(A) Epidemics. In the event the County Board of Public Health shall declare in writing that an emergency exists by reason of a rabies epidemic among dogs and other domestic animals requiring a quarantine for rabies, it shall be unlawful for the owner of any dog to allow such animal to roam at large on the streets or places other than his own premises, within the town, except as provided in division (A)(1) below.
(1) No dog shall be allowed beyond the premises of its owner unless that dog is: on leash, controlled by some person physically able to prevent the animal from biting; muzzled in such a manner as to make biting impossible; and displaying a license tag issued by the Township Assessor’s Office, and also a tag showing that an anti-rabies vaccine had been administered to that particular animal within the last 12 months.
(2) It shall be the duty of the Humane Officer of the town and his assistants to enforce the provisions of this division and to impound at the humane shelter all dogs at large not conforming to this division. The impounded dogs may be redeemed by the owner within 72 hours by the payment of a redemption fee as provided for by the rules and regulations of the Fort Wayne-Allen County Humane Commission. All impounded dogs not redeemed within 72 hours may be destroyed or disposed of in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Fort Wayne-Allen County Humane Commission, which rules provide in addition to other matters that no dogs being held for observation shall be released or destroyed until the expiration of the observation period.
(B) Dog bites. It shall be the duty of every Humane Officer and Assistant Humane Officer to impound any dog which has bitten another animal or has bitten a human being and to deliver the same forthwith to the animal shelter of the Fort Wayne-Allen County Humane Commission, where all such dogs shall be kept impounded for a period of not less than 14 days for observation for rabies. In the event the dog is determined not to be rabid, the dog shall be thereupon released to its owner, if so reclaimed. If the owner shall fail to reclaim such dog within 72 hours after receipt of written notification thereof from the Fort Wayne-Allen County Humane Commission, the Commission may place the dog in a suitable home or destroy it in a humane manner.
(Ord. 469, passed - - ) Penalty, see § 90.99