(A) It shall be unlawful to abandon an animal.
(B) It shall be unlawful for any person to inhumanely treat any animal, including, but not limited to, the deprivation of necessities, beating, mutilating, torturing, killing, overloading, overworking or otherwise abuse any animal. Nothing herein shall prevent Animal Control from humanely euthanizing any animal.
(C) It is unlawful for any person to exhibit, display or keep any animal without providing food, water, adequate shelter and/or protection from the elements, adequate space, reasonable grooming, ventilation, shade from the sun, proper sanitation, care and medical attention.
(D) Any animal, which is chained, tied or otherwise restrained, shall be provided no less than ten feet of chain, rope and the like, with a swivel attached to prevent entanglement. Any animal restrained in such a manner that the animal’s chain, rope or the like allows the animal to leave its owner or keeper’s property shall be deemed running at large; provided, however, that regardless of any other provision in this chapter to the contrary, a vicious animal, as defined in this chapter, shall not be permitted to be kept in the manner provided in this section, and shall only be allowed to be kept in accordance with § 91.07.
(E) It shall be unlawful for any person to keep an animal in an automobile without adequate ventilation in the summer or adequate warmth in the winter. No person shall enclose any animal in the trunk of an automobile. An Animal Control Officer or law enforcement officer shall rescue any animal confined in such a manner.
(F) It shall be unlawful for any person to stage, cause, instigate, permit, observe or attend any dog fight, cock fight, bull fight or other combat between animals or between animals and humans.
(G) It shall be unlawful for any person to set free any hare, rabbit or other animal for the purpose of violating any provisions of this chapter.
(H) No performing animal exhibition, circus or horse show shall be permitted in which the animals are induced or encouraged to perform through the use of chemical, mechanical, electrical or manual devices in a manner which will cause or is likely to cause physical injury or suffering. All equipment used on animals in such shows shall fit properly and be in good working order.
(I) No person(s) shall expose any poisonous substance, whether mixed with food or not, so that the same shall likely be eaten by an animal, provided that it shall not be unlawful for a person to expose on his or her property, common rat poison, mixed only with vegetable substances.
(J) Any person who, as the operator of a motor vehicle, strikes a domestic animal shall immediately report the incident to Animal Control or any law enforcement officer.
(K) No person(s) shall give away any live animal as a prize or for inducement to enter any contest, game or other competition, or as an inducement to enter into business agreement, whereby the offer was for the purpose of attracting the trade, except it shall not be unlawful to give away small fish, not to exceed four inches, as a prize.
(L) It shall be unlawful for any person to crop a dog’s ears or tail, except a licensed veterinarian.
(M) It shall be unlawful for the owner, resident, tenant, occupant, or persons having control or management of any public or private land within the city to permit such to be in violation of any provision of the International Property Maintenance Code as adopted herein, to permit a public nuisance, health hazard, or source of filth to develop thereon, or to permit such to contribute to the material devaluation of surrounding real property due to violations of the property maintenance code. A public nuisance shall include, but is not limited to, the hoarding of pet animals. The “hoarding of pet animals” shall include, but not be limited to the keeping of more pet animals than can be properly maintained in a healthy condition without presenting a health or safety hazard to the owners or others and without constituting a nuisance to the occupants or neighboring properties, characterized by failure to provide proper food, water, shelter, veterinary care and sanitation to the animals and resulting in squalid living conditions for the animals and the keeper and by complaints from neighbors including, but not limited to, mistreated or neglected animals, stench from the property and rodent and insect infestations.
(N) Any animal removed by the Animal Control Officer pursuant to § 91.02 shall be retained by the Animal Control Officer pending resolution of any and all charges against the owner of the animal resulting in court action being taken by the Animal Control Officer and Fiscal Court against the owner of the animal.
(Ord. 840.2-10-2-2011, passed 10-10-2011; Ord. 840.2-01-2013, passed 2-11-2013) Penalty, see § 91.99