It shall be unlawful for any owner or custodian of any dog to allow any dog to run at large in the County of Amelia during the period of April 15 to May 15 of each calendar year. For the purpose of this chapter, a dog shall be deemed to run at large while roaming, running or self-hunting off the property of its owner or custodian and not under the owner's or custodian's immediate control. Any person who permits his/her dog to run at large or remain unconfined or unrestricted or not penned up shall be deemed to have violated the provisions of this section.
State law references: Similar provisions, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6538.
It will be unlawful for any dog to run at large at any time in the following portions of the County:
A. 
Genito Mills Estates, Section A, Plat Book Number 3, Pages 249, 250 and 251 - Date of Recordation: April 14, 1970.
B. 
Genito Mills Estates, Section B, Plat Book Number 4, Pages 54, 55 and 56 - Date of Recordation: February 1, 1973.
C. 
Winterham Place Subdivision, Section 1, Plat Cabinet B, Slide 21 - Date of Recordation: June 30, 1987. Amended November 20, 1996.
D. 
Winterham Place Subdivision, Section 2, Plat Cabinet B, Slide 66 - Date of Recordation: August 31, 1990. Amended November 20, 1996.
E. 
Amelia Courthouse Village Area. Within the boundaries of the Amelia Courthouse Village Area to include a 200-foot buffer along the outer perimeter of said boundary and along both sides of all identified streets as depicted on the map attached hereto as Exhibit A[1] and incorporated herein by reference, and more particularly described as follows:
Beginning at the intersection of business route 360 (Goodes Bridge Road) and route 614 (Otterburn Road) running northeast to the intersection of business 360 and route 1004 (Parks Street); continuing south on route 1004 to the intersection of route 1004 and route 1003 (Church Street); continuing west on route 1003 to the intersection of route 1003 and route 38 (North Fives Fork Road); continuing southeast on route 38 to the intersection of route 38 and route 1002 (Dunn Street); continuing east on route 1002 to the intersection of route 1002 and route 1001 (Green Street); continuing southwest on route 1001 to the intersection of route 1001 and route 1001 (Eggleston Street); continuing northwest on route 1001 (Eggleston Street) to the intersection of route 1001 and route 38; continuing southwest on route 38 to the intersection of route 38 and route 614; continuing northwest on route 614 back to the origin at the intersection of route 614 and business route 360.
Included along this boundary are numerous dead-end streets which are inclusive of the Amelia Courthouse Village Area and are identified as: route 1003 (Church Street) running east of the intersection of route 1004 and route 1003; route 1005 (Factory Street) running south off of route 1003; the continuation of route 1002 (Dunn Street) running east from the intersection of route 1002 and route 1001; Dunnston Drive (private road) running north off of route 1002; Ravencrest Court (private road) running east off of Dunnston Drive; Deekens Street (private road) running southwest off of Dunn Street; Green Street (private road) running southwest from the intersection of route 1001 at Greenstreet and Eggleston Street; and Irving Lane (private road) running southwest off of route 38.
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit A is included as an attachment to this chapter.
A. 
Pound to be maintained and accessible to public. The Board of Supervisors shall maintain a pound in accordance with the regulations and guidelines issued by the Virginia Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and provisions of § 3.2-6546 of the Code of Virginia, both of which shall control over any provisions herein that conflict with such regulation, guideline or statute. The pound shall be accessible to members of the public at reasonable hours during the week.
B. 
Responsibility for operation of pound. In addition to their other duties, the animal control officer and deputy animal control officers shall be responsible for the daily operation of the pound.
C. 
Impoundment of animals generally. It shall be the duty of the animal control officer or other officer to take in charge any dog found running at large in violation of this chapter and to hold such dog at the County animal pound for a period of not less than five days, such period to commence on the day immediately following the day the dog is initially confined, unless sooner claimed by the owner thereof. The operator or custodian of the County animal pound shall make a reasonable effort to ascertain if the dog has a tag, license or tattooed identification. If such identification is found on the dog, a reasonable effort shall be made to return the dog to its owner or place the dog for adoption before humanely destroying the dog. No dog with identification may be disposed of by sale or gift to a federal agency, state-supported institution, agency of the commonwealth or agency of another state. An additional five-day holding period shall be added to the holding period described above for any dog with a tag, license or tattooed identification. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit confinement of other companion animals in the pound.
D. 
During the period of impoundment of a dog under this section, if the rightful owner may be readily identified, the animal control officer shall notify the owner of the dog's confinement within 48 hours next following its confinement or conduct a diligent search to determine ownership of the dog. Accurate records shall be kept to document each attempt that is made to identify the owner and notify him of the impoundment. A rightful owner claiming a dog impounded under this section shall, in order to obtain its release, pay to the County an impoundment fee of $10 for each day the animal has been confined in the pound and $25 for the first offense, $50 for the second offense, $75 for the third offense, and $100 for the fourth offense of impoundment, plus an additional fee of $25 if the dog is not properly licensed or if the dog has been impounded on prior occasion(s).
[Amended 6-18-2024]
E. 
If an animal confined under this section has not been claimed, upon expiration of the appropriate holding period, it shall be deemed abandoned and become the property of the pound or shelter.
F. 
If a dog deemed to be abandoned under this section did not when delivered to the County animal pound bear a collar, tag, license, tattoo, or other form of identification, it may be humanely destroyed or disposed of by:
(1) 
Sale or gift to a federal agency, state-supported institution, agency of the commonwealth, or agency of another state, provided that such agency or institution agrees to confine the animal for an additional period of not less than five days;
(2) 
Delivery to any local humane society or shelter; or
(3) 
Delivery to any person who is a resident of the County and who will pay the required license tax on such dog in addition to a $20 adoption fee.
[Amended 6-18-2024]
G. 
If a dog deemed to be abandoned under this section when delivered to the County animal pound bore a collar, tag, license, tattoo, or other form of identification it may be humanely destroyed or disposed of by the methods described in Subsection F(2) and (3) above. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Subsection G, no dog shall be delivered to a laboratory for research purposes. A dog deemed to be abandoned under this section may also be delivered to any person who proposes to adopt it as a companion animal and who will pay the required license tax on it in addition to a $20 adoption fee, provided that no more than two animals or a family of animals shall be delivered during any thirty-day period to any one such person.
[Amended 6-18-2024]
H. 
No provision in this section shall prohibit the destruction by the animal control officer of a critically injured or critically ill animal or any animal not weaned, whether or not the animal is critically injured or critically ill, for humane purposes. Any animal destroyed pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be euthanized by one of the methods described or approved by the State Veterinarian.
State law references: Similar provisions and duty of County to maintain pound, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6546.
A. 
It shall be the duty of the animal control officer or other officer who may find a dog in the act of killing or injuring livestock or poultry to kill such dog forthwith, whether such dog bears a license tag or not. Any other person finding a dog committing any of the depredations mentioned in this section shall have the right to kill such dog on sight, as shall any owner of livestock or his agent finding a dog chasing livestock on land utilized by the livestock when the circumstances show that such chasing is harmful to the livestock.
B. 
Any court shall have the power to order the animal control officer or other officer to kill any dog known to be a confirmed livestock or poultry killer. Any dog killing poultry for the third time shall be considered a confirmed poultry killer. The court, through its contempt powers, may compel the owner, custodian, or harborer of the dog to produce the dog.
C. 
Any animal control officer who has reason to believe that any dog is killing livestock or poultry shall be empowered to seize such dog solely for the purpose of examining such dog in order to determine whether it committed any of the depredations mentioned herein.
D. 
If any person, including the animal control officer, has reason to believe that any dog is killing livestock or committing any of the depredations mentioned in this section, he shall apply to a magistrate of the County, who shall issue a warrant requiring the owner or custodian, if known, to appear before the judge of the general district court at the time and place named therein, at which time evidence shall be heard. If it shall be determined by the court that such dog is a livestock killer or has committed any of the depredations mentioned in this section, the court shall order that the dog be euthanized immediately by the animal control officer or other officer designated by the judge of the general district court or removed to another state that does not border on the commonwealth. Any dog ordered removed that is later found in the commonwealth shall be ordered by a court to be euthanized immediately.
State law references: Similar provisions, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6552.
A. 
Any person who has any livestock or poultry killed or injured by any dog not his own in the County shall be entitled to receive as compensation therefor the fair market value of such livestock or poultry not to exceed $750 per animal or $10 per fowl if:
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
(1) 
Within 72 hours of discovery of the death or injury, the claimant gives notice of the incident to the animal control officer;
(2) 
Within 60 days of the discovery of the death or injury, claimant has furnished the animal control officer such evidence, under oath, of the quantity and value of livestock or poultry so killed or injured and the reasons the claimant believes that death or injury was caused by a dog;
(3) 
The animal control officer conducts an investigation and determines the claim meets the criteria set forth in this section for compensation; and
(4) 
The claimant first has exhausted his legal remedies against the owner, if known, of the dog doing the damage for which compensation under this section is sought. Exhaustion shall mean a judgment against the owner of the dog upon which an execution has been returned unsatisfied.
B. 
Upon payment under this section, the County shall be subrogated to the extent of compensation paid to the right of action to the owner of the livestock or poultry against the owner of the dog and may enforce the same in an appropriate action at law.
State law references: Similar provisions, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6553.
A. 
Any person, including the animal control officer or other officer, killing a companion animal under this article shall cremate, bury or sanitarily dispose the body of such companion animal.
B. 
The owner of any companion animal shall forthwith cremate, bury or sanitarily dispose the body of such companion animal upon its death.
C. 
If, after notice, any owner fails to comply with this section, the animal control officer or other officer shall bury, cremate or sanitarily dispose the companion animal and may recover, on behalf of the County, from the owner his cost for this service.
State law references: Similar provisions, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6554.
The owner of a multi-dog license shall display the license tag in full view in a prominent location adjacent to where the dogs are kept. Regardless of how the dogs are confined, one of the identification plates provided therewith shall be attached to the collar of each dog authorized to be kept. Any identification plates not so in use must be kept by the owner or custodian and promptly shown to any animal control officer or other law enforcement officer upon request.
State law references: Similar provisions, Code of Virginia, § 3.2-6524 (dog license requirements, generally), § 3.2-6527 (obtaining a license), § 3.2-6528 (kennel licenses).
A multi-dog license shall not be obtained or utilized in such a manner as to defraud the County of the license tax applying to dogs which cannot be legally covered thereunder or in any manner to violate other provisions of this article. Violation of this section shall constitute a Class 3 misdemeanor.