(A) Requirements. The owner shall be entitled to resume possession of a pet impounded under § 90.05 upon compliance with the rabies vaccination requirement, proper identification, and the payment of redemption fees herein set forth.
(B) Application. The owner of an impounded pet must apply for the redemption of this pet. The pet may not be released unless authorized by the animal control officer or animal shelter operator with assurance from the owner that proper care and custody will be maintained.
(C) Redemption fees. The fees set forth herein shall be collected from the owner by the animal control officer or animal shelter operator and turned over to the County Treasurer, who shall make monthly accounting of such funds. Such fees shall go toward defraying the expense of operating the animal shelter. A redemption fee will be charged for impoundment and payment for daily boarding costs for animals, excluding livestock, as assessed by the county.
(D) Impoundment of livestock. The impoundment fee for livestock will be $50, plus daily boarding costs as assessed by the county.
(E) Prohibitions. It shall be unlawful for any person to release from impoundment without proper authority any pet, or to resist an animal control officer engaged in the impoundment of any pet.
(F) Sterilization; intact redemption fee. No impounded pet may be redeemed without:
(1) First having been surgically sterilized and a fee paid therefor, which fee shall not exceed the fee charged by the shelter for the sterilization of animals prior to adoption; or
(2) Paying a redemption fee of $200 to redeem the pet intact. If an intact pet comes to be impounded for a second or subsequent time in a calendar year, the intact redemption fee shall be $1,000. These provisions shall only apply to pets whose owners' residence is within the town.
(3) Sterilization under this section may not take place sooner than after the fifth working day following the pet's placement in the custody of the shelter, or when the owner appears at the shelter to reclaim the animal, whichever is sooner.
(4) If the owner declines to pay the intact redemption fee, such owner may arrange for the pet to be sterilized by a veterinarian of the owner's choosing, and the owner must pay all costs of such sterilization. If an owner chooses this method, the shelter shall transport the animal to the veterinarian for sterilization, unless the veterinarian or his/her designee transports the pet to the veterinary facility. The owner may retrieve the pet from the veterinarian's office following sterilization.
(G) The owner must provide proof of sterilization to the shelter.
(H) The shelter must give written notice of the policies and options regarding redemption and sterilization set forth herein to owners seeking to redeem their pets.
(Ord. 2012-09, passed 9-20-2012)