§ 4-1. Definitions.  


Latest version.
  • The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
    (a) Animal shall include every living dumb creature, domestic and wild.
    (b) Animal control center shall mean any facility operated by the City, county or humane society for the temporary care, confinement and detention of animals and for other disposition of animals.
    (c) Animal control officer shall mean an animal control officer of the City, who is an employee or agent of the City, designated to administer and enforce the licensing, inspection, and enforcement requirements contained within Chapter 4 of the Code of Ordinances.
    (d) Animal enclosure means any structure used to restrict an animal or animals to a limited amount of space, such as a room, pen, run, cage, compartment, or hutch.
    (e) At large shall mean off the premises of the owner and not under the control, custody, charge or possession of the owner, or other responsible person capable of restraining the animal, either by leash, cord, chain or other humane means of physical restraint.
    (f) Business shall mean holding oneself out, either expressly or implicitly, to the public or a portion of the public on a continual, regular and permanent basis for livelihood or profit.
    (g) Dangerous or vicious animal shall mean any animal of fierce or dangerous propensities which is likely to cause injury to persons or damage to property, or any animal which exhibits traits which are ungovernable, or any animal which has bitten one or more persons without provocation on two separate occasions within a period of six months.
    (h) Disposition means adoption, quarantine, voluntary or involuntary custodianship or placement or euthanasia humanely administered to an animal. The term also includes the placement or sale of an animal to the general public, or removal of an animal from any pet shop to any other location.
    (i) Exotic animal means any live monkey, alligator, crocodile, cayman, raccoon, skunk, fox, bear, sea mammal, poisonous snake, emu, ostrich, member of the feline species other than domestic cat (felis domesticus), member of the canine species other than domestic dog (canis familiaris), or any other animal that would require a standard of care and control greater than that required for customary household pets sold by commercial pet shops of domestic farm animals.
    (j) Guard dog shall mean any type of dog used primarily for the purpose of defending, patrolling or protecting property or life and which is commercially or privately owned to perform these services when the owner(s) of the business or premises is/are not present.
    (k) Hobby breeder shall mean any person who owns or breeds pure-bred dogs or pedigreed cats primarily for personal recreational use. Personal recreational use may include participation in recognized conformation shows, hunting, field or obedience trials, racing, coursing, scenting, specialized hunting, or water trials, and may include improving the physical soundness, temperament and conformation of a given breed to standard or for the purpose of guarding or protecting the owner's property.
    (l) Impoundment means the taking into custody of an animal by any police officer, animal control officer, or other authorized representative thereof.
    (m) Kennel shall mean any place of business at which dogs or cats are kept for sale, breeding, boarding, treatment, training or grooming purposes. The word “kennel” shall not include any humane society, animal protection agency, veterinary clinic or hobby breeder.
    (n) Owner shall mean any person owning, having temporary or permanent custody of, sheltering, exercising control over, harboring or keeping any animal.
    (o) Pet shop shall include any place or premises where the primary purpose is the keeping of pet animals for resale.
    (p) Public nuisance animal means any animal that unreasonably annoys humans, endangers the life or health of persons or other animals, or substantially interferes with the rights of citizens, other than their owners, to enjoyment of life or property. The term public nuisance animal shall include but not be limited to:
    (1) Any animal that is repeatedly found running at large;
    (2) Any dog or cat in any section of a park or public recreation area unless the dog or cat is controlled by leash or similar physical restraint;
    (3) Any animal that damages, soils, defiles or defecates on any property other than that of its owner;
    (4) Any animal that makes disturbing noises, including but not limited to continued and repeated howling, barking, whining, or other utterances causing a disturbance to neighbors or others in close proximity to the premises where the animal is kept or harbored;
    (5) Any animal that causes fouling of the air by noxious or offensive odors and thereby creates unreasonable annoyance or discomfort to neighbors or others in close proximity to the premises where the animal is kept or harbored;
    (6) Any animal in heat that is not confined so as to prevent attraction or contact with other animals;
    (7) Any animal, whether or not on the property of its owner, that without provocation, molests, attacks, or otherwise interferes with the freedom of movement of persons in a public right-of- way;
    (8) Any animal that chases motor vehicles in a public right-of-way;
    (9) Any animal that attacks domestic animals;
    (10) Any animal that causes unsanitary conditions in enclosures or surroundings where the animal is kept or harbored;
    (11) Any animal that is offensive or dangerous to the public health, safety or welfare by virtue of the number of animals maintained at a single residence or the inadequacy of the facilities.
    (q) Sanitary means a condition of good order and cleanliness to minimize the possibility of disease transmission.
    (r) Sanitary conditions means a space free from hazards which may endanger an animal’s health, such as animal waste or overcrowding.
    (s) Stable shall be held to include those premises at which horses are kept commercially for boarding, riding, breeding, or resale purposes.
    (t) Tether means the act of constraining an animal’s movement by attaching one end of a leash (or other similar device) to the animal and attaching the other end of the leash to some object which is attached to the ground.
    (u) Torture, torment, cruelty shall include every act, omission or neglect whereby unnecessary or unjustifiable pain or suffering is caused, permitted or allowed to continue when there is reasonable remedy or relief. Cruelty shall also include the failure to provide an animal with proper food, drink, shelter, or protection from weather.
    (v) Under restraint means that an animal is secured by a leash, lead under the control of a person physically capable of restraining the animal and obedient to that person's commands, or securely enclosed within the real property limits of the owner's premises.
    (w) Water means water that is potable.
    (x) Wild animal means any live monkey, non- human primate, raccoon, skunk, fox, leopard, panther, tiger, lion, lynx, or any other warm blooded animal that can normally be found in the wild state. This term shall not include domestic dogs (but does include hybrids with wolves, coyotes or jackals), domestic cats (excluding hybrids with ocelots or margays), farm animals, rodents, any hybrid animal that is part wild, and captive-bred species of common cage birds.
    (Ord. No. 97-47, § 2, 10-7-97; Ord. No. 09-015, § 2, 2-2-09)