When, upon written certification of the Commissioner of Health, it is considered that a dog, cat, or other animal is rabid or has actually been bitten within the previous 15 days by a rabid dog, cat, or other animal, or by 1 which is reasonably suspected of being rabid, a copy of the certification shall be given to the owner of the dog, cat, or other animal at the same time, thereupon the dog, cat, or other animal mentioned and described fully in the certification shall be seized on or off the owner's premises by the County Dog Warden and by him or her only, without the necessity of arrest warrant or court order, and impounded for a period of not more than 15 days. If, upon expiration of that period, the dog, cat, or other animal is living, not having died of rabies, the dog, cat, or other animal shall be returned to its owner promptly on the sixteenth day after seizure without any cost whatever to its owner, having been properly cared for and fed during the 15-day period. As an alternative quarantine, the owner may designate a nearby and convenient veterinary hospital, within the same governmental jurisdiction, as quarters for the 15 days, but all charges, except for transporting to the hospital, shall be paid by the owner of the dog, cat, or other animal.
(1981 Code, § 90.10) (Ord. 4689-68, passed 12-9-1968) Penalty, see § 90.99