(a) In General. Except as otherwise provided for in this section, and except for domesticated breeds of dogs and cats, no person shall keep, maintain or confine anywhere in the City, bovines, equines, sheep, goats, or swine, regardless of whether the same have been domesticated or otherwise kept, maintained or confined by virtue of a State or Federal license. In addition, and by way of illustration, but not by way of limitation, no person shall keep, as a pet, the following wild or exotic animals: alligator, badger, bat, bear, beaver, bobcat, cheetah, cougar, coyote, crocodilian, eagle, elk, ermine, falcon, ferret, fox, hawk, jackal, jaguar, nonhuman primates, lemur, leopard, lion, lynx, mink, muskrat, ocelot, opossum, owl, panther, porcupine, puma, raccoon, skunk, tiger, venomous reptiles, wolf, wolf-hybrid, wolverine, weasel or wildcat.
(b) Declaration of Certain Animals as Wildlife; Rabies Risk to Humans; Testing. Animals in the following group are hereby declared to be wildlife, even if born in captivity. Animals in this group cannot be vaccinated against rabies and shall be destroyed and sent for testing by the Police Department if they bite a human being. By way of illustration, the animals designated in this group are as follows: badger, bat, beaver, coyote, ermine, fox, lemur, mink, muskrat, opossum, porcupine, raccoon, skunk, weasel, wolf and wolf-hybrid.
(c) Other Risks to Humans. Except as otherwise provided for in this section, no person shall keep, maintain or confine anywhere in the City any other animal not listed herein which may cause, by virtue of being a carrier of a disease which can be serious or fatal to humans, or which represents, by virtue of its size, disposition or physical attributes, a risk to owners and the community as a whole. If found anywhere in the City, the same shall be removed from the City forthwith.
(d) Certain Animals Declared to be Public Nuisances; Destruction or Confinement. Except as otherwise provided for in this section, if the animals designated in this section are not removed from the City forthwith by the owners thereof, after notice to said owners, the same shall be declared to be a public nuisance per se, and the City hereby has the authority to proceed to a court of competent jurisdiction to have said animals removed from within the City limits and either destroyed or confined so as to remove any risk to citizens of the City in the protection of the health, safety and welfare of the City.
(e) Resolution of Disputes re Animal Designations. If there is a dispute between the City and an owner of an animal as to whether or not said animal is prohibited by virtue of this section, then, in such event, the owner, at his or her cost, shall be afforded the opportunity to have said animal certified by a competent veterinarian, or some other person who is an expert as to the breed of said animal, to show that said animal is not prohibited pursuant to this section.
(f) Permit to Keep Animals; Requirements. Notwithstanding anything in this section to the contrary, the City Council, in its sole discretion, may allow a person to keep, maintain or confine in the City the prohibited animals set forth in this section so long as the person requesting permission files an application with the City Clerk containing the following information:
(1) The location and zoning classification where the animal will be kept, maintained and confined;
(2) A detailed plan of how the animal will be kept, maintained and confined;
(3) United States Department of Agriculture or other Federal or State approval that the applicant meets all of the criteria by either a State or Federal department and that approval has otherwise been received by the applicant;
(4) Liability insurance for injury which could be suffered by any person related to the keeping, maintenance and confinement of the animal. City Council shall set the minimum limits of insurance as part of permit approval.
(5) A plan of veterinary care shall be provided, signed by both the owner of the animal, any person who will be maintaining the animal not the owner, and the veterinarian; and
(6) Any other information requested by City Council during the application process.
City Council shall not grant the application if the animal is kept, maintained or confined in any area of the City not zoned B-1 or B-2. The permit to be issued by the City Council may either be in the form of a motion, duly made and approved by a majority of the City Council members, or in writing, at the sole discretion of the City Council. Further, the permit shall be for one year, whereupon application for a new permit shall be made by the person in the manner set forth in this subsection. City Council may, by resolution, fix a fee for the issuance of a permit.
(g) Ferrets Excluded. Ferrets shall not be regulated by this section, but shall be regulated pursuant to the terms and conditions of Act 358 of the Public Acts of 1994, as amended, being M.C.L.A. 287.891 et seq.
(h) Chickens Excluded. The keeping of female chickens shall not be regulated by this section, but regulated by Section 606.08.
(Ord. 677. Passed 7-20-98; Ord. 883. Passed 10-28-13.)