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The owner of any dog kept within the town shall provide each such dog with a collar, to which shall be affixed a tag or tags denoting the name and address of the owner, and the fact that such dog has been vaccinated for rabies as provided in G.S. § 130A-190.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see § 90.99
(A) It shall be unlawful for any household to own, to keep custody of or to take care of more than three dogs, five months or older, who are frequently outside on the premises, unless the person has a special permit issued by the animal warden.
(B) (1) If a person has four or more dogs frequently outside on the premises, then the animal warden must make the following five findings in order to issue a special permit:
(a) Noise from the dogs will not interfere with an abutting occupant’s use and peaceful enjoyment of the property;
(b) Any odor or unsanitary conditions caused by the dogs will not interfere with an abutting occupant’s use and peaceful enjoyment of the property;
(c) Three or more dog runs or other dog-related structures or any combination thereof shall not be permitted if the structures can be seen from an abutting occupant’s property in a residentially zoned district;
(d) There is no evidence that the dogs pose any health problem or disease exposure for abutting occupants; and
(e) The dogs do not interfere in some other similar manner with the peaceful use and enjoyment of abutting property.
(2) If the animal warden denies a person a special permit, then the animal warden must state the reasons for the denial in writing.
(C) A permit shall remain valid as long as the person is in compliance with the terms and conditions, if any, of the permit. If any of the circumstances change, such as, but not limited to, more animals, new structures or other such similar change that might reasonably violate the five standards set for the above, then the permit shall automatically terminate and be null and void. The person must secure a new permit, or the person shall be in violation of this section. The animal warden shall have the authority to revoke the permit at any time if there is a violation of the standards stated in division (B) above, for a violation of any term or condition of the permit if there has been any misrepresentation, or for any other similar reason. The animal warden shall state in writing the basis of the revocation. Any person who wishes to appeal such a revocation shall have ten days from the date of receipt of the revocation to appeal the revocation to the Town Manager.
(D) All penning facilities less than 150 square feet per dog specifically dedicated to dog keeping must be located to the rear of the principal structure and shall not be maintained closer than ten feet from any property line.
(E) It shall be unlawful to tether or chain any animal in such a fashion as to allow the animal to be closer than ten feet to any property line. Dogs kept by chaining or tethering must be kept to the rear of the principal structure.
(F) The requirements in division (A) above shall not apply to animals kept in an animal shelter, veterinarian’s facility, commercially licensed kennel or other commercially licensed holding facility.
(G) It shall be unlawful for the owner or custodian of any animal to maintain such animal in quarters that are not sanitary or humane.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see § 90.99
(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to own, keep, possess or maintain an animal in such a manner so as to constitute a nuisance.
(B) The actions of an animal constitute a nuisance when an animal disturbs the rights of, threatens the safety of, or damages a member of the general public; or interferes with the ordinary use and enjoyment of private or public property. By way of example and not of limitation, the following acts or actions by an owner or possessor of an animal are hereby declared to be a nuisance, and are therefore unlawful:
(1) Maintaining an animal that habitually or repeatedly disturbs, interferes with or annoys human beings;
(2) Maintaining an animal that tips over garbage pails or damages gardens, flowers or vegetables;
(3) Failing to confine in a building, or secure enclosure, a female dog while in estrus;
(4) Allowing or permitting an animal to bark, whine, howl or yowl in an excessive, continuous or untimely fashion, or to make other noise in such a manner so as to result in a serious annoyance or interference with the reasonable use and enjoyment of neighboring premises;
(5) Maintaining an animal that chases, snaps at, attacks or otherwise molests pedestrians, bicyclists, motor vehicle passengers or farm stock or domestic animals;
(6) Maintaining an animal that habitually or continuously loiters on public places or on the property of another;
(7) It shall be unlawful for the owner of any dog to leave its feces on public streets, sidewalks, town parks, other town property or the property of another without the permission of the owner of the property; and
(8) Maintaining an animal that is diseased or dangerous to the health of the public unless under the care of a licensed veterinarian.
(C) Upon receipt by a police officer or animal control officer of a second, substantiated complaint that any person is maintaining a nuisance animal as defined in divisions (B)(1) through (B)(8) above, the officer shall investigate and if the officer’s written findings indicate that the animal complained of is a nuisance animal, the owner shall be cited as violating this chapter and will be penalized according to § 90.40.
(D) The owner of a nuisance animal may appeal the order of abatement and the matter shall be heard by the Board of Commissioners.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see 90.99
A dog owner who allows his or her dog to run at large in any public place in the town or on any private property without the permission of the owner or occupant of said private property shall be liable in damages to any person injured by such dog and to any person suffering loss to his or her real or personal property, including animals, caused by such dog.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see § 90.99
If any dog, fierce, dangerous or vicious, or having vicious propensities is found running at large in any public place in the town, or on any private property without the permission of the owner or occupant of said private property, and such dog cannot be safely taken up and impounded by a county animal control officer, such dog may be slain by any law enforcement official or animal control officer of the town or the county or the state.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see § 90.99
CAT REGULATIONS
The owner of any cat kept within the town shall provide each such cat with a collar, to which shall be affixed a tag or tags denoting the name and address of the owner, and the fact that such cat has been vaccinated for rabies as provided in G.S. § 130A-190.
(Ord. passed 6-27-2006) Penalty, see § 90.99
SLAUGHTERING OF ANIMALS
For the purpose of this subchapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
BONA FIDE FARM. Any tract (or tracts of land under common ownership or control) on which a party is actively engaged in a substantial way in the commercial production or growing of crops, plants, livestock, poultry or aquaculture operations. BONA FIDE FARM shall include horse riding and boarding facilities.
CONTAINMENT ANIMALS. Animals that are usually enclosed in houses or open pens with a high concentration of animals. Such animals may be, but are not limited to, swine, chickens, rabbits, quail, turkeys, geese, ducks, guinea, fowl, pigeons or pheasants.
LIVESTOCK. Includes, but shall not be limited to, equine animals, bovine animals, sheep, goats and other grazing animals that are enclosed in a fenced pasture, or in some instances enclosed in a pen or house or shed utilized for enclosing such livestock, or in some cases, tied to a leash.
SLAUGHTER. The act of killing or butchering an animal as defined in this subchapter, for the purpose of marketing or for personal consumption or for no reason other than for the act of killing.
(Ord. passed 10-26-2004)
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