden advising said person that a violation
of this chapter is occurring may be prosecuted if he continues such
activities.
A.
Any person who observes or has knowledge of a cat
violating any provision of this chapter may file a signed complaint
under oath, with the Animal Warden of the city specifying the objectionable
conduct of the cat and the name and address, if known, of the owner
or other person harboring said cat.
B.
Upon receipt by the Animal Warden of any such complaint,
or in the event that any cat is found by the Animal Warden to be in
violation of any provision of this chapter, the Animal Warden shall,
if possible, seize and take into custody said cat and, in any event,
issue or deliver to the owner of said cat an appearance ticket detailing
the violations and instructing the owner to appear before the City
Court or to answer such appearance ticket by registered or certified
mail, return receipt requested, within five days of the date of such
violation. If said appearance ticket is disregarded by such person,
the Animal Warden or complainant may file an information with said
Court which Court may then issue a warrant for the arrest of such
person.
C.
Any person thereafter convicted of a violation of
this chapter shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $250 or up
to 15 days in jafl or by a civil penalty not exceeding $1,000.
Any cat found in violation of this chapter will
be seized by the Animal Warden, and the owner, in order to obtain
possession of the cat, must pay a fine and per diem expenses incurred
in the keeping of said cat. The expense shall be in such amounts as
follows:
A.
On the first pickup of any cat, a fine of $25 for
the release of said cat, if said cat is released at the city's holding
area, to be paid to the City Clerk, or, if released at the Society
of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), a fine of $25 plus
per-diem expenses shall be paid to the SPCA, which shall reimburse
the city on a monthly basis for the flues so collected. The per-diem
expenses shall be retained by the SPCA.
B.
On the second pickup of the cat, a fine of $50 for
the release of said cat shall be imposed.
[Added 10-7-2014[1]]
TNVR of community cats shall be legal in the City of North Tonawanda,
and interested citizens are encouraged to participate in and support
TNVR activities on a voluntary basis.
A.
All persons who attempt to trap community cats for TNVR in the City
of North Tonawanda should be familiar with the guidelines supported
by regional and national feral and community cat organizations regarding
appropriate methods of TNVR.
B.
Socialized cats and all kittens subject to TNVR shall be eligible
to be, but not mandated to be, re-socialized and put up for adoption.
C.
An ear-tipped cat received by local shelters shall be returned to
the location where trapped unless veterinary care is required. A trapped,
ear-tipped cat shall be released on site unless veterinary care is
required. TNVR programs shall be permitted to feed, water and care
for trapped cats until they are released.
D.
Notice. All persons wishing to engage in TNVR must annually advise
the office of the City Clerk/Treasurer. All TVNR programs shall provide
the following information:
E.
Upon receipt of the TNVR notice, the City Clerk-Treasurer shall maintain
a log of TNVR programs within the City of North Tonawanda.
F.
Failure to provide the requisite notice to the City Clerk-Treasurer
prior to implementation of a TNVR program shall be considered a violation
of this section.
If any section of this chapter shall be adjudged
invalid, the remainder of this chapter shall be deemed valid and effective.
