[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Washington
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-9-2010 by L.L. No. 3-2010]
The purpose of this article is to provide for the licensing
and identification of dogs, the control and protection of the dog
population and the protection of persons, property, domestic animals
and deer from dog attack and damage.
A.
All terms not specifically defined herein shall have the meaning
assigned to such terms within § 108 of the Agriculture and
Markets Law of the State of New York, specifically, the following
terms shall have the meaning given to them within that statutory section:
"adoption"; "dog"; "domestic animal"; "euthanize"; "guide dog"; "harbor";
"identification tag"; "identified dog"; "owner"; "owner of record";
"person"; "police work dog"; "war dog"; "hearing dog"; "service dog";
and "person with a disability."
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
B.
CLERK
RUN-AT-LARGE
TOWN
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Town Clerk.
To be an unleashed dog off of the premises of the owner.
Town of Washington
A.
Pursuant to Article 7 of the Agriculture and Markets Law, no person
shall own or harbor a dog within the Town of Washington unless such
dog is licensed. Such license shall be renewed annually at fees determined
by the Town Board of the Town of Washington. There shall be no fee
for any license issued for any guide dog, hearing dog, service dog,
war dog or police work dog, and copies of any license for such dogs
shall be conspicuously labeled as such by the person issuing the license.
B.
In accordance with Article 7 of the Agriculture and Markets Law,
the following are exempted from the licensing requirement:
(1)
Dogs under the age of four months, which are not at large, shall
not require a license;
(2)
Dogs residing in a pound or shelter maintained by or under contract
or agreement with the state or any county, city, town or village,
duly incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty to animals,
duly incorporated humane society or duly incorporated dog protective
association.
C.
Grace period. Any dog harbored within the Town of Washington which
is owned by a resident of New York City or licensed by the City of
New York, or which is owned by a nonresident of New York State and
licensed by a jurisdiction outside the State of New York, shall be
exempt from the licensing and identification provisions of this article
for a period of 30 days.
D.
The application shall state the sex, actual or approximate age, breed,
color and municipal identification number of the dog, and other identification
marks, if any, and the name, address, telephone number, county and
town, city or village of residence of the owner.
E.
The application shall be accompanied by the license fee and a certificate
of rabies vaccination or a statement certified by a licensed veterinarian
stating that, because of old age or other reason, the dog's life would
be endangered by the vaccine. In the case of a spayed or neutered
dog, every application shall also be accompanied by a certificate
signed by a licensed veterinarian or an affidavit signed by the owner
showing that the dog has been spayed or neutered, provided that such
certificate or affidavit shall not be required if the same is already
on file with the Town Clerk. In lieu of the spay or neuter certificate,
an owner may present a statement certified by a licensed veterinarian
stating that he has examined the dog and found that, because of old
age or other reason, the life of the dog would be endangered by spaying
or neutering. In such case, the license fee for the dog shall be the
same as for spayed or neutered dogs.
F.
Dogs will be licensed for a one-year license period. The expiration
date will be the last day of the month of issuance, one year from
the date of issuance.
G.
No license shall be issued by a pound, shelter, or any other entity
on behalf of the Town of Washington.
H.
The Town of Washington will not issue purebred licenses. All dogs
will be licensed individually in accordance with this article.
I.
Dog licenses issued by another agency, municipality or shelter will
not be recognized by the Town of Washington. The Town of Washington
does not credit unexpired terms of licenses issued by another municipality,
nor does it refund licensing fees for any reason, including, but not
limited to, dogs and dog owners that relocate to a municipality other
than the Town of Washington, dogs that are no longer alive, dogs that
are relinquished or transferred to another owner and dogs that are
missing, gone or lost.
J.
Upon validation by the Clerk, the application shall become a license
for the dog described therein. Once an application has been validated,
no refund therefore shall be made.
K.
The Clerk shall provide a copy of the license to the owner and retain
a copy in the Town Clerk's office.
L.
No license shall be transferable. Upon the transfer of ownership
of any dog, the new owner shall immediately make application for a
license for such dog.
A.
In the event of a change of ownership of any dog which has been licensed
pursuant to this article, or in the change of address of the owner
of record of any such dog, the owner of record shall, within 10 days
of such change, notify the Town Clerk of such change.
B.
If any dog which has been licensed pursuant to this article is lost
or stolen, the owner of record shall, within 10 days of the discovery
of such loss or theft, notify the Town Clerk of such loss or theft.
The owner of record of any such dog shall not be liable for any violation
of this article committed after such notification.
C.
In the case of a dog's death, the owner of record shall so notify
the Town Clerk either prior to the renewal of licensure or upon the
time of such renewal.
A.
Dog licensing fees shall be determined by the Town Board of the Town
of Washington and may be amended at any time by said Town Board. All
revenue derived from such fees is the sole property of the Town of
Washington and shall be used for the purposes permitted by Article
7 of the Agriculture and Markets Law.
B.
In addition to the fees set by the Town Board of the Town of Washington,
an additional $1 shall be assessed to a license for an altered dog
and an additional $3 shall be assessed to a license for an unaltered
dog. This additional charge is assessed for the purposes of carrying
out animal population control efforts. As the Town of Washington does
not have its own animal control program, these surcharge dollars will
be remitted by the Town Clerk to the state animal population control
fund, as required by Agriculture and Markets Law § 117-a,
Subdivision 7.
C.
When the Town Board of the Town of Washington determines the need
for a dog enumeration or dog census, a fee of $25 will be assessed
to all dogs found unlicensed or renewed at the time the enumeration
is conducted. Such fees shall be the sole property of the Town of
Washington and shall be used to pay the expenses incurred by the Town
in conducting the enumeration. In the event that the additional fees
collected exceed the expenses incurred by the Town in conducting an
enumeration in any year, such excess fees may be used by the municipality
for enforcing this article and for animal population control programs.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
D.
In addition to the license fee of this article, each applicant for
a dog license shall pay a surcharge of $3, which shall be retained
by the Town of Washington and used to defray the cost of providing
a replacement identification tag.
E.
Pursuant to Agriculture and Markets Law § 107, Subdivision
4, the licensing process and fees set forth in this article do not
apply to any dog confined to the premises of any person, firm or corporation
engaged in the business of breeding or raising dogs for profit and
licensed as a Class A dealer under the Federal Laboratory Animal Welfare
Act.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 7 U.S.C. § 2131 et seq.
A.
All dogs required to be licensed must wear an identification tag,
bearing the municipal identification number, attached to a collar
at all times. No dog shall be permitted to be without a collar and
an identification tag. All untagged dogs shall be subject to seizure
and confinement by the Dog Control Officer. The collars of all dogs
four months and over shall also have a tag evidencing rabies vaccination.
B.
No tag carrying an identification number shall be affixed to the
collar of any dog other than the one to which that number has been
assigned.
C.
A dog participating in a dog show shall be exempt from the identification
requirements of both Agriculture and Markets Law § 111 and
this article during such participation.
Any female dog in heat shall be confined within a protected
enclosure on the premises of the owner or person harboring the dog.
All premises occupied or used by dogs shall be kept in a clean
and sanitary condition. Failure to provide adequate food, water or
shelter shall be a violation of this article and shall constitute
grounds for seizure of the animal hereunder. These principles shall
apply both to individual owners and to any other persons harboring
dogs for training, retail sale or boarding.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any owner of any dog to permit or allow
the animal to:
(1)
Run at large without control by an adequate leash when the dog is
off the property of the owner. If at large or off its leash, such
dog shall be subject to seizure and confinement.
(2)
Engage in a recurring practice of howling, barking, crying or whining
so as to unreasonably disturb the comfort or quiet enjoyment of any
person other than the dog's owner. A minimum period of 1/2 hour (30
minutes) of excessive noise shall be deemed necessary to constitute
a violation of this section. The person owning or possessing a dog
committing an act prohibited herein, with or without the knowledge,
consent or fault of such person, shall be guilty of a violation of
this section.
(3)
Uproot, dig or otherwise damage any lawns, gardens, vegetables, flowers
or garden beds on property not belonging to the owner of the dog.
(4)
Chase, bite, jump upon or at or otherwise harass any person in such
a manner as to reasonably cause intimidation or fear or to put such
person in reasonable apprehension of bodily harm or injury.
(5)
Engage in a recurring practice of chase, run along side of or bark
at vehicles or bicyclists while on a public street or highway or upon
public or private property other than property of the owner or other
person in control of said dog.
(6)
Cause damage or destruction to private or public property or to create
a nuisance by defecating, urinating or digging on public or private
property, other than property of the owner or other person in control
of the dog.
(7)
Kill or injure any domestic animal.
B.
Establishment of the fact or facts that the owner of a dog has allowed or permitted such dog to commit any of the acts prohibited by Subsection A of this section shall be presumptive evidence against the owner or harborer of such dog that he has failed to properly confine, leash or control his dog.
C.
Dogs are permitted in Town parks, when under control of leash, in
designated areas only. Owners shall be responsible for immediate cleanup
of any excrement deposited by their animals.
D.
When off the property of the owner, owners shall be responsible for
immediate cleanup of any excrement deposited by their animals.
This article shall be enforced by the Town's Dog Control Officer.
Those persons shall have the authority to issue appearance tickets
or other process set forth within Article 7 of the Agriculture and
Markets Law.
A.
Seizure; fines; redemption.
(1)
Any dog which is not carrying an identification tag and which is
not on the owner's premises, any dog which is not licensed, whether
on or off the owner's premises, and any dog in violation of any other
provision of this article or which poses an immediate threat to the
public safety shall be subject to seizure, redemption, impoundment
fees and adoption procedures as set forth in Article 7, § 117
of the Agriculture and Markets Law.
(2)
Pursuant to § 117 of the Agriculture and Markets Law, fines
and impoundment fees are set by Town Board resolution in their adoption
of the Town's Fee Schedule.[1] An owner may redeem their dog within the applicable redemption period specified in § 65-11A(3), below, upon payment all fines and impoundment fees and by producing proof that the dog has been licensed.
[1]
Editor's Note: The current Fee Schedule is on file in the
Town offices.
(3)
Pursuant to § 117, of the Agriculture and Markets Law,
redemption periods are set as follows:
(a)
Where an owner has been personally notified: seven days from
the date of such notice.
(b)
Where an owner has been sent notice by certified mail, return
receipt requested: nine days from the date of such mailing.
(c)
Where the dog is unidentified: five days, excluding the day
the dog is seized or impounded.
B.
No person shall hinder, resist or oppose the Dog Control Officer
or any other person authorized to administer and enforce the provisions
of this article in the performance of the person's duties pursuant
to this article.
C.
No action shall be maintained against the Town of Washington, any
duly designated Dog Control Officer or any other agent or officer
of the Town to recover the possession or value of any dog for damages
for injury or compensation for the destruction of any dog seized or
destroyed pursuant to the provisions of this article.
D.
It shall be the duty of the Dog Control Officer or officers to feed
and care for, at the expense of the Town, any animal seized hereunder
until disposure thereof be made as provided herein.
E.
All monies collected as fines or penalties as a result of any prosecution
for violations of the provisions of this article, and all bail forfeitures
by persons charged with such violations, shall be the sole property
of the Town of Washington and shall be used only for controlling dogs
and enforcing this article.
F.
Fines and impoundment fees may be paid off in installments at the
discretion of the Town Board and upon the execution of a promissory
note by the owner of the dog.
G.
An owner shall forfeit title to any dog unredeemed at the expiration
of the appropriate redemption period and the dog shall then be made
available for adoption or euthanized, provided that no dog shall be
delivered for adoption unless it has been licensed pursuant to the
provisions of this article prior to its release from custody.
H.
No liability in damages or otherwise shall be incurred on account
of the seizure, euthanization or adoption of any dog pursuant to the
provisions of this article.
A.
It shall
be a violation for:
(1)
Any owner to fail to license any dog;
(2)
Any owner to fail to have any dog identified as required by this
article;
(3)
Any person to knowingly affix to any dog any false or improper identification
tag, special identification tag for identifying guide, service or
hearing dogs, or purebred license tag;
(4)
Any owner or custodian of any dog to fail to confine, restrain or
present such dog for any lawful purpose pursuant to this article;
(5)
Any person to furnish any false or misleading information on any
form required to be filed with the Town of Washington pursuant to
the provisions of this article or rules and regulations promulgated
pursuant thereto;
(6)
The owner or custodian of any dog to fail to exercise due diligence
in handling his or her dog if the handling results in harm to another
dog that is a guide, hearing or service dog; and
(7)
Any owner of a dog to fail to notify the Town of Washington of any
change of ownership or address as required by this article.
B.
The Town of Washington may elect either to prosecute such actions
described in this section as a violation under the Penal Law or to
commence an action to recover a civil penalty.
Agriculture and Markets Law § 123 sets forth the applicable
procedural and substantive requirements applicable within the Town
of Washington when a dog is alleged to be dangerous.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Except as otherwise provided in § 118 of the Agriculture
and Markets Law, upon conviction, a violation of this article shall
be deemed an offense and shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding
$50 for the first offense, $100 for the second offense within the
preceding five years, and $250 for each additional offense within
the preceding five years or by imprisonment for a period not exceeding
15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
Each provision of this article shall be deemed independent of
all other provisions herein and if any provision shall be deemed or
declared invalid all other provisions hereof shall remain valid and
enforceable.
This article shall be filed immediately with the Secretary of
State as provided by law and shall be effective as of January 1, 2011.
