[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of Paradise as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 2-3-1987 as Ch. 2, Part 1, of the 1987 Code]
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any dog or dogs to allow or permit such dog or dogs to run at large in the Township.
[Amended 12-6-1988 by Ord. No. 91[1]]
Any police officer or dog warden or other designated public official may seize any dog found at large in the Township. Such dogs are to be impounded and/or can be picked up at the impoundment by the State Dog Warden.
Owners of licensed dogs are to be notified by registered or certified mail, with return receipt, that the dog is impounded and will be disposed of in five days if not claimed. Five days after the return receipt has been received, and the dog has not been claimed, the dog may be sold or destroyed in accordance with the 1982 Dog Law.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 3 P.S. § 459-101 et seq.
Dogs that, in the opinion of any police officer or dog warden, constitute a threat to public health and welfare may be killed by the police or dog warden.
Any person who violates or permits a violation of this article, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding, shall pay a fine of not more than $600, plus all court costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township in the enforcement of this article. No judgment shall be imposed until the date of the determination of the violation by the District Justice and/or Court. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of the Township are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including injunction, to enforce compliance herewith.