[Adopted 6-21-1977 by Ord. No. 2521]
This article shall be known and may be cited as "The Dog and Rabies Ordinance of 1977."
Singular words shall include the plural. Masculine words shall include the feminine and the neuter. As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
KENNEL
Any establishment wherein dogs are kept for the purpose of breeding, boarding, sale, or show purposes and which is so constructed that dogs cannot stray therefrom.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog, shall include every person having a right of property in such dog, and every person who keeps or harbors such dog or has it in his care, and every person who permits such dog to remain on or about any premises occupied by him.
PERSONS
Includes local officials or employees, individuals and dog control officers.
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by the Director of the Department of Health and/or his agent(s).
No person shall own, keep or harbor any dog within the Township limits unless such dog is licensed as required by Act No. 437 (1965) by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or its amendments.
Upon complying with the provisions of § 222-4 of this article, every owner is required to see that the current license tag is securely fastened to the dog's chain, collar or harness, which must be worn by the dog at all times, unless the dog, accompanied by the owner, is engaged in hunting or other sport where a collar might endanger the dog's safety.
The owner shall keep his dog under restraint at all times and shall not permit such dog to be at large, off the premises or property of the owner, unless on a leash and under the control of a competent person.
A. 
Unlicensed dogs or dogs found running at large shall be taken up by the appropriate enforcement official as designated by the Director of the Department of Health and impounded in the shelter designated as the Township Animal Shelter, or any other suitable place, and there confined in a humane manner for a period of up to two days; and may thereafter be disposed of in a humane manner if not claimed. Dogs not claimed after the expiration of two days shall become the property of the Department of Health of the Township of Upper Darby and may be disposed of at the discretion of the appropriate enforcement officers, except as hereinafter provided in the case of licensed dogs.
B. 
The appropriate enforcement officers may transfer title of all animals held by it at its shelter to the Humane Society after the legal detention period has expired and the animal has not been claimed.
C. 
The owner of any unlicensed dog shall be entitled to resume possession of said dog only upon compliance with the licensing provisions of § 222-4 of this article and upon the payment of all impounding fees as per § 222-10 of this article, all reasonable expenses and any fines which may be assessed.
A. 
The appointed enforcement officer shall cause any dog bearing a proper license tag and seized while running at large to be detained, properly kept and fed, and shall cause immediate notice, either personal or by registered mail, to be given to the person in whose name the license was procured, or his agent, to claim such dog within five days. The owner of a dog so detained shall pay the impounding fees as per § 222-10 and all reasonable expenses incurred before the dog is returned, plus any fines which may be assessed.
B. 
Any dog impounded under the provisions of this article and not reclaimed by its owner within five days may be humanely destroyed by the appropriate enforcement officer and/or have its title transferred to the Humane Society.
In the event that the appropriate enforcement officer for any reason is unable to impound either a licensed or unlicensed dog, as set forth in §§ 222-7 and 222-8 above, he shall cite the owner or owners of said dog for violation of this article as set forth herein.
A. 
Any dog impounded hereunder may be reclaimed as herein provided upon payment by the owner to the Township of Upper Darby the sum of $7.50 for each night such dog is kept, plus any additional expenses which may be incurred. All fees set forth herein shall be paid to the Upper Darby Township Treasurer, Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, or his designed agent.
B. 
The above impoundment fees are to be levied against the dog owner of record, or the known dog owner, regardless whether the dog is reclaimed or disposed of.
C. 
Cost fees of $7.50 per night are the minimal cost fee permitted. Cost fees will include all reasonable expenses incurred in the detention of a dog. Fees are subjected to change as cost to the Township changes.
A. 
Vicious dogs. The owner shall confine within a building or secure enclosure every fierce, dangerous, or vicious dog and shall not take such dog out of such building or secure enclosure unless such dog is securely muzzled and leashed.
B. 
Female dogs in heat. Every female dog in heat shall be kept as follows:
(1) 
Confined to the owner's property or in a veterinary hospital or boarding kennel in such manner that such female dog cannot come in contact with another dog; or
(2) 
Firmly secured by means of a collar and chain or other device so that it cannot stray beyond the premises on which it is secured; or
(3) 
Under the reasonable control of some person.
C. 
Any animal described in the foregoing subsections of § 222-11 of this article found at large shall be impounded by the appropriate enforcement officer and may not be redeemed by owners unless such redemption is authorized.
A. 
Every dog which bites a person shall be promptly reported to the Upper Darby Township Health Department, which will cause the owner of said dog to:
(1) 
Have the dog examined by a veterinarian immediately for rabies. The dog's owner will deliver the veterinarian's health certificate to the Health Officer's office immediately.
(2) 
Have the dog securely quarantined at the direction of the Health Officer for a period of 10 days and not be released from such quarantine except by written permission of the Health Officer. At the discretion of the Health Officer, such quarantine may be on the premises of the owner, at the shelter designated as the Township Animal Shelter, or in a veterinary hospital.
(3) 
After the 10 days, another examination must be made by a veterinarian, and the veterinarian's health certificate must be delivered by the dog owner to the appointed Health Officer's office immediately.
(4) 
All examinations and quarantine costs are to be at the dog owner's expense.
(5) 
In the cases of stray animals or in the cases of animals whose ownership is not known, such quarantine shall be at the shelter designated as the Township Animal Shelter.
(6) 
Upon demand made by the Health Officer, the owner shall forthwith surrender any dog which has bitten a human, or which is suspected as having been exposed to rabies, for supervised quarantine, which expense shall be borne by the owner, and the dog may be reclaimed by the owner if adjudged free of rabies, upon payment of fees set forth in § 222-10 of this article and upon compliance of licensing provisions set forth in § 222-4 of this article.
B. 
When an animal under quarantine has been diagnosed as being rabid, or suspected by a licensed veterinarian as being rabid, and dies while under such observation, the appropriate Health Officer shall immediately send the head of such animal to the appropriate Health Department for pathological examination.
C. 
When a laboratory report, either preliminary or final, gives a positive diagnosis of rabies, the Health Officer for the Township of Upper Darby shall declare a Township-wide quarantine for a period of 30 days, and upon the invoking of such quarantine, no dog or other animal shall be permitted to be at large except on a leash and accompanied by a responsible person during such period of quarantine. During such quarantine, no animal may be taken or shipped from the Township without permission of the appropriate enforcement officer. During this quarantine period and as long afterward as he decides it is necessary to prevent the spread of rabies, the local Health Officer shall require all dogs, three months of age and older, to be vaccinated against rabies with a canine rabies vaccine approved by the Biologics Control Section of the United States Department of Agriculture.
(1) 
The types of approved canine anti-rabies vaccine to be used and the recognized duration of immunity for each shall be established by the local Health Officer. All vaccinated dogs shall be restricted (leasing or confinement on enclosed premises) for 30 days after vaccination. During the quarantine period, the local Health Officer shall be empowered to provide for a program of mass immunization by the establishment of temporary emergency canine rabies vaccination clinics strategically located throughout the Township.
(2) 
No such dog which has been impounded by reason of its being a stray, unclaimed by its owner, is allowed to be adopted by the Animal Shelter during the period of rabies emergency quarantine except by special authorization of the Health Officer.
D. 
During such period of rabies quarantine as herein mentioned, every animal bitten by an animal adjudged to be rabid shall be forthwith destroyed or, at the owner's expense and option:
(1) 
Animals which have been vaccinated for rabies, and whose vaccination is still considered medically valid (e.g., a dog having received a rabies vaccination within the past two years and a cat, one year) must be vaccinated and quarantined for three months under professional veterinary supervision.
(2) 
Unvaccinated animals bitten by a rabid animal must be vaccinated and quarantined for six months under professional veterinary supervision.
E. 
In the event there are additional positive cases of rabies occurring during the period of the quarantine, such period of quarantine may be extended for an additional three months.
F. 
No person shall kill or cause to be killed any rabid animal, any animal suspected of having been exposed to rabies, or any animal biting a human, except as herein provided, nor remove same from the Township limits without written permission from the Health Officer.
G. 
The carcass of any dead animal exposed to rabies shall, upon demand, be surrendered to the appropriate Health Officer.
H. 
The Health Officer shall direct the disposition of any animal found to be infected with rabies.
I. 
No person shall fail or refuse to surrender any animal for quarantine or destruction as required herein when demand is made thereof by the appropriate Health Officer.
J. 
Vaccination of animals against rabies:
(1) 
It shall be the duty of each owner of an animal in the Township of Upper Darby within 45 days after the passage of this article to have his animal vaccinated against rabies or to establish, by a valid vaccination certificate, that such animal has heretofore been duly vaccinated and that the period of immunity for rabies afforded thereby has not expired. It shall be the duty of each such owner to have his animal revaccinated at the interval of time and with the specified vaccine licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture for the particular type of animal (every two years for dogs, every one year for cats).
(2) 
The burden of proof for current rabies vaccination rests solely upon the owner of the animal. Unvaccinated animals acquired or moved into the Township of Upper Darby shall be vaccinated within 30 days after arrival, or if under five months of age, shall be vaccinated within 30 days after reaching that age. Animals temporarily brought into this Township and remaining here less than 30 days, if properly confined, need not be vaccinated unless required by any of the foregoing regulations or by the health laws of Pennsylvania.
It shall be the duty of every physician, or other practitioner, to report to the Health Officer the names and addresses of persons treated for bites inflicted by animals, together with such other information as will be helpful in rabies control.
It shall be the duty of every licensed veterinarian to report to the appropriate Health Officer his diagnosis of any animal observed by him as a rabies suspect.
The licensing and vaccination requirements of this article shall not apply to any dog belonging to a nonresident of the Township and kept within the Township for not longer than 30 days, provided all such dogs shall at all times while in the Township be kept within a building enclosure or vehicle or be under restraint by the owner, except any provision of this article dealing with rabies and rabies quarantine.
A. 
For the purpose of discharging the duties imposed by this article and to enforce its provisions, the Health Officer is empowered to demand proof from a dog owner that his dog is licensed.
B. 
The burden of proof of the fact that a dog has been licensed or has been imported for breeding trial or show purposes or that the dog is under the age of six months shall be on the owner of the dog.
C. 
Any dog not bearing a license tag shall prima facie be deemed to be unlicensed.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to interfere with any officer or agent in the enforcement of this law.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to forcibly cut the leash or take a dog away from such officer having it in his possession when said dog is found running at large.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to whom a license certificate has been issued to fail or refuse to produce the license certificate for such dog upon the demand of the Health Officer.
A. 
It shall be the duty of the Director of Health to keep, or cause to be kept, accurate and detailed records of the licensing, impoundment, and disposition of all dogs coming into his custody.
B. 
It shall be the duty of the Director of Health to keep or cause to be kept accurate and detailed records of all bite cases reported to him and the investigation of same.
A. 
No person shall allow their dog(s) to bark where such dog barking, howling, etc., becomes a nuisance.
B. 
The person(s) complaining of the dog barking must sign a private complaint with the local Magisterial District Judge naming the offending dog owner.
A. 
Attack-trained dogs are a potential hazard to the community. These dogs are not pets and under no circumstances will be permitted loose upon the Township. It will be the duty of a police officer to destroy any loose dog he has reason to believe is a loose attack-trained dog.
B. 
Attack-trained dogs must be confined in a secured building. Where the dog is to be used to prowl an exterior area, that area must be securely fenced by a cyclone-type fencing or fence of similar confinement qualities at least eight feet high.
C. 
Should it be necessary to transport an attack-trained dog outside of a secured compound (as in Subsection B above), said dog must be securely leashed and muzzled, except where the Mayor deems it necessary in the performing of police functions for the protection of the community.
Any dog which has bitten one or more persons, without good cause, shall be deemed to be vicious. No person may own a vicious dog within the Township of Upper Darby. Any such dog may be destroyed at the owner's expense.
A. 
It will be unlawful for a dog owner to allow his dog to defecate on public or private property. If the dog does defecate on public or private property, the owner must clean up the defecation immediately.
B. 
It will be unlawful for a dog owner to allow dog defecation to accumulate on his property to the point it becomes a health hazard and/or public nuisance.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
This article shall be enforced by the filing of a non-traffic criminal citation with the Magisterial District Judge with jurisdiction over the violation or as otherwise permitted by the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure. Any person, firm, or corporation who violates the provisions of this article shall, upon being found guilty in a summary criminal proceeding, be sentenced to pay a fine of $300 plus any extraordinary expenses of the Township incurred in the prosecution of the criminal case.
If any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this article should be declared invalid for any reason whatsoever, such decision shall not affect the remaining portions of this article which shall remain in full force and effect, and to this end the provisions of this article are hereby declared to be severable and are intended to be severable.