(a) No person, association, partnership, organization, corporation or other entity shall keep, own, harbor, maintain or have in his possession or control within the City any dangerous animal unless such dangerous animal is properly caged and/or housed to prevent its escape and/or injury to human life or property.
(b) Before any dangerous animal is brought into the City, the person so bringing the animal shall procure personal injury and property damage liability insurance with a reputable insurance carrier and have evidence of the same posted with the City by filing with the Safety Director or his designate. The liability insurance shall be in the amount of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) and shall contain a provision of commitment from the insurer that the City will be notified if the coverage is cancelled or the amount of coverage decreased.
(c) Before any dangerous animal is brought into the City, the person shall construct a cage or other structure to confine the animal intended to be located within the City limits.
(1) The proposed construction must comply with all existing Federal, State and local ordinances, and permits must be presented to the City’s Building Division before such construction may begin.
(2) Dangerous mammals shall require the construction of living quarters with a minimum of 10,000 square feet, enclosed by eight foot high link fence, including the top of cage, and a concrete floor to which the chain link fence must be embedded on all sides. Another eight foot chain link fence of similar design for additional security shall surround the first enclosure and be placed four feet from each side. All access gates shall be locked at all times with a padlock or other locking device requiring a key to open to ensure no unauthorized persons shall be able to enter.
(3) Inside shelters shall be large enough to comfortably house and protect the animal(s) from the elements. If the shelter is to house more than one such animal, it shall be built as a continuous enclosed shelter.
(4) The construction of living quarters for dangerous mammals herein described shall be permitted only on lots zoned commercial.
(5) Dangerous reptiles, fowls, small dangerous mammals poisonous or venomous biting or injecting species of amphibian or arachnid must have a continuous type enclosure of proper material to prevent escape and of adequate size to comfortably house such animal. Honeybees are expressly excluded from this section.
(6) Hoofed farm animals are permitted on lots with a minimum of one acre.
(d) Dangerous animals may not be kept in a building used for commercial purposes when more than one tenant is in the building. Pet shops and/or veterinarian facilities are herein exempt from this subsection.
(e) An inspection fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) shall be paid to the Building Inspector when the Building Division is contracted to inspect the cage, pen or other housing, as required by this section. In addition, an annual inspection fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) shall be paid to the City, through the Building Inspector on or before January 5, of each calendar year.
(f) Upon the written complaint of any person that a person owns or is keeping or harboring a dangerous animal on premises in the City and if it is found that such owner is not in compliance with provisions of this section, the Director of Public Safety shall forthwith cause the matter to be investigated and if after investigation, the facts indicate that such person named in the compliant is in fact the owner or is owner or is keeping or harboring any such dangerous animal in the City, he shall forthwith send written notice to such person, requiring such person to safely remove the animal from the City within three days of the date of such notice. Notice as herein provided shall not be required where such dangerous animal has previously caused serious physical harm or death to any person, or has escaped and is at large in which case the Director of Public Safety shall cause the animal to be immediately seized and impounded.
(g) (1) The Director of Public Safety shall forthwith cause to be seized and impounded any dangerous animal where the person owning, keeping or harboring such animal has failed to comply with the notice sent pursuant to subsection (f) hereof. Upon seizure and impoundment, the animal shall be delivered to a place of confinement which may be with any organization which is authorized by law to accept, own, keep or harbor such animals.
(2) If, during the course of seizing and impounding any such animal, the animal poses a risk of serious physical harm or death to any person, such person or persons are authorized to subdue the animal by means of tranquilizers or other safe drugs or if that is not safety possible, then such animal may be killed.
(h) Any reasonable costs incurred by the Director of Public Safety in seizing, impounding and confining any dangerous or wild animal, pursuant to the provisions of subsection (g), shall be charged against the owner, keeper or harborer of such animal and shall be collected by the Director of Law.
(i) This section shall not apply to any keeping of dangerous animals in a bona fide licensed veterinary hospital for treatment, bona fide educational or medical institution, museum or any other place where the animals are kept as live or studied; circus, carnival, zoo or other event for entertainment, which is authorized by law by the proper and responsible officials of the City, provided that proper bond or insurance be posted, to indemnify those who may be injured or killed by dangerous animals. The type and amount of such bond or insurance shall be determined by the Director of Public Safety and Director of Law, except where otherwise provided by ordinance.
(j) No person shall keep or harbor any dog over the age of six months in the City unless such dog has been inoculated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian.
(1) No license shall be issued for any dog over the age of six months unless the applicant for such license presents proof that the dog has been inoculated for rabies.
(2) Every owner or person in custody of any dog kept in the City shall have the dog inoculated against rabies at least once every three years, and no license shall be issued for any dog, unless the applicant exhibits a certificate by a veterinarian showing compliance with the provisions of this section. Dogs temporarily boarded in county licensed kennels are exempt from the provisions of this section.
(k) Every animal shelter, pen, kennel, housing or place, shall be kept in a sanitary condition and shall be free and clear from decaying food and filth of any kind. They shall be cleaned and disinfected on a regular schedule and shall be kept in a sanitary condition satisfactory to the Safety Director or his designate who shall have the right to cause an inspection of the premises to be made from time to time.
(l) For the purposes of the enforcement of this section, the Safety Director or his designate or other municipal official in charge of enforcing this section, shall use as facility cleanliness and animal care standards the standards of the USDA-APHIS United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
(m) No person in charge of any animal shall fail, refuse or neglect to provide such animal with food, potable water, shade or shelter or to cruelly or unnecessarily expose any such animal in hot, stormy, cold or inclement weather, or to carry any such animal in or upon any vehicle in a cruel or inhumane manner.
(n) The owner or harborer of any animal requiring veterinarian, impounding, licensing, destruction or disposition services as a result of any violation of this section shall be responsible for all such expenses.
(o) The owner, keeper or harborer of any domestic animal which has caused physical harm to a human shall be required to carry liability insurance in the minimum amount of twenty- five thousand dollars ($25,000) after the second such occurrence.
(Ord. 67-84. Passed 7-10-84.)
(p) Definitions. For purposes of this section, “dangerous animal” means and includes any wild animal, reptile, fowl, poisonous or venomous biting or injecting species of amphibian, arachnid or insect, (expressly excluding honeybees), which is not naturally tame or gentle but is of a wild nature or possesses other characteristics which would constitute a danger to human life or property if it is not kept or maintained in a safe manner or in secure quarters. The term “dangerous animal” also means and includes any domestic mammal, reptile or fowl which, because of its size or vicious propensity or other characteristics would constitute a danger to human life or property if it is not kept or maintained in a safe manner or in secure quarters. Small dangerous mammals, for purposes of this section means those dangerous mammals whose adult weight does not exceed twenty pounds. “Dangerous animal” does not include a vicious dog as defined by Section 505.18
of the Code.
(Ord. 23-06. Passed 3-14-06.)
(q) Whoever violates any provision of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. Each day the violation continues shall be treated as a separate offense. If a person has been previously convicted of a violation of this section, the subsequent violation shall constitute a misdemeanor of the first degree.
(Ord. 67-84. Passed 7-10-84.)