(A) Subject to division (E) below, no owner or keeper may have within the town, after receiving the notice of removal prescribed in division (C) below, any animal that:
(1) Habitually or repeatedly, without provocation, chases, snaps at or attacks pedestrians, bicycles, or vehicles even if the animal never leaves the owner’s property (except that this provision shall not apply if such animal is restrained by a pen, fence, or other enclosure) or does so only to transgress upon the adjacent right-of-way and then returns to its owner’s property;
(2) Seriously interferes with the reasonable use and enjoyment by neighboring residents of their property because of its odor, habitual barking, howling, whining, crying, crowing, or other noise making;
(3) Is a female animal that is not confined while in heat in a building or secure enclosure in such a manner that she will not be in contact with another animal, provided that this section shall not be construed to prohibit the intentional breeding of animals within an enclosed area on the premises of the owner or keeper of an animal involved in the breeding process;
(4) Damages the property of anyone other than its owner or keeper, including but not limited to, turning over garbage containers or damaging gardens, flowers, shrubbery, vegetables or trees either by digging, defecation or urination, or causing injury to domesticated livestock or pets; and/or
(5) Without provocation, inflicts on any person a serious injury requiring treatment by a physician, including but not limited to a bite or scratch that breaks the skin.
(B) If the Administrator determines that any animal is creating a nuisance as described in division (A) above, he, she, or they shall in writing inform the animal’s owner of the nature of the violation(s) and shall indicate that unless these violations are corrected and/or measures taken to prevent their recurrence within 48 hours, the owner shall be required to remove the animal from the town.
(C) If the Administrator determines that any animal cited for a violation of division (A) above has, more than 48 hours after service of the notice prescribed in division (B) above, continued to cause a nuisance as described in division (A), then the Administrator shall, in writing, notify the animal’s owner that the animal must forthwith be removed from the town. The Administrator shall also notify the owner of his, her, or their right to appeal this determination in accordance with § 90.007.
(D) The owner of any animal removed pursuant to this section shall, within five days after removal, inform the Administrator in writing of the animal’s present location, including the name, address and telephone number of the animal’s current owner or keeper. If the animal has been destroyed, the Administrator shall be informed of the name, address, and telephone number of the person who destroyed such animal.
(E) The provisions of divisions (A) through (D) above shall not apply to cats. However, cats shall be subject to the following requirements.
(1) If a cat engages in any of the activities described in this section, then the Administrator shall in writing inform the cat’s owner of the nature of these actions and shall indicate that unless these activities are corrected and/or measures, such as a bell, are taken to prevent their recurrence, the owner shall be required to confine the cat on the owner’s premises. A person who fails to abide by the direction of the Administrator to confine a cat pursuant to this division (E)(1) shall be subject to the civil penalties described in § 90.999. This process shall apply to any cat that, off the premises of its owner or keeper:
(a) Habitually or repeatedly defecates or urinates in children’s sandboxes;
(b) Habitually or repeatedly injures or kills animals or birds, whether domesticated or not;
(c) Is a female in heat not confined in a building or secure enclosure in such a manner as to prevent contact with another cat;
(d) Habitually or repeatedly, without provocation, chases or attacks pedestrians or bicyclists;
(e) Seriously interferes with the reasonable use and enjoyment by neighboring residents of their property because of its howling, whining, crying, or other noise making; and/or
(f) Without provocation, inflicts on any person a serious injury requiring treatment by a physician, including but not limited to a bite or scratch that breaks the skin.
(2) If a cat engages in any of the activities described in division (E)(1) above, and the Administrator is otherwise unable to determine the identity of the owner or keeper of the cat, the Administrator may impound the animal. If the owner or keeper can thereafter be identified, the cat shall be returned to such owner or keeper and the notification procedures of division (E)(1) above shall be followed. If the owner or keeper cannot after reasonable effort be identified or located, the Administrator shall deliver the cat to the animal control shelter.
(Prior Code, § 3-12) Penalty, see § 90.999