[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Martinsburg
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Parks and recreation areas — See Ch. 160.
[Adopted 11-17-2010 by L.L. No. 3-2010]
The Town Board of the Town of Martinsburg, pursuant to the authority
granted under Article 7 of the Agriculture and Markets Law and §§ 10
and 20 of the Municipal Home Rule Law, hereby enacts as follows.
The Town Board of the Town of Martinsburg hereby finds that
in view of new state law imposing increased responsibility on the
Town for the licensing of dogs and dog control that it is necessary
to have a global revision of all prior regulations of the Town with
respect to licensing of dogs and dog control. It is the purpose of
this article to adopt comprehensive regulations for the licensing
of dogs and dog control issues within the Town.
The title of this article shall be "Dog Control Law of the Town
of Martinsburg."
As used in this article, the following words shall have the
following respective meanings:
Male and female, licensed and unlicensed, members of the
species canis familiaris.
The person entitled to claim lawful custody and possession
of a dog, who is responsible for purchasing the license for such dog
unless the dog is or has been lost, and such loss was promptly reported
to the Dog Control Officer and a reasonable search has been made.
If a dog is not licensed, the term “owner” shall designate
and cover any person or persons, firm, association, or corporation,
who or which at any time owns or has custody or control of, harbors,
or is otherwise responsible for any dog which is kept, brought or
comes within the Town. Any person owning or harboring a dog for a
period of one week prior to filing any complaint charging a violation
of this article shall be held in and deemed to be the owner of the
dog for the purpose of enforcing this article. In the event that the
owner of any dog found to be in violation of this article shall be
under 18 years of age, the head of the household in which said minor
resides shall be deemed to have custody and control of said dog and
shall be responsible for any acts of the said dog in violation of
this article.[1]
To be in a public place or on private land without the knowledge,
consent, and approval of the owner of such lands.
The Town of Martinsburg.
It shall be unlawful for any owner of any dog in the Town to
permit or allow such dog to:
A.
Run at large unless the dog is accompanied by its owner or a responsible
person and under the full control of such owner or person. For the
purpose of this article, a dog or dogs hunting in the company of a
hunter or hunters shall be considered as accompanied by its owner.
B.
Engage in habitual and loud howling, barking, crying or whining that
exceeds 15 minutes in duration or conduct as to unreasonably and habitually
disturb the comfort or repose of any person other than the owner of
such dog.[1]
C.
Uproot, dig, or otherwise damage any vegetables, lawns, flowers,
garden beds, or other property without the consent or approval of
the owner.
D.
Chase, jump upon or at or otherwise harass any person in such manner
as to reasonable cause intimidation or fear or to put such person
in reasonable apprehension of bodily harm.
E.
Habitually chase, run alongside of or bark at motor vehicles, motorcycles
or bicycles while on a public street, highway, or place, or upon private
property without the consent or approval of the owner of such property.
F.
Create a nuisance by defecating, urinating or digging on public property,
or on private property without the consent or approval of the owner
of such property.
G.
If a female dog, when in heat, be off the owner's premises,
unrestrained by a leash.
A.
All dogs in the Town of Martinsburg, unless otherwise exempted, must
be licensed with the Town Clerk by the age of four months and owners
are required to present a current certificate of rabies at the time
of licensing or the renewal of an existing license; provided, however,
that dogs of any age which are held at a shelter, pursuant to a contract
or agreement with any county, city, Town, village, duly incorporated
society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, humane society or
dog protective association do not have to be licensed.
B.
Any dog harbored within the Town of Martinsburg which is owned by
a resident of New York City or licensed by the City of New York, or
which is owned by a nonresident of New York State and licensed by
a jurisdiction outside the State of New York, shall for a period of
30 days be exempt from the licensing and identification provisions
of this article.
C.
All dog licenses will be for a period of one year and will expire
at the end of the month one year from the date of issue.
D.
Fees for licensing of dogs. The fee for a spayed or neutered dog
will be $10 and the fee for an unspayed or unneutered dog will be
$20, with such fees being reviewed by the Town Board periodically
and may be changed by a resolution of the Town Board, if deemed necessary.
The fee for replacement tags will be $3.
E.
Enumeration fee. When the Town Board determines the need for a dog
enumeration, a fee of $5 will be assessed to all dogs found unlicensed
or renewed at the time the enumeration is conducted.
F.
Purebred license. The Town of Martinsburg will not be issuing purebred
or kennel licenses. All dogs will be licensed individually as per
the fee system stated above.
G.
Service dogs. The Town of Martinsburg will require a license for
any guide dog, service dog, hearing dog, detection dog, wolves, search
dog, working dog or therapy dog, but any fees will be waived.
H.
The Town of Martinsburg does not allow the licensing of dogs by a
shelter. The shelter must send the adoptive dog owners to the Town
Clerk of the Town or city in which the dog will be harbored for licensing.
All dogs must be licensed before leaving the shelter.
I.
All dog licenses may be purchased by visiting the Town offices or
by regular mail. If licensing or renewing a license by mail, the appropriate
fee must accompany the forms. There will be no refund of fees.
J.
All fees will be used in funding the administration of this article.
K.
Fees for seizure of dogs. The fee for seizure and impoundment of
dogs in violation of this article or the laws of the New York State
Department of Agriculture and Markets Law will be per agreement between
the Town of Martinsburg and the Lewis County Humane Society.
A.
The Dog Control Officer or any peace officer shall seize:
(1)
Any unlicensed dog, whether on or off the owner's premises;
(2)
Any dog not wearing a tag, not identified, and which is not on the
owner's premises, and
(3)
Any dog found in violation of § 100-6A through E of this article. Such seized dog shall be kept and disposed of in accordance with the provisions of Article 7 of Agriculture and Markets Law, and the Dog Control Officer shall ensure that the order of the Town Justice of the Town of Martinsburg in such case is carried out.[1]
B.
The Dog Control Officer or peace officer observing a violation of
this article in his presence shall issue and serve an appearance ticket
for such violation.
C.
Any person who observes a dog in violation of this article may file
a complaint under oath with the Town Justice of the Town of Martinsburg
specifying the nature of the violation, the date thereof, a description
of the dog and the name and a residence, if known, of the owner of
such dog. Such complaint may serve as a basis for enforcing the provisions
of this article.
Penalties shall be as follows:
