[Ord. 858, 8/3/2020]
The Borough Council of the Borough of Nazareth finds and declares
that the population of feral and stray cats within the Borough poses
a danger to the health, safety, and welfare of the public and constitutes
a public nuisance. Accordingly, it is the intent of this Part to ensure
the humane treatment of feral cats and reduce their population by
providing standards to regulate the treatment, care and maintenance
of feral and stray cats and by providing for penalties as set forth
herein.
[Ord. 858, 8/3/2020]
The following words and phrases, when used in this Part, shall
have the meanings ascribed to them in this Part, except where the
context or language clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
CARETAKER
Any person or organization who provides food or shelter or
similar type care to feral or stray cats and has no ownership or direct
control of the movements of the cats they feed.
CAT
An animal that is a member of the species felis catus, includes
both feral and stray cats as further defined herein.
EARTIP
A mark identifying a cat as having been sterilized, specifically
the removal of a quarter inch off the tip of the cat’s left
ear in a straight-line cut.
FERAL CAT
Any cat that is unsocialized to humans, whether the cat was
born outside and never socialized with humans or a domesticated cat
which has strayed and over time has become unsocialized to humans;
any homeless, wild or untamed cat.
OWNER
Includes: (1) every person having a right of property in
any cat, including pet cats and (2) every person who keeps or harbors
a cat or has such cat in his or her care.
PUBLIC NUISANCE
Conduct by a cat that disturbs the peace, including:
1.
Habitually or continually howling or making loud noises;
2.
Habitually or significantly damaging property, including, but
not limited to, accumulation of feces or excretions if such accumulations
create unhealthy conditions or create obnoxious odors outside the
property of the owner or caretaker; or
3.
Causes injury to a person by biting, scratching or similar act.
RUNNING AT LARGE
Being upon any public street, sidewalk, park or other public
property or upon private property of a person other than the owner
without being reasonably secured or under control.
STRAY CAT
Any cat whose owner or keeper from time to time allows the
cat to run free off the property of the owner or keeper.
TNR PROGRAM
A program pursuant to which one or more feral cats are trapped,
sterilized, vaccinated against rabies, ear-tipped, and returned to
the location where they were captured.
TREAT/TREATMENT
The provision of temporary food, shelter and medical care,
including, but not limited to, sterilization, vaccination for rabies
and distemper, testing for feline diseases, and ear-tip.
UNSOCIALIZED
Exhibiting a temperament of extreme fear of and resistance
to contact with humans.
[Ord. 858, 8/3/2020]
An owner of a female cat in heat shall confine that cat in a
building or secure enclosure in such a manner that such female cat
cannot come into contact with another animal except for planned breeding.
[Ord. 858, 8/3/2020]
Any Ordinance or part of an Ordinance conflicting with the provisions
of this Part shall be and is hereby repealed to the extent of such
conflict. Except only as amended, modified and changed by this ordinance,
the Code of Ordinances of the Borough of Nazareth as codified and
amended shall remain in all other respects in full force and effect.