[Adopted 12-27-1990 by Ord. No. 1189]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The Borough of Middlesex, in the County of Middlesex, State
of New Jersey.
Any animal of the feline species; male, female or neutered.
Any cat which has attained the age of seven months or which
possesses a set of permanent teeth.
The Borough Clerk's office of the Borough of Middlesex.
Rendered permanently incapable of reproducing as certified
by a licensed veterinarian.
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, every person
who has such cat in his/her keeping or who harbors, feeds or maintains
a cat or knowingly permits a cat to remain on or about any premises
or land occupied or owned by that person.
Any individual, corporation, partnership, firm, organization,
association or institution commonly recognized by law as a unit.
Any individual 60 years of age or older who can submit proof
of such age.
A.
No person shall own, keep or harbor any cat of licensing
age within the Borough without registering and obtaining a license
therefor, to be issued by the licensing authority upon application
by the owner and payment of the prescribed fee.
B.
The application shall state the breed, sex, age, color
and marking of the cat for which license and registration are sought
and whether it is of a long-haired or shorthaired variety. The application
shall also state the name, street and post office address of the owner
of said cat. It shall also list any bodily marking(s) applied to the
cat for identification purposes, as well as the date of rabies inoculation.
The information on the application and the registration number issued
for the cat shall be preserved for a period of three years by the
licensing authority. Registration numbers shall be issued in the order
of application. All such applications shall be made prior to March
1 in each year.
C.
Any person who owns a cat of licensing age shall, within 10 days after obtaining possession of such cat and annually thereafter in the month of January, apply for and procure from the licensing authority a license and official registration tag for each such cat owned. The registration shall recite such information as listed in Subsection B above.
D.
The registration tag procured upon licensing of such
cat shall be displayed upon said cat by means of a collar or other
device approved by this authority.
E.
License forms and registration tags shall be furnished
by the licensing authority and shall be numbered serially and shall
bear the year of issuance and the name of the Borough.
F.
The licensing authority shall not grant such license and registration tag for any cat unless the owner thereof provides evidence that the cat to be licensed and registered has been inoculated with a rabies vaccine of a type approved by and administered in accordance with the recommendations of the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Human Services or has been certified exempt as provided by § 129-16C of this article. The rabies inoculation shall be administered by a duly licensed veterinarian permitted by law to do the same.
A.
All cats shall be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian in accordance with the latest Compendium of Animal Rabies Vaccines and Recommendations for Immunization, published by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, except as provided for in Subsection C.
B.
A certificate of vaccination shall be issued to the
owner of each animal vaccinated on a form recommended by the state.
C.
Any cat may be exempted from the requirements of such
vaccination for a specified period of time by the Board of Health
of the Borough of Middlesex upon presentation of a veterinarian's
certificate stating that because of an infirmity or other physical
condition or regimen of therapy, the inoculation of such cat shall
be deemed inadvisable.
D.
Any cat which has bitten or abraded the skin of a
human being shall be forthwith quarantined, as per the regulations
of the State of New Jersey (N.J.S.A. 26:4-82), into the care of a
licensed veterinarian of the State of New Jersey for observation and
examination. Before such cat is released from quarantine, the veterinarian
shall certify to the Board of Health that, to the best of his knowledge,
such cat is free of rabies:
(1)
Provided, however, that if any cat has received antirabic
treatment under the direction of a licensed veterinarian within one
year prior to the time the cat has bitten or abraded the skin of a
human being, such cat may, in the discretion of the Borough Health
Officer or his designee, be quarantined into the care of the owner
for a period of not less than 10 days from the date of the bite or
abrasion. A release signed by a licensed veterinarian certifying the
cat is free of rabies must be submitted to the Board of Health at
the end of the quarantine period.
(2)
Provided, further, that this subsection shall not
be construed as preventing the Animal Control Officer, where necessary,
from quarantining the animals referred to herein so long as, prior
to such animal's release, an examination is made by a licensed veterinarian
and a written report thereof is transmitted to the Borough Board of
Health.
A.
A license shall be issued by the licensing authority
after application by the owner and payment by the owner of a fee of
$13 for each unneutered cat and $10 for each neutered cat. Said license
fee shall change automatically and shall be identical to the license
fee established for dogs in case of future changes. Persons who fail
to obtain a license as required within the time period specified by
this article shall be subject to a delinquent fee of $10, effective
as of March 1. The aforementioned delinquent fee shall not apply to
cats which have been acquired by the owner on or after March 1, for
which the license fee shall be the same as required above.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance provided an effective date of
1-1-2011.
B.
Owners of cats who are senior citizens shall pay the
following license fees upon proof of their age: nonneutered cats shall
be licensed at the prevailing fee for nonneutered dogs, currently
$13 each; neutered cats shall be licensed by senior citizens at the
fee of $5 per cat.
[Amended 10-12-2010 by Ord. No. 1784[2]]
[2]
Editor's Note: This ordinance provided an effective date of
1-1-2011.
C.
Licenses from another municipality shall be accepted,
provided that the requirements of this article are met.
D.
The person applying for the license and registration
tag shall pay the fee fixed or authorized. The fee for the renewal
of the license and registration tag shall be the same as for an original,
and said license and registration tag and renewal thereof shall expire
on January 31 of each year.
E.
Only one license and registration tag shall be required
in the licensing year for any one cat in the Borough of Middlesex.
F.
Owners of cats who fail to license their cats and
who are identified as having an unlicensed cat or cats at the time
of the annual survey or who are identified as such because of a report
of an animal bite or because of a complaint or for any other reasons
shall pay late fee charges of $10, effective as of March 1. If there
are special hardship considerations based on financial, age or health
factors that can be documented, the licensing official may grant a
written waiver of the fee, specifying the reason for said waiver.
[Amended 11-15-1994 by Ord. No. 1327; 8-28-2007 by Ord. No. 1720]
A.
Proof of licensure shall be produced by any person
owning, keeping, maintaining or harboring a cat upon the request of
any health official, police officer, Animal Control Officer or other
authorized person.
B.
No person except an official in the performance of
his duties shall remove a registration tag from the collar of any
cat without the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach
a registration tag to a cat for which it was not issued.
C.
No person shall hinder, molest or interfere with anyone
authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this article.
License fees and other moneys collected or received
under the provisions of this article shall be forwarded to the Treasurer
of the Borough of Middlesex and shall be placed in a special account
separate from any of the other accounts of the Borough of Middlesex
and shall be used for the following purposes only: collecting, keeping
and disposing of cats liable to seizure, for local prevention and
rabies control, providing antirabies treatment under the direction
of the Board of Health for any person known or suspected to have been
exposed to rabies and who has been approved by the Board of Health
as showing economic need of such moneys and for administering the
provisions of this article.
A.
The Animal Control Officer shall take into custody and impound or cause to be taken into custody and impounded and thereafter destroyed or disposed of as provided in Subsections B and C any cat off the premises of the owner on complaint of the police or of the resident of the premises on which the cat has strayed, as well as any cat which the Animal Control Officer has substantial reason to believe is abandoned, diseased or injured.
B.
If any cat so seized wears a collar having inscribed
thereon or attached thereto the name and address of any person or
a registration tag or if the owner of the cat is otherwise known,
the Animal Control Officer or any person authorized by him on that
behalf may return the cat to the owner, and, if not, he shall immediately
notify the person whose address is given on the collar or the person
whose name is registered as the owner by telephone or mail. The notice
shall state that the cat 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. A notice under this subsection 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 by mailing
the same to the address given on the collar or registration.
C.
Before the Animal Control Officer shall release said
cat from detention and if the cat so seized shall have been licensed
and registered, the owner or other person shall produce proof of such
licensing and registration; or, if the cat shall not have been licensed
and registered, said owner or other person shall otherwise produce
such evidence of ownership or custody as may be deemed sufficient
by the Animal Control Officer. Additionally, the Animal Control Officer
shall not release said cat to such owner or other person unless and
until such owner or other person shall have paid all the fees required
to be paid hereunder.
D.
The Animal Control Officer shall be required to detain every identifiable/licensed cat for a period of seven days after its seizure and after notice has been given pursuant to Subsection C above and shall detail every unlicensed cat or every other cat seized where it cannot be identified or notice cannot be given as set forth in Subsection C for a period of five days after its seizure. If after such respective periods of detention no person has claimed the cat or will not pay the charges required hereunder, the Animal Control Officer may cause the cat to be placed with some responsible person desiring the cat as a household pet or to be destroyed in a manner causing as little pain as possible. The Animal Control Officer may sooner dispose of any cat, whether or not the owner is known or whether it is licensed, if said cat is so ill or injured as to justify such disposal.
No person shall abandon any cat, no matter what
its age may be, within the Borough of Middlesex.
The Animal Control Officer shall be the person
or firm so designated by the Borough Council and acting as such from
time to time.
Enforcement of this article shall be performed
by the Animal Control Officer, Health Officer or his designee, Sanitarian,
Police Department or Code Engineer or his designee.
A.
Any person who violates or refuses to comply with
this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine
not exceeding $5 per month per violation. If the violation involves
a bite or injury of any type which requires testing of the animal
for any purpose, the fine will be a fine not exceeding $300 per violation.
[Amended 11-15-1994 by Ord. No. 1327]
B.
Any person who violates a quarantine period, because
of its more serious nature, shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject
to a fine of not less than $100.
