[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Sayre 5-15-2006 by Ord. No. 841.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed
former Ch. 61, Dogs and Other Animals, which consisted of Art. I,
Keeping of Poisonous Reptiles, adopted 10-8-1970 by Ord. No. 454,
Art. II, Dogs Running at Large, adopted 3-6-1971 by Ord. No. 461,
Art. III, Dogs Creating Disturbances; Restriction on Number of Dogs,
adopted 4-16-1990 by Ord. No. 670, and Art. IV, Ducks, adopted 8-24-1992
by Ord. No. 695.
The short title of this chapter shall be the
"Borough of Sayre Animal Ordinance," and it may be cited in that manner.
The following words and phrases, when used in
this chapter, shall have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise,
the meanings given to them in this section:
Any person appointed to carry out the duties of dog control.
Any kennel available to the general public where dogs are
housed or trained for compensation by the day, week or a specified
or unspecified time. The term shall not include a kennel where the
practice of veterinary medicine is performed if the kennel is covered
by the provisions of the Act of December 27, 1974 (P.L. 995, No. 326),
known as the "Veterinary Medicine Practice Act." The term shall include
any boarding facility operated by a licensed doctor of veterinary
medicine, whether or not this facility is on the same premises as
a building or structure subject to the provisions of the Veterinary
Medicine Practice Act.
Any kennel operated for the purpose of breeding, buying and
selling or in any way transferring dogs for nonresearch purposes.
The genus and species known as Felis catus.
An employee of Bradford County whose primary duty is to enforce
this chapter and regulations pursuant thereto.
The elected officer for any county or any county employee
assigned to the office of the county treasurer charged with the receipt,
custody and disbursements of its moneys or funds. The term "county
treasurer" shall include those officials in home rule charter counties
responsible for county treasurer's duties.
Any person who owns or operates a dealer kennel in this commonwealth
or who buys, receives, sells, exchanges, negotiates, barters or solicits
the sale, resale, exchange or transfer of a dog in this commonwealth
for the purpose of transferring ownership or possession to a third
party.
A kennel within the commonwealth which:
Publicly or privately sells or offers for sale any dog belonging
to another person for a fee, commission or percentage of the sale
price;
Acquires, sells, transfers, exchanges or barters dogs at wholesale
for resale to another; or
Offers or maintains dogs for sale, transfer, exchange or barter
at wholesale for resale to another. The term does not include a pound,
shelter or common carrier, or a kennel defined elsewhere in this section.
The genus and species known as Canis familiaris.
Any equine animal or bovine animal, sheep, goat, poultry,
bird, fowl, confined hares, rabbits and mink, or any wild animal maintained
in captivity.
A nonprofit society or association duly incorporated pursuant
to 15 Pa.C.S.A. Ch. 53 Subchapter A (relating to incorporation generally),
for the purpose of the prevention of cruelty to animals.
Any person duly appointed pursuant to 22 Pa.C.S.A. § 501
(relating to appointment by nonprofit corporations) to act as a police
officer for a humane society or association for the prevention of
cruelty to animals. The term shall include any person who is an agent
of a humane society or association for the prevention of cruelty to
animals, as "agent" is used in 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5511 (relating
to cruelty to animals).
Any establishment wherein dogs are kept for the purpose of
breeding, hunting, training, renting, research or vivisection, buying,
boarding, sale, show or any other similar purpose and is so constructed
that dogs cannot stray therefrom.
An identifying integrated circuit, placed under the skin
of a dog, cat or other animal, containing information relating to
the ownership of the animal.
Any kennel operated by an animal rescue league, a humane
society or association for the prevention of cruelty to animals or
a nonprofit animal control kennel under sections 901 and 1002.[1] The term shall include kennels operated by approved medical
and veterinary schools and nonprofit institutions conducting medical
and scientific research, which shall be required to register, but
shall not be required to pay any of the following license fees, and
which may use their own identification tags for dogs within their
kennels without being required to attach tags hereinafter prescribed
while dogs are within such kennels, if approved by the Secretary.
When applied to the proprietorship of a dog, includes every
person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody of a dog, cat or
other, and every person who keeps or harbors such dog or has it in
his care, and every person who permits such dog to remain on or about
premises occupied by him.
Any long-lasting identification designed to be nonremovable,
such as a tattoo or microchip, determined by the Department of Agriculture
through regulation. Any dog permanently identified shall be required
to bear a license tag in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
A person who receives disability insurance or supplemental
security income for the aged, blind or disabled under the Social Security
Act (49 Stat. 620, 42 U.S.C. § 301 et seq.), or who receives
a rent or property tax rebate under the act of March 11, 1971 (P.L.
104, No. 3), known as the "Senior Citizens Rebate and Assistance Act,"[2] on account of disability, or who has a handicapped license
plate under 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1338 (relating to handicapped
plate and placard).
Includes state and local officers, or employees, individuals,
corporations, copartnerships and associations. Singular words shall
include the plural. Masculine words shall include the feminine and
neuter.
Any kennel or person that acquires and sells dogs for the
purpose of resale, whether as owner, agent or consignee, and sells
or offers to sell such dogs on a retail basis.
Any person employed or elected by this commonwealth or by
any municipality and whose duty it is to preserve peace or to make
arrests or to enforce the law. The term includes constables and dog,
game, fish and forest wardens.
A kennel at, in or adjoining a residence where dogs are kept
or bred by their owner for the purpose of hunting, tracking and exhibiting
in dog shows or field and obedience trials.
Any dog or animal which has been trained as a guide animal,
signal animal or has been trained to work or perform tasks for the
benefit of an individual with a disability, including, but not limited
to guiding individuals with impaired vision, alerting individuals
with impaired hearing to intruders or sounds, pulling a wheelchair
or fetching dropped items.
A domestic animal which is now or historically has been found
in the wild, including, but not limited to, bison, deer, elk, llamas
or any species of foreign or domestic cattle, such as ankle, gala
and yak.
No person, firm, partnership or corporation
shall keep or maintain an apiary or any chicken, turkey or other farm
animal or domestic or wild fowl within the Borough of Sayre. Exempted
from this prohibition are those domesticated fowl that can be maintained
in a cage within the living confines of the owner's residence, i.e.,
parrots, canaries or swine.
A.
Poisonous snakes or any other poisonous reptiles will
not be bred, raised, kept or harbored within Sayre Borough.
B.
Nonpoisonous snakes and reptiles may be kept in an
area of the owner or operator of such area and completely surrounded
and enclosed by a metal wall substance which will prevent the escape
from said area of any of its reptilian inhabitants. Any openings into
such areas, such as doors and windows, shall be equipped with locks
and shall be locked at all times.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has
custody of a dogs, cats or other animals shall use all reasonable
precautions to confine or contain such dogs, cats or other animals
to the property of such people or the property which the owner, custodian
or keeper has permission to use for such purposes in accordance with
commonwealth laws.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has
custody of dogs, cats or other animals shall not permit any dogs,
cats or other animals to become a nuisance within the Borough of Sayre,
such as by making too much noise, making noise at inconvenient hours,
defecating or urinating on neighbor's property or public property,
running loose and causing an annoyance in the neighborhood.
A.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody
of dogs shall not permit or allow any dogs upon any public or private
property, including sidewalks and streets, within the Borough of Sayre
unless such dogs are on a leash or harness or upon the property of
the owner.
B.
Eugene Paluzzi Memorial Park, also known as Sayre
Riverfront Park.
(1)
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody
of a dog may have said dog off leash within the confines of the park,
provided said person keeps the dog under control and exercises good
judgment when other animals are present.
(2)
Said person shall place the dog on a leash upon request
of any patron using the park.
(3)
Said person shall keep the dog on a leash when public events are underway within the park. These events include, but are not limited to, sports events, Fourth of July celebrations, automobile shows and other public events. Said person shall meet all requirements of § 61-9 while coming to, occupying and leaving the park premises. Said owner shall be personally liable for any damages or personal injury caused by his dog while occupying the park premises.
It shall be unlawful for any person who owns,
maintains, keeps or has custody of any dogs, cats or other animals
to allow or permit said animals to run at large within the Borough
of Sayre, either upon any of the streets, alleys or public grounds
in the Borough of Sayre or upon the property of someone other than
the owner.
A.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody
of any dogs, cats or other animals shall not cause, suffer or allow
such dogs, cats or other animals to defile or defecate on any common
thoroughfare, sidewalk, pathway, bypath, play area, park or any place
where people congregate or walk or on any public property whatsoever,
to include any private properties except the owner's.
B.
The owner of the animal shall be responsible for the
immediate removal of feces in a sanitary manner and shall dispose
of the same in a sanitary manner in said owner's residential garbage
or public waste containers.
A.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody
of a dog shall procure a license for each dog annually from the Bradford
County Treasurer or a local outlet authorized to issue licenses on
behalf of said Treasurer.
C.
Any person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody
of dogs, cats or other animals shall procure the necessary immunizations
and vaccinations for said animals as required by law.
No person shall cause or allow any house, hut,
area or place where any dogs, cats or other animals are or may be
kept to become unclean or unwholesome or in a condition to be detrimental
to the health and well-being of the humans and animals residing in
the vicinity of the enclosures.
A.
It shall be unlawful to own, harbor or keep in custody
any dogs, cats or other animals which disturb the peace by barking,
howling or making other loud noises to the annoyance and discomfort
of any person in the Borough of Sayre.
B.
Continuous barking, howling or the making of other
loud noises by any dog for more than one hour or continuous barking
for periods of less than one hour but more than 1/2 hour, which periods
occur on two or more consecutive days, shall be deemed to be a disturbance
of the peace and a cause of annoyance and discomfort to persons in
the Borough of Sayre.
C.
Notice of warning and determination of violation.
(1)
Any person may file a complaint, in writing, to the Sayre Borough Police Department identifying a person who owns, maintains, keeps or has custody of any dogs, cats or other animals which disturb the peace as defined in Subsection B. Such complaints must document the date, times and source of the alleged violation.
(2)
The Sayre Borough Police Department shall, after appropriate
investigation and confirmation of the alleged offense, deliver a warning
and a notice, in writing, to the residence of any such owner, keeper
or custodian of any dog in person or by registered mail.
(3)
The notice, in writing, shall identify the owner,
keeper or custodian of the dog, cat or other animal, specify the residence
of the owner, keeper or custodian of the dogs, cats or other animals
and the nature and times of the violations.
(4)
Penalties. A violation of this section shall be deemed to have occurred upon a second or subsequent violation of Subsection B above after the date of delivery of the written warning when the second one-hour disturbance or the second two one-half-hour disturbances take place within 30 days of the delivery of the written notice.
Any citizen abusing an animal in accordance
with state statute 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5511 shall be liable for
a fine.
It shall be the duty of any police officer and/or any Borough Dog Law Officer, if appointed, of the Borough of Sayre who witnesses any dog running at large in conflict with the provisions of § 61-6 of this chapter, or who receives information of any dog so running at large, to seize such dog and convey it to the place designated by the Borough Council as the authorized Borough animal shelter.
A.
Dogs not properly licensed or not bearing proper license
tags shall be delivered to an authorized animal shelter where the
animal shall be disposed of in a manner prescribed by the Code of
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
B.
In the event of a seizure of a dog bearing a current
license tag or implanted with a microchip bearing contact information
of the owner, an attempt shall be made to contact the owner of record
via the telephone. Otherwise, the dog shall be delivered to an authorized
animal shelter and a notice shall be sent to the owner of record of
such dog. Such dog may be redeemed by the owner thereof, within the
time specified by law, upon payment of a penalty of $30 to the political
subdivision whose police officers made such seizure and detention,
in addition to all reasonable expenses incurred by reason of detention.
C.
Rates of such charges shall be determined annually
by the Borough Council.
No person shall directly feed any ducks, geese
and other waterfowl inhabiting the ponds located within the Borough
of Sayre in order to control the growth and activity of the flock
for the health and welfare of the community.
On occasion, the Borough of Sayre Council may
authorize the stocking of fish in the pond or ponds located within
the Borough of Sayre. Fishing is prohibited for a period of one year
after the stocking action or, in the event of multiple stocking actions,
the one-year period will commence with the final stocking action.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter
shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not
less than $50 nor more than $600, plus costs of prosecution, or to
imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 30 days, or both.
Each day's continuance of violation shall constitute a separate offense.
