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Select features found in the Animal Ordinance which will affect
pet owners or the general public are:
- All dogs, cats, and ferrets four months of age or older must
be vaccinated against rabies by a veterinarian and be registered
with the department. This provision provides for local enforcement
of state law which now requires ferrets to be vaccinated against
rabies.
- All dogs will be required to wear the rabies registration tag when outside. Cats, when outside, will be required to wear the registration tag or to be micro chipped, tattooed, or have an ear tag that can be used to identify the cat so the owner can be traced. Dogs and cats, while participating in a sanctioned event, will not be required to wear the registration tag. This provision will better enable a person bitten by a dog or cat and public health authorities to know if the animal has a current rabies vaccination. This will also aid in getting lost pets and their owners reunited.
- Veterinarians will make county rabies registration tags available to clients and will display educational information concerning pet ownership in their clinics. This provision is for the convenience of citizens purchasing registration tags which should increase compliance throughout the county concerning the requirement for pet owners to register their dogs, cats, and ferrets.
- Consumer rights and remedies for dogs or cats unfit for purchase are protected in the Ordinance. This provision will permit local enforcement of consumer rights when purchasing a dog or cat.
- Excluding public right-of-way on an owner's private property,
no dog or cat shall be allowed to stray, run or go, at large upon
any public property or street, sidewalk, park, or on the private
property of another without the consent of the property owner.
Any cat routinely outdoors while not under direct control must
be sterilized. This will better protect the private property rights
of our citizens who do not want dogs or cats on their property.
It will help reduce problems that can result from outdoor pet
cats indiscriminately breeding. It will also likely result in,
over time, a higher percentage of pet cats being kept indoors;
thereby reducing the health and safety risks to which outdoor
cats are exposed.
- Dogs or cats in heat, when not in a proper enclosure, must
be under the direct supervision of a responsible individual so
that the dog or cat is not allowed to unintentionally come into
contact with a male dog or cat and breed. This provision will
help prevent unwanted litters of puppies and kittens that contribute
to our tragic dog and cat overpopulation problem.
- Any feces deposited by a dog, cat, or pet pig on public property,
public walks, recreation areas or the private property of others
must be immediately removed by the person who has custody or control
of the animal. This provision will help reduce the health and
nuisance problem created by dogs and cats that have been permitted
to defecate on the property of others.
- No person will transport on any public highway, roadway or
thoroughfare any animal in a vehicle unless the animal is safely
confined or tethered to prevent the animal from falling or jumping
from the vehicle. This provision will reduce the potential danger
to people and animals that could be caused if an animal were to
fall onto a busy public road in our county.
- It will be unlawful to strike or interfere with a service animal
while performing its duties. This will help prevent someone from
interfering with a service animal that is assisting, for example,
a deaf or visually impaired person.
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