Springfield, New Jersey (Union County)

§ 5-1 DEFINITIONS.

As used in this article:

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KENNEL

Shall mean any establishment wherein or whereon the business of boarding or selling dogs or breeding dogs for sale is carried on, or any premises where more than four dogs are kept, harbored or maintained, except a pet shop.

§ 5-2.1 License; When Required.

Licenses shall be required for the following dogs of licensing age:

a. Any dog owned or kept within the Township by a resident of the Township on January 1 of any calendar year.

b. Any dog acquired by any person during the course of any calendar year and kept within the Township for more than 10 days after acquisition.

c. Any dog attaining licensing age during the course of the calendar year.

d. Any unlicensed dog brought into the Township by any person and kept within the Township for more than 10 days.

e. Any dog licensed by another state brought into the Township by any person and kept within the Township for more than 90 days.

§ 5-2.5 Fees.

The person applying for a license shall pay a fee as provided below, for each dog, and shall also pay $0.50 for the registration tag for each dog. The same fees shall be charged for the annual renewal of each license and registration tag.

Article II Pet Shops, Kennels, Shelters and Pounds

§ 5-16 PET SHOPS, KENNELS, SHELTERS AND POUNDS LICENSES.

§ 5-16.1 License Required.

Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound, as defined in this article, shall apply to the Township Clerk for a license entitling such person to keep or operate said establishment.

§ 5-16.2 Application Information.

The application shall contain the following information:

a. The name and permanent and local address of the applicant.

b. The street address where the establishment is located or proposed to be located, together with a general description of the premises.

c. The purposes for which it is to be maintained.

d. The maximum number of dogs to be accommodated by such establishment at any one time.

§ 5-16.3 License Term.

All licenses issued for a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall state the purpose for which the establishment is maintained and all such licenses shall expire on June 30 of each year.

§ 5-16.4 License Fees.

The annual license fee for a pet shop shall be $10. The annual license fee for a kennel providing accommodations for 10 or less animals shall be $10 and for more than 10 animals $25. There shall be no fee for shelters or pounds.

§ 5-16.5 Compliance with State Regulations.

a. All licenses issued for a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall be subject to revocation by the Township Committee on recommendation of the State Department of Health or the Health Department for failure to comply with the rules and regulations of the State Department of Health or the Health Department, after the owner has been afforded a hearing by either the State Department of Health or the Health Department of the Township.

b. Any person holding a license to establish, keep or operate a kennel, pet shop, shelter or pound shall comply with all Township ordinances and the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Department of Health governing the sanitary conduct and operation of kennels, pet shops, shelters and pounds, the preservation of sanitation therein and the prevention of the spread of rabies and other diseases of dogs within and from such establishments.

c. Where the requirements of this section differ from those of State law (N.J.S.A. 4:15.1, et seq., N.J.S.A. 4:19A-11, N.J.A.C. 8:23A-1.1, et seq., as amended), the more restrictive of such regulations shall apply, unless State regulation is determined to preempt local regulation.

§ 5-16.6 Reports to State Health Department.

The Director of Health and Welfare shall forward to the State Department of Health a list of all kennels, pet shops, shelters and pounds licensed within 30 days after the license therefor are issued, which list shall include the name and address of the licensee and the kind of license issued.

§ 5-17 STRUCTURAL AND MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS.

§ 5-17.1 Location and Type Requirements.

No kennel nor any part thereof shall be located or maintained at a distance less than 100 feet from adjacent property lines nor within 100 feet from a public highway, street, thoroughfare or public building unless the building meets the requirements of Subsection 5-17.3 and is of the type that, by proper management, any noise or nuisance that would be detrimental to adjacent property or to residents in adjacent property can be controlled.

§ 5-17.2 Structural and Other Requirements.

a. All buildings for commercial housing of dogs shall be of such size as to provide a minimum of 25 square feet of enclosed ground floor area per dog of 20 pounds or over, not including any passageways, food storage areas and like areas. In no case shall more than four dogs of smaller size be enclosed in such unit area.

b. Interior areas may be subdivided, as the owner may desire, provided that no pen is less than 25 square feet, and there is no reduction of the area specified above per animal.

c. All buildings shall meet with all requirements of the Building Code and shall meet the following specific requirements.

1. All buildings shall be dry.

2. All buildings shall be ventilated, allowing at least one square foot of ventilation per animal, connected to outside air by means of wall grill, window or duct.

3. All floors shall be of concrete.

4. Partitions may be of wire or boarding, as desired.

5. Floors shall be pitched to drain.

6. There shall be a separate adjacent outside exercise area of 40 square feet per inside pen, enclosed by wire screening not less than five feet high.

7. There shall be an opening between closed quarters and exercise area available to the animal at all times and of such type as to permit closing at night.

§ 5-17.3 Inspections; Certificates.

a. The Construction Code Official shall, at the request of any applicant for a kennel or pet shop license, inspect the premises described in the application and certify in writing whether the buildings located on the premises or proposed to be built thereon comply with the terms of this section and the provisions of the Township Building Code. This certificate shall be furnished to the applicant without charge.

b. The sanitary inspector shall, at the request of any applicant for a kennel or pet shop license, inspect the premises described in the application and certify in writing whether the buildings and equipment located thereon or proposed to be erected thereon comply with the provisions and regulations established by this section and promulgated by the State Board of Health.

§ 5-17.4 Confinement of Dogs; Exercise.

All dogs, except house dogs kept on the premises of the owner, must be confined to inside quarters from 10:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. unless it be deemed necessary to take them out for exercise in charge of an attendant.

§ 5-17.5 Receptacles for Water.

Each pen, runway, cage or other enclosure in which a dog may be housed in any kennel licensed hereunder shall be supplied with a receptacle containing not less than one quart of water per dog having access to such receptacle. This receptacle shall be filled at least twice a day and shall be located in a shaded portion of the enclosure.

§ 5-17.6 Removal of Sick Dogs; Isolation.

All dogs suffering from any disease or which shall become ill shall be removed from the kennel in which well dogs are harbored and may be kept in a building not less than 25 feet therefrom. No dog suffering from a communicable disease shall be isolated in a building which shall be located less than 25 feet from any other kennel building.

§ 5-17.7 Connection With Sanitary Sewer System.

All facilities used or maintained in any kennel licensed hereunder for the purpose of washing dogs shall be connected with the local sanitary sewer system, where the same is available adjacent to the licensed premises, or with a septic tank installed in accordance with the requirements of the Sanitary Code governing like connections with buildings.

§ 5-17.8 Maintenance of Kennel in Dwelling House Forbidden.

No kennel licensed under the provisions of this section shall be maintained in any dwelling house or basement thereof.

§ 5-17.9 Notice to Board of Health Secretary of Disease.

Every licensee hereunder shall notify the Secretary of the Board of Health in writing within 12 hours of the occurrence of any case of rabies or other communicable disease occurring among the dogs kept or harbored in the licensee’s kennel, and the notification shall contain a description of the dog, the registration tag number, including the name of the Township in which it was issued, the name and the address of the owner and the length of time during which the licensee proposes to keep the dog in the kennel and under observation.

§ 5-17.10. Refuse or Cleanings; Removal; Burial.

No refuse or cleanings from any kennel shall be burned on the licensed premises. The refuse or cleanings shall be removed from the premises and taken beyond the Township limits or shall be buried to a depth of not less than four feet, and before covering, the surface shall be sprinkled with adequate disinfectant. For fertilizer purposes, cleanings may be covered with pine sawdust and piled not less than 100 feet from any dwelling.

§ 5-17.11 Peace of Residents Not to Be Disturbed at Night.

No dog or dogs kept or harbored on the licensed premises shall be permitted to bark, yelp or make a noise so as to disturb the peace and slumber of residents in the neighborhood between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.

§ 5-17.12 Peace of Residents Not to Be Unreasonably Disturbed.

No dog or dogs kept or harbored on the licensed premises shall be permitted to bark, yelp or make a noise at any time so as to unreasonably disturb the peace of the residents of the neighborhood of ordinary sensitivity.

§ 5-17.13. Permitting Dogs Off-Premises.

No dog kept or harbored on the licensed premises shall be permitted off the premises, except in a crate or other safe control, unless accompanied by a person who is capable of controlling it and who has the dog securely fastened to a tether, leash or chain of six feet or less.

§ 5-22.1 Licensing Requirement.

No person shall keep or harbor any cat within the Township without first obtaining a license therefor, to be issued by the Township Clerk upon application by the owner and payment of the prescribed fee, and no person shall keep or harbor any cat in the Township except in compliance with the provisions of this article. In no event shall any person or household keep or harbor more than four cats.

§ 5-22.3 License Fees.

The person applying for the license and registration tag shall, for each cat, upon providing proof of rabies inoculation, pay a license and registration fee of $10 for spayed or neutered cats and $15 for all other cats; and for each annual renewal, the fee for the license and for the registration tag shall be as established above. The licenses, registration tags and renewals thereof shall expire on the last day of each year. A late fee of $1 per month or portion thereof shall be charged.