[Adopted by Ord. No. 1308 as Ch. 6.04 of the 1998 Code]
A.
ALTERED
ANIMAL
ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER
ANIMAL OF LICENSING AGE
CAT
DOG
KENNEL
LICENSING YEAR
OTHER ANIMALS
OWNER
PERSON
PET SHOP
SHELTER
SUFFER
TOWNSHIP
UNALTERED
WILD OR STRAY CAT
For the purpose of this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
An animal which has been spayed or neutered by a licensed
veterinarian.
A cat or dog unless the context of usage as set forth in
a specific section is clearly otherwise.
The person appointed by the Township Committee whose duty
it shall be to enforce the provisions of this article under the direction
of the Board of Health.
Any animal which has attained the age of seven months or
which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
Any cat, male, female or neutered/spayed.
Any dog, male, female or neutered/spayed.
Any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding
or selling dogs or breeding dogs for sale is carried on, except a
pet shop or a veterinary office or clinic.
A calendar year, except this phrase shall be the period from
July 1 through June 30 of the following year when referring to cat
licensing.
Any domestic or wild animal other than a cat, dog, insect,
mouse, rat or common household pest.
When applied to the proprietorship of an animal, means every
person having a right of property in such animal or every person who
has such animal in his keeping or under his dominion. A person shall
be deemed to have an animal in his keeping and under his dominion
whenever the ownership or custody of any animal is in an unemancipated
infant or other member of the household.
An individual, firm, partnership, corporation or association
of persons.
Any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part
of a kennel, wherein animals for sale are kept or displayed.
An establishment maintained and operated for the confinement
of animals.
Includes the failure of the owner or harborer of an animal
or animals to prevent the occurrence of any act or the coming into
existence of any condition proscribed or otherwise regulated by this
article, regardless of the prior knowledge thereof by such owner or
harborer.
The Township of Montville in the County of Morris.
An animal which has not been spayed or neutered by a licensed
veterinarian.
Any cat of unknown ownership over which no person has full
control.
B.
Word usage.
(1)
The words "and" and "or" may be used interchangeably
and either of the two may be applicable, whichever is more conducive
towards the effectuating of this article.
(2)
Personal pronouns shall mean either the singular or
the plural, whichever is applicable and conducive for the effectuating
of this article.
(3)
The masculine, feminine or the neuter gender shall
be implied, whichever is appropriate and conducive for the effectuating
of this article.
A.
No person shall keep or harbor or suffer the keeping
or harboring within his household of any animal within the Township
without first obtaining a license therefor to be issued by the Health
Department of the Township upon application by the owner or harborer
thereof and payment of the prescribed fee, and no person shall keep
or harbor any animal in said Township except in compliance with the
provisions of this article.
B.
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog of
licensing age shall annually in the month of January apply for and
procure from the Health Department of the Township 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.
C.
Any person who shall keep or harbor a cat of licensing
age shall annually in the month of June apply for and procure from
the Health Department of the Township a license and official registration
tag for each such cat so owned, kept or harbored and shall place upon
each such cat a collar or harness with the registration tag securely
fastened thereto.
A.
Annual license fees shall be paid to the Township of Montville as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
B.
Persons adopting animals from the Montville Township Animal Shelter shall pay adoption fees as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
[Amended 4-11-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-17]
C.
Dogs used as guides for blind persons and commonly
known as "Seeing Eye" dogs, dogs used to assist handicapped persons
and 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 hereinabove provided for, except that the owner or keeper
of such dog shall not be required to pay any fee therefor.
D.
No animal license required to be obtained pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be issued unless the person making the application for the license shall present the Department of Health a certificate issued by a duly licensed veterinarian stating that such animal has been inoculated with a rabies vaccine of a type approved by and administered in accordance with the recommendations of New Jersey and/or federal agencies. Such vaccinations shall be repeated at such intervals as provided by regulations of the State Department of Health and Senior Services and Subsection F herein.
E.
Any animal may be exempt from the requirements for
vaccination set forth for a specified period of time upon the presentation
of a certificate from a duly licensed veterinarian of the State of
New Jersey stating that by reason of age, infirmity or other physical
condition the vaccination of such animal against rabies for such specified
period of time is contraindicated.
F.
No person may own, keep or harbor any dog or cat whose
rabies vaccination is not kept current and maintained at all times
without interruption. In order to achieve compliance with this subsection,
all dogs and cats must be revaccinated on or before the expiration
date appearing on the certificate of vaccination issued for the animal
by a duly licensed veterinarian or rabies clinic.
G.
The provisions of this section do not apply to any
dog or to any cat held by a state or federal licensed research facility
or a veterinary establishment where cats are received or kept for
diagnostic, medical, surgical or other treatment or licensed animal
shelters, pounds or pet shops.
A.
The owner of any newly acquired animal of licensing
age or of any animal which attains licensing age shall make application
for a license and registration tag for such animal within 10 days
after such acquisition or age attainment.
B.
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color
and markings of the animal for which license and registration are
sought and whether it is of a long-haired or short-haired variety,
also the name, street and post office address of the owner and the
person who shall keep or harbor such animal.
C.
The information on said application and the registration
number issued for the animal shall be preserved for a period of three
years by the Health Department of the Township. In addition, it shall
forward similar information as may be required to the State Department
of Health and Senior Services each month on forms furnished by the
Department. Registration numbers shall be issued in the order of the
applications.
A.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Township any animal licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag and 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 animal unless such animal is licensed under § 91-7 of this article.
B.
Any animal licensed in the State of New Jersey need
not be relicensed in the Township during the period in which said
license shall be operative and in effect; provided, however, that
if the owner shall keep the animal or permit the same to be kept within
the Township for a period of more than 10 days after said license
has expired, he shall immediately apply for a license and registration
tag in the Township.
C.
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Township any unlicensed animal 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 animal unless such animal is licensed under § 91-7 of this article.
No person, except an officer in the performance
of his duties, shall remove a registration tag from the collar or
harness of any animal without the consent of the owner, nor shall
any person attach a registration tag to an animal for which it was
not issued.
A.
Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish
a shelter, kennel or pet shop shall, in case of a renewal of the license,
apply to the Health Department. Applications for new establishments
shall be made to the Township Committee.
B.
The application shall describe the premises where
the establishment is located or is proposed to be located and 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 Board
of Health of the Township 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, shelter or pet shop
shall state the purpose for which the establishment is maintained,
and all such licenses shall expire on the last day of June of each
year and be subject to revocation by the Township Committee on recommendations
of the Department of Health of the Township for failure to comply
with the rules and regulations of the State Department or the Board
of Health of the Township governing the same after the owner has been
afforded a hearing by either the State Department or the Board of
Health of the Township.
D.
Any person holding such license shall not be required to secure individual licenses for dogs owned by such licenses and kept at such establishments for the purposes of sale to the public. However, all such dogs shall be inoculated with rabies vaccine as required by § 91-3.
E.
The total number of kennel and shelter licenses issued
and outstanding at the same time in the Township shall not exceed
five. Transfer of a license to different premises by a licensee or
transferee may be effected upon approval by the Township Committee,
as hereinbefore provided in the case of original applications for
such license. The Montville Township Animal Shelter shall not be considered
to be a licensed facility.
A.
Dogs.
(1)
An annual fee shall be paid to the Township of Montville for each dog in accordance with the fees set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
(2)
The license and tag for each year shall expire on
the last day of January of the following year. Any person owning or
harboring a dog found to be unlicensed by the Township Animal Control
Officer or any other municipal official after March 1 shall be subject
to any fines due to a summons issued as a result of failure to obtain
a dog license before February 1, provided that sufficient proof is
presented to establish the date of acquisition.
B.
Cats.
(1)
An annual fee shall be paid to the Township of Montville for each cat in accordance with the fees set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
(2)
Late fees shall not be effective until the 1992 licensing
year. The license and tag for each year shall expire on June 30 of
that licensing year. Any person owning or harboring a cat found to
be unlicensed by the Township Animal Control Officer or any other
municipal official after August 1 shall be subject to any fines due
to a summons issued as a result of failure to obtain a cat license
before July 1, provided that sufficient proof is presented to establish
the date of acquisition.
C.
Replacement tag. The fee for a replacement license tag for a dog or cat shall be in accordance with the fees set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
D.
Adoption fee. Persons adopting animals from the Montville Township Animal Shelter shall pay an adoption fee as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
F.
The owner of any animal which is impounded and/or destroyed pursuant to § 91-14 or 91-21 shall pay all expenses incurred in connection with such action. The fees for initial impoundment, an additional daily maintenance fee, the euthanasia fee and disposal fees shall be set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule, or shall be charged at the rate charged by any entity or individual providing such service to the Township.
G.
Turn-in fees. Any owner surrendering an unwanted animal to the Montville Animal Shelter for adoption or shelter shall pay the fee set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule. Any owner surrendering an unwanted animal to the Montville Township Animal Shelter for euthanasia shall pay a euthanasia fee and a disposal fee per animal as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
H.
Trap rental. Any person renting an animal trap from the Montville Township Animal Shelter shall prepay a rental charge per trap per seven-day period or portion thereof. The fee is set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule. In addition, such person shall post a refundable security deposit fee of $50 per trap. Any such rental shall be made at the sole risk and liability of the renter for injury to persons and/or property during the rental period.
I.
Spay/neuter deposit. An person adopting an unspayed or unneutered dog or cat from the Montville Animal Shelter shall, for each such unspayed or unneutered dog or cat, in addition to the adoption fee, submit a spay/neuter deposit fee as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule. This spay/neuter deposit fee is refundable to the adopter upon the adopter providing written proof from a New Jersey licensed veterinarian of spaying or neutering of the animal in question within six months of the date of the adoption from the Montville Animal Shelter. Upon receiving such written proof of spaying or neutering of the adopted animal, the Montville Animal Shelter will, within 30 days of receiving proof of spaying or neutering, refund the deposit to the adopter.
[Added 8-13-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-24]
A.
License fees and other moneys collected or received
under the provisions of this article shall be forwarded to the Chief
Financial Officer[1] of the Township within 48 hours after collection or receipt
and shall be placed in a special account separate from any of the
other accounts of the Township. This account shall be used for the
following purposes only: for collecting, keeping and disposing of
dogs liable to seizure under this article for local prevention and
control of rabies, for all other purposes prescribed by the statutes
of New Jersey governing the subject, for the operational costs of
the Township Animal Shelter and for administering the provisions of
this article. Any unexpended balance remaining in such special account
shall be retained therein and may be used for any of the purposes
set forth in this section.
[1]
Editor's Note: At the Township's direction,
the term "Treasurer" was changed to read "Chief Financial Officer"
in this subsection pursuant to Ord. No. 935, adopted 2-7-1989, which
ordinance specifically amended other sections of the Code to change
the term "Township Treasurer" to "Chief Financial Officer."
B.
The registration tag fee of $1 for each dog shall
be forwarded within 30 days after collection by the Township to the
State Department of Health and Senior Services, together with any
other fees required to be paid to the state.
No animal kept in a kennel, shelter or pet shop
shall be permitted off such premises except on a leash or in a crate
or other safe control.
The Health Department of the Township shall
forward to the State Department of Health and Senior Services a list
of all kennels, shelters and pet shops licensed within 30 days after
the licenses thereof are issued, which list shall include the name
and address of the licensee and the kind of license issued.
The Animal Control Officer of the Township shall,
for dogs, and may, for cats, promptly after February 1 of each year,
cause a canvass to be made of all animals owned, kept or harbored
within the limits of the Township and shall report to the Clerk of
the Township, the Board of Health of the Township and the State Department
of Health and Senior Services the results thereof, including such
information as may be required by the State of New Jersey.
A.
The Township Committee shall, by resolution, appoint
at such times and for such terms as may from time to time seem expedient
one or more Animal Control Officers, dog catchers and poundmasters,
whose duty it shall be to enforce the provisions of this article.
B.
All police officers of the Township, regular and special,
and Township Health Department employees and the Animal Control Officer
are hereby given full power and authority and are charged with the
duty to enforce this article.
A.
The Animal Control Officer of the Township shall take
into custody and impound or cause to be taken into custody and impounded
and thereafter destroy or dispose of the following as provided in
this section:
(1)
Any animal off the premises of the owner or of the
person keeping or harboring said animal which the Animal Control Officer
has reason to believe is a stray.
(2)
Any animal off the premises of the owner or of the
person keeping or harboring said animal without a current registration
tag on his collar or harness.
(3)
Any female animal in season off the premises of the
owner or of the person keeping or harboring said animal.
B.
If any animal 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 if the owner or the person
keeping or harboring said animal is known, the Animal Control Officer
shall forthwith serve on the person whose address is given on the
collar or on the owner or the person keeping or harboring said animal,
if known, a notice, in writing, stating that the animal has been seized
and will be liable to be disposed of or destroyed if not claimed within
seven days after the service of the notice.
C.
A notice under this section may be served either by
delivering it to the person to 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 post in a prepaid letter
addressed to that person at his or her usual or last known place of
abode or to the address given on the collar.
D.
When an animal 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 notice has not been and cannot be given as above set forth and if the owner or person keeping or harboring said animal has not claimed said animal and paid all expenses as set forth in § 91-8, or, if the animal is unlicensed at the time of the seizure and the owner or the person keeping or harboring said animal has not produced a license and registration tag for said animal, if one is required, the Animal Control Officer may cause the animal to be destroyed in a manner causing as little pain as possible and the owner or person keeping or harboring said animal shall pay euthanasia and disposal fees as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
E.
The Animal Control Officer of the Township of Montville
may place for adoption any unclaimed animal in the custody and impounded
within the Township Animal Shelter after seven days of detainment.
The adoption of any unclaimed animal in the custody of the Township
shall be contingent upon the Animal Control Officer's full discretion
as to the unclaimed animal's suitability for adoption. Any unclaimed
animal adopted from the Township Animal Shelter shall have no warranty
of health, condition, or disposition. The Animal Control Officer of
the Township is authorized to promulgate a policy and procedure concerning
adoption which shall be amended from time to time as necessary and
approved by Montville Township Board of Health.
[Added 4-11-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-17]
Any person authorized or empowered to perform
any duty under this article is hereby authorized to go upon any premises
to seize for impounding any animal or animals which he may lawfully
seize and impound when such person is in immediate pursuit of such
animal or animals, except upon the premises of the owner of the animal
if 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
article.
No person shall keep, harbor or maintain any
dog which habitually barks, howls or cries. The habitual barking,
howling or crying of a dog or dogs in the Township of Montville is
hereby declared to be a disturbing noise within the meaning of N.J.S.A.
40:48-1, Subdivision 8, and is further declared to be a nuisance.
No dog shall run or be at large within the Township;
provided, however, that this section shall not be applied to hunting
dogs while they are in the woods and fields of the Township and are
under the dominion and control of their owners. It shall be deemed
a violation of this section if a dog is found off the premises of
the owner and not under his control. This provision shall not apply
to Police Department dogs.
No animal shall be upon the public streets or
in any of the public places of the Township unless such animal is
secured by a leash, tether or other suitable device not more than
six feet long. This requirement shall not apply to a licensed cat,
not in season if female, bearing a proper registration tag, so long
as such cat is not conducting itself in such a manner so as to cause
a nuisance, the destruction of property or injury to any person or
other domestic animal.
No animal shall do any injury to any person
or domestic animals or do any damage to any lawn, shrubbery, flowers,
grounds or property.
New Jersey State law governing vicious and potentially
dangerous dogs and all requirements pertaining to the declaration
of vicious and potentially dangerous dogs are set forth in N.J.S.A.
4:19-17 et seq., and said provisions are incorporated herein by reference.
A.
Costs of impoundment to be responsibility of owner. If a dog is declared to be vicious or potentially dangerous pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq., the owner shall be liable to the Township for all costs and expenses associated with its impoundment and/or destruction. The fees for impoundment and/or fees for humane destruction shall be charged as set forth in Chapter 169, Fee Schedule.
B.
Any animal involved in a bite or suspected bite of
a human being shall be examined by a licensed veterinarian no earlier
than the 10th day nor later than the 15th day following the suspected
biting incident to certify that the animal in question is free of
rabies. This certification shall be forwarded to the Animal Control
Officer. It shall be the responsibility and expense of the owner of
the animal to secure this certification in the time frame noted. This
requirement may be waived by the Health Department in the event that
the person bitten is a member of the household of the owner of the
animal.
No owner shall fail to provide his animals with
sufficient good and wholesome food and water, proper shelter and protection
from the weather, veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering
and with humane care and treatment. No person shall beat, cruelly
ill-treat, torment, overload, over-work or otherwise abuse any animal
or cause or permit any dogfight, cockfight, bullfight or other combat
between animals or between animals and humans. No owner of any animal
shall abandon such animal. No person shall crop a dog's ears except
when a licensed veterinarian issues a signed certificate that the
operation is necessary for the dog's health and in no event shall
any person except a licensed veterinarian perform such an operation.
No person owning, harboring, keeping or in charge
of any dog shall cause, suffer or allow such dog to soil, defile,
defecate on or commit any nuisance on any common thoroughfare, sidewalk,
passageway, bypath, play area, park or any place where people congregate
or walk or upon any public property whatsoever or upon any private
property without the permission of the owner of said property. The
restrictions in this section shall not apply to that portion of the
street lying between the curblines, which shall be used to curb such
dog under the following conditions:
A.
The person who so curbs such dog shall immediately
remove all feces deposited by such dog in any sanitary method.
B.
The feces removed from the aforementioned designated
area shall be disposed of by the person owning, harboring, keeping
or in charge of any dog curbed in accordance with the provisions of
this section in a sanitary manner.
A.
No person shall abandon a dog, cat or other animal
in any shelter, pound or veterinary clinic or on any public or private
property in the Township. If any dog, cat or other animal is so abandoned,
the person abandoning such dog, cat or other animal shall be subject
to the fees for holding the dog, cat or other animal for the required
number of days for all strays and shall also be subject to the cost
of all veterinary fees for the doctoring of that animal and also for
disposing of such animal if it is deceased.
No person, other than the Township Animal Control
Officer or his or her authorized designee, shall trap a wild or stray
cat for any purpose whatsoever and return or release such animal to
a free environment.
A.
Any person who violates or who fails or refuses to comply with any provision of this article, except for § 91-24, or the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Department of Health and Senior Services pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.14 shall be liable to a penalty of not less than $25 nor more than $100 for each offense, to be recovered by and in the name of the Commissioner of Health of the State of New Jersey or by and in the name of the local Board of Health of the Township or by and in the name of the Township, as the case may be, except that for the first offense in cases of violation of § 91-2, 91-4A, 91-5 or 91-23 of this article, the penalty shall be not less than $15 nor more than $50. In addition, any person who is convicted of a violation of any provision of this article, except for § 91-24, may, in the discretion of the court, be sentenced to the county jail for a period not exceeding 30 days.
B.
The Municipal Court of the Township shall have jurisdiction
to hear and determine in a summary manner proceedings for violations
of any of said provisions of this article. Penalties for such violations
may be enforced and recovered pursuant to the Penalty Enforcement
Law, N.J.S.A. 2A:58-10 et seq., or in any manner permitted by law.
C.
A person who refuses or neglects to pay the amount
of a judgment rendered against him and the costs and charges incident
thereto shall be committed by the Court to the county jail for a period
not exceeding 10 days in the case of the first conviction, and in
the case of a conviction for a second, subsequent or continued violation,
for a period not exceeding 30 days.
