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(a) Violation. An owner must not:
(1) Allow an animal other than an altered cat to be at large. An animal that is participating in a qualified activity is not at large unless the animal leaves the activity.
(2) Allow an animal to damage or defecate on property outside the owner’s property. An animal may defecate on public property or the common area of property in which the owner shares an interest if the owner immediately removes and disposes of the feces by a sanitary method approved by the Office. This paragraph does not affect any right of a common ownership community to regulate or ban animals from the community’s property.
(3) Allow an animal to enter private property without the property owner's permission. The property owner may capture the trespassing animal humanely and promptly notify animal control or other appropriate law enforcement authorities, or humanely transport the animal to an animal shelter.
(4) Allow a female dog or cat in heat to be outside a building or other secure enclosure that prevents attraction of other animals.
(5) Allow an animal to cause an unsanitary, dangerous, or offensive condition because of the size or number of animals in a single location or because a facility is not appropriate for the animal or properly maintained.
(6) Allow an animal to cause noise that is loud and persistent enough to disturb another person's quiet enjoyment.
(7) Allow a dog to be on public school grounds on a day when school is in session, or in a public recreation area during an organized activity, unless the dog is controlled by a leash or similar restraining device. This paragraph does not apply to a dog participating in a qualified activity if the agency controlling the school or area gave permission to the owner of the dog or the sponsor of the qualified activity.
(8) Allow a domestic or exotic bird, including a homing pigeon, to be in an aviary within 100 feet of any structure owned or leased by another person and used for human habitation or work. This paragraph does not apply to a bird:
(A) other than a homing pigeon, inside the owner's dwelling;
(B) in a pet shop;
(C) in an Agricultural or Rural Residential zone as defined in Chapter 59; or
(D) in a market for less than 24 hours for sale for human consumption.
(9) Refuse or fail to obtain a license for a dog, cat, or ferret as required by State law or this Chapter.
(10) Allow an animal to act in any other way that the Executive Director, the Board, or an animal control officer finds would cause any other public nuisance established by regulation. An action prohibited by the regulation is a violation even if the action does not qualify as a public nuisance because the owner has not received notice described in subsection (b)(1).
(11) sell, trade, or give a domesticated animal to another person at a place open to the public, except a business licensed to sell animals under Section 5-404.
(b) Public nuisance. An owner must not allow an animal to create a public nuisance by:
(1) behavior described in subsections (a)(1), (2), (3), (4), (6), (8), (9), or (10) occurring after the owner received notice from the County in any form (such as an oral warning from an Office employee) of a violation because of the same behavior; or
(2) any behavior described in subsections (a)(5) or (7).
(c) An owner must prevent the owner’s animal from having unwanted contact with a person or another domesticated animal at all times. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10 § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 2, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 8, § 1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
Editor’s note—Section 5-203 is cited in Coroneos v. Montgomery County, 161 Md. App. 411, 869 A.2d 410 (2005).
(a) Definitions. In this section, the following words have the meanings indicated:
(1) Exhibition means an act, circus, ride, or similar undertaking in which a wild animal is required to perform tricks, give rides, or participate as accompaniments for the entertainment, amusement, or benefit of any live audience.
(2) Mobile or traveling housing facility means a transporting vehicle such as a heavy commercial vehicle as defined by Section 59.1.4.2, trailer, or railway car, used to move or house wild animals.
(3) Traveling animal act means the exhibition of a wild animal where the animal is transported to, from, or between locations for exhibition, in a mobile or traveling housing facility.
(4) Wild animal means all animals classified in the following orders or families except the species noted:
(A) non-human primates and prosimians;
(B) felidae, except domestic cats;
(C) canidae, except domestic dogs;
(D) ursidae;
(E) marsupialia;
(F) proboscidea;
(G) crocodilia;
(H) artiodactyla, except domestic cattle, bison, American buffalo, water buffalo, yak, zebu, gayal, bali cattle, suidae, sheep, goats, llamas, or alpacas;
(I) perissodactyla, except domestic horses, ponies, donkeys, or mules;
(J) elasmobranchii; and
(K) pinnipedia.
(b) Prohibition. A person or business must not charge guests or visitors a fee to attend the exhibition of a wild animal in a traveling animal act.
(c) Any activity, including agriculture and farming uses defined by Chapter 59, that uses animals other than those identified as wild under Subsection 5-204(a)(4) is exempt from the prohibition in Subsection 5-204(b).
(d) Regulations. The County Executive may issue regulations under Method (2), to interpret and enforce this subsection. (2017 L.M.C., ch. 36, §1.)
(a) Who may enforce. The Executive Director, an animal control officer, the Board, and any other person authorized by regulation issued under method (2) may enforce an animal control law. In this Article, an “animal control law” includes a State animal control law, this Chapter, and, for noise from an animal source, Chapter 31B.
(b) Forms of enforcement. The Executive Director or an animal control officer may enforce an animal control law by issuing a citation or other lawful order. To exercise its authority, the Board must issue a written order that explains the factual and legal basis for the order.
(c) Types of enforcement.
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Executive Director or an animal control officer may, to enforce an animal control law or protect the health or safety of an animal, a person, or the public:
(A) seize, impound, and dispose of an animal; or
(B) take any other action necessary or order an owner to take any other action necessary to enforce the law, including ordering that a microchip be inserted into an animal.
(2) The Executive Director or an animal control officer must not destroy an animal under paragraph (1) unless:
(A) the Board has ordered the animal to be destroyed; or
(B) the Executive Director, an animal control officer, or the Board finds that destruction of the animal is necessary to prevent an immediate threat to public health or safety. If an owner requests a hearing within 5 days after the County notifies the owner of any action under this paragraph, the Board must hold a hearing after the fact on the action and may order the County to reimburse the owner for the resale value of the animal if the action was not justified; or
(C) after 5 days, the owner has not filed an appeal to the Board.
(3) A citation or order may require an owner to act or refrain from acting to prevent or stop a violation of an animal control law.
(d) Warrants. An animal control officer may enforce an animal control law by searching private property and seizing evidence or animals, under State law or a warrant issued by a court.
(e) Interference with enforcement. A person must not interfere or attempt to interfere with any County officer, employee, or agent enforcing an animal control law.
(f) Failure to follow or appeal an order. An owner who, without justification, does not follow or appeal a legal order issued under this Chapter has abandoned and forfeited to the County any animal that is the subject of the order.
(g) Concealing ownership. A person must not conceal or falsely deny ownership of an animal to any person authorized to enforce an animal control law.
(h) Board order to take action. As a result of an adjudication of a complaint or appeal, the Board may order the Executive Director or an animal control officer to take an action described in paragraph (c)(1). (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
(a) Dangerous or potentially dangerous animals.
(1) An animal control officer immediately may seize, impound, and humanely euthanize, at the owner’s expense, an animal that the Executive Director, an animal control officer, or the Board finds is dangerous or potentially dangerous and poses an immediate threat to public health or safety.
(2) If the animal poses no immediate threat, the owner may, within 5 days after the County notifies the owner about the violation, appeal the violation or action to the Board and request a hearing. The County must not dispose of the animal during the 5-day period for filing an appeal, or while an appeal is pending.
(b) Public nuisance and other violations. The Board, the Executive Director, or an animal control officer may order any action necessary to abate a public nuisance or any other violation of Section 5-203. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
(a) Generally. The Executive Director, an animal control officer, or the Board may enforce an animal control law or protect the health or safety of a person, an animal, or the public by impounding (or for the Board, ordering the Executive Director to impound) an animal at an animal shelter or other facility approved by the Executive Director.
(b) Notice of impoundment. The Executive Director promptly must make a reasonable effort to locate and notify the owner of an impounded animal. The notice must inform the owner of applicable requirements of this Chapter, including the requirement in subsection (c) to pay in advance for the animal’s care and the opportunity to request a waiver of the prepayment requirement under subsection (c)(7). The Executive Director may notify the owner by first class mail to the owner’s last known address, or, if the Executive Director cannot locate the owner, by publishing a notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the County.
(c) Prepayment for care.
(1) The animal’s owner must prepay any boarding costs before and during any appeal to the Board, unless waived or modified as provided in this Chapter. Within 5 days after receiving notice that an animal was impounded under any provision of this Chapter, the animal’s owner must pay to the County the estimated cost of caring for the animal for the 30-day period beginning on the date the animal was impounded. The Executive Director must estimate the cost, which must include the cost of food, veterinary care, and other necessities that a responsible owner would provide for the animal and may include other costs, such as pro rata staffing and administrative expenses, allowed by regulation. The owner must pay in cash or by another method acceptable to the Division.
(2) If the animal remains impounded at the end of a 30-day period, the owner must, within 3 days after that 30-day period ends:
(A) pay any difference between the estimated and actual cost of care; and
(B) prepay the estimated cost of 30 additional days of care.
(3) The Executive Director may:
(A) revise the estimated cost of care for each 30-day period to improve the accuracy of the estimate; and
(B) apply any previous payment for that animal that exceeds the actual cost of care to the next 30-day period.
(4) (A) The County must refund to the owner, within 10 business days after:
(i) the end of the impoundment, any payment from the owner that exceeds the actual cost of care, including any payment for a day that the County did not care for the animal; or
(ii) the final judgment of a court holding that the County seized and impounded the animal illegally, all payments from the owner.
(B) If the actual cost of care exceeds the total estimated payments, the owner must pay the difference under Section 5-304(b) and (c).
(5) If the owner does not comply with this Section at any time, the animal must be treated as abandoned and becomes the property of the County.
(6) The prepayment requirement in this Section does not apply to an animal impounded as a stray in violation of Section 5-203(a)(1) unless the animal also is impounded for any other violation of this Chapter.
(7) The Executive Director may waive or modify the prepayment required under this subsection (such as by requiring weekly prepayments) if the owner provides evidence that prepayment for 30 days of care would be a serious financial hardship to the owner.
(d) Multiple impoundments.
(1) If an unaltered dog or cat is impounded 2 or more times, the owner must have the animal altered at the owner’s expense within 30 days after the animal is released from impoundment or surrender the animal to the Executive Director unless:
(A) the owner appeals to the Board within 10 days after the date of the second violation; and
(B) the Board after a hearing waives this requirement or orders other action.
(2) The Executive Director must not allow an owner to redeem an animal impounded less than 12 months after the animal was released from a previous impoundment, unless the owner has successfully appealed any citation arising out of the prior impoundment, until the Executive Director has issued:
(A) a citation for the current violation; and
(B) an order designed to prevent future violations. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 2, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
Editor’s note—Section 5-303 is quoted in Coroneos v. Montgomery County, 161 Md. App. 411, 869 A.2d 410 (2005).
(a) Types of disposition. An animal impounded by the Office may be:
(1) redeemed by an owner under certain circumstances;
(2) placed for adoption if abandoned;
(3) set loose in a suitable habitat if wild; or
(4) humanely euthanized in a manner approved by the Office.
(b) Redemption. The owner of an impounded animal may redeem the animal if:
(1) the owner pays impoundment and boarding fees, including the costs of caring for the animal, transporting livestock, or removing an animal from a tree or other location to protect the health or safety of humans or the animal;
(2) the owner pays a field service fee, if a County employee or contractor brought the animal to a shelter or other facility;
(3) the owner shows proof of legal title to the animal;
(4) the animal is licensed;
(5) the Executive Director approves or the Board orders the redemption, and the owner complies with any conditions for redemption; and
(6) redemption is not prohibited by another animal control law.
(c) Fees. The owner must pay any fees described in subsection (b) even if the owner does not redeem the animal. Failure to pay within 30 days after any fee becomes due is a Class B civil violation.
(d) Release or adoption prohibited. The Executive Director must not:
(1) release an animal impounded under a Board order unless a Board order allows redemption; or
(2) place for adoption an animal that has not been abandoned unless the owner consents.
(e) Dangerous or nuisance animals. The Executive Director or any other person must not sell, release, or place for adoption an animal that an animal control officer found is dangerous or potentially dangerous, would cause a public nuisance or other violation, or has rabies or an incurable communicable disease, unless the Executive Director finds the action is safe.
(f) Failure to redeem. Unless otherwise ordered by the Board, an impounded animal is considered abandoned and becomes County property if the animal is not redeemed by its owner within 5 days after the Executive Director notifies the owner about the impoundment under Section 5-303(b).
(g) Adoption. The Executive Director may place an abandoned animal for adoption as a pet unless the Board or the Executive Director decides adoption of the animal is not in the best interest of public health or safety. A dog or cat placed for adoption must be altered by a licensed veterinarian, at the expense of the person adopting the animal, within a time specified by the Executive Director. The Executive Director must set the deadline for altering based on the animal’s age, sex, and health, but the deadline must be within 3 months after the adoption. If the owner of an adopted animal does not alter the animal by the deadline, the owner must return the animal to the animal shelter.
(h) Humane euthanasia. The County may dispose of an animal by humane euthanasia under regulations issued with the advice of a licensed veterinarian. The County must not dispose of an animal for commercial or experimental purposes. A licensed veterinarian periodically must review whether the County implements these procedures humanely.
(i) Release defined. In this Section, release means to allow an owner to redeem an impounded animal. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 2, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1.)
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