(a) Violation.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (h), a person must not import, sell, trade, buy, barter, breed, raise, keep, or possess:
(A) a wild animal; or
(B) any animal that the County or any other jurisdiction finds is dangerous or a threat to public health or safety, including types of animals excluded from State law prohibitions on dangerous animals.
(2) An animal is dangerous if the animal is:
(A) a “dangerous dog” as defined in Md. Code, Criminal Law Article § 10-619;
(B) any other animal that, without provocation , has killed or severely injured a person;
(C) an animal that poses a physical threat to humans because of specific training or demonstrated behavior, or because the animal's bite is poisonous; or
(D) a potentially dangerous animal that:
(i) bites a person without provocation;
(ii) attacks a person or animal without provocation; or
(iii) kills or severely injures a domestic animal outside the property of the potentially dangerous animal's owner.
(3) An animal is potentially dangerous if:
(A) the animal:
(i) bites a person without provocation;
(ii) kills or severely injures a domestic animal outside the attacking- animal owner’s property;
(iii) attacks or has unwanted contact with a person or animal without provocation; or
(iv) was declared by the County or another jurisdiction as potentially dangerous (even if the other jurisdiction uses a different term); and
(B) the Office notifies the owner that the animal is potentially dangerous.
An animal's actions in a qualified activity do not make the animal potentially dangerous.
(b) Declared dangerous or potentially dangerous elsewhere. An owner of an animal declared dangerous or potentially dangerous in another jurisdiction must remove the animal from the County within 10 days after receiving a citation or other notice of a violation of this Chapter unless the Executive Director waives this requirement and imposes conditions or restrictions under subsection (d) for the animal to remain in the County.
(c) Limited waiver. The Executive Director may waive the prohibitions of subsections (a) or (b) for a specific animal only if the Executive Director finds that the animal is not a threat to public health or safety.
(d) Confinement and microchipping. The Executive Director or the Board may impose any restriction or condition, including confinement or microchipping the animal, on the owner of a dangerous or potentially dangerous animal that is reasonably expected to protect the public health or safety. A person must not release the animal from confinement unless the animal is:
(1) securely muzzled in a manner approved by the Office;
(2) leashed; and
(3) under the control of a person who is at least 18 years old and is physically able to restrain the animal.
(e) When a potentially dangerous animal is off the owner’s premises or property it must be:
(1) on a leash or harness; and
(2) under the control of a person who is at least 18 years old and is physically able to restrain the animal.
(f) Guard dogs. An owner of a guard dog must:
(1) confine the dog as described in subsection (c);
(2) transport the dog only in a humane, escape-proof manner;
(3) ensure that the dog always wears a tag identifying the owner's name, address, and emergency phone number;
(4) tell the Department of Police and the Fire Department the location of a working guard dog before placing the animal in service and provide emergency contact information about the owner; and
(5) on demand by an animal control officer, produce the dog for examination by a specific veterinarian at the owner's expense.
(g) Licensing records. The Executive Director must indicate in the licensing records whether a licensed animal is dangerous, potentially dangerous, or a guard dog.
(h) Exceptions.
(1) A dog serving a law enforcement agency is not a dangerous or potentially dangerous animal or a guard dog under this Section.
(2) Animals in the possession of an animal sanctuary are not dangerous or potentially dangerous animals if the animal sanctuary:
(A) is a nonprofit organization qualified under §501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(B) operates a place of refuge for abused, neglected, impounded, abandoned, orphaned, or displaced wildlife; and
(C) does not conduct commercial activity with respect to any animal of which the organization is an owner.
(3) Wild animals do not include kangaroos, wallabies, or sugar gliders. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2017 L.M.C., ch. 36, §1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
Editor’s note—Section 5-202 is cited in Coroneos v. Montgomery County, 161 Md. App. 411, 869 A.2d 410 (2005).