[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Andover as indicated in article histories. Subsequent
amendments noted where applicable.]
A certified municipal Animal Control Officer or, in the absence
of such an officer, the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality
or his designee.
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog, includes every
person having a right of property in such dog and every person who
has such dog in his keeping.
No person shall own, keep or harbor within the Township more than five dogs on any residential property, regardless of property size, unless said property is a qualified farm. Six or more dogs shall constitute a kennel or shelter, which are defined herein at § 20-1 and are regulated by § 20-12. No person shall own, keep, or harbor any dog, within the Township, without obtaining a license therefor, to be issued by the Township Clerk or Animal Control Officer, upon application by the owner and payment of the prescribed fee, and no person shall keep or harbor any dog except in compliance with the provisions of this article.
The
owner of any dog may, if the license tag is mislaid, stolen or lost,
procure a replacement tag for $2. The owner must provide adequate
proof that the dog is currently licensed for the year in which the
replacement tag is desired.
[Amended 4-14-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-04; 10-24-2016 by Ord. No. 2016-14; 10-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-16]
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog
of licensing age shall in the month of January of each year, and annually
thereafter, apply for and procure from the Township Clerk or Animal
Control Officer a license and official metal registration tag for
each such dog so owned, kept or harbored, and shall place upon each
dog a collar or harness with the registration tag securely fastened
thereto.
The person applying for the license and registration
tag shall pay a fee as established herein for the licensing of each
dog. The licenses, registration tags and renewals thereof shall expire
on the last day of January of each year.
The fee for any dog, other than
a potentially dangerous dog as defined herein, shall be $10.80 for
each dog plus a registration fee of $1 and $0.20 for the pilot clinic
fee for each dog. In addition, there will be an additional surcharge
of $3 on all licenses issued for nonspayed and nonneutered dogs. The
same fees shall be charged for the annual renewal of each license
and registration tag.
[Amended 11-13-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-28; 4-14-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-04; 10-24-2016 by Ord. No. 2016-14; 10-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-16]
The annual fee for licensing a potentially dangerous
dog and each renewal thereof shall be $500 per year.
Dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly
known as "Seeing Eye dogs," dogs used to assist handicapped persons
commonly known as "service dogs" or dogs used to assist deaf persons
and commonly known as "hearing ear dogs" shall be licensed and registered
as other dogs as herein provided for, except that the owner or keeper
of such dog shall not be required to pay any fee therefor.
Any dog owner or person harboring a dog, found to
have any unlicensed dog by the Animal Control Officer, dog canvasser
or any other municipal official after January 31 of any year, shall
be required to pay an additional delinquent fee as provided for herein
plus the required license and registration tag fees as provided in
this chapter, in addition to any fine imposed for failure to obtain
a dog license before February 1.
The Township Clerk or Animal Control Officer shall
levy a per-calendar-month additional late fee of $10 for any license
issued after January 31, effective January 1, 2016.
[Amended 4-14-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-04; 3-29-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-03; 10-24-2016 by Ord. No. 2016-14; 10-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-16]
Only one license and registration tag shall
be required in any licensing year for any dog owned in New Jersey,
and such license and tag issued by any other municipality of this
state shall be accepted by the Township as evidence of compliance
with this chapter.
The owner of any newly acquired dog of licensing age
or of any dog which attains licensing age shall make application for
license and registration tag for such dog within 10 days after such
acquisition or age attainment.
The fee shall be the same as required in § 20-4. Failure to obtain a license as provided herein shall result in a delinquent fee being imposed as set forth in § 20-6. The owner shall be required to present sufficient proof to establish that the dog was acquired after February 1 and that application has been submitted within the ten-day requirement.
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color
and markings of the dog for which license and registration are sought;
whether it is of a long- or shorthaired variety; and the name, street
and post office address of the owner and the person who shall keep
or harbor such dog.
There shall be provided with the application evidence
that the dog to be licensed and registered has been inoculated with
a rabies vaccine of a type approved by and administered in accordance
with the recommendations of the United States Department of Health,
Education and Welfare, or has been certified exempt as provided by
regulations of the State Department of Health. No license or metal
registration tag shall be issued without proof of inoculation as required
hereunder.
The information on the application and the registration
number issued for the dog shall be preserved for a period of three
years by the Township Clerk. Registration numbers shall be issued
in the order of the application.
The Township Clerk shall forward to the State Department
of Health each month, on forms furnished by the Department, an accurate
account of registration numbers issued or otherwise disposed of.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought
into the Township any dog licensed in another state for the current
year, and bearing a registration tag, and who shall keep the same
or permit the same to be kept within the Township for a period of
more than 90 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration
tag for each such dog.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought
into the Township any unlicensed dog and shall keep the same or permit
the same to be kept within the Township for a period of more than
10 days shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag
for each such dog.
No person, except an officer in the performance of
his duties, shall remove a registration tag from the collar of any
dog without the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach
a registration tag to a dog for which it was not issued.
No licensed dog shall be allowed off the premises
of the person harboring or keeping the dog, without the metal registration
tag attached to its harness or collar.
Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish
a kennel, a pet shop, a shelter or a pound shall apply to the Township
Clerk for a license entitling him to keep or operate such establishment.
The application shall describe the premises where
the establishment is located or is proposed to be located, the purpose
or purposes for which it is to be maintained, and shall be accompanied
by the written approval of the local Board of Health and the Planning/Zoning
Board, showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations
governing location of and sanitation at such establishments.
All licenses issued for a kennel, pet shop, shelter
or pound shall share the purpose for which the establishment is maintained.
Such license shall expire on the last day of June of each year and
shall be subject to revocation by the Township on recommendation of
the State Department of Health or the local Board of Health for failure
to comply with the rules and regulations of the State Department of
Health or the local Board of Health governing the same, after the
owner has been afforded a hearing by either the State Department of
Health or the local Board of Health in accordance with the statutes
providing for such hearings.
Any such person holding such license shall not be
required to secure individual licenses for dogs owned by him and kept
at such establishments. Such license shall not be transferable to
another owner or different premises.
One female dog for breeding purposes may be kept by
not more than one person for each family household without obtaining
a kennel license for not more than one litter per year, and further
provided that the pups from such breeding shall be sold or disposed
of after seven months of age, unless kept as licensed dogs, and that
the female dog kept for breeding purposes must be registered as a
breed bitch each year when the license for the dog is obtained.
No dog kept in a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound
shall be permitted off such premises except on leash or in a crate
or other safe control.
A license fee and other monies collected or
received under this chapter after payment to the state of its statutory
fees shall be forwarded to the Chief Financial Officer of the Township
within 30 days after collection or receipt and shall be placed in
a special account separate from any of the other accounts of the Township,
and such funds shall be used, expended or transferred only in accordance
with statutes of the State of New Jersey governing and regulating
the use, expenditure or transfer of such funds.
The Township Clerk shall forward to the State
Department of Health a list of all kennels, pet shops, shelters and
pounds licensed, within 30 days after the licenses therefor are issued,
which list shall include the name and address of the licensee and
the kind of license issued.
[Amended 4-14-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-04; 10-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-16]
Any person appointed by the Township Committee, for the purpose
set forth pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.15, shall biennially cause
a canvass to be made of all dogs owned, kept or harbored within the
limits of the Township and shall report, on or before September 1
of the year in which the census is taken, to the Township Clerk and
to the local Board of Health and to the State Department of Health,
the result thereof, setting forth in separate columns the names and
addresses of persons owning, keeping or harboring unlicensed dogs,
the number of unlicensed dogs owned, kept or harbored by each of said
persons, together with a complete description of each of said unlicensed
dogs.
[Amended 11-26-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-13]
The Mayor and the Township Committee shall appoint a certified
Animal Control Officer pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16b and a Municipal
Humane Law Enforcement Officer pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:22-14.1 et seq.
to enforce the provisions of this chapter and all other applicable
laws.
The Animal Control Officer or other persons designated
by the Mayor and Township Committee shall take into custody and impound
or cause to be taken into custody and impounded, and thereafter destroyed
or offered for adoption as hereinafter provided in this section:
Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person
keeping or harboring said dog which the official or his agent have
reason to believe it is a stray dog.
Any dog upon the public or private streets or in any public place not accompanied by a person over the age of 12 years and not confined as prescribed by § 20-21C, said dog shall be deemed to be a stray.
Any dog kept in a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound and off such establishment and not confined or controlled as prescribed by § 20-12G said dog shall be deemed to be a stray.
Any dog which the owner or persons keeping or harboring
said dog wishes to dispose of and to which he renounces ownership,
custody and control, in writing.
Any dog or other animal off the premises of the owner
reported to, or observed by, a certified Animal Control Officer to
be ill, injured or creating a threat to public health, safety or welfare,
or otherwise interfering with the enjoyment of property.
If any dog so seized wears a collar or harness having
inscribed thereon or attached thereto the name and address of any
person or a registration tag, or the owner or the person keeping or
harboring the dog is known, an Animal Control Officer or anyone authorized
by the Mayor and Township Committee shall forthwith serve on the person
whose address is given on the collar, or on the owner or the person
keeping or harboring the dog, if known, a notice in writing stating
that the dog has been seized and will be liable to be offered for
adoption or destroyed if not claimed within seven days after the service
of the notice.
A notice under Subsection B of this section may be served either by delivering it to the person on whom it is to be served, or by leaving it at the person's usual or last known place of abode, or at the address given on the collar, or by forwarding it by mail in a prepaid letter addressed to that person at his usual or last known place of abode, or to the address given on the collar.
Any dog which shall bite any person and/or be suspected
to be rabid shall be examined by a veterinarian within 24 hours after
impoundment for the purpose of determining if such dog is affected
by any disease and shall thereafter be quarantined for such period
of time that the veterinarian shall determine as appropriate under
the circumstances. The owner shall be required to pay for all testing
and quarantine expenses. In lieu of impounding the dog, the Animal
Control Officer may notify the owner to have the animal examined by
a veterinarian within 24 hours after such notification and upon testing
may order the owner to quarantine said dog in accordance with the
instructions of the veterinarian. Failure of the owner to comply with
the order of the Animal Control Officer and/or the quarantine instructions
of the veterinarian, if any, shall result in a minimum fine of $150
plus additional fines for violation of this chapter, as may hereinafter
be set forth.
When any dog so seized has been detained for seven
days after notice, when notice can be given as above set forth in
this section, or has been detained for seven days after seizure, when
notice has not been and cannot be given as above set forth in this
section, and if the owner or person keeping or harboring the dog has
not claimed the dog and paid all expenses incurred by reason of its
detention, and, if the dog be unlicensed at the time of the seizure
and the owner or person keeping or harboring the dog has not produced
a license and registration tag for the dog, the Animal Control Officer
may cause the dog to be destroyed in a manner causing as little pain
as possible or offered for adoption.
When any dog shall be delivered under Subsection A(8) of this section, no notice to the owner shall be required, unless the person delivering the dog is someone other than the owner, in which event the foregoing procedure shall be followed; if the person delivering the dog is the owner, the Animal Control Officer or any person so authorized may forthwith destroy the dog in a manner causing as little pain as possible.
The provisions of § 20-22 et seq. shall apply to dogs impounded pursuant to that section of the chapter.
There shall be charged to the owner of each dog which is impounded, pursuant to § 20-17 all fees incurred by the Township in the picking up and detention including the per-day maintenance fee for each day or part thereof that the dog has been impounded, which fees shall be paid before the dog can be released.
Any officer or agent authorized or empowered
to perform any duty under this chapter is hereby authorized to go
upon any premises to seize for impounding any dog or dogs which he
may lawfully seize and impound when such officer is in immediate pursuit
of such dog or dogs, except upon the premises of the owner of the
dog if the said owner is present and forbids the same.
No person shall hinder, molest or interfere
with anyone authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this
chapter.
Barking or crying dogs. No person shall allow any
dog in his keeping, custody, control or ownership to bark, howl or
cry, continuously for any period longer than 1/2 hour between the
hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. or otherwise repeatedly at intervals
of more than 1/2 hour at any time of the day or night, in such
volume or manner as to disturb the comfort, peace and repose of persons
in the vicinity.
No person owning, keeping or harboring any dog shall
suffer or permit such animal to run at large in, upon, or through
any public, quasi-public or private street, public park or recreation
area, public building, or any other public place or place to which
the public is invited, and no person owning, keeping or harboring
any dog shall suffer or permit such animal to run at large in, upon,
or through any private property without the authority of the owner
of the private property.
Dog to be accompanied by person over 12 years old;
leash. No person owning, keeping or harboring any dog shall suffer
or permit it to be upon the public or private streets or in any public
place of the Township unless such dog is accompanied by a person over
the age of 12 years and is securely confined and controlled by an
adequate leash not more than six feet long.
Caused bodily injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(a)
to a person during an unprovoked attack and poses a serious threat
of harm to persons or domestic animals;
The dog shall be impounded until the final decision
as to whether the dog is vicious or potentially dangerous pursuant
to and in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq.
Subject to the approval of the municipal health officer, the dog may
be impounded in a facility or other structure agreeable to the owner.
The Animal Control Officer shall notify the official
responsible for convening a hearing pursuant to Section 5[1] and the municipal health officer within three working
days that he has seized and impounded a dog pursuant to Section 3
of this Act,[2] or that he has reasonable cause to believe that a dog
has killed another domestic animal and that a hearing is required.
The Animal Control Officer shall through a reasonable effort attempt
to determine the identity of the owner of any dog seized and impounded.
If its owner cannot be identified within seven days, that dog may
be humanely destroyed.
The chief law enforcement officer of the municipality
or the municipal health officer shall select a panel of three qualified
individuals knowledgeable about dog behavior and conduct a hearing,
within 30 days of the receipt of the signed statement from the dog's
owner as required by Subsection b of Section 4 of this Act,[3] to determine whether the dog impounded pursuant to Section
3 of this Act[4] is vicious or potentially dangerous. In no case may the
municipal officer who is the supervisor of the Animal Control Officer
presenting the case, select the panel. If neither the chief law enforcement
officer of the municipality nor the municipal health officer is the
Animal Control Officer's supervisor, the municipal health officer
shall select the panel and conduct the hearing. To the greatest extent
practicable, the selected panel shall collectively represent a diverse
background in dog behavior, and in no case may all of the members
of the panel be from the same discipline nor may a panel include any
individual connected to the case. Upon request, the Department may
recommend to the municipal health officer or chief law enforcement
officer of the municipality the names of qualified individuals to
serve on the enforcement officer of the municipality the names of
qualified individuals to serve on the panel. For the purposes of this
section, "qualified individuals" means:
Professional dog handlers who are members of the Professional
Handlers Association or who are recommended by either a professional
handlers association member or an American Kennel Club certified dog
breed judge;
Professional dog obedience trainers who are members
of the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors or who are
recommended by a National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors
member or an American Kennel Club dog obedience judge;
Dog behavior modification trainers who are recommended by a veterinarian specializing in the treatment of dogs and cats, an American Kennel Club dog obedience judge, a National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors member or person in Subsection D(6) below; or
The official conducting the hearing shall notify the
owner of the impounded dog by certified mail, return receipt requested,
and the Department of Health of the date and time of the hearing and
the names of the panel members selected. During the hearing, the owner
shall have the opportunity to present evidence to demonstrate that
the dog is not vicious or potentially dangerous.
If the panel pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-20 declares
a dog to be vicious and no appeal is made of the ruling pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 4:19-25, the dog shall be destroyed in a humane and expeditious
manner. No dog may be destroyed during the pending of an appeal.
If the panel pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-20 declares
a dog to be potentially dangerous, it shall issue an order and schedule
for continuance as required by N.J.S.A. 4:19-24 and may require the
owner to comply with additional conditions permitted to be imposed
by said statute.
If a dog is declared vicious or potentially dangerous,
and all appeals pertaining thereto have been exhausted, the owner
of the dog shall be liable to the Township for the costs and expenses
of impounding and destroying the dog. The owner shall incur the expense
of impounding the dog in a facility other than the municipal pound,
regardless of whether the dog is ultimately found to be vicious or
potentially dangerous.
Comply with the provisions of this section in accordance
with a schedule established by the panel, but in no case more than
60 days subsequent to the date of determination;
Notify the licensing authority, local police department
or force, and the Animal Control Officer if a potentially dangerous
dog is at large, or has attacked a human being or killed a domestic
animal;
Notify the licensing authority, local police department
or force, and the Animal Control Officer within 24 hours of the death,
sale or donation of a potentially dangerous dog;
Upon the sale or donation of the dog to a person residing
in a different municipality, notify the department and the licensing
authority, police department or force, and Animal Control Officer
of that municipality of the transfer of ownership and the name, address
and telephone of the new owner.
The Township Clerk shall issue a potentially dangerous
dog registration number and red identification tag along with a municipal
potentially dangerous dog license upon a demonstration of sufficient
evidence by the owner to the Animal Control Officer that he has complied
with the panel's orders. The last three digits of each potentially
dangerous dog registration number issued by a municipality will be
the three-number code assigned to that municipality in the regulations
promulgated pursuant to Section 17 of the Act.[5] The Animal Control Officer shall:
Publicize a telephone number for reporting violations
of the Act. This telephone number shall be forwarded to the Department,
and any changes in this number shall be reported immediately to the
Department;
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to protect
the health, safety and welfare of all those frequenting this Township,
by preventing the needless health hazards and nuisances caused by
dog feces upon public and private property within the Township.
Defecation on private property. No person owning or
in charge of any dog shall cause or allow such dog to soil, defile,
defecate upon or commit any nuisance upon any private property, without
the permission of the owner of the property. Any person owning or
in charge of a dog which soils, defiles, defecates or commits any
such nuisance shall immediately remove all feces deposited by such
dog in a sanitary manner.
Defecation on public property. No person owning or
in charge of any dog shall cause or allow such dog to soil, defile,
defecate upon or commit any nuisance on any place where people congregate
or walk, or upon any public property. Any person owning or in charge
of a dog which soils, defiles, defecates or commits any such nuisance
shall immediately remove all feces deposited by such dog in a sanitary
manner.
Defecation on owner's property. No person shall permit
the accumulation of dog feces upon his/her own property, or property
occupied by him or her, to the extent that the odor may be noticeable
to any adjoining property owners.
Disposal of defecation. The feces removed from the
aforementioned designated areas shall be disposed of by the person
owning or in charge of any such dog in a sealed, nonabsorbent, leakproof
container. Disposition in a sanitary manner shall include taking the
feces home for deposit or wrapping the feces and placing same in a
trash can. It shall not include burial, disposal by placement in a
storm sewer, or placing unwrapped feces in a trash can.
Defense to violation. It shall be a complete defense
to violations of this section if a person shall have immediately removed
such defecation and disposed of it in a sanitary manner.
The provision of this chapter shall not apply
to dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly known as "Seeing
Eye dogs,” dogs used to assist handicapped persons commonly
known as "service dogs” or dogs used to assist deaf persons
and commonly known as "hearing ear dogs.”
In the event of a violation on private property,
a complaint is only to be filed by the owner of such property. In
the event of such violation occurs on public property, thoroughfare,
walkways or parks, a complaint may be filed by any witness to such
an act.
No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog
or cat shall permit it to do any injury to or to do any damage to
any lawn, shrubbery, flowers, grounds or property or a complaint may
be made against the owner or keeper of such dog/cat.
Any cat shall be considered a public nuisance and shall be subject to § 20-23B, if it has no owner or custodian; if it has no place of care or shelter; or if it trespasses upon or damages either private or public property; or if it bites, scratches or harms persons within the Township.
Any cat off the premises of the owner or the person keeping or harboring the cat, and constituting a public nuisance as defined in § 20-27, shall be impounded according to § 20-23B, provided that the owner of the property upon which the trespassing occurs authorizes the seizure.
[Amended 9-10-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-16; 4-14-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-04; 10-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-16]
Any person found guilty of violating any provision
of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to one
or more of the following: imprisonment in the county jail, or in any
place provided by the municipality for the detention of prisoners,
for any term not exceeding 90 days; or a fine not exceeding $2,000;
or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days; provided,
however, that the following mandatory fines shall apply:
Any person who is convicted of violating this article
within one year of the date of a previous violation of the same provision
of this article, the penalty for which is not governed by N.J.S.A.
14:19-15.19, and who was fined for the previous violation, shall be
sentenced by a court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The
additional fine imposed by the court upon a person for a repeated
offense shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum fine
fixed for a violation of the article, but shall be calculated separately
from the fine imposed for the violation of the article.
It shall be the duty of the Animal Control Officer
to enforce the provisions of this article.
[Adopted 10-26-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-24]
An article to prohibit the feeding of unconfined
wildlife in any public park or on any other property owned or operated
by Township of Andover, so as to protect public health, safety and
welfare, and to prescribe penalties for failure to comply.
For the purpose of this article, the following
terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings
stated herein unless their use in the text of this chapter clearly
demonstrates a different meaning. When not inconsistent with the context,
words used in the present tense include the future, words used in
the plural number include the singular number, and words used in the
singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always
mandatory and not merely directory.
To give, place, expose, deposit, distribute or scatter any
edible material with the intention of feeding, attracting or enticing
wildlife. Feeding does not include baiting in the legal taking of
fish and/or game.
All animals that are neither human nor domesticated.
No person shall feed, in any public park or
on any other property owned or operated by Township of Andover, any
wildlife, excluding confined wildlife [for example, wildlife confined
in zoos, parks or rehabilitation centers, or unconfined wildlife at
environmental education centers or feral cats as part of an approved
trap-neuter release (TNR) program].