[Adopted 3-29-1961; amended in its entirety 9-25-2001]
Pursuant to § 3.2-6540 of the Code
of Virginia, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A canine or canine crossbreed which has bitten, attacked
or inflicted injury on a person or companion animal, other than a
dog, or killed a companion animal.
A canine or canine crossbreed which has killed a person;
inflicted serious injury to a person, including multiple bites, serious
disfigurement, serious impairment of health or serious impairment
of a bodily function; or continued to exhibit the behavior which resulted
in a previous finding by a court that it is a dangerous dog, provided
that its owner has been given notice of that finding.
Any Animal Control Officer who has reason to
believe that a canine or a canine crossbreed within Mathews County,
Virginia, is a dangerous dog or a vicious dog shall apply to a Magistrate
of the jurisdiction for the issuance of a summons requiring the owner
or custodian, if known, to appear before the General District Court
at a specified time. The summons shall advise the owner of the nature
of the proceeding and the matters at issue. The Animal Control Officer
or owner shall confine the animal until such time as evidence shall
be heard and a verdict rendered. The Court, through its contempt powers,
may compel the owner, custodian or harborer of the animal to produce
the animal. If, after hearing the evidence, the Court finds that the
animal is a dangerous dog, the Court shall order the animal's owner
to comply with the provisions of this article. If, after hearing the
evidence, the Court finds that the animal is a vicious dog, the Court
shall order the animal euthanized in accordance with the provisions
of § 3.2-6562 of the Code of Virginia.
No canine or canine crossbreed shall be found
to be a dangerous dog or vicious dog solely because it is a particular
breed, nor shall the Board of Supervisors of Mathews County prohibit
the ownership of a particular breed of canine or canine crossbreed.
No animal shall be found to be a dangerous dog or vicious dog if the
threat, injury or damage was sustained by a person who was committing,
at the time, a crime upon the premises occupied by the animal's owner
or custodian; committing, at the time, a willful trespass or other
tort upon the premises occupied by the animal's owner or custodian;
or provoking, tormenting or physically abusing the animal, or who
can be shown to have repeatedly provoked, tormented, abused or assaulted
the animal at other times. No police dog which was engaged in the
performance of its duties as such at the time of the acts complained
of shall be found to be a dangerous dog or a vicious dog. No animal
which, at the time of the acts complained of, was responding to pain
or injury, or was protecting itself, its kennel, its offspring or
its owner or owner's property shall be found to be a dangerous dog
or a vicious dog.
The owner of any animal found by a court to
be a dangerous dog shall, within 10 days of such finding, obtain a
dangerous dog registration certificate from the Animal Control Officer
for a fee of $50, in addition to other fees that may be authorized
by law. A local Animal Control Officer shall also provide the owner
with a uniformly designed tag which identifies the animal as a dangerous
dog. The owner shall affix the tag to the animal's collar and ensure
that the animal wears the collar and the tag at all times. All certificates
obtained pursuant to this section shall be renewed annually for the
same fee and in the same manner as the initial certificate was obtained.
All certificates or renewals thereof required
to be obtained under this article shall only be issued to persons
18 years of age or older who present satisfactory evidence of the
animal's current rabies vaccination and that the animal is and will
be confined in a proper enclosure or is and will be confined inside
the owner's residence or is and will be muzzled and confined in the
owner's fenced-in yard until the proper enclosure is constructed.
In addition, owners who apply for certificates or renewals thereof
under this section shall not be issued a certificate or renewal thereof
unless they present satisfactory evidence that their residence is
and will continue to be posted with clearly visible signs warning
both minors and adults of the presence of a dangerous dog on the property
and the animal has been permanently identified by means of a tattoo
on the inside thigh or by an electronic implantation.
While on the property of its owner, an animal
found by a court to be a dangerous dog shall be confined indoors or
in a securely enclosed and locked structure of sufficient height and
design to prevent its escape or direct contact with or entry by minors,
adults or other animals. The structure shall be designed to provide
the animal with shelter from the elements of nature. When off its
owner's property, an animal found by a court to be a dangerous dog
shall be kept on a leash and muzzled in such a manner as not to cause
injury to the animal or interfere with the animal's vision or respiration,
but so as to prevent it from biting a person or another animal.
If the owner of an animal found by a court to
be a dangerous dog is a minor, the custodial parent or legal guardian
shall be responsible for complying with all requirements of this article.
After an animal has been found by a court to
be a dangerous dog, the animal's owner shall immediately, upon learning
of the same, notify the local animal control authority if the animal
is loose or unconfined; bites a person or attacks another animal;
is sold, given away or dies; or has been moved to a different address.
The owner of any animal which has been found
by a court to be a dangerous dog who willfully fails to comply with
the requirements of this article shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
