(a) 
It shall be unlawful for any keeper to own or keep any dog or cat in the city unless the dog or cat is immunized against rabies by the injection of anti-rabies vaccine in an amount sufficient to produce an immunity. Dogs and cats must be immunized against rabies at four months of age and every 12 months thereafter. Dogs and cats over the age of six months shall be vaccinated with live virus type vaccine.
(b) 
Every keeper, owning or keeping any dog or cat in the city shall, upon effecting the rabies vaccination of such dog or cat, as above provided for, acquire a written vaccination certificate in evidence, thereof from the licensed veterinarian administering the same, such certificate to be signed by the veterinarian and stating thereon the animal's microchip number, species, age or date of birth, sex, breed, and color of such dog or cat, date of immunization, and the name and address of the keeper of such dog or cat.
(c) 
A veterinarian who vaccinates a dog or cat against rabies shall issue to the owner of such dog or cat a vaccination certificate in a form approved by the state department of health and include the information mentioned in section (b) hereinabove. The veterinarian shall also issue a metal tag with the veterinarian's address and the year of the vaccination stamped thereon. The metal vaccination tag must be fastened to the dog or cat in some manner by the owner.
(d) 
It shall be unlawful for any person to intentionally or knowingly counterfeit a rabies vaccination tag or certificate.
(e) 
Community cats shall not be subject to the requirements set forth in this section. Community cats that are part of the community cat program shall be vaccinated at least once for rabies, and reasonable effort shall be made to revaccinate community cats that are subsequently re-trapped.
(Code 1973, § 5-32; Code 1997, § 90.26; Ordinance 57-15, adopted 9/18/1957; Ordinance 99-36, adopted 6/2/1999; Ordinance 99-49, adopted 8/4/1999; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004; Ordinance 16-13, § 1, adopted 2/3/2016; Ordinance 2022-05, § I, adopted 2/2/2022)
(a) 
It shall be unlawful for the keeper of any dog to permit such dog to run at large within the city. Such dog may be allowed beyond the premises of such keeper when leashed to such keeper or other person authorized by such keeper.
(b) 
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit the keeper of any dog from escorting such dog, properly leashed, to premises other than those of such keeper for purposes of exercise, visitation, companionship, participation in shows and exhibitions, or treatment and care by a duly constituted veterinarian or kennel for hire to the public; or from transporting such dog in an automobile or other vehicle; or from transporting or exhibiting such dog without leash on private premises or public shows and exhibition premises, under conditions where such unleashed dogs are otherwise restrained from leaving such premises; nothing herein contained to be construed as constituting the authorization of the invasions of private rights of any person.
(c) 
Cats are not required to be leashed. Owners shall be responsible for the behavior of their cats so as not to become a nuisance as hereinabove defined. Owners of cats that are allowed to be unleashed shall be liable for any damages or nuisance caused by such cat. Upon a finding by the court that a particular cat is a nuisance or causes damages to private or public property, the court may remove the privilege of allowing such cat to be unleashed or physically unrestrained.
(d) 
Cats that are allowed to run at large by the owner shall be required to have an identification tag (with owners name and correct phone number listed on tag), be currently vaccinated against the rabies virus, and must not become a nuisance to other citizens in the city. Cats that cause problems or damages to private or public property other than said owner's property shall be restricted to said owners property.
(e) 
Community cats shall not be subject to the restrictions set for in (c) and (d) of this section for as they are unowned as defined herein.
(f) 
Any person having knowledge of an animal bite or scratch to an individual or to another animal by an animal which the person suspects is rabid shall report that incident to the animal control officer within 24 hours.
(g) 
Schedule of charges. The following schedule of charges are hereby established as minimum fines for owner(s) or keeper(s) of any dog or cat found to be in violation of this section:
(1) 
 
Altered Dog/Cat
Unaltered Dog/Cat
First Citation
$0.00
$266.00
Second Citation
$116.00
$316.00
Third Citation
$166.00
$366.00
(2) 
For each citation thereafter issued to the same owner(s)or keeper(s) of any dog or cat as herein described, the minimum fine shall be no less than $416.00 up to a maximum of $500.00 as allowed by law.
(3) 
For first time offenses, if the dog or cat has been microchipped and spayed or neutered, the fine for any violation of subsections (a)—(e) shall be zero dollars. If additional offenses other than running at large are cited for first time offenders, then the municipal judge will have the discretion to waive any fines depending on the severity of the offense. For dogs that have not been microchipped and spayed or neutered, the owner may have the fine reduced by the court by $200.00 if proof from a licensed veterinarian or animal shelter of the dog being microchipped and spayed or neutered is presented to the court before the court date.
(Code 1973, § 5-34; Code 1997, § 90.27; Ordinance 57-15, adopted 9/18/1957; Ordinance 66-32, adopted 9/21/1966; Ordinance 99-36, adopted 6/2/1999; Ordinance 99-49, adopted 8/4/1999; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004; Ordinance 16-13, § 1, adopted 2/3/2016; Ordinance 16-30, § I, adopted 6/22/2016; Ordinance 2022-05, § I, adopted 2/2/2022)
A person commits an offense if he is the owner or keeper of a dog or cat and if he causes or permits said dog or cat to bite a person or other animal.
(Code 1973, § 5-35.1; Code 1997, § 90.30; Ordinance 88-3, adopted 1/5/1988; Ordinance 88-20, adopted 4/20/1988; Ordinance 99-36, adopted 6/2/1999; Ordinance 99-49, adopted 8/4/1999; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004)
An owner of any dog kept within a property without an adequate sized fence so as not to allow the dog to run at large shall restrain such dog with the use of an approved leash not shorter than ten feet in length.
(Code 1997, § 90.37; Ordinance 99-36, adopted 6/2/1999; Ordinance 99-49, adopted 8/4/1999; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004)
The keeping of any dog kennel in an area zoned as Non-Designated ("N"), Residential ("R-1"), Residential ("R-2"), Multi-Family ("M-1"), Multi-Family ("M-2"), and/or Mobile-Home ("MH") is hereby prohibited and declared to be a nuisance.
(Code 1997, § 90.39; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004)
(a) 
The term "dwelling unit" has the meaning given to it in section 111-1.
(b) 
A person commits an offense if he harbors more than five dogs or cats, or any combination of dogs and cats, more than eight weeks old on the premises of a dwelling unit that shares a common wall with another dwelling unit or that shares no common wall with another dwelling unit in an area zoned as non-designated (N), residential (R-1 or R-2), multi-family (M-1 or M-2), and/or mobile-home (MH).
(Ordinance 16-30, § II, adopted 6/22/2016)
It is unlawful for the owner or person in control of an animal to intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence allow or permit such animal to defecate on any public property or improved private property other than that of the owner of the animal. That the animal was at large at the time it defecated on any property shall constitute a prima facie evidence that the owner or person in control of the animal allowed or permitted the animal to so act.
It shall be a defense to prosecution under this section that the owner or person in control of the animal immediately removed and cleaned up such animal's feces from public or private property.
(Ordinance 16-13, § 1, adopted 2/3/2016)
(a) 
All dogs or cats in the corporate city limits must be microchipped.
(b) 
All dogs or cats will be microchipped prior to leaving the animal shelter.
(c) 
All impounded dogs or cats, not already microchipped, shall have a micro-chip inserted between its shoulder blades before being released to its owner. The owner of the dog or cat shall pay the cost for this procedure in addition to the impoundments fee.
(d) 
Any dog or cat that is adopted from the animal shelter shall have a microchip inserted between its shoulder blades and the animal's new owner shall pay the cost for this procedure.
(e) 
The microchip fee is not refundable and may be used only for the dog or cat for which it was issued.
(f) 
Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply to a community ear tipped cat.
(g) 
All dogs or cats not currently microchipped living with its owner must be microchipped by January 1, 2017.
(Ordinance 16-13, § 1, adopted 2/3/2016; Ordinance 2019-40, adopted 12/18/2019)
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Editor's note — Former subdivision II, which pertained to license and derived from Code 1973, §§ 5-48—5-52; Code 1997, §§ 90.51—90.55; Ordinance 57-15, adopted 9/18/1957; Ordinance 79-11, adopted 2/21/1979; Ordinance 99-36, adopted 6/2/1999; Ordinance 99-49, adopted 8/4/1999; Ordinance 04-28, adopted 4/21/2004; Ordinance 2022-05, adopted 2/2/2022, was repealed 4/5/2023 by Ordinance 2023-10.