FIGHTING
The fighting or baiting of a living animal as set forth in
N.J.S.A. 4:22-24 and N.J.S.A. 4:22-26.
PERSON
Any person, corporation, partnership or other association.
POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS DOG
Any dog or dog hybrid declared potentially dangerous by a
Municipal Court pursuant to Section 8-36, below and N.J.S.A. 4:19-23.
VICIOUS DOG
Any dog or dog hybrid declared vicious by a Municipal Court pursuant to Section
80-35, below and N.J.S.A. 4:19-22.
An animal control officer shall seize and impound a dog when
the officer has reasonable cause to believe that the dog:
A. Attacked a person and caused death or serious bodily injury as defined
in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-l(b) to that person;
B. Caused bodily injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(a) to a person
during an unprovoked attack and poses a serious threat of harm to
persons or domestic animals;
C. Engaged in dog fighting activities; or
D. Has been trained, tormented, badgered, baited or encouraged to engage
in unprovoked attacks upon persons or domestic animals.
The dog shall be impounded until the final disposition as to
whether the dog is vicious or potentially dangerous. Subject to the
approval of the Municipal Health Officer, the dog may be impounded
in a facility or other structure agreeable to the owner.
If the Municipal Court declares the dog to be potentially dangerous,
it shall issue an order and a schedule for compliance which, in part:
A. Shall require the owner to comply with the following
(1) To apply, at his/her own expense, to the official designated to license dogs, for a special municipal potentially dangerous dog license, municipal registration number, and red identification tag issued pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-30 and Section
80-42 below. The owner shall, at his own expense, have the registration number tattooed upon the dog in a prominent location. A potentially dangerous dog shall be impounded until the owner obtains a municipal potentially dangerous dog license, municipal registration number, and red identification tag;
(2) To display, in a conspicuous manner, a sign on his/her premises warning
that a potentially dangerous dog is on the premises. The sign shall
be visible and legible from fifty (50) feet of the enclosure required
pursuant to paragraph A,(3) of this subsection.
(3) To immediately erect and maintain an enclosure for the potentially
dangerous dog on the property where the potentially dangerous dog
will be kept and maintained, which has sound sides, top and bottom
to prevent the potentially dangerous dog from escaping by climbing,
jumping or digging and within a fence of a least six (6) feet in height
separated by at least three (3) feet from the confined area. The owner
of a potentially dangerous dog shall securely lock the enclosure to
prevent the entry of the general public and to preclude any release
or escape of a potentially dangerous dog by an unknowing child or
other person. All potentially dangerous dogs shall be confined in
the enclosure or, if taken out of the enclosure, securely muzzled
and restrained with a tether approved by the Animal Control Officer
and having a minimum tensile strength sufficiently in excess of that
required to restrict the potentially dangerous dog's movements
to a radius of no more than three (3) feet from the owner and under
the direct supervision of the owner;
B. May require the owner to maintain liability insurance in an amount
determined by the Municipal Court to cover any damage or injury caused
by the potentially dangerous dog. The liability insurance, which may
be separate from any other homeowner policy, shall contain a provision
requiring the municipality in which the owner resides to be named
as an additional insured for the sole purpose of being notified by
the insurance company of any cancellation, termination or expiration
of the liability insurance policy. The limits of liability insurance
coverage shall not be less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.)
per incident.
The owner of the dog, or the Animal Control Officer in the municipality
in which the dog was impounded, may appeal any final decision, order
or judgment, including any conditions attached thereto, of a Municipal
Court pursuant to this Article and N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq. by filing
an appeal with the Superior Court, Law Division, in accordance with
the Rules Governing The Courts of the State of New Jersey pertaining
to appeals from courts of limited jurisdiction. The Superior Court
shall hear the appeal by conducting a hearing de novo in the manner
established by those rules for appeals from courts of limited jurisdiction.
If the Municipal Court finds that the dog is not vicious or
potentially dangerous, the Municipal Court shall retain the right
to convene a hearing to determine whether the dog is vicious or potentially
dangerous for any subsequent actions of the dog.
The owner of a potentially dangerous dog shall:
A. Comply with the provision of this Article in accordance with a schedule
established by the Municipal Court, but in no case more than sixty
(60) days subsequent to the date of determination;
B. Notify the licensing authority, local Police Department and the Animal
Control Officer if a potentially dangerous dog is at large, or has
attacked a human being or killed a domestic animal;
C. Notify the licensing authority, local Police Department or force,
and the Animal Control Officer within twenty-four (24) hours of the
death, sale or donation of a potentially dangerous dog;
D. Prior to selling or donating the dog, inform the prospective owner
in writing that the dog has been declared potentially dangerous;
E. Upon the sale or donation of the dog to a person residing in a different
municipality, notify the State Department of Health and the licensing
authority, Police Department or force, and Animal Control Officer
of that municipality of the transfer of ownership and the name, address
and telephone of the new owner; and
F. In addition to any license fee required pursuant to law, pay a potentially dangerous dog license fee to the municipality as provided in Section
80-42 below.
The owner of a potentially dangerous dog who is found to have
violated this act, or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto,
or to have failed to comply with a Court's order shall be subject
to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.) per day
of the violation, and each day's continuance of the violation
shall constitute a separate and distinct violation. The Municipal
Court shall have jurisdiction to enforce this section. An Animal Control
Officer is authorized to seize and impound any potentially dangerous
dog whose owner fails to comply with the provision of this ordinance,
or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto, or a Court's
order. The Municipal Court may order that the dog so seized and impounded
be destroyed in an expeditious and humane manner.