As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ANIMAL CONTROL AUTHORITY
Any person or agency designated or certified by the State of New Jersey to enforce the provisions of this article.
CAT
Any member of the domestic feline species, male, female or altered.
CAT OF LICENSING AGE
Any cat which has obtained the age of six months or which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
LICENSING AUTHORITY
The agency or department of the Township of Wayne or any designated representative thereof charged with administering the issuance and/or revocation of permits and licenses under the provisions of this article.
NEUTERED
Rendered permanently incapable of reproduction as certified by a licensed veterinarian.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of the cat, includes every person having a right of property (or custody) in such cat and every person who has such cat in his/her keeping, or who harbors or maintains a cat or knowingly permits a cat to remain for 2 or more meals on or about any premises occupied by that person.
[Ord. No. 53-2014]
PERSON
Any individual, corporation, partnership, organization or institution commonly recognized by the law as a unit.
A. 
Vaccination and licensing requirements. No person shall own, keep, harbor or maintain any cat over six months of age within the Township of Wayne, unless such cat is vaccinated and licensed. The provisions of this section do not apply to cats held by a State or Federally licensed research facility or a veterinary establishment where cats are received or kept for diagnostic, medical, surgical or other treatments or to licensed animal shelters, pounds, kennels or pet shops.
B. 
Vaccination. All cats shall be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian in accordance with the latest Compendium of Animal Rabies Vaccines and Recommendations for Immunization, published by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, except as provided for in Subsection D.
C. 
Vaccination certificate. A certificate of vaccination shall be issued to the owner of each animal vaccinated on a form recommended by the State.
D. 
Exemptions. Any cat may be exempted from the requirements of such vaccination for a specified period of time by the Department of Health, upon presentation of a veterinarian's certificate stating that because of the infirmity or other physical condition or regimen for therapy, the inoculation of such cat shall be deemed inadvisable.
A. 
Cats must have license number displayed. Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a cat of licensing age shall annually apply for and procure from the Department of Health, or other official designated by the Governing Body thereof to license cats in the municipality in which he or she resides, a license and official license tag for each cat so owned, kept or harbored and shall place upon such cat a collar or other device with the license number securely fastened or displayed thereto. Acceptable methods of displaying license numbers shall include but not be limited to breakaway or elastic collars. License tags are not transferable. In lieu of a use of a collar or other device as aforementioned, the license number and other pertinent information shall be tattooed in the cat's ear at the expense of the owner, keeper or harborer of such cat. Any cat not displaying a current license number shall be considered to be a stray cat and shall be subject to being taken into custody of the Township by its agents, and impounded at the Township designated animal shelter for disposition in accordance with the shelter's policies and procedures.
B. 
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor for more than 2 meals a cat of licensing age in the Township shall, in the month of January of each year, apply for and procure from the Township Department of Health a license for each cat so owned, kept or harbored.
[Ord. No. 53-2014]
C. 
Cats brought into jurisdiction.
(1) 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Township any unlicensed cat, and who shall keep the same or permit the same to be kept within the Township for a period of more than 10 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for each such cat.
D. 
Application; contents; preservation of information. The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color and markings of the cat for which the license and registration are sought and whether it is of a long-hair or short-hair variety; also the name, street and post office address and email address of the owner and the person who shall keep or harbor such cat. The information on said application and the registration that was issued for the cat shall be preserved for a period of three years by the Department of Health or other local official designated to license cats in the municipality.
E. 
License forms and tags. License forms and official tags shall be furnished by the municipality and shall be numbered sequentially and shall bear the year of issuance and the name of the municipality.
F. 
Evidence of inoculation with rabies vaccine or certificate of exemption; requirement for license. The Department of Health or other official designated by the Governing Body of any such municipality to license cats therein shall grant any such license and official registration tag for any cat when the owner thereof provides evidence that the cat to be licensed and registered has been inoculated with the rabies vaccine of a type approved by and administered in accordance with the recommendations of the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Unit Services or has been certified exempt as provided by a New Jersey licensed veterinarian. The rabies inoculation shall be administered by a duly licensed veterinarian or such other veterinarian permitted by law to do the same.
G. 
License fee schedule. A license shall be issued after payment of a fee as set forth in Chapter 75, Fees.
H. 
Fees, renewals and expiration date of license; license from another municipality shall be accepted.
(1) 
The person applying for the license and registration tag shall pay the fee fixed or authorized. Said fees shall be for one year or any fraction thereof commencing January 1 of that year, and expiring on December 31 of that year. Renewals are due no later than February 15 of each year, or the applicant will be subjected to a late fee, as set forth in Chapter 75, Fees.
(2) 
Only one license and registration tag shall be required in the licensing year for any cat in the Township. Any valid New Jersey license tag issued by a New Jersey municipality shall be accepted by the municipality as evidence and compliance.
I. 
Loss of license. If a license tag has been misplaced or lost, the Health Department may issue a duplicate license for that particular cat for a fee as set forth in Chapter 75, Fees.
J. 
Proof of licensing. Proof of licensing shall be produced by a person owning, keeping, maintaining or harboring a cat upon the request of any health official, police officer, Animal Control Officer or other authorized person.
A. 
It shall be unlawful in the Township to keep or harbor more than five cats on any property in the Township.
B. 
The keeping of six cats or more shall be considered a violation of this article, punishable as provided in Chapter 1, Section 1-15, Violations and Penalties of the Township Code.
No person shall abandon his/her cat for any period of time or fail to provide his/her cat with food and water, proper shelter and protection from the elements. The cat shall be provided with veterinary care as needed. If an injured or sick cat is found and the identity of the owner is unknown, the individual who found the cat may, in his/her discretion, bring the cat to a veterinary clinic for emergency first aid care. The emergency first aid care shall be that degree of care which, in the opinion of the veterinarian, is necessary to stabilize the condition of the cat. The Township will pay for the cost of the emergency veterinary care, as provided in Chapter 75, Fees, provided said care is authorized by the Township Health Officer. If the owner is located, the bill for veterinary care will be the responsibility of the owner. If the injury is considered critical and terminal in the opinion of the attending veterinarian, and the owner is still unknown, the injured cat will be euthanized under the seven (7) day provisions of N.J.A.C. 8:23A-1.10(a).
This article shall be enforced by the Township Police Department and/or the Animal Control Officer.