[Adopted 4-4-1989 as Ord. No. 221]
A.
It is hereby declared that vicious dogs have become a
serious threat to the safety and welfare of citizens of the Borough of Matamoras
in that vicious dogs have in recent years assaulted without provocation and
seriously injured individuals, including children, and have seriously injured
other dogs. Many of these attacks have occurred in public.
B.
The number and severity of these attacks are also attributable
to the failure of owners to register, confine and properly control vicious
dogs.
C.
It is further declared that the necessity for the regulation
and control of vicious dogs is a borough problem, requiring borough regulation,
and that existing laws and ordinances are inadequate to deal with the threat
to public health and safety posed by vicious dogs.
D.
It is further declared that owning, keeping or harboring
vicious dogs is a nuisance.
As used in §§ 39-12 through 39-23, inclusive, of this Article, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings, unless the context shall indicate another or different meaning or intent:
Any person employed or appointed by the County of Pike in this state
to enforce the laws within Pike County, or any person employed or appointed
by the Borough of Matamoras to enforce dog and/or animal laws and ordinances
within the Borough of Matamoras.
A fence or structure of at least six (6) feet in height, forming
or causing an enclosure to prevent the entry of young children and suitable
to confine a vicious dog in conjunction with other measures which may be taken
by the owner or keeper, such as tethering of the vicious dog. Such enclosure
shall be securely enclosed and locked and designed with secured slides, top
and bottom and shall be designed to prevent the animal from escaping from
the enclosure.
Taken into custody and/or taken or kept at a public or private animal
pound.
A natural person or any legal entity, including but not limited to
a corporation, firm, partnership or trust.
"Vicious dog" means:
Any dog which, when unprovoked, in a vicious or terrorizing manner approaches
any person in apparent attitude of attack upon the streets, sidewalks or any
public grounds or places;
Any dog with a known propensity, tendency or disposition to attack unprovoked,
to cause injury or to otherwise endanger the safety of human beings or domestic
animals;
Any dog which bites, inflicts injury, assaults or otherwise attacks
a human being or domestic animal without provocation, on public or private
grounds or property;
Any dog owned or harbored primarily or in part for the purpose of dog
fighting or any dog trained for dog fighting; or
Any dog not licensed to state, county or borough law.
Note of intent. Notwithstanding the definition of a "vicious dog" above,
no dog may be declared vicious if an injury or damage is sustained by a person
who, at the time such injury or damage was sustained, was committing a willful
trespass or other tort upon premises occupied by the owner or keeper of the
dog or was teasing, tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog or was committing
or attempting to commit a crime.
No dog may be declared vicious if an injury or damage was sustained
by a domestic animal which at the time of the injury or damage was sustained
was teasing, tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog. No dog may be declared
vicious if the dog was protecting or defending a human being within the immediate
vicinity of the dog from an unjustified attack or assault.
A.
No vicious dog shall be allowed in the Borough of Matamoras
for any licensing period of the County of Pike in the State of Pennsylvania
from January to December, inclusive, in any year, commencing on April 4, 1989,
unless the owner or keeper of such vicious dog shall meet the following requirements:
(1)
The owner of keeper shall present to the Borough Police
Department or the Borough Secretary proof that the owner or keeper has procured
liability insurance in the amount of at least one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000.), covering any damage or injury which may be caused by such vicious
dog during the twelve-month period for which permission to keep the dog in
the borough is sought, which policy shall contain a provision requiring the
Borough of Matamoras to be named as additional insured for the sole purpose
of the borough through the Borough Secretary or Police Department and notified
by the insurance company of any cancellation, termination or expiration of
the liability insurance policy.
(2)
The owner or keeper shall, at their own expense, have
the number assigned by the borough to such vicious dog or other identification
number as the borough shall determine tattooed upon such vicious dog by a
licensed veterinarian or person trained as a tattooist and authorized as such
by any state, city, town or borough Police Department. The tattoo shall be
placed either on the upper inner lip or upper left rear thigh of the vicious
dog. The Dog Warden may, in his discretion, designate the particular location
of the tattoo. Said tattoo shall be noted in the borough files for such vicious
dog. For the purpose of this Article, "tattoo" shall be defined as any permanent
numbering of a vicious dog by means of indelible or permanent ink with a number
designated by the borough or any other permanent acceptable method of tattooing.
The number shall be issued by the Borough Secretary or the Police Chief of
the borough and shall consist of a number with no fewer than three (3) digits
and not more than six (6), with a prefix of "MAT" which will help identify
the borough as the place of origin of the number.
(3)
The owner or keeper of the vicious dog shall display
a sign on their premises warning that there is a vicious dog on the premises.
Such sign shall be visible and capable of being read from the public highway
or road.
(4)
The owner or keeper shall sign a statement attesting
that:
(a)
The owner or keeper shall maintain and not voluntarily
cancel the liability insurance required by this section during the twelve-month
period for which permission to keep such vicious dog is sought, unless the
owner or keeper shall cease to own or keep the vicious dog.
(b)
The owner or keeper shall, on or prior to the effective
date of the application for permission to keep the vicious dog is made, have
an enclosure for the vicious dog on the property where the vicious dog will
be kept or maintained.
(c)
The owner or keeper of the vicious dog will notify the
Borough Police Department and the office of the County Dog Warden within one
(1) hour if a vicious dog is on the loose, is unconfined, has attacked another
animal or has attacked a human being or within twenty-four (24) hours if the
dog has been sold or given away. If the vicious dog has been sold or given
away, the owner or keeper shall also provide the borough with the name, address
and telephone number of the new owner or keeper of the vicious dog within
the same twenty-four-hour period.
B.
The Dog Warden or local police are hereby empowered to
make whatever inquiry is deemed necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions
of this Article, and any such Dog Warden or Matamoras police officer is hereby
empowered to seize and/or impound any dog that is vicious and whose owner
or keeper fails to comply with the provisions hereof.
C.
In the event that the owner or keeper of the dog refuses
to surrender the animal to the Dog Warden or police officer, the officer may
seek a search warrant from the District Justice of the area and seize the
dog upon execution of the warrant.
A.
All vicious dogs shall be confined in an enclosure. It
is unlawful for any owner or keeper to maintain a vicious dog upon any premises
which does not have a locked enclosure.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any owner or keeper to allow
any vicious dog to be outside of the dwelling of the owner or keeper or outside
of the enclosure unless it is necessary for the owner or keeper to obtain
veterinary care for the vicious dog or to comply with the provisions of this
Article. In such event, the vicious dog shall be securely muzzled and restrained
with a chain having a minimum tensile strength of three hundred (300) pounds
and not exceeding three (3) feet in length and shall be under the direct control
and supervision of the owner or keeper of the vicious dog.
A.
No person shall own or harbor any dog for the purpose
of dog fighting or train, torment, badger, bait or use any dog for the purpose
of causing or encouraging said dog to unprovoked attacks upon human beings
or domestic animals.
B.
No person shall possess with intent to sell or offer
for sale, breed or buy or attempt to buy within the Borough of Matamoras any
vicious dog.
In the event that a Dog Warden or law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe that a vicious dog is being harbored or cared for in violation of § 39-16, the Dog Warden or law enforcement officer may order the seizure and impoundment of the vicious dog pending a hearing or trial.
If any vicious dog shall, when unprovoked, kill or wound or assist in
killing or wounding any domestic animal belonging to or in the possession
of any person or shall, when unprovoked, attack, assault or bite or otherwise
injure any human being or assist in attacking, biting or otherwise injuring
any human being while out of or within the enclosure of the owner or keeper
of such vicious dog or while otherwise on or off the property of the owner
or keeper, whether or not such vicious dog was on a leash and securely muzzled
or whether the vicious dog escaped without fault of the owner or keeper, the
owner or keeper of such dog shall be liable to the person aggrieved as aforesaid
for all damage sustained, to be recovered in a civil action, with costs of
suit. It is rebuttably presumed as matter of law that the owning or keeping
or harboring of a vicious dog in violation of this Article is a nuisance.
It shall not be necessary, in order to sustain any action, to prove that the
owner or keeper of such vicious dog knew that such vicious dog possessed the
propensity to cause such damage or that the vicious dog had a vicious nature.
Upon such attack or assault, the Dog Warden or a borough police officer is
hereby empowered to confiscate and/or destroy such vicious dog if the conduct
of such vicious dog or its owner or keeper constituted a violation of the
provisions of this Article, punishable by the confiscation and/or destruction
of the animal.
A.
If a dog is ruled vicious for violation of § 39-13, the definition of "vicious dog," Subsection A(5) of this Article, solely, said vicious dog ruling shall be repealed upon compliance with the penalty clause contained in § 39-20D dealing with fines for unlicensed dogs. All other provisions of this Article dealing with vicious dogs shall not apply to said animal.
B.
The provisions of this Article shall not apply to K-9
dogs or other dogs owned by any Police Department or any law enforcement officer
which are used in the performance of police work.
C.
Section 39-15 of this Article shall not apply to any dog that has been confiscated by a police officer or Dog Warden as long as said vicious dog is under the direct control of said officer. However, if the officer believes that the vicious dog should be muzzled or have a chain while it is under his control, it shall be up to the owner or keeper to supply one to the officer and the muzzle and/or chain must be in compliance with § 39-15 of this Article.
A.
Any vicious dog, except those ruled vicious for violation of § 39-13, the definition of "vicious dog," Subsection A(5), solely, which does not have a valid license in accordance with the provisions of this Article; or whose owner or keeper does not secure the liability insurance coverage required in accordance with § 39-14 of this Article; or which is not maintained on property with an enclosure; or which shall be outside of the dwelling of the owner or keeper or outside of an enclosure except as provided in § 39-15 of this Article; or which is not tattooed shall be confiscated by a Dog Warden or police officer and be taken to a licensed pound or Humane Society and destroyed in an expeditious and humane manner after the expiration of a five-day waiting period, exclusive of Sundays and holidays. In addition, the owner or keeper shall pay a fine of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.) and pay all costs of destruction and confinement that the pound or Humane Society may require.
B.
If a vicious dog shall, when unprovoked, kill, wound or worry or assist in killing or wounding any animal described in § 39-18 of this Article, the owner or keeper of said dog shall pay a fine of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.) and the Dog Warden or local police officer is empowered to confiscate the dog and, after the expiration of a five-day waiting period, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, shall destroy said vicious dog as described in § 39-20A of this Article. For each subsequent violation, the owner or keeper shall pay a fine of five hundred dollars ($500.).
C.
If any vicious dog shall, when unprovoked, attack, assault, wound or bite or otherwise injure or kill a human being, the owner or keeper shall pay a fine of five hundred dollars ($500.), and the Dog Warden or police officer is empowered to confiscate, impound and/or destroy said vicious dog under the terms as mentioned in § 39-20A of this Article. For each subsequent violation of this section, the owner or keeper shall pay a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000.) for owning and keeping a vicious dog which so attacks, assaults, wounds or bites or otherwise injures or kills a human being.
E.
Licensing.
(1)
All dogs shall be licensed in accordance with state and/or
county licensing procedures and regulations as required by law.
(2)
For any dog found to be unlicensed in the Borough of
Matamoras, the owner or keeper of said dog shall, for the first offense, be
fined twenty-five dollars ($25.) and, for the second offense, pay a fine of
two hundred dollars ($200.). For each subsequent offense, the owner or keeper
shall pay a fine of five hundred dollars ($500.).
F.
All fines and/or penalties shall be in addition to any
fines or penalties levied by the county or state in accordance with the law
or any licensing fees that might be due.
G.
No dog shall be destroyed within five (5) days of being
confiscated and/or impounded, exclusive of Sundays and holidays.
H.
If the owner or keeper of a dog impounded for an alleged violation of § 39-14 to § 39-20, inclusive, of this Article shall believe that they shall not have been in violation of such sections hereof, such owner or keeper may petition the District Court which has jurisdiction in the Borough of Matamoras or the court which has jurisdiction over the municipality where the dog is being confined praying that the impounded dog not be destroyed. The impounded dog shall not be destroyed pending resolution of such owner's or keeper's petition if the petition shall have been filed within five (5) days of the filing of the impoundment of such dog upon the Dog Warden, Chief of Police of the Borough of Matamoras or the place of impoundment. However, the Dog Warden or any law enforcement officer shall have the right to declare a dog vicious for any actions of the dog subsequent to the date of the violation. If the court shall find that there shall not have been a violation of § 39-14 to § 39-20, inclusive, of this Article, such dog may be released to the custody of the owner or keeper upon payment to the poundkeeper or Humane Society or the Dog Warden of the expense of keeping such dog.
A.
If any provision of this Article or the application thereof
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder
of the Article and the application of such provisions to other persons and
circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
B.
This Article shall take effect on April 4, 1989.
C.
This Article shall not null and void any existing laws
or ordinances governing dogs or animals of the Borough of Matamoras.
A.
In the event that the Dog Warden or law enforcement officer
has probable cause to believe that a dog is vicious, the Dog Warden or the
Chief of Police of the Borough of Matamoras or his designee shall be empowered
to convene a hearing for the purpose of determining whether or not the dog
in question should be declared vicious. The Dog Warden or the Chief of Police
shall conduct or cause to be conducted an investigation and shall notify the
owner or keeper of the dog that a hearing will be held, at which time he or
she may have the opportunity to present evidence why the dog should not be
declared vicious. The hearing shall be held promptly within no less than five
(5) nor more than ten (10) days after service of notice upon the owner or
keeper of the dog. The hearing shall be informal and be open to the public
and shall include a member of the Pike County Humane Society or another person
whose qualifications as a dog behavior specialist are acceptable to the Borough
Council.
B.
After the hearing, the owner or keeper will be notified,
in writing, of the determination. If a determination is made that the dog
is vicious, the owner or keeper shall comply with the provisions of this Article
in accordance with a time schedule established by the Dog Warden or Chief
of Police, but in no case more than thirty (30) days subsequent to the date
of determination. If the owner or keeper of the dog contests the determination,
he or she may, within five (5) days of such determination, bring a petition
in District Court within the judicial district that governs the Borough of
Matamoras praying that the Court conduct its own hearing on whether or not
the dog in question should be declared vicious under this Article in Matamoras.
C.
In the event that the Dog Warden or law enforcement officer
has probable cause to believe that the dog in question is vicious and may
pose a threat of serious harm to human beings or other domestic animals, the
Dog Warden or law enforcement officer may seize and impound the dog pending
the aforesaid hearings or any appeals. The owner or keeper of the dog shall
be liable to the Borough of Matamoras for the costs and expenses of keeping
such dog.
D.
The Dog Officer or any law enforcement officer of the
borough shall have the right to declare a dog to be vicious for any subsequent
actions of the dog.
In the event that the owner or keeper of the dog is a minor, the parent
or guardian of such minor shall be liable for all injuries and property damage
sustained by any person or domestic animal caused by an unprovoked attack
by said dog, classified vicious or not.
