[1]
Editor's Note: For additional information regarding animals, see Ch. 100, Animals.
As used in this article:
DOG
Includes any dog, bitch or spayed bitch.
DOG OF LICENSING AGE
Includes any dog which has attained the age of seven months or which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
KENNEL
Includes any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding or selling dogs or breeding dogs for sale is carried on, except a pet shop.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog shall include every person having a right property in such dog and every person who has such a dog in his keeping.
PET SHOP
Includes any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part of a kennel, wherein dogs for sale are kept or displayed.
A. 
Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish a kennel or pet shop shall apply to the Borough Clerk for a license entitling him to keep or operate such establishment.
B. 
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 Health Officer of the Borough of East Rutherford, showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations governing location of and sanitation at such establishments.
C. 
All licenses issued for a kennel or pet shop shall state the purpose for which the establishment is maintained. Such licenses shall expire on the last day of December of each year and shall be subject to revocation by the Borough on recommendation of the State Department of Health or of the Borough Department of Health for failure to comply with the rules and regulations of the State Department or of the Borough Department of Health governing them. No license shall be revoked unless the owner has been afforded a hearing by the State Department or by the Health Officer of the Borough of East Rutherford.
D. 
Any 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.
[Amended 11-13-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-03[1]]
Annual license fees shall be as follows:
A. 
For a kennel providing accommodations for 10 or fewer dogs: $150.
B. 
For a kennel providing accommodations for more than 10 dogs: $250.
C. 
For a pet shop: $100.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided an effective date of 1-1-2009.
A. 
Annual license and tag required; placing tag on collar or harness. Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog of licensing age in the Borough of East Rutherford shall, annually, apply for and procure from the Borough Clerk a license and official metal registration tag for each such dog so owned, kept or harbored, and shall place upon each such dog a collar or harness with the registration tag securely fastened thereto.
B. 
Current licenses and registration tags issued by any other municipality of this state shall be accepted by the Borough of East Rutherford as evidence of compliance with Subsection A(1) of this provision and Subsection B.
[Amended 6-7-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-1; 6-7-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-5A]
A. 
The person applying for the license and registration tag, or for an annual renewal thereof, shall pay to the Borough Clerk a fee for each dog license and registration tag of each dog.
(1) 
Dog license and tag (spayed): $10.
(2) 
Dog license and tag (unspayed): $13.
B. 
Said licenses, registration tags and renewals thereof shall expire on the last day of December in each year.
Dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly known as "Seeing Eye" dogs shall be licensed and registered as provided in this article; provided, however, that the owner or keeper of such dog shall not be required to pay any fee therefor.
License forms and uniform official registration tags designed by the State Department of Health shall be furnished by the Borough of East Rutherford, shall be numbered serially, and shall bear the year of issuance and the name of the Borough.
A. 
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color and markings of the dog for which license and registration are sought, and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety; also the name, street and post office address of the owner and the person who shall keep or harbor such dog.
B. 
The information on said application and the registration number issued for the dog shall be preserved for a period of three years by the Borough of East Rutherford. In addition, it 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. Registration numbers shall be issued in the order of the applications.
A. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough of East Rutherford any dog licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag, and shall keep or permit the same to be kept within the Borough for a period of more than 90 days, shall immediately apply for a license and registration tag for each such dog.
B. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Borough any unlicensed dog, and shall keep or permit the same to be kept within the Borough 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.
The Chief of Police or any person appointed for the purpose by the Board of Health of the Borough of East Rutherford shall, promptly after February of each year, cause a canvass to be made of all dogs owned, kept or harbored within the limits of the Borough and shall report, on or before May 1 of each year, to the Borough Clerk, to the Department of Health of the Borough, 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 such dogs, the number of licensed dogs owned, kept or harbored, together with the registration number of each of said dogs, and 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.
A. 
The Chief of Police of the Borough of East Rutherford, or any official police officer, or any person appointed for the purpose by the Board of Health of the Borough, shall take into custody and impound or cause to be taken and impounded and thereafter destroyed or disposed of, as provided in this section, and in accordance with L. 1941, c. 151, 16 (N.J.S.A. 4: 19-15.16) and the amendments thereof and supplements thereto:
(1) 
Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog, which said official or his agent or agents have reason to believe is a stray dog.
(2) 
Any dog off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog without a current registration tag on his collar.
(3) 
Any female dog in season off the premises of the owner or of the person keeping or harboring said dog.
B. 
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 person keeping or harboring said dog is known, the Chief of Police shall forthwith serve on the person whose address is given on the collar, or on the owner, or on the person keeping or harboring said dog, if known, a notice in writing stating that the dog has been seized and will be liable to be disposed of or destroyed if not claimed within seven days after service of the notice. A notice under this section may be served 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 to 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 address set forth on the application for the license.
C. 
When any dog so seized has been detained for seven days after notice, when notice can be given as above set forth, or has been detained for seven days after seizure when no notice has been given, and if the owner or person keeping or harboring said dog has not claimed said dog and paid all expense incurred by reason of its detention, including maintenance not exceeding $1 per day, and a fee of $1 for expense of seizure, and further, if the dog be unlicensed at the time of the seizure and the owner or person keeping or harboring said dog has not produced a license and registration tag for said dog, the aforesaid Chief of Police of the Borough of East Rutherford, or any person appointed for the purpose by the Board of Health of the Borough, may cause the dog to be destroyed in manner causing as little pain as possible.
Any officer or agent authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this article 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 the dog if said owner is present and forbids the same.
A. 
Any person who violates or fails or refuses to comply with provisions contained herein or with the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Department of Health governing the sanitary conduct and operation of kennels or pet shops, to preserve sanitation therein and to prevent the spread of rabies and other diseases of dogs within and from such establishments, shall be liable of a penalty of not less than $5 nor more than $500 for each offense, to be recovered by and in the name of the Director of Health of the State of New Jersey, or by or in the name of the Borough, as the case may be, except that for the first offense, in case of violations of provisions contained herein, the penalty shall not be less than $5 nor more than $500, to be recovered in the same manner. A person who refuses or neglects to pay forthwith the amount of a judgment rendered against him and the costs and charges incident thereto may be committed by the magistrate to the county jail for a period not exceeding 10 days in the case of a first conviction, and, in the case of a second, subsequent or continuing violation, for a term not exceeding 30 days.
B. 
Any person who shall violate any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding $500.
A. 
No person shall keep or harbor any wild animal or any nondomestic animal within the Borough.
B. 
Penalty. Any person who violates any provision of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding $500.
[Added 4-3-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-1]
A. 
No person shall feed or attract any wild or stray animal. The definition of "wild or stray animals" shall include but not be limited to the following: cats and dogs which are not housed within a residence within the Borough of East Rutherford; raccoons; skunks; groundhogs; pigeons; waterfowl and other birds. Wild or stray animals shall not include any animal licensed by the Borough of East Rutherford under Article XVII of the Sanitary Code. This section shall not apply to elevated bird feeder devices as set forth in Article XVII, § 396-188.2. This prohibition shall also apply to any conditions by which the feeding of animals creates a public health risk or unsanitary conditions.
B. 
Any person who violates the terms and provisions of this section shall be subject to the fines and penalties set forth in Article XVII, § 396-187 of the Sanitary Code of the Borough of East Rutherford.
[Added 4-3-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-1]
A. 
Each property owner shall be permitted to have one bird feeder or suet, but not both, to be located in the rear of the property, behind the existing house or premises, no closer than 12 feet to any property line.
(1) 
Bird feeder.
(a) 
A bird feeder shall be either:
[1] 
A tube or cylinder-type feeder hung from a tree or pole; or
[2] 
A hopper-type feeder which shall be no larger than 12 inches in width and height and be fully enclosed on all sides with openings of no more than 1/2 inch in size.
(b) 
Bird feeders shall be hung no less than three feet and no more than eight feet from the ground.
(c) 
Bird feeders shall be filled with no more than 10 ounces of bird feed or bird food at any time to be placed inside the bird feeder only.
(2) 
Suet. Suet is a formulation of animal fat and other ingredients in cake or brick form. Suet shall be placed in either a mesh bag or wire cage and suspended close to the trunk of a tree between five and six feet from the ground.
B. 
No bird seed or any form of bird food shall be thrown or scattered on the ground of any property. No suet shall be smeared on any tree. Seed shells or bird food dropped by birds or which otherwise fall to the ground shall be removed so that no accumulation results.
C. 
Any person who violates the terms and provisions of this section shall be subject to the fines and penalties set forth in Article XVII, § 396-187 of the Sanitary Code of the Borough of East Rutherford.
[Added 6-23-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-1]
A. 
No person or persons occupying a single dwelling unit within the Borough of East Rutherford shall be allowed to permit the harboring, either inside or outside of the dwelling unit, of more than four cats and four dogs. However, on properties equal to or greater than 10,000 square feet in area, exclusive of properties which contain townhouses, condominiums, apartment complexes, cooperative units, hotels, motels, and multifamily dwellings exceeding two dwelling units, the number of allowable cats and dogs per dwelling unit upon said property shall be increased to five cats and five dogs.
[Amended 11-1-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-4]
B. 
The provisions of this section shall not supercede any rule, regulation, code, lease provision, deed restriction or bylaw setting a more restrictive limitation on the number of cats or dogs harbored for each dwelling unit within the Borough which may be in force by a landlord, condominium association, cooperative association, or other property owner within the Borough.
C. 
Any person who violates any provision of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding $500, to be determined by the presiding Judge of the Municipal Court of East Rutherford, or his designee. A separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. Proof that the dog(s) and/or cat(s) in excess of the limitation set herein have been permanently removed from the dwelling unit as of the date of the court hearing shall be considered a mitigating factor in the imposition of the fine as determined by the presiding judge or his designee.
D. 
Any person who violates any provision of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, within 24 hours deliver all dogs and cats in excess of the limitation set herein to the Bergen County Animal Shelter and provide proof of such delivery to the Borough. Any person so convicted shall pay any and all costs associated with the delivery to and the sheltering of any and all dogs and cats in excess of the limitation set herein, including but not limited to the cost of any required vaccines or medications.
E. 
The failure to deliver the animals, provide proof of delivery or pay any and all costs associated with delivery as prescribed in Subsection D above shall be considered separate and distinct offenses and each offense shall be punishable as prescribed in Subsection C above.
F. 
In lieu of the requirements set forth in Subsection D above, a person so convicted shall within 24 hours of said conviction provide the Borough with a notarized statement from an individual not residing in the same dwelling unit as the convicted person confirming that said individual has adopted the dog(s) and/or cat(s) in excess of the limitation set herein; that the individual agrees to remain responsible for the care and feeding of the dog(s) and/or cat(s) in question; that the individual agrees to provide for the proper vaccinations of the dog(s) and/or cat(s) in question; and that the individual agrees to provide for the proper licnesing of the dog(s) in question.
G. 
In the event that a person convicted of violating a provision of this section fails to take the measures outlined in Subsection D or F above, any officer or agent authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this article is hereby authorized to enter upon any premises in order to remove the dog(s) and/or cat(s) in excess of the limitation set herein.
H. 
The Health Departments of the Borough, County of Bergen and/or the State of New Jersey, the Chief of Police of the Borough or any official Police Officer of the Borough are authorized to administer the provisions of this section. The provisions of this section shall be enforced by the Health Officer, or his designee, the Code Enforcement Officer of the Borough, the Chief of Police of the Borough or any official Police Officer of the Borough.