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Village of Suamico, WI
Brown County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
In this chapter:
ANIMAL
Includes every living:
(1) 
Warm-blooded creature (except a human being);
(2) 
Reptile;
(3) 
Amphibian; or
(4) 
Bird.
No person may treat any animal, whether belonging to the person or another, in a cruel manner. No person shall cruelly treat, inhumanely beat, under feed, overload, or abandon any animal in the Village. No person shall cause or allow any place where any animal is or may be kept to become unclean or unwholesome.
(1) 
No person, owner, or custodian shall permit an animal to be at large within the Village. Any animal shall be deemed to be at large when it is off the premises owned or leased by its owner or custodian unless crated, penned, or under the control of a person able to control the animal by means of a leash of sufficient strength to control the action of the animal or such other personal attention as will reasonably control the conduct and actions of the animal.
(2) 
No person, owner, or custodian shall permit any animal to be left unattended within five feet of a public right-of-way.
(a) 
Such public rights-of-way include, but are not limited to sidewalks, streets, alleys, and parking lots.
(b) 
Unattended animals shall include those animals which are crated, penned, or leashed but which are without personal supervision or control sufficient to properly restrain the animal.
(3) 
No person shall permit any animal owned by or under the control of such person to trespass or be upon the property of another person without the owner's or occupant's permission.
(1) 
As stated in Wis. Stats. § 173.23(4), § 174.01, and § 29.921(7) members of the Police Department, or any peace or health officer in the Village are authorized to kill any animal, bird, or reptile when it is necessary to protect persons or to prevent the communication or spread of infection or disease.
(2) 
No person may keep any animal not indigenous to Wisconsin; or any lion, tiger, leopard, ocelot, jaguar, cheetah, margay, mountain lion, Canada lynx, bobcat, jaguarondi, hyena, coyote, wolf, wolf hybrid, alligator, poisonous snake or eagle, prairie dog, or other like dangerous wild animal, reptile, bird or creature in any place within the Village other than in a safely and properly maintained zoological park, circus, scientific, or educational institution, research laboratory, veterinary hospital, designated pound, or animal refuge, or in a well-secured vehicle, while being transported without delay to or from any such authorized place or through the Village. Any such animal that is within the Village at any time without being safely and properly maintained as authorized under any of the foregoing is declared to be a public nuisance and shall be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(3) 
It shall be no defense that the keeper of any such animal contrary to the provisions hereof has attempted to domesticate same.
(1) 
No person shall harbor or keep any animal, bird, or reptile which disturbs the peace by loud or unusual noises at any time of the day or night.
(2) 
No owner or person in control of any dog shall suffer, permit or allow such animal to bark or bay in such a manner as to detrimentally affect the peaceful repose of one or more property owners or residents of the immediate area, and within earshot of the barking or baying. In determining whether the noise detrimentally affects peaceful repose, the volume of the noise, time of day, length of time the noise persists, the location of the animal, and prior substantiated complaints shall be relevant. Where a dog is left unattended out-of-doors, it shall be presumed the owner or person in control is permitting the noise.
No person shall own, harbor or keep any dog within the Village unless the dog is licensed as provided by Wis. Stats. § 174.05. All dogs shall be licensed according to the provisions in Section 5.09 of the Village Code.
Whereas animals, birds, and reptiles may have propensities to or may otherwise cause noise or odor or perform actions which may disturb persons in the reasonable use and enjoyment of property, or cause annoyance, discomfort, or injury to the health or welfare of persons, the keeping of any animal, bird, or reptile in conflict with any provision of this section declared to be a public nuisance, and such animal, bird, or reptile may be impounded as provided by law.
(1) 
Any incident occurring in the Village where any animal bites a person, or is suspected of biting a person, shall be immediately reported to the Police Department or to the Brown County Health Department by any person having knowledge of such incident and the following procedure shall be followed.
(a) 
Any animal which bites a person in the Village, if it can be found, or any animal which is customarily kept within the Village and which bites a person, shall be quarantined for a period of 10 days from the day of the bite for the purpose of observation for the possibility of rabies. Such quarantine shall be affected as directed by the Health Department and may be:
1. 
Confinement of the animal to a structure or enclosure, which is adequate to with-strain the animal on the premises of the owner or agent.
2. 
Confinement of the animal with a licensed veterinarian.
3. 
Confinement of the animal at a boarding facility approved by the Village. Costs of boarding shall be at owner's expense.
(b) 
No animal which is known or suspected to have bitten a person shall be destroyed until after the ten-day quarantine period has elapsed, unless it cannot be apprehended safely, in which case the destruction shall be accomplished without damage to the head of the animal, if at all possible. The Brown County Health Department shall be immediately notified of such destruction of the animal, and the dead animal shall not be disposed of until such specimens as the Health Department shall direct have been obtained and permission is given by him to dispose of the dead animal.
(c) 
In case an animal, which has been quarantined in accordance with this section, dies for any reason during the quarantine period, the person having custody of the animal shall immediately notify the Health Department as required in Section 11.08 above.
(2) 
Without notice, the owner, custodian, or person in control of any animal shall forfeit not less than $20 nor more than $2,500 if the animal causes injury to any person, livestock, property, deer, game birds, or the nests or eggs of game birds.
The keeping or raising of honey bees is allowed within all areas of the Village. In areas not zoned for agricultural use, a site plan is required to be submitted and approved by the Zoning Administrator or his/her designee. The hives shall be centrally located on the lot and not in front of the home. The Zoning Administrator shall have the authority to relax this requirement on larger lots. The hives shall have visual barrier, not entirely concealing the hive but providing a softening appearance. Lots smaller than one acre in size are limited to two hives. It is recommended that the hive owner join the Brown County Beekeepers Association for education and guidance purposes.
The keeping of any animal, fowl, reptile, mammal, or bird which affects or disturbs the public health, public peace, public safety or public decency is a public nuisance and is prohibited within the Village. No action shall be taken under this subsection unless and until the Village investigates, and they have ascertained that the raising or keeping of a particular animal, fowl, reptile, mammal, or bird within the Village reasonably constitutes a condition which is detrimental to the public health, safety or welfare. For purposes of enforcing this subsection, the Humane Officer, Police Department, Building Inspector, or other peace officer may enter any premises for the purpose of inspection. Any person, who violates any provision of this subsection, shall be notified by the Village of the determination that a public nuisance exists on his or her premises. Each day that the condition continues after notification by the Village shall be considered a separate violation of this subsection.
No person, firm, or corporation shall bring into, keep, maintain, offer for sale, or barter, or release to the wild in the Village:
(1) 
Any poisonous or venomous biting or injecting species or amphibian, arachnid or reptile (including snakes);
(2) 
Any snake not indigenous to Wisconsin;
(3) 
Any snakes indigenous to Wisconsin of the following species, upon attaining a length of five feet or more:
(a) 
The pilot black snake (Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta).
(b) 
Bull snake (Pituophis melanoleucus).
(c) 
Fox snake (Elaphe vulpine gloydi).
This section shall not prohibit a circus or like entertainment organization, an educational or medical institution, the Department of Parks and Recreation, or a person designated by the Humane Officer, from keeping such animal where the same are securely and humanely confined.
No person may take the dog or cat of another from one place to another without the owner's consent or cause such a dog or cat to be confined or carried out of this Village or held for any purpose without the owner's consent. This section does not apply to law enforcement officers or humane society agents engaged in the exercise of the official duties.
No person may kill an animal by means of decompression.
No person shall lead any animal upon a highway or roadway from a motor vehicle or from a trailer or semi-trailer drawn by a motor vehicle.
No person may transport any animal in or upon any vehicle in a cruel manner.
No person may expose any domestic animal owned by another to any known poisonous substance or controlled substance listed in Wis. Stats. Ch. 961, whether mixed with meat or other food or not, so that the substance is liable to be eaten by an animal and for the purposes of harming the animal. This section shall not apply to poison used on one's own premises and designed for the purpose of rodent or pest extermination nor to the use of a controlled substance in bona fide experiments carried on for scientific research or in accepted veterinary practices.
No person may instigate, promote, aid or abet as a principal, agent, employee, participant or spectator, or participate in the earnings from, or intentionally maintain or allow any place to be used for the shooting, killing, or wounding with a firearm or any deadly weapon, any animal that is tied, staked out, caged, or otherwise intentionally confined in a man-made enclosure, regardless of size. Nothing in this section prohibits the shooting of any wild game in its wild state or the shooting of game birds and waterfowl at licensed game farms or licensed shooting preserves.
(1) 
No person may sell, offer for sale, barter, or give away living chicks, ducklings, or other fowl unless the person provides proper brooder facilities for the care of such chicks, ducklings, or other fowl during the time they are in the person's possession.
(2) 
No retailer, as defined in Wis. Stats. § 100.30(2)(e), may sell, offer for sale, barter, or give away living baby rabbits, baby chicks, ducklings, or other fowl under two months of age in any quantity less than six unless in the business of selling these animals for agriculture, wildlife or scientific purposes.
Chickens may be raised in Rural Residential (RR) and Residential Sewer (RS) zoning districts provided a permit has been issued and the following conditions are met;
(1) 
Maximum number of chickens allowed per lot;
(a) 
RR greater than two acres, 10 chickens.
(b) 
RR less than two acres, six chickens.
(c) 
RS, 4 chickens.
(2) 
No roosters shall be kept.
(3) 
Lot must be in single family use.
(4) 
The chickens are raised on the property of the owner. If the current resident is a tenant, the tenant must have written permission of the owner.
(5) 
It is the owners responsibility to be in compliance with any restrictive covenant in place for their subdivision.
(6) 
The chickens shall be kept humanely contained at all times.
(7) 
The chickens shall be provided with a covered water resistant coop and a fenced run per 11.22, Providing Proper Shelter.
(8) 
The coop shall be located at least 25 feet from a lot line and shall not be located in a front yard.
(9) 
The coop shall be cleaned regularly to ensure a healthy and odor free environment.
(10) 
No chickens over eight weeks of age may be kept in a primary structure.
(11) 
The slaughtering of chickens in any residential zoning is allowed in an enclosed structure.
No person may sell, offer for sale, raffle, give as a prize or premium, use as an advertising device or display living chicks, ducklings, other fowl or rabbits that have been dyed or otherwise colored artificially.
As stated in Wis. Stats. § 951.13 no person owning or responsible for confining or impounding any animal may fail to supply the animal with a sufficient supply of food and water as prescribed in this section.
(1) 
Food. The food shall be sufficient to maintain all animals in good health.
(2) 
Water. If potable water is not accessible to the animals at all times, it shall be provided daily and in sufficient quantity for the health of the animal.
As stated in Wis. Stats. § 951.14 no person owning or responsible for confining or impounding any animal may fail to provide the animal with proper shelter as prescribed in this section. In the case of farm animals, nothing in this section shall be construed as imposing shelter requirements or standards more stringent than normally accepted husbandry practices in Brown County.
(1) 
Indoor Standards. Minimum indoor standards of shelter shall include:
(a) 
Ambient Temperatures. The ambient temperature shall be compatible with the health of the animal.
(b) 
Ventilation. Indoor housing facilities shall be adequately ventilated by natural or mechanical means to provide for the health of the animals at all times.
(2) 
Outdoor Standards. Minimum outdoor standards of shelter shall include:
(a) 
Shelter from Sunlight. When sunlight is likely to cause heat exhaustion of an animal tied or caged outside, sufficient shade by natural or artificial means shall be provided to protect the animal from direct sunlight. As used in this paragraph, "caged" does not include farm fencing used to confine farm animals.
(b) 
Shelter from inclement weather.
1. 
Animals Generally. Natural or artificial shelter appropriate to the local climatic conditions for the species concerned shall be provided as necessary for the health of the animal.
2. 
Dogs. If a dog is tied or confined unattended outdoors under weather conditions which adversely affect the health of the dog, a shelter of suitable size to accommodate the dog shall be provided.
(3) 
Space Standards. Minimum space standards for both indoor and outdoor enclosures shall include:
(a) 
Structural Strength. The housing facilities shall be structurally sound and maintained in good repair to protect the animals from injury and to contain the animals.
(b) 
Space Requirements. Enclosures shall be constructed and maintained so as to provide sufficient space to allow each animal adequate freedom of movement. Inadequate space may be indicated by evidence of debility, stress, or abnormal behavior patterns.
(4) 
Sanitation Standards. Minimum standards of sanitation for both indoor and outdoor enclosures shall include periodic cleaning to move excreta and other waste materials, dirt and trash so as to minimize health hazards.
(1) 
Definitions. The terms used in this section are defined as follows:
DANGEROUS/POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS DOG
(a) 
Any dog with a propensity, tendency, or disposition to attack, cause injury, or otherwise endanger the safety of human beings or other domestic animals as evidenced by its habitual or repeated chasing or snapping, or barking and/or snarling in a threatening manner.
(b) 
Any dog which attacks a human being or another domestic animal without sufficient provocation.
(c) 
Any dog owned or harbored primarily or in part for the purpose of dog-fighting, or any dog trained for dog-fighting.
(2) 
Requirements and Prohibitions.
(a) 
Leash and Muzzle. No person owning, harboring or having the care of a dangerous/potentially dangerous dog may suffer or permit such dog to go outside its kennel or pen unless the dog is securely leashed with a leash no longer than four feet in length. No person may permit a dangerous/potentially dangerous dog to be kept on a chain, rope, or other type of leash outside its kennel or pen unless a person is in physical control of the leash.
1. 
The dog may not be leashed to inanimate objects such as trees, posts, and buildings. A dangerous/potentially dangerous dog, on a leash outside the dog's kennel and off the owner's property, shall be muzzled by a muzzling device sufficient to prevent the dog from biting persons or other animals. A dangerous/potentially dangerous dog shall not be required to be muzzled when shown either in a sanctioned American Kennel Club show or upon prior approval by the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department.
(b) 
Confinement. All dangerous/potentially dangerous dogs shall be securely confined indoors or in a securely enclosed and locked pen or kennel, except when leashed and muzzled as provided in Section 11.23(2)(a) above. The pen, kennel, or structure shall have secure sides and a secure top attached to all sides. A structure used to confine a dangerous/potentially dangerous dog shall be locked with a key or combination lock when the dog is within the structure. The structure shall have a secure bottom or floor attached to the sides of the pen, or the sides of the pen must be embedded in the ground no less than two feet. All structures erected to house dangerous/potentially dangerous dogs shall comply with all zoning and building regulations of the Village. All structures shall be adequately lighted and ventilated and kept in a clean and sanitary condition.
(c) 
Confinement Indoors. No dangerous/potentially dangerous dog may be kept on a porch, patio, or in part of a house or structure that would allow the dog to exit the building on its own volition. No dangerous/potentially dangerous dog may be kept in a house or structure when the windows are open or when screen windows or screen doors are the only obstacle preventing the dog from exiting the structure.
(d) 
Prohibited in Multiple Dwellings. No dangerous/potentially dangerous dog may be kept within any portion of any multiple building.
(e) 
Signs. All owners, keepers, or harborers of dangerous/potentially dangerous dogs shall, within 15 days of the effective date of this section, display in a prominent place on their premises a sign easily readable by the public using the words "Beware of Dog." A similar sign is required to be posted on the kennel or pen of the dog.
(f) 
Insurance. All owners, keepers or harborers of dangerous/potentially dangerous dogs shall within 30 days of the effective date of this section, provide proof to the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department of public liability insurance in a single incident amount of $1,000,000 for bodily injury to or death of any person or for the damage to property owned by any person which may result from the ownership, keeping or maintenance of dangerous/potentially dangerous dogs. The insurance policy shall provide that no cancellation of the policy will be made unless a ten-day written notice is first given to the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department. The owner or custodian of the dog shall produce evidence of the required insurance upon request of the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department or any other law enforcement officer. This paragraph does not apply to dogs kept by law enforcement agencies.
(3) 
Dangerous/Potentially Dangerous Dog Determination. The Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department shall investigate every dog complaint and make a determination as to whether or not such dog is "dangerous/potentially dangerous", as defined in Section 11.23(1) above. In the event the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department makes a determination that the dog is "dangerous/potentially dangerous", he or she shall so inform the owner, keeper or harborer of such dog and provide such person with a copy of this section.
(4) 
Appeal of Dangerous/Potentially Dangerous Dog Determination. Any person aggrieved by the determination of the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department, as provided in Section 11.23 (3) above, may appeal such determination by submitting a written appeal to the Board within 10 days of such determination. The owner, keeper, or harborer of a dangerous/potentially dangerous dog shall comply with all provisions of this section while awaiting the outcome of the appeal.
(5) 
Compliance. Within 10 days of the determination that a dog is dangerous/potentially dangerous, as provided in Section 11.23(3) above, the owner, keeper, or harborer of a dangerous/potentially dangerous dog shall either comply with all provisions of this section or dispose of such dog.
(6) 
Disposition of Dangerous/Potentially Dangerous Dogs. As stated in Wis. Stats. § 95.21(4)(c) and § 174.02 any dangerous/potentially dangerous dog which attacks a human being or domestic animal may be ordered destroyed by the Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department or any police officer when, in the judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, the dog represents a continuing threat of serious harm to human beings or domestic animals.
The Village Humane Officer and/or Police Department shall have authority to enforce the provisions of this chapter, including but not limited to seizing any animal which the Humane Officer and/or Police Department reasonably believes has been taken, employed, used, or possessed in violation of this section. The Building Inspector may enforce any provisions of this chapter, which relates to his or her position.
Any seized animal under this chapter shall be held by the Brown County Health Department, Village Humane Officer, or Police Department until that animal is identified as to genus and species in order to ascertain if the animal is an endangered species under Wis. Stats. 29.604.
Except as otherwise specifically provided in this section, the statutory provisions in Wis. Stats. Ch. 173, describing and defining regulations with respect to animals and Humane Officers, inclusive of any provisions therein relating to penalties to be imposed and exclusive of any regulations for which the statutory penalty is a fine or term of imprisonment, are hereby adopted and by reference made part of the chapter as if fully set forth herein. Any act, required to be performed, or prohibited by any stature incorporated herein by reference is required or prohibited by this chapter. Any future amendments, revisions or modifications of the statutes incorporated herein are intended to be made part of this section.