Borough of Penns Grove, NJ Dogs and Cats

Any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding or selling dogs and cats or breeding dogs and cats for sale is carried on, except a pet shop.

OWNER

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.

PERSON

An individual, firm, partnership, corporation or association of persons.

PET SHOP

Any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part of a kennel, wherein dogs and cats for sale are kept or displayed.

POUND

An establishment for the confinement of dogs and cats seized, either under the provision of this article or otherwise.

SHELTER

Any establishment where dogs and cats are received, housed and distributed without charge.

Word usage.

(1)

The words "and" and "or" may be used interchangeably, and either of the two may be applicable, whichever is the more conducive towards the effectuating of this article.

(2)

Personal pronouns shall mean either the singular or the plural, whichever is applicable and conducive towards the effectuating of this article.

§ 181-2 Licensing; fee.

No person shall keep or harbor any dog or cat within the Borough of Penns Grove without first obtaining a license therefor, to be obtained upon application to the Clerk of the Borough of Penns Grove by the owner with payment of the 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 Clerk of the Borough of Penns Grove a license and official metal registration tag for each such dog or cat so owned, kept or harbored and shall place upon each dog or cat a collar or harness with the registration tag securely fastened thereto.

The person applying for the license and registration tag shall pay a fee of $15 for each dog or cat for the registration and tag, unless such person shall present, at the time of application, a certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian stating that the dog or cat has been spayed or neutered, in which case the fee to be paid shall be $12. The fee for renewal of said license and tag shall be the same as the original fee and be due the month of January of each year.

[Amended 4-4-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-7]

Dogs used for guides for blind persons and commonly known as "Seeing Eye" dogs shall be licensed and registration issued as other dogs heretofore provided for, except that the owner or keeper of such dog shall not be required to pay any fee therefor.

The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color and marking of the dog or cat for which license and registration are sought and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety; also, the name and street or post office address of the owner and the persons who shall keep or harbor such dog or cat. The information on said application and the registration number issued for the dog or cat shall be preserved for three years by the Clerk of the Borough. In addition, he shall forward similar information to the State Department of Health each month on forms furnished by said Department. Registration numbers shall be issued in the order of the application.

Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough of Penns Grove any dog or cat licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag and permit said dog or cat to be kept within the Borough of Penns Grove for a period of more than 90 days shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for said dog or cat.

Any person who shall bring into the Borough of Penns Grove any unlicensed dog or cat and 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 said dog or cat.

Any person who does not obtain a dog or cat license and registration tag within the time required under this article shall be assessed a late fee of $10. This late fee shall be in addition to any penalties set forth in § 181-8.

[Amended 4-4-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-7]

§ 181-3 Disposition of fees.

All fees or moneys that are received for this article shall be forwarded to the Clerk of the Borough of Penns Grove to be deposited in an account hereby referred to as the "Canine and Feline Control Account" at the end of each and every month; provided, however, that the registration tag fees shall be forwarded to the State Department of Health within 30 days. This Canine and Feline Control Account will be utilized in conjunction with the existing dog and cat account appropriated by the Mayor and Council.

§ 181-4 Animal Control Officer.

The Borough Council shall have the power to appoint a certified Animal Control Officer, whose duty it shall be to enforce the provisions of this article and to impound unlicensed dogs and cats running at large in violation of the provisions of this article.

The Animal Control Officer of the Borough shall promptly after February 1 of each year cause a canvass to be made of all dogs and cats owned, kept or harbored within the limits of the Borough of Penns Grove and shall report to the Clerk of the Borough, the Board of Health of the Borough and the State Department of Health the results thereof or setting in separate columns the names and addresses of persons owning, keeping or harboring such dogs and cats and the number of licensed dogs and cats, together with a complete description of each said licensed dog and cat.

§ 181-5 Impounding of animals.

[Amended 9-21-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-16]

The Animal Control Officer of the Borough of Penns Grove shall take into custody and impound and dispose of as provided in this section:

(1)

Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog which said official or his agent or agents have reason to believe is a stray dog.

(2)

Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog without a current registration tag on his collar.

(3)

Any female dog in season off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog.

(4)

Any dog or other animal which is suspected to be rabid.

(5)

Any dog or other animal off the premises of the owner reported to, or observed by, a certified Animal Control Officer to be ill, injured or creating a threat to public health, safety or welfare, or otherwise interfering with the enjoyment of property.

If any animal so seized wears a collar or harness having inscribed thereon or attached thereto the name and address of any person or a registration tag, or the owner or the person keeping or harboring said animal is known, the Animal Control Officer shall serve on said person a notice, in writing, stating that the animal has been seized and will be liable to be offered for adoption or destroyed if not claimed within seven days after the service of the notice in accordance with N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16. A notice under this section may be served either by delivering it to the person on whom it is to be served or by leaving it at the person's usual or last known place of abode, or at the address given on the collar, or by forwarding it by post in a prepaid letter addressed to that person at his usual or last known place of abode, or to the address given on the collar.

Any officer or agent authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this article is hereby authorized to go upon any premises to 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 performing any duty which he is authorized or empowered to perform under this article.

§ 181-6 Running at large.

[Amended 9-21-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-16]

No person owning, keeping or harboring any animal shall allow, permit or suffer it or permit it to run at large upon another's lands, whether public or private, without first obtaining the owner's consent. Dogs and cats, when off the property of their owner or keeper, shall at times be under leash and within the actual physical control of such owner or keeper and not merely within such person's call. Nothing in this article shall be construed to limit or prohibit the normal use of hunting dogs in appropriate areas during the normal hunting season.

The Animal Control Officer or his agent shall take into custody and impound or cause to be taken into custody and impounded, and thereafter destroyed or offered for adoption as provided in § 181-5B, any dog running at large in the Borough of Penns Grove. This shall include any dog off the premises of the owner or the person keeping or harboring such dog unless said dog is restrained on a leash as hereinbefore provided.

§ 181-7 Barking and howling.

No person who owns, keeps, harbors or possesses any dog or dogs or any cat or cats shall suffer or permit such dog or dogs or such cat or cats to annoy neighbors and other persons living in his immediate vicinity by loud or continued barking or howling. When a complaint shall be made in writing, under oath, by two or more persons that such barking or howling is continued for unreasonable periods of time to the annoyance and discomfort of the complainants and their neighbors, so that it can be established that such barking or howling is a nuisance to the immediate neighborhood, then such owner or keeper shall cause such barking or howling to immediately cease or terminate. Should such barking or howling again occur, the owner or keeper of such dog or cat shall be deemed to have violated the provisions of this section and shall be subject to the penalty set forth for this article.

§ 181-8 Violations and penalties.

[Amended 7-5-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-5]

Unless otherwise provided in N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.19, any person who shall violate any of the provisions of any part of this article, hereby referred to as the "Dog and Cat Ordinance," shall, upon conviction by the Municipal Court, be subject to a penalty as provided in § 1-2 of this Code.