§ 81.19 IMPOUNDMENT.

   (A)   Dogs not licensed pursuant to §§ 81.15 through 81.24, or found not under restraint or abandoned, may be seized and impounded by any police or humane officer. Impoundment may be in the Brunswick County dog pound or any animal shelter designated by the Board of Commissioners.

   (B)   If the dog wears a license tag or if the owner can by any other reasonable means be identified and located, the owner shall within 12 hours be notified by mail that the dog has been impounded.

   (C)   If the dog is impounded in the Brunswick County dog pound it then becomes the responsibility of the county, and its further disposition shall be under the applicable county or state laws. All boarding, release or adoption fees shall be paid to Brunswick County.

   (D)   (1)   If the dog for some good reason is not placed in the Brunswick County pound, then the following further disposition shall apply.

      (2)   If a dog is not redeemed by the owner within four days after impoundment, the dog may be disposed of in one of the following ways, but no other way:

         (a)   Euthanasia, using a method approved by the Humane Society of the United States; or

         (b)   Release for adoption by a new owner who shows evidence of ability and intention to provide the dog with an appropriate home and humane care; provided, that no unspayed female dog shall be released for adoption unless a licensed veterinarian certifies in writing that he or she has been paid in full for spaying of the dog and will perform the operation within 30 days or before the dog’s first oestriol period.

   (E)   The intent of §§ 81.15 through 81.24 is to require dog owners to comply with the law, not merely to operate an impoundment program. Police officers shall therefore place primary emphasis upon apprehending and initiating prosecution of violators of §§ 81.15 through 81.24.

(Ord. 14-8, passed 10-9-2014)