As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
CAT
Any member of the domestic feline species, male, female or
altered.
CAT OF LICENSING AGE
Any cat which has attained the age of seven months, or which
possesses a set of permanent teeth.
LICENSE YEAR
A one-year period beginning on January 1 and ending December
31 of the following year.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, includes every
person having a right of property (or custody) in the cat, and every
person who has the cat in his/her keeping, or who harbors or maintains
a cat or knowingly permits a cat to remain on or about any premises
occupied by that person.
PERSON
Any individual, corporation, partnership, organization or
institution commonly recognized by law as a unit.
Except as provided in §
19-32, no cat owner shall keep, harbor or maintain any cat over seven months of age within the Township or knowingly permit a cat to remain on or about his/her premises, unless the cat is vaccinated and licensed. Vaccination and licensing shall be required for the following cats of licensing age:
A. Any cat owned, kept, maintained, or harbored within
the Township, or knowingly permitted to remain on or about any premises
occupied by a resident of the Township.
B. Any cat acquired by any person during the course of
any license year and kept within the Township for more than 10 days
after acquisition.
C. Any cat attaining licensing age during the course
of the license year.
D. Any unlicensed cat brought into the Township by any
person and kept within the Township for more than 10 days.
E. Any cat licensed by another state, brought into the
Township by any person and kept within the Township for more than
90 days.
The owner of any cat of licensing age shall
apply for and procure from the Township Clerk a license and official
registration tag with license number for each cat owned, kept or harbored,
and shall place upon the cat a collar or other device with the license
number securely fastened or displayed thereon. Acceptable methods
of displaying license number shall include, but are not limited to,
breakaway or elastic collars.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by Ord. No. 952]
License renewal applications for cats which
are required to be licensed by the provisions of this article shall
be made annually, on or before January 31. In all other cases, the
application for a license shall be made within 10 days of the day
upon which the cat in question first becomes subject to the provisions
of this article.
The information on all applications under this
article and the registration number issued to each licensed cat shall
be preserved for a period of three years by the Township Clerk.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by Ord. No. 952; 12-22-2008 by Ord. No.
1060]
The person applying for a cat license shall pay a fee as set forth in Chapter
71, Fees. The same fees shall be charted for the annual renewal of each license and registration tag.
[Amended 12-22-2008 by Ord. No. 1060]
In the event a license tag is misplaced or lost, the Township Clerk may issue a replacement license and license tag for that particular licensed cat at a fee set forth in Chapter
71, Fees.
Any cat may be exempted from the requirements
of vaccination for a specified period of time by the local Board of
Health, upon presentation of a veterinarian's certificate stating
that, because of an infirmity or other physical condition or regimen
of therapy, the inoculation of such cat shall be deemed inadvisable.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by Ord. No. 952]
Each cat license and registration tag shall
expire annually on December 31.
The Township Clerk shall not issue any cat license or registration tag, except as provided in §
19-32, unless the owner has provided evidence that the cat has received a rabies inoculation of the required type that is valid for the full license year and proof thereof and expiring after the end of the licensing year, including but not limited to a certificate of rabies vaccination for the cat to be licensed on a form recommended by the state and endorsed by the inoculating veterinarian indicating the expiration of the inoculation after the end of the license year.
License applications and forms shall state the
breed, sex, age, color and markings of the cat to be licensed, and
whether it is long- or short-haired; also the name, street, telephone
number and post office address of the owner, and the person who shall
keep or harbor such cat.
Serially numbered license forms and tags shall
be furnished by the Township, displaying the year of issuance and
the name of the Township. Licenses and license tags are not transferable.
Proof of licensing shall be produced by any
owner upon the request of any health official, police officer, Animal
Control Officer, or other authorized person.
Only one license and registration tag shall
be required during the licensing year for any cat in the Township;
any valid license or license tag issued by another New Jersey municipality
shall be accepted by the Township as evidence of compliance.
Any person violating the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction, be liable to the penalty stated in Chapter
1, General Provisions, Article
I.