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Borough of Northvale, NJ
Bergen County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[Adopted 9-12-1962 by Ord. No. 279, amended in its entirety 10-9-1974 by Ord. No. 410 (Ch. 35 of the 1969 Code)]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any individual, individuals, firm or corporation to own, keep or harbor a dog, either male or female, which has obtained the age of seven months or possesses a set of permanent teeth or to own, keep, maintain or operate a dog kennel within the limits of the Borough of Northvale without having the same registered and licensed in the manner provided by this chapter. Each day a dog, as aforesaid, is owned, kept or harbored or a kennel is owned, kept, maintained or operated without said registration or license shall constitute a distinct and separate offense.
B. 
The owner of any newly acquired dog or of any dog which attains the aforesaid age of seven months or possesses a set of permanent teeth shall make application for a license within 10 days after such acquisition or age attainment.
Within the meaning of this chapter, any individual, individuals, firm or corporation owning, keeping or harboring more than five dogs, regardless of sex, shall be deemed as keeping a kennel. Any person keeping a kennel shall pen each dog separately in sanitary quarters which shall meet with the approval of the local Board of Health, and no license for the keeping of a kennel shall be issued without the approval of the Board of Health as aforesaid. No kennel shall be kept within 125 feet of any dwelling other than that of any individual or individuals to whom the license is issued.
[Amended 1-23-1980 by Ord. No. 279-A; 11-11-1981 by Ord. No. 279-B; 8-10-1994 by Ord. No. 675-94]
A. 
Every person who shall own, keep or harbor a dog or cat within this Borough shall make application to the Borough Clerk for the registration and licensing thereof on or before the last day of January of each and every year or within 30 days after the dog or cat shall be acquired by or come into the possession of such person, whereupon it shall become the duty of said Clerk to issue such applicant a metal tag having stamped thereon the name of the Borough, the year in which issued and the number of the license. Said applicant shall pay therefor an annual license fee of $15 per dog/cat. If any owner of a dog or cat shall submit a certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian stating that the dog or cat has been spayed or neutered, then the annual license fee shall be the sum of $12. In the event that a license has been obtained after February 15, a late charge of $5 will be added.
[Amended 6-12-2014 by BOH Ord. No. 02-2014]
B. 
Dogs used as guides for blind or disabled 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 hereinbefore provided for, except that the owner or keeper of such dog shall not be required to pay any fee therefor.
It shall be unlawful for any dog, whether licensed or not, to run at large within the Borough of Northvale. A dog shall be deemed to be running at large when off the premises of its owner or of the person keeping or harboring such dog, and which is not on a leash, tether, chain, rope or the like, the overall length of which, including the hand grip, shall not exceed six feet, held by its owner or other person able to control such dog.
No person owning, keeping or harboring any dog, whether of licensing age or not or whether licensed or not, shall suffer and permit such dog to do any injury or damage to the lawn, shrubbery, grounds or property of another within the Borough of Northvale.
A. 
In addition to the information required by the state on an application for a license, any individual, individuals, firm or corporation desiring to have a dog registered or licensed shall present to the Borough Clerk an application signed by the applicant or applicants, setting forth the following facts and agreements:
[Amended 8-10-1994 by Ord. No. 675-94]
(1) 
The breed of the dog proposed to be registered.
(2) 
The sex of the dog proposed to be registered.
(3) 
That the applicant agrees that the dog proposed to be registered and licensed shall be confined in the place designated in said application or, when not so confined, that said dog shall be kept in complete control of its master by leash or confinement and not permitted at any time to run at large.
(4) 
That the applicant shall further agree that the license tag to be supplied with the certificate of registration and license will at all times be securely fastened to the neck of the dog described in the application, and that said license tag is not transferable and will be used only on the dog described on the application.
(5) 
An agreement that, should the dog proposed to be registered and licensed escape the complete control of its master or escape from the place said dog is to be kept, as stated in the application, then the Borough of Northvale by its agents or servants may take up, impound, destroy or sell said registered or licensed dog, except as hereinafter provided.
(6) 
That the applicant further agrees that, should said dog (being registered and licensed) be found at large within the limits of the Borough of Northvale and notice thereof as to where said dog is impounded is sent by postal card to the registered owner or master as indicated by the license tag found on the dog so impounded, said master or owner will redeem said dog from the pound within three days from the mailing of said postal card notice and pay therefor the sum of $4 for the use of the Borough of Northvale. In consideration of said payment, the owner of the dog to whom said license and registration had previously been issued will resume the rights, privileges and obligations of the original registration. Upon failure to redeem said dog from the pound within three days after the mailing of said postal card notice, the applicant agrees that said registration and license shall become void and said dog may be destroyed or disposed of in the same manner as an unregistered or unlicensed dog.
(7) 
That the registration and license fee as herein provided accompany the application.
B. 
Any applicant aforementioned desiring to obtain a dog kennel license shall present to the Borough Clerk an application, signed by the applicant, with the following facts:
(1) 
The name of the owner of the kennel and the location where the same is to be conducted within the limits of the Borough of Northvale.
(2) 
That said license shall not be transferable.
(3) 
That the license fee aforementioned accompany this application.
C. 
All individual dog licenses under Subsection A above shall expire at 12:00 midnight on the last day of January in each year. All kennel licenses under Subsection B above shall expire at 12:00 midnight on the last day of June of each year.
[Amended 8-10-1994 by Ord. No. 675-94]
D. 
No person, except an officer in the performance of his duties, shall remove a license tag from the collar of any dog without the consent of the owner, nor shall any person attach a license tag to a dog for which it is not issued.
A. 
Application for license.
(1) 
Any person who keeps, operates or proposes to establish a kennel shall apply to the Borough Clerk of the Borough of Northvale for a license entitling him to keep or operate such establishment. The application shall describe the premises where the establishment is located or proposed to be located and the purpose or purposes for which it is to be maintained and shall be accompanied with written approval of the Board of Health of the Borough of Northvale of compliance with local and state rules and regulations governing location of and sanitation at such establishments.
(2) 
All licenses issued for a kennel shall be subject to revocation by the municipality on recommendation of the State Department of Health or the Board of Health of the Borough of Northvale governing the same after the owner has been afforded a hearing by either the State Department of Health or the Board of Health of the borough.
(3) 
Any person holding such licenses for dogs owned by such licensee and kept at such establishments shall not be required to secure individual licenses for dogs owned by such licensee and kept at such establishments.
B. 
No dog kept in a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall be permitted off such premises except on a leash as specified herein or in a crate or other safe control device.
When application as aforementioned is properly made to the Borough Clerk of the Borough of Northvale, said Borough Clerk shall issue and deliver to said applicant a proper registration certificate, which shall be numbered in accordance with the consecutive numbers of all such certificates, together with a dog license check or tag of suitable design and bearing the same number as the certificate for a dog license or a proper certificate for a license to conduct a dog kennel.
It shall be the duty of the Borough Clerk to keep a permanent record in his office of all dog registration certificates and kennel licenses issued by him, which said record shall set forth all the important statements and agreements, as per application, and the number of said certificates and licenses, checks or tags issued in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the local Police Department, the Department of Health and such other officers, agents or servants as may be appointed or designated by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Northvale.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 35-11, Impoundment of dogs at large; disposition, and § 35-12, Vicious dogs, which immediately followed this section, were deleted 8-10-1994 by Ord. No. 675-94. See now N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16 and 4:19-17 et seq.
The Chief of Police of the Borough of Northvale shall promptly, after February 1 of each year, cause a canvass to be made of all dogs owned, kept or harbored within the Borough of Northvale and give the results of such canvass to the members of the governing body of the borough.
[Amended 12-8-1982 by Ord. No. 279-C; 8-10-1994 by Ord. No. 675-94]
Any person found guilty of violating or refusing to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter shall be punishable as provided in N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.19.
Any officer or agent authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this chapter 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 such dog or dogs, except upon the premises of the owner of the dog 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 chapter.
No dog or other animal taken into custody and detained or impounded shall be sold or otherwise made available for the purpose of experimentation.
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 private property without the permission of the owner of said property. The restriction 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 by any sanitary method approved by the local health authority.
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 chapter in a sanitary manner approved by the local health authority.