a. Unrestrained dogs, cats and nuisance animals shall be taken by the police or Animal Control Officers and impounded in an animal shelter and there confined in a humane manner.
b. If a license tag or other means can identify the owner of an impounded animal, the animal-control officer shall immediately upon impoundment notify the owner by telephone or certified mail.
c. An owner reclaiming an impounded cat shall pay a fee of ten dollars ($10.00) and five dollars ($5.00) for each day the animal has been impounded. Subsequent impounds occurring within twelve months are charged double.
d. An owner reclaiming an impounded dog shall pay a fee of ten dollars ($10.00) and eight dollars ($8.00) each day the animal has been impounded. Subsequent impounds occurring within twelve (12) months are charged double.
e. Any animal not reclaimed by its owner within five (5) business days shall become the property of the Town of Schererville and the animal will then be evaluated for adoption under the criteria in Section 23.
f. The owner of any impounded animal may be responsible for any damage done to Animal Control equipment, vehicles or shelter by their animal.
g. In addition, or in lieu of, impounding an animal found at large, the Animal Control Officer or police officer may issue to the known owner of such animal a notice of ordinance violation. Such notice shall impose upon the owner a penalty of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) to twenty-five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) that may, at the discretion of the animal owner, be paid to the Clerk within the time period specified in said notice of ordinance violation. In the event that such penalty is not paid within the time period prescribed, said violation shall be prosecuted in the same manner as all local ordinance violations.
h. The Animal Control Commission shall review automatically all licenses issued to animal owners against whom three or more ordinance violations have been assessed in a twelve-month period.
i. The Animal Control Director shall keep complete and accurate records of the care, feeding, veterinary treatment, and disposition of all animals impounded at the shelter.
j. After a dog or cat has bitten a person or other animal, the following action will be taken:
1. If the dog or cat has up-to-date shots, the dog or cat can be confined inside the owner's residence for the required time period of ten (10) days by state law.
2. If the dog or cat does not have up-to-date shots, the dog or cat shall be quarantined for the required time period of ten (10) days at an animal hospital or veterinary clinic with the owner paying all costs of confinement.
3. It shall be the duty of every physician or other practitioner to report to the Schererville Police Department the names and address of persons treated for bites inflicted by animals together with such other information as will help with rabies control. It shall also be the duty of every licensed veterinarian to report to the Animal Control Director his diagnosis of any animal observed by him as a rabies suspect.
4. Any animal that has a single documented unprovoked bite incident may be recommended to the Animal Control Commission and/or by the Animal Control Officer to be deemed vicious. Upon written complaint to the Animal Control Commission and/or Animal Control Officer, a public hearing will be held to determine the disposition of said animal. In lieu of a public hearing, the owner of the vicious animal may voluntarily surrender the animal to Schererville Animal Control for humane disposal at any time prior to the public hearing. If the said animal is deemed vicious, the owner must have the animal humanely disposed of or may remove it permanently from the Town. The owner will be responsible for any fees incurred during the holding of said animal.
(Ord. No. 1549, § 7, 1-23-02; Ord. No. 1626, § 4, 10-13-04; Ord. No. 1652, § 1, 8-10-05)