No person shall own, keep or harbor a dog in the City except
in compliance with the provisions of this chapter and the following
regulations.
[1972 Code § 9-8.1]
All dogs which are required by the provisions of this chapter
to be licensed shall wear a collar or harness with the registration
tag for such dog securely fastened thereto.
[1972 Code § 9-8.2]
No person, except an Officer in the performance of his duties,
shall remove a registration tag from the collar of any dog without
the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach a registration
tag to a dog for which it was not issued.
[1972 Code § 9-8.3]
No person shall hinder, molest or interfere with anyone authorized
or empowered to perform any duty under this chapter.
[1972 Code § 9-8.4]
No person shall own, keep, harbor or maintain any dog which
habitually barks or cries between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 8:00
a.m.
[1972 Code § 9-8.5]
No person owning, keeping or harboring any dog shall suffer
or permit it to run unleashed upon the public streets or in any public
park, public building or other public place within the City.
[1972 Code § 9-8.6]
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog shall suffer or
permit it to be upon the sidewalk, public street, or in any of the
public places of the City unless the dog is accompanied by its owner
or keeper and is securely confined and controlled by an adequate leash
not more than four feet long. The owner or keeper of the dog shall
at all times, while the dog is off the premises of the owner or keeper,
prevent it from defecating on any sidewalk or upon the private property
of any person, firm or corporation other than that of the owner or
keeper.
[1972 Code § 9-8.7]
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog shall permit or
suffer it to do any injury, or to do any damage to any lawn, shrubbery,
flowers, grounds or property.
[1972 Code § 9-8.8; Ord. No. O-07-11 § 1; amended 8-17-2022 by Ord. No. O-22-25]
It shall be the duty of any person who owns, possesses or controls
a pet to have the means with him to remove any feces left by the pet
on any gutter, street or public area, and to dispose of same in a
sanitary manner; however, this subsection shall not be applicable
to a guide dog accompanying a blind person.
Summons and/or Notice of Violation of any provision of this
section shall be cause for an enforcement document to be issued to
the violator by the Police Department, Animal Control Officer, Litter
Inspector, Parking Enforcement Officers, or any municipal officials
designated or authorized by either the Department of Public Works,
Director of Municipal Services, Director of Public Safety or the Health
Officer employed by the City. The recipient of an enforcement document
shall be entitled to a hearing in a municipal court having jurisdiction
to contest such action. The penalty therefore is a fine of not more
than $1,250.
[1972 Code § 9-8.9]
No dogs, leashed or unleashed, are permitted in any public playground
area or in any playground in a public park.
[1972 Code § 9-9]
Where it has been determined by a physician that a person has
been bitten by a dog, such individual, or his parent or guardian if
he is a minor, shall immediately notify the Police Department. When
the owner or keeper of any dog shall be notified by the Police Department
that the dog has bitten any individual or individuals, the owner or
keeper of the dog must comply with the following procedures:
a.
Have
the dog examined by a licensed veterinarian within 12 hours.
b.
Have
the dog kept in quarantine in the owner's home or at a kennel for
a period of 10 days.
c.
At
the end of 10 days have the dog re-examined by a veterinarian and
a written report of the dog's state of health sent to the Health Department.
[1972 Code § 9-6.1]
It shall be the duty of the Police Department and the Animal Control Officer to receive and investigate complaints against dogs. If they deem any dog complained of to be a vicious dog, as defined in Section 5-1, they shall report their findings in writing to the Judge of the Municipal Court.
[1972 Code § 9-6.2]
The Judge of the Municipal Court shall notify in writing the
owner or keeper of an allegedly vicious dog that a complaint has been
made and require such person to appear before him at a stated time
and place for a hearing. The Judge shall conduct the hearing in the
same manner as he would conduct the trial of a criminal case. If the
Judge decides that the dog complained of is a vicious dog, he shall
so notify the owner or keeper of the dog.
[1972 Code § 9-6.3]
No person owning or keeping a vicious dog shall permit such
dog to be off the property of the owner or keeper without being securely
muzzled.
[1972 Code § 9-7.1]
The Animal Control Officer shall take into custody and impound,
or cause to be taken into custody and impounded, any of the following
dogs:
a.
Any unlicensed dog running at large in violation of the provisions
of this chapter.
b.
Any dog off the premises of the owner of or the person keeping or
harboring such dog which the Animal Control Officer or his Agent has
reason to believe is a stray dog.
c.
Any dog off the premises of the owner of or the person keeping or
harboring such dog without a current registration tag on its collar.
d.
Any female dog in season off the premises of the owner of or the
person keeping or harboring such dog.
[1972 Code § 9-7.2]
Any Officer or Agent authorized or empowered to perform any
duty under this chapter is hereby authorized to go upon any premises
to seize for impounding any dog which he may lawfully seize and impound
when such Officer is in immediate pursuit to such dog, except upon
the premises of the owner of the dog if the owner is present and forbids
same.
[1972 Code § 9-7.3]
If any dog so impounded or seized wears a registration tag,
collar or harness having inscribed thereon or attached thereto the
name and address of any person or the owner of or the person keeping
or harboring the dog is known, the Animal Control Officer shall immediately
serve on the person whose address is given on the collar, or on the
person owning, keeping or harboring the dog, a notice in writing stating
that the dog has been seized and will be liable to be humanely disposed
of or destroyed if not claimed within seven days after service of
the notice.
A notice under this subsection 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 mail 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.
[1972 Code § 9-7.4]
The Animal Control Officer is authorized and empowered to cause
the destruction of any unclaimed dog, in as humane a manner as possible,
under any of the following contingencies:
a.
When any dog so seized has not been claimed by the person owning,
keeping or harboring such dog within seven days after notice or within
seven days of the dog's detention when notice has not been or cannot
be given, as set forth in the previous subsection.
b.
If the person owning, keeping or harboring any dog so seized has
not claimed the dog and has not paid all expenses incurred by reason
of its detention, including maintenance, not to exceed $5 for the
first day, and $1 per day for each additional day.
c.
If the seized dog is unlicensed at the time of its seizure and the
person owning, keeping or harboring such dog has not produced a license
and registration tag as provided in this chapter.
[1972 Code § 9-7.5]
No dog shall be sold or used for vivisection.
[1972 Code § 9-5; Ord. No. O-09-28 § 2]
The Health Officer shall designate an employee or employees
of his Division to annually cause a canvass to be made of all dogs
owned, kept or harbored within the limits of the City. This employee
shall report on or before May 1 of each year to the Animal Control
Officer, the Division of Health and to the State Department of Health
the results thereof, setting forth in separate columns the names and
addresses of persons owning, keeping or harboring unlicensed dogs,
the number of unlicensed dogs owned, kept or harbored by each of such
persons, together with a complete description of each unlicensed dog.
