A. Dogs Which Disturb Neighborhood: No person shall own, keep or harbor any dog which by loud, continued or frequent barking, howling or yelping shall annoy or disturb any neighborhood or person. A dog shall not be permitted to urinate or defecate upon the property of any person other than the dog’s owner, unless it is immediately cleaned. Violation of this section is an infraction punishable as provided in Section 7-1-8.
B. Dogs at Large: Any person who permits any dog owned or possessed or harbored by him to be, or run at large without a competent and responsible attendant or master, or wilfully or negligently fails, neglects, or refuses to keep any such dog securely confined within the limits of his own premises when not under the immediate care and control of a competent and responsible attendant or master, shall be guilty of an infraction punishable as provided in 4-6-8.
C. Vicious Dogs:
1. Definitions:
SECURE ENCLOSURE: | One from which the vicious dog cannot escape and for which exit and entry is controlled by the owner or tenant of the premises or owner of the vicious dog. |
VICIOUS DOG: | Any animal which, when not physically provoked, physically attacks, wounds, bites, aggressively chases, harasses, or otherwise injures any person, livestock, or any domestic animal who is not trespassing. |
2. It shall be unlawful for the owner of a vicious dog, or for the owner or tenant of premises on which a vicious dog is present, to harbor a vicious dog outside a secure enclosure.
3. It shall be unlawful for the owner of a vicious dog, or for the owner or tenant of premises on which a vicious dog is present, to fail to maintain the enclosure so that the vicious dog cannot escape the enclosure.
4. It shall be unlawful for any person to remove a vicious dog from a secure enclosure unless the dog is restrained in a manner sufficient to control the dog.
5. Penalty and Sentencing: Persons guilty of a violation of any of the provisions of this subsection 7-1-3(C), shall be guilty of a misdemeanor subject to penalties of up to one hundred eighty days in jail, a one thousand dollar fine, and up to 2 years of probation. Further, at sentencing on a violation of this subsection, the court may in its discretion, in the interest of public safety, order the owner to have the vicious dog destroyed or may direct the appropriate authorities to destroy the dog. Both the prosecution and the owner of the dog may present evidence relevant to the propriety of the destruction of the vicious dog. A vicious dog may be seized and impounded during the pendency of court proceedings pursuant to 7-1-3(C).
6. A vicious dog may be seized and impounded during the pendency of court proceedings pursuant to 7-1-3(C).
7. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude any civil liability as otherwise provided by law for damages or loss caused by a vicious dog to livestock, poultry, or other domestic animals.
D. Dog Bites: Any dog which has bitten any person, livestock, poultry, or domestic animal shall be surrendered to and/or confiscated by a peace officer or animal control officer. The dog shall be inspected by a licensed veterinarian and quarantined, if necessary, as may be required under State law. No inspection or quarantine is required if reliable, current medical records are provided showing evidence of current immunizations for hydrophobia. If it is determined during the observation period that the dog has hydrophobia, the dog shall be euthanized by the veterinarian. Payment of the actual costs of inspection, keeping the dog, examining the dog, monitoring the dog's condition during the period of observation, or euthanization will be assessed by fee. If the dog is not claimed by an owner and/or person responsible for the animal within the observation period, it shall be destroyed.
No dog which has bitten a person, livestock, poultry, or domestic animal shall be adopted out or surrendered to any third party if the owner or other person responsible for the animal is not located.
Any dog which appears likely to be suffering from rabies may be destroyed by a peace officer or animal control officer if such dog cannot be captured without exposing such officer or other persons to unreasonable risk of injury. (Ord. 520, 8-26-2009; amd. Ord. 2019-610, 6-12-2019, eff. 6-12-2019; Ord. 2020-623, 2-26-2020; Ord. 2021-647, 10-13-2021; Ord. 2022-665, 2-22-2023; Ord. 2023-683, 11-29-2023; Ord. 2023-681, 2-14-2024; Ord. 2024-685, 4-10-2024)