[Adopted 5-14-2024]
The Hillsborough Township Board of Health desires to protect
and promote the health of the residents of the Township by minimizing
the proliferation of free-roaming cat colonies which constitute a
public health concern.
The Hillsborough Township Board of Health is empowered to enact
health ordinances pursuant to N.J.S.A. 26:3-64 et seq.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
following meanings:
The Animal Control Officer, as designated and appointed by
the Hillsborough Township Board of Health, shall be the animal control
authority. This may be, under different circumstances, either the
Hillsborough Township contracted Animal Control Officer, REHS staff
with the Hillsborough Township Health Department or the Hillsborough
Township Police.
A group of cats that congregates, more or less, together
as a unit. Although not every cat in a colony may be feral, any nonferal
cats that congregate with a colony shall be deemed to be a part of
it.
Cats that are not necessarily considered to be feral, but
which frequently roam outdoors and interact with feral cats and wildlife.
They may be outdoor cats with a specific owner, stray pets, feral,
or may have originated in one household and are now fed or cared for
by other households in the neighborhood.
The intentional feeding or unintentional feeding that has
been identified as having provided food to a free-roaming cat. Any
person made aware of his/her intentional or unintentional feeding
of any free-roaming cat must administer the stated treatment to the
free-roaming cat to be in compliance with this article.
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, shall include
every person having a right of property (or custody) in such cat and
every person who has such cat in his/her keeping or who harbors or
maintains a cat or knowingly feeds a cat or knowingly permits a cat
to remain on or about any premises occupied by that person. A business
or property owner shall be also considered an owner if they knowingly
allow cat colonies to be maintained or permitted on the premises.
No person shall knowingly feed any free-roaming cat in the Township
of Hillsborough unless that cat is spayed or neutered as documented
by a licensed veterinarian. Any person knowingly feeding any free-roaming
cat is required to verify that these precautions have been taken for
that cat or will be held in violation. Verification consists of documentation
from a licensed veterinarian indicating proof of spay/neutering of
the cat, a photograph of the cat, an ear notch on the cat, and proof
that the cat has been vaccinated for rabies. The verification must
specify the cat's gender, color, breed and free-roaming status.
Owners shall produce verification upon request from the Hillsborough
Township Health Department or their representatives.
Owners of outdoor cat colonies must register their colony with
the Hillsborough Township Health Department annually. To register,
the owner must photograph, spay or neuter, rabies vaccinate and ear
notch all the cats maintained in their colony. Exemptions may be granted
by the Hillsborough Health Department to owners who have made reasonable
attempts to retrap colony cats for rabies vaccination based on the
level of health concern. There shall be no fee for registering a cat
colony.
At the discretion of the Hillsborough Health Department, in
the case of free-roaming cat colonies, because it may be unreasonable
to expect that compliance can be met for a large number of cats in
a thirty-day period, any person knowingly feeding multiple cats in
a free-roaming cat colony must establish a schedule not to exceed
90 days, in agreement with the Township and the Township's designated
Animal Control Officer, for compliance of all cats in the colony.
No person owning, harboring, keeping or in charge of any cat
shall cause, suffer or allow such cat to soil, defile, defecate, cause
property damage, or interfere with the enjoyment of private or public
property. Any time the Hillsborough Health Department receives a nuisance
complaint about a colony cat, the owner of such cat shall be responsible
to rectify the complaint or remove the cat, at their expense, from
the colony.
An owner shall be guilty of animal abandonment if, by direct
or indirect means, they willfully or unwillingly abandon any cat or
cat colony within the borders of Hillsborough Township. This includes,
but is not limited to, the owner moving, being evicted, or abandoning
the care of the colony. In the event of the owner's death, the
land owner or property owner where the cat or cat colony is maintained
shall be responsible for the colony.
This article shall be enforced by the Health Officer of the
Township of Hillsborough.
First-time offenders in violation of this article will receive
a thirty-day warning to comply. Subsequent violations will be subject
to the penalty without a warning period; and any person who violates
or fails or refuses to comply with this article shall be liable for
a penalty of $100 for the first offense; $200 for the second offense;
$500 for the third offense; and $1,000 for the fourth and any and
all additional offenses. Each offense shall be per animal and/or per
date in violation, and the offender shall be given 30 days to comply.
