[Added 8-13-1990 by Ord. No. 90-364[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance renumbered former Articles II, III and IV as Articles III, IV and V, and renumbered §§ 91-18 through 91-24 as §§ 91-27 through 91-33, respectively.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ANIMAL CONTROL AUTHORITY
Any person or agency designated or certified by the State of New Jersey to enforce the provisions of this article, appointed by the Township Manager if an employee or by the governing body if a contract service.
CAT
Any member of the domestic feline species; male, female or altered.
CAT OF LICENSING AGE
Any cat which has attained the age of seven months or which possesses a set of permanent teeth.
OWNER
When applied to the proprietorship of a cat, shall include every person having a right of property or custody in such cat and every person who has such cat in his/her keeping or who harbors or maintains a cat or knowingly permits a cat to remain on or about any premises occupied by that person.
PERSON
Any individual, group of individuals, corporation, partnership, organization, institution or combination thereof.
No person shall own, keep, harbor or maintain any cat of licensing age within the Township of Cedar Grove unless such cat is vaccinated against rabies and the owner maintains a certificate of vaccination issued by a licensed veterinarian. The provisions of this section shall not apply to cats held for sale in a pet store, by a state or federal licensed research facility or a veterinary establishment where cats are received or kept for diagnostic or medical, surgical or other treatment. Any cat may be exempted from the requirements of such vaccination for a specified period of time by the local Board of Health upon presentation of a veterinarian's certificate stating that because of any infirmity or other physical condition or regimen of therapy, the inoculation of such cat shall be deemed inadvisable.
Any person who shall own, keep or harbor a cat of licensing age shall annually apply for and procure from the Department of Health of the Township of Cedar Grove or other official designated by the governing body a license and official registration tag with license number or a registration sleeve for each cat so owned, kept or harbored and shall place upon such cat a collar or other device with the license number securely fastened or displayed thereto. No person shall transfer any license tag or sleeve from one cat to another, and no person shall own a cat which has received such a transferred license tag or sleeve. This licensing requirement will not apply to a nonresident keeping a cat within the Township of Cedar Grove for no longer than 90 days.
The following provisions shall apply to the licensing of cats:
A. 
The owner of any cat of licensing age at the time of the adoption of this article shall make application for a license tag or sleeve for each such cat within 90 days after the effective date of this article.
B. 
The owner of any newly acquired cat of licensing age or of any cat which attains licensing age shall make application for a license for such cat within 10 days after such acquisition or attainment of licensing age.
C. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Township of Cedar Grove any cat licensed in another state for the current year and bearing a registration tag or sleeve shall apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat within 90 days.
D. 
Any person who shall bring or cause to be brought into the Township of Cedar Grove any unlicensed cat of licensing age shall within 10 days apply for a license and registration tag or sleeve for each such cat
E. 
The application for a license shall state the breed, sex, age, color and markings of the cat for which the license is sought and whether it is of a long- or short-haired variety. Also, the name, street and post office address of the owner shall be stated, as well as the address where the cat shall be kept or harbored. Additionally, the Department of Health may require such other information in the application form as it deems appropriate. The application form shall be preserved for a period of three years by the Department of Health.
F. 
License forms and official tags or sleeves shall be furnished by the municipality and be numbered serially and shall bear the year of issuance and the name of the municipality.
G. 
The Department of Health or other official designated by the municipality to license cats shall not grant any license tag or sleeve for any cat unless the owner thereof provides evidence that the cat to be licensed has been inoculated with a rabies vaccine in accordance with the requirements of this article or has been certified to be exempt as provided in § 91-19.
H. 
No license shall issue for any cat if the owner has already obtained and maintains a total of six licenses for dogs and/or cats, and no license shall issue for any cat which is to be kept or harbored at an address where there already exist six licensed dogs and/or cats. No person may own, keep or harbor more than a total of six dogs and/or cats in the Township of Cedar Grove at any one time. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, the restrictions on the number of dogs and/or cats in this subsection shall not apply to any person who, at the time of the adoption of this article, owns, keeps or harbors more than a total of six dogs and/or cats in the Township of Cedar Grove, and all such animals shall be licensed, provided that all such animals are licensed within 90 days after the adoption of this article, and no license for any new dog or cat shall be issued to any such person in the event that the issuance of such license would exceed six in total, it being the intent of this grandfathering provision to eliminate any hardship on persons having more than six pets at the time of the adoption of the article but also intending that the number be reduced to six or below by attrition.
I. 
A license shall be issued after payment of a fee of $10 for each cat. Persons who fail to obtain a license by September 30 shall pay an additional delinquent fee of $10 for each cat, as well as be subject to fine for failure to comply with the terms of this article. The fee for a replacement license tag or sleeve for one which has been misplaced or lost shall be $1.
[Amended 9-17-1990; 9-20-1993 by Ord. No. 93-429; 5-5-2014 by Ord. No. 14-770]
J. 
The licensing year shall begin on September 1 of each year, and the license or license renewal shall be required for each licensing year for each cat subject to licensing.
K. 
Any valid New Jersey license tag or sleeve issued by a New Jersey municipality shall be accepted by the Township of Cedar Grove as compliance with this article. However, in the event that the license from any such municipality expires, the owner must apply for a license in the Township of Cedar Grove within 10 days of the date of such expiration.
[Added 3-1-1993 by Ord. No. 93-415]
License fees and other moneys collected or received under the provisions of this article shall be forwarded to the Treasurer of the municipality and shall be placed in a special account separate from any of the other accounts of the municipality and shall be used for the following purposes only: collecting, keeping and disposing of cats liable to seizure, for local prevention and control of rabies and providing anti-rabies treatment programs and for administering the provisions of this article.
Proof of licensing 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.
No person shall hinder, molest or interfere with anyone authorized or empowered to perform any duty under this article.
No person shall permit any cat under his or her care or control to go upon the lawn, yard, entrance, walk or driveway of any private residence without the permission of the owner thereof.
[Amended 9-11-2006 by Ord. No. 06-651]
Every person owning, keeping, harboring or in control of a cat shall be responsible to immediately and properly pick up, remove and dispose of in a sanitary manner all solid waste deposited by said cat on any property, public or private, not owned or possessed by that person, including property dedicated to public use, including without limitation parks, sidewalks, easements, roadways or walking or riding paths.
This article shall be enforced by the Department of Health of the Township of Cedar Grove, the Cedar Grove Police Department and/or the Animal Control Authority appointed by the Township. In addition, a violation of §§ 91-24 or 91-25 may be enforced by any resident of the municipality by the filing of a complaint in Municipal Court.