Patterson, California

7.20.010 License—Required.

A. Any person owning or having custody of any dog four months or older shall pay an annual license fee. The license fee for dogs shall be established by the board of supervisors and set forth in Chapter 7.50. The increased fees collected by the SASA for unaltered dogs, less administrative costs, shall be used to pay for vouchers to support spay/neuter programs.

7.32.190 Fine for impounded nonspayed or unneutered dog.

The owner of a nonspayed or unneutered dog that is impounded by SASA shall be fined as set forth in Chapter 7.50. These fines are for unaltered impounded dogs only, and are not in lieu of any fines or impound fees imposed by SASA.

An animal services officer, humane officer, police officer, peace officer or any agency authorized to enforce the Penal Code may write citations with a civil penalty stated in an amount corresponding to the violation as provided above. The fines shall be paid to SASA and shall be collected at SASA. Any funds collected under this section shall be expended for the purpose of human education, programs for low cost spaying and neutering of dogs, and any additional costs incurred by SASA or animal shelter in the administration of requirements of this section. The ordinance codified in this section was adopted pursuant to Section 30804.7 of the Food and Agricultural Code.

Chapter 7.54 BREEDING AND TRANFERRING OF DOGS AND CATS, AND LICENSING OF CATS

7.54.010 Purpose of regulations.

The board of supervisors finds and declares that there exists a pet overpopulation problem in the county of Stanislaus that has resulted in a threat to public safety and health, inhumane treatment of animals, mass euthanasia of dogs and cats at the local animal shelters and escalating costs for animal care and control. The board of supervisors further finds that uncontrolled breeding is a contributing cause to this problem. The board of supervisors further finds that part of the solution is for all dogs four months or older to be licensed and spayed or neutered, unless the owners purchase the appropriate licenses-permits for the privilege of maintaining the animal intact and allowing it to breed. The board of supervisors also finds that an increase in the license fee for unaltered dogs will encourage dog owners to spay/neuter their dog(s) in order to qualify for the lower altered dog license fee. Further, the board of supervisors finds that regulating the breeding and transfer of dogs and cats will help alleviate the county’s pet overpopulation problem.

7.54.030 Litter permit.

A. No person shall cause or allow any dog or cat owned, harbored or kept within the county of Stanislaus to breed without first obtaining a litter permit. The term “litter permit” means a written authorization, issued annually by the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, giving its lawful holder permission to breed a dog or a cat.

B. Each litter permit shall be valid for one year from the date of issuance, and may be renewed annually before its expiration date. Each applicant for a litter permit shall pay an annual fee as prescribed by the board of supervisors and set forth in the fee schedule section of this title.

C. SASA shall administer an animal litter permit program to allow the breeding of unaltered dogs and cats consistent with criteria and according to procedures established by the animal services executive director. Under no circumstances shall such a litter permit be issued to a person who has been convicted of animal cruelty or neglect.

D. In addition to the criteria and procedures established by the animal services executive director, litter permits shall contain the following terms and conditions:

1. The owner of an unaltered female dog or cat shall not allow the whelping of more than one litter per animal in any household within the permit year. Notwithstanding this provision, the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, is hereby authorized, upon application of a permittee, to allow on a one-time basis the whelping of up to two dog or cat litters per breeding animal within any domestic household within a permit year, if the permittee established, according to regulations promulgated by the animal services executive director, including a veterinarian verification of health status, that such breeding is required due to the health of the animal. In the event that a permittee is forced to euthanize a litter of dogs or cats, the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, may authorize the whelping of one additional litter of dogs or cats within the same permit year by the permittee;

2. No offspring may be sold, adopted, bartered, or otherwise transferred, whether for compensation or otherwise, until it has reached the age of at least seven weeks and the offspring has received its first immunization against common diseases;

3. Any holder of a litter permit who advertises to the public the availability of any dog or cat for sale, adoption, or transfer, whether for compensation or otherwise, must prominently display the litter permit in any such advertisement. Further, the litter permit holder must provide the permit number to any person who purchases, adopts or receives any animal from the permit holder and include the permit number on any receipt of sale or transfer document;

4. Commercial establishments selling locally bred dogs or cats shall prominently display the litter permit number(s) of the breeder(s) whose dogs and cats are sold in such establishments and any other pertinent information required by the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee;

5. Any litter permit holder selling or otherwise transferring a dog or cat, whether for compensation or otherwise, shall maintain records for a period of three years containing the name, address, and telephone number of the animal’s new owner on a SASA approved form;

6. Any litter permit holder or commercial establishment which sells or otherwise transfers a dog or cat, whether for compensation or otherwise, shall provide to the new animal owner written information regarding the license and permit requirements of the county of Stanislaus applicable to such animal; and

7. Any litter permit holder shall have his/her dog or cat licensed and microchipped with SASA as set forth in this title.

E. The following animals are exempt from the litter permit requirements:

1. Dogs documented as having been appropriately trained and actively used by law enforcement agencies for law enforcement and rescue activities;

2. Dogs documented as guide, signal, or service dogs pursuant to Section 365.5(d), (e) and (f) and successor section of the Penal Code.

3. Dogs and cats under the care of governmental animal control agencies; animal rescue organizations which have demonstrated to SASA that they have implemented an ongoing spay/neuter plan, as well as an adoption plan; or humane societies or societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals, if such societies are incorporated under the provisions of Section 10400 of the Corporations Code and the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law in Part 2 of the Corporations Code, beginning at Section 5110, and successor sections; and

4. Dogs documented as enrolled in a guide, signal or service dog breeding program administered by a person licensed under Chapter 9.5 (commencing with Section 7200), Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code.

7.54.040 Litter permit—Penalties.

A. Any cat or dog owner found by SASA to be in violation of the litter permit provisions of this chapter may correct the violation(s) by obtaining the necessary permit(s) mentioned in this chapter, no later than thirty days from the date when SASA had first notified (issued a written citation to) the owner of the violation(s). Should the owner fail to correct the violation(s) in the manner described above, SASA shall impose a five hundred dollar penalty on the dog or cat owner. Written notice of this penalty shall be served by SASA on the dog or cat owner by mail. The penalty shall not be waived by SASA upon the transfer or abandonment of the dog or cat by the noncompliant owner. This penalty shall be imposed in addition to any other applicable civil or criminal penalties.

If the penalty mentioned in this section is not paid and the owner does not comply with the identification laws established by ordinance, spay or neuter his/her dog(s) or cat(s) or obtain the litter permit(s) within twenty days from the mailing date when SASA first notified the owner of the imposition of a penalty, the continuing violation of the litter permit requirement of this chapter becomes an additional infraction and may be prosecuted as such.

B.    Any litter permit issued pursuant to Section 7.54.030 may be revoked if the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, has reasonable cause to believe any of the following to be true:

1.    The permit holder has violated any county ordinances relating to the keeping, care or use of any animal;

2.    The permit holder is in violation of any state health or safety law or regulation regarding animal care or control;

3.    The permit holder has failed to comply with any condition or requirement of the permit or has failed to pay any fee imposed under this code;

4.    The permit holder refused to allow inspection, upon forty-eight hours’ written notice, of any animal covered by the permit or the premises on which the animal is kept; or

5.    The permit holder has transferred, sold or otherwise disposed of the animal for which the permit was originally issued.

C.    If, after inspection, the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, concludes that it is probable that one or more of the above grounds for revocation has occurred, he or she shall cause written notice thereof to be transmitted by mail to the address of the litter permit holder. The notice shall specify the grounds of possible revocation of the litter permit and shall specify a date and time for an informal hearing to be held before the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee. The date shall be not set less than six days after the date the notice is mailed. After the informal hearing, the animal services executive director may modify the terms of the litter permit or revoke the litter permit.

D.    The litter permit holder may appeal the decision of the animal services executive director, or the director’s designee, to the animal court if the permit holder gives written notice of such appeal within five business days of the date of the animal services executive director’s written decision.

E.    Failure to comply with any of the requirements mentioned in Sections 7.08.100, 7.20.100, 7.54.030, this section, and Section 7.54.050 is an infraction punishable by a one hundred dollar fine for the first occurrence, two hundred dollars for the second occurrence and three hundred dollars for each subsequent occurrence. 

7.54.070 Licensing of cats.

A cat owner may voluntarily obtain a license for their cat. If the cat owner voluntarily purchases a cat license, then the cat owner shall be eligible to receive a voucher for the spay/neuter identification program operated by SASA.