For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ABANDON. Ceasing to provide control over, provide adequate shelter for, or food or water to, an animal in excess of 24 hours without having made arrangements for the same by another responsible person.
ABUSE. Any inhumane treatment of an animal, including but not limited to the following:
(1) Failure to provide the animal access to adequate food, adequate water and easy access to adequate shelter and adequate protection from the elements;
(2) Beating, tormenting, torturing, overloading or overworking an animal;
(3) Permitting or encouraging combat between animals, or between animals and humans;
(4) Abandoning any animal;
(5) Exposing any known poisonous material with the intent of allowing or encouraging the material to be ingested by any bird, fowl or domesticated animal;
(6) Sanitary conditions free from excessive animal waste or the overcrowding of animals to the extent that the animal’s health or life is endangered;
(7) Harboring or owning any sick, diseased or injured animal without procuring veterinary care for said animal;
(8) Maintaining and/or grooming an animal in such conditions and hygiene that the animal is unable to walk or move normally, conduct routine bodily functions, or stay clean and free of disease and parasites;
(9) Leaving an animal unattended in a standing or parked vehicle when the heat index is greater than 75ºF or with a wind chill factor under 50ºF.
(10) Intentionally injuring, maiming, disfiguring, mutilating or destroying an animal by any means that causes pain, distress or suffering,
(11) Allowing an animal to be involved in an animal display when the wind chill falls below 30ºF or when the heat index reaches or exceeds 85ºF. The temperature range for livestock is between a wind chill factor of 10ºF to a heat index of 110ºF;
(12) Chaining, tethering, penning or otherwise restraining or confining an animal outdoors for more than 15 minutes without access to adequate food, adequate water, adequate shelter and adequate protection from the elements when the wind chill temperature falls below 30ºF or when the heat index reaches or exceeds 85ºF.
ADEQUATE FOOD. The provision at suitable intervals of not more than 24 hours of a quality of wholesome foodstuff suitable for the species and age, to allow for normal growth or maintain good health and body weight in an animal considering conditions. The foodstuff shall be served in a clean receptacle, dish or container.
ADEQUATE PROTECTION FROM THE ELEMENTS. A protected area, in addition to a doghouse or similar structure, that provides shade from the sun and protection from the wind, rain, snow and extremes of heat or cold.
ADEQUATE SHELTER. A doghouse or similar structure for each animal chained, tethered, penned or otherwise restrained or confined outdoors, suitable for the species, age, condition and size of the animal; that has solid sides, a raised floor and top that do not leak air or moisture and a cover over the doorway which keeps the doghouse or structure dry and allows the animal unlimited access and egress from the doghouse or structure; is clean, safe, enables the animal to be clean and dry and protects the animal from injury, rain, sleet, snow, hail, direct sunlight, the adverse effects of heat or cold below 50ºF, physical suffering, and impairment of health; is large enough for the animal to stand up, lie down and stretch comfortably and make all other normal bodily movements in a comfortable, normal position for the animal, has a raised floor that is elevated from the ground or concrete at least two inches and contains insulation between the floor and ground. A crate or carrier is not ADEQUATE SHELTER. Livestock (bovine, caprine, equine, ovine and porcine species) do not require a raised floor, but do require all other aspects of the shelter.
ADEQUATE WATER. Continual access to a supply of clean, fresh, potable water provided in a sanitary manner suitable for the species, condition and age of the animal in sufficient amounts to maintain good health in the animal. Such water will be provided in a secure manner so that the container cannot be overturned.
ANIMAL. A living creature, not human, and being either domestic or wild.
ANIMAL DISPLAY. Any exhibition, act, fair, circus, rodeo, public show, trade show, photographic opportunity, carnival ride, parade, race, performance, or similar undertaking in which animals are on display for public viewing whether or not a fee is charged. ANIMAL DISPLAY shall not include the display of animals for adoption or educational purposes by licensed and/or non-profit groups.
ANIMAL PROTECTION OFFICER. Any person whose primary responsibility is the enforcement of this chapter or state code, including public service officers, sworn peace officers and other persons as appointed by the Chief of Police. This may or may not be a person trained in dangerous animal behavior.
ANIMAL SHELTER. Any premises designated and licensed by the City Council for the humane care of all impounded animals.
AT LARGE. Off the premises of the owner, unless:
(1) The animal is on a leash, chain or similar restraint not more than ten feet in length and under the control of the owner or walker;
(2) The animal is actively engaged in training or hunting;
(a) The animal is in the actual physical presence of the owner or trainer at all times.
(b) The owner or trainer is no more than 50 feet from the animal;
(c) The animal is immediately obedient to the commands of the owner or trainer; and
(d) The owner or trainer has on his or her person, at all times, a leash of sufficient length to restrain the animal.
(3) The animal is within a motor vehicle;
(4) The animal is housed within a veterinary hospital, licensed kennel, pet shop or animal shelter;
(5) The animal is within the boundaries of an area designated as off-leash, such as a dog park.
(6) The animal is trained and used by a government agency and accompanied by the appropriate government agency handler.
AUCTION. Any place or facility where animals are regularly bought, sold or traded, except for those facilities otherwise defined in this chapter. AUCTION does not apply to individual sales of animals by owner.
BEDDING. Straw, hay or pine wood shavings, or shredded newspaper, four to six inches thick, or blankets, rugs, or other sustainable material used to maintain warmth and insulate the animal from the floor of the shelter.
BITE. Any puncture, laceration, abrasion, scratch or any other break in the skin of a human being or animal, caused by an animal.
CAT. Any member of the felis domestica family.
CHICKEN. A domesticated fowl (Gallus gallus domesticus).
DANGEROUS ANIMAL or POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS ANIMAL.
(1) An animal is DANGEROUS if it meets at least one of the following criteria:
(a) Any animal that bites or attacks any person or other domestic animal without provocation either on public or private property;
(b) Any animal with a history, tendency, propensity or disposition to attack without provocation or to cause injury to or to otherwise endanger the safety of a person or other domestic animals;
(c) An animal trained to attack human beings or other animals upon command or spontaneously in response to human activities; or
(d) Any animal previously adjudicated by a court to be dangerous.
(2) An animal is POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS if it meets at least one of the following criteria:
(a) Any unprovoked animal who, in a dangerous or terrorizing manner, approaches a person or other domestic animal and displays threatening or aggressive behavior; or
(b) Any animal trained for dog fighting, animal fighting or animal baiting or is owned or kept for such purposes.
(3) A DANGEROUS or POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS animal does not include any animal owned by and under the control of the Police Department or a law enforcement agency of the state, United States, or any branch of the armed forces of the United States.
DOG. Any domesticated member of the Canis familiaris family, male or female, altered or not.
DOMESTICATED ANIMAL. An animal not included in Iowa Code § 717F.1(5) that is tame or kept as a pet on a farm or appropriate sized lot within city limits.
EXCESSIVE ANIMAL PERMIT. A permit obtained from the Finance Department which shall permit the permittee to own and care for more than six total animals, including dogs, cats, and ferrets, at a single home or parcel.
GROOMING SHOP. A commercial establishment where animals are bathed, clipped, plucked or otherwise groomed.
IN HEAT. A female animal during the active state of estrus.
KENNEL. A premises wherein any person engages in the boarding, breeding, buying, letting for hire, training for a fee or selling of dogs or cats. Boarding kennels and commercial kennels as defined in Iowa Code Ch. 162, are considered kennels for the purpose of this chapter.
LIVESTOCK. An animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, equine, ovine or porcine species; farm deer, as defined in Iowa Code § 481A.1; ostriches, rheas, emus or poultry (Iowa Code § 717.1), but not including urban chickens as allowed in § 159.046(R).
MICROCHIP. A radio frequency identification transponder that carries a unique identification number, and is roughly the size of a grain of rice. This can be placed by a veterinarian or animal shelter registered with the city.
OWNER. Any person who owns, keeps, harbors or knowingly permits an animal to remain on or about any premises owned or occupied by that person.
PET. Any animal kept for pleasure rather than utility.
RABIES VACCINATION. A dosage of a dead or live organism designed to produce immunity to rabies in an animal.
RESPONSIBLE PERSON. A person, whether or not the owner of an animal, in whose care an animal has been entrusted, including any person who is physically entrusted to control an animal.
SERVICE ANIMAL. An animal, usually a dog, recognized by law as an assistance animal which is specifically trained at a recognized training facility to perform physical tasks to mitigate the effects of an individual's disability. SERVICE ANIMALS include guide dogs that guide individuals who are legally blind; hearing dogs that alert individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to specific sounds; and, service dogs for individuals with disabilities other than blindness or deafness. Service dogs are any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual or other mental disability. These physical tasks include but are not limited to pulling a wheelchair, lending balance support, detecting stroke or seizure, picking up dropped objects or providing assistance in a medical crisis. The work or tasks performed by a service dog must be directly related to the handler's disability.
SUPPORT ANIMALS. An animal kept for comfort, protection or personal defense which has not been trained to mitigate the effects of an individual's disability and therefore does not qualify as a service animal. Service animals may be authenticated as such by law and medical evidence.
THREATENED ANIMAL. An animal that is abused or tortured as provided in Iowa Code § 717B et seq. or abused as provided under this Code.
UNLAWFUL. Any activity not in conformity with this chapter, and which will result in a warning, fine or penalty, or in appropriate circumstances, confiscation of the animal or animals pertaining to the unlawful act.
VETERINARY HOSPITAL. Any establishment maintained and operated by a licensed veterinarian for surgery, diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of animals.
WILD ANIMAL. Any animal as defined in the Iowa Code § 717F.1(5).
WILDLIFE REHABILITATION PERMIT. A permit which authorizes the holder to take and temporarily possess injured or orphaned state-protected species of birds, mammals, amphibians or reptiles with the intent to return the animal to its natural habitat as soon as possible.
WILDLIFE REHABILITATOR. A person possessing an Iowa Department of Natural Resources rehabilitators permit and operating within the corporate limits of the city.
ZOOLOGICAL PARK. A facility, other than a pet shop or kennel, displaying or exhibiting one or more species of non-domesticated animals operated by a person, partnership, corporation or government agency.
(Ord. 2485, passed 11-27-2012; Ord. 2571, passed 4-10-2018; Ord. 2657, passed 10-13-2020; Ord. 2746, passed 6-11-2024)