This article is enacted pursuant to the general police power, the authorities granted to cities and towns by the Kansas State Constitution, and applicable statutes.
(Ord. 1658)
The purposes of this Article are to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of the citizens of the City of Russell and to ensure the humane treatment of animals by regulating the care and control of animals within the City.
(Ord. 1658)
When used in this Article, the following words, terms and phrases, and their derivations shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this Section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
(a) “Animal” means any live creature, both domestic and wild, except humans. “Animal” includes fowl, fish and reptiles.
(b) “Animal Control Warden” means an employee or agent of the City, designated by the Chief Executive to administer and enforce the licensing, inspection and enforcement requirements contained within this Article.
(c) “Animal Hospital” means any establishment maintained and operated by a licensed veterinarian for surgery, diagnosis, and treatment of animal diseases and injuries.
(d) “Animal Nuisance” means any nuisance arising out of the keeping, maintaining or owning of, or failure to exercise sufficient control of, an animal.
(e) “Animal Shelter” means any facility operated by the City or humane society for the temporary care, confinement and detention of animals and for the humane killing and other disposition of animals. The term shall also include any private facility authorized by the Chief Executive or his/her designee to impound, confine, detain, care for or destroy any animal.
(f) “At Heel” means a dog is directly behind or next to a person and obedient to that person's command.
(g) “At Large” means that an animal is off the premises of the owner, and not on a leash or otherwise under the immediate control of a person physically capable of restraining the animal.
(h) “Cruelty” means any act or omission whereby unjustifiable physical pain, suffering or death of an animal is caused or permitted, including failure to provide proper drink, air, space, shelter or protection from the elements, a sanitary and safe living environment, veterinary care or nutritious food in siphoned quantity. In the case of activities where physical pain is necessarily caused, such as medical and scientific research, food processing, customary and normal veterinary and agricultural husbandry practices, pest elimination, and animal training and hunting, “cruelty” shall mean a failure to employ the most humane method reasonably available.
(i) “Disposition” means adoption, quarantine, voluntary or involuntary custodianship or placement, or euthanasia humanely administered to an animal. “Disposition” includes placement or sale of an animal to the general public, or removal of an animal from any pet shop to any other location.
(j) “Domestic Animal” includes dogs, cats, domesticated sheep, horses, cattle, goats, swine, fowl, ducks, geese, turkeys, confined domestic hares and rabbits, pheasants, and other birds and animals raised and/or maintained in confinement.
(k) “Exotic Animal” means any live monkey, alligator, crocodile, cayman, raccoon, skunk, fox, bear, sea mammal, poisonous snake, 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 for customary household pets sold by commercial pet shops or domestic farm animals.
(l) “Guard or Attack Dog” means a dog trained to attack on command or to protect persons or property, and who will cease to attack upon command.
(m) Impoundment” means the taking into custody of an animal by any police officer, animal control warden, or any authorized representative thereof.
(n) “Kennel” means any premises wherein any person engages in the business of boarding, breeding, buying, letting for hire, training for a fee, or selling dogs or cats.
(o) “Muzzle” means a device constructed of strong) soft material or of metal, designed to fasten over the mouth of an animal to prevent the animal from biting any person or other animal.
(p) “Owner” means any person having temporary or permanent custody of, sheltering or having charge of, harboring, exercising control over, or having property rights to, any animal covered by this Article. An animal shall be deemed to be harbored if it is fed or sheltered for three (3) or more consecutive days.
(q) “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 in any section of a park or public recreation area unless the dog is controlled by a 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 unreasonable annoyance, disturbance, or discomfort 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 the 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;
(r) “Sanitary” means a condition of good order and cleanliness to minimize the possibility of disease transmission.
(s) “Under Restraint” means that an animal is secured by a leash, led 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.
(t) “Vicious or Dangerous Animal” means any animal that attacks, bites, or physically injures human beings, domestic animals, or livestock without adequate provocation, or which, because of temperament or training, has a known propensity to attack, bite, or physically injure human beings, domestic animals or livestock. Any wild animal or any animal that without provocation has bitten or attacked a human being or other animal shall be “prima facie” presumed vicious or dangerous.
(u) “Wild Animal” means any live monkey, nonhuman primate, raccoon, skunk, fox, leopard, panther, tiger, lion, lynx or any other warm-blooded animal that can normally be found in the wild state, including hybrids with wolves, coyotes or jackals, hybrids with ocelots or margays. The term “wild animal” does not include: domestic dogs, domestic cats, farm animals, rodents, and captive-bred species of common cage birds.
(Ord. 1658)
It shall be unlawful for any person to keep any animal on any property located within the corporate limits of the City when the keeping of such animal constitutes a public nuisance or menace to public health or safety.
(Ord. 1658)
It shall be unlawful for anyone to own, harbor or permit at large any exotic animal without the written permission of the Animal Warden. Such permission shall be given only if it is demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Animal Warden that the animal will not constitute a threat to public health or safety.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to keep more than four (4) dogs or other animals within the City; except that a litter of puppies or other young animals may be kept for a period of time not exceeding five (5) months from birth. This subsection shall not apply to any establishment where animals are kept for breeding, sale, sporting purposes, or boarding.
(b) In areas where kennels are permitted, no kennel shall be located closer than twenty feet (20') from the property line of the nearest adjacent residential lot.
(c) It shall be unlawful for the owner, lessee, occupant or person in charge of any premises in the city to possess and maintain any livestock animal or any undomesticated animal or to be maintained thereon any stable, shed, pen or other place where horses, mules, cattle, sheep, goats, swine, or undomesticated animals are kept. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the maintaining of a stockyard or sale barn for the loading, unloading, temporary detention and sale of such livestock, if the location of such stockyard or sale barn does not otherwise violate the zoning ordinances of the city. The provisions of this article shall not apply to a pasture or other enclosure having an area of five or more acres in an area zoned A-L (agricultural), I-I (light industrial), or 1-2 (heavy industrial), during such time or times when the number of such livestock kept in such pasture or enclosure does not exceed the number of acres in such pasture or enclosure. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to veterinary facilities, educational programs, pet stores and county fair facilities.
(d) Every person, firm or corporation within the city who owns, harbors or controls five (5) cats or dogs or combination thereof constitutes a kennel, and must apply for a kennel license. Any kennel located in the city must be in an area zoned A-L (agricultural), I-I (light industrial), or 1-2 (heavy industrial). Application for a kennel license can be made to the city clerk. The application shall meet the approval of the city clerk, city inspector, and the animal control warden before issuance of a license. Upon approval the person, firm or corporation applying for the license may pay the fee of $50.00 and the number of dog tags needed in lieu of the provisions of Section 2-202 will be issued by the city clerk.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) It shall be unlawful for the owner or custodian of any animal to refuse or fail to provide such animal with sufficient wholesome and nutritious food, potable water, -veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering, humane care and treatment, or to unnecessarily expose any such animal to hot, stormy, cold or inclement weather.
(b) No owner or custodian of any animal shall willfully abandon such animal on any street, road, highway, or public place, or on private property when not in the care of another person.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) No owner or custodian of any animal shall cause or allow-such animal to soil, defile or defecate on any public property or upon any street, sidewalk, public way, play area or common grounds owned jointly by the members of a homeowners or condominium association, or upon private property other than that of the owner, unless such owner or custodian immediately removes and disposes of all feces deposited by such animal by the following methods:
(1) Collection of the feces by appropriate implement and placement in a paper or plastic bag or other container; and
(2) Removal of such bag or container to the property of the animal owner or custodian and disposition thereafter in a manner as otherwise may be permitted by law.
(b) No person owning, harboring or keeping an animal within the City shall permit any waste matter from the animal to collect and remain on the property of the owner or custodian, or on the property of others so as to cause or create an unhealthy, unsanitary, or dangerous or offensive living condition on the owner's or custodian’s property, or to abutting property of others.
(c) No person owning, harboring, keeping or in charge of any animal shall cause unsanitary dangerous or offensive conditions by virtue of the size or number of animals maintained at a single location or due to the inadequacy of the facilities.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully or maliciously strike, beat, abuse, or intentionally run down with a vehicle any animal, or otherwise engage in any act to cause or inflict unnecessary pain, injury, suffering or death to such animal; except that reasonable force may be used to drive away vicious or trespassing animals.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to use, place, set out, or deploy any animal trap aboveground, which makes use of a spring gun, spring jaws, clamping devices, cutting or stabbing mechanism or any other devices that will damage or severely injure any animal when caught or trapped by the device or trap; except that nothing herein contained shall prohibit the use of animal traps that are so designed to trap and hold animals without injuring the animals.
(c) No person shall administer poison to any animal, or knowingly leave any poisonous substance of any kind or ground glass in any place with the intent to injure any animal. The provisions of this Section are not applicable to licensed exterminators using poisons as part of a pest control program or the use of commercial insecticides and rodent baits used to control insects and wild rodents.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) It shall be unlawful. for the owner of any animal to fail to keep such animal under restraint or to permit such animal to run at large upon the streets and public ways of the City.
(b) Any dog, while on a street, sidewalk, public way or in any park, public square, or other public space, or upon any private property without the consent of the owner, shall be secured by a leash or chain of sufficient tensile strength to restrain the particular dog, or shall be at heel and securely muzzled.
(c) Owners or custodians of any animal shall exercise proper care and control of such animal to prevent the same from becoming a public nuisance.
(d) Every female dog or cat in heat shall be confined in such a manner that such female dog or cat cannot come into contact with another except for planned breeding.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) Every owner of a guard or attack dog shall keep such dog confined in a building, compartment or other enclosure. Any such enclosure shall be completely surrounded by a fence at least six feet (6') in height and shall be topped with an anti-climbing device constructed of angle metal braces with at least three (3) strands of equally separated barbed wire stretched between them.
(b) All anti-climbing devises shall extend inward at an angle of not less than forty-five degrees (45) nor more than ninety degrees (90) when measured from the perpendicular.
(c) The areas of confinement shall all have gates and entrances thereto securely closed and locked, and all fences properly maintained and escape proof.
(d) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to dogs owned or controlled by government law enforcement agencies.
(Ord. 1658)
Every vicious animal shall be confined by its owner or authorized agent of its owner within a building or secure enclosure and, whenever off the premises of its owner, shall be securely muzzled and restrained with a chain having a minimum tensile strength of three hundred (300) pounds and not more than ten feet (10') in length, or caged. Every person harboring a vicious animal is charged with an affirmative duty to confine the animal in such a way that children do not have access to such animal.
(Ord. 1658)
Any person finding an animal at large upon his property may take possession of the animal and the person shall, as soon as possible, notify the Animal Warden.
(Ord. 1658)
If the name of the owner or custodian of an animal found at large is known or can be obtained with reasonable dispatch, the animal control warden shall return the animal to the residential address of the owner. If there is no one present, the warden shall leave written notice of whom the owner must contact to reclaim the animal. The warden shall then remove the animal to the shelter.
(Ord. 1658)
Any animal control warden or other designated person on call who removes a large animal such as a horse, cow, mule or any other animal not acceptable by any animal hospital or shelter shall be authorized to call a trucking firm or company which shall convey the animal to a farm or other appropriate facility that has an agreement with the City to accept such animals. The disposition of any animal removed to a facility other than an animal hospital or shelter shall be handled in the same manner as though the animal were confined in an animal hospital or shelter.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) License Required. No person shall own, keep or harbor any dog or cat over the age of five (5) months within the City unless such dog or cat is licensed as provided in this article.
(b) Application. Application for such license shall be made by the owner on a form to be provided by the City Clerk within ten (10) days after acquiring any dog or cat over five (5) months of age or within ten (10) days after a dog becomes five (5) months of age; provided that any owner moving to the City for the purpose of establishing residence or becoming a resident as a result of any annexation, and otherwise required to obtain a license, shall have until ten (10) days after moving or annexation to obtain such a license.
(c) Proof of Rabies Vaccination Required. All owners applying for a license must show to the satisfaction of the 11censing authority that the animal for which the license obtained has been currently inoculated against rabies.
(d) Proof of Sterilization. Any owner claiming that his dog or cat has been spayed or neutered must show to the satisfaction of the licensing authority that such operation has been performed.
(e) Payment of License Fee. A license fee shall be paid at the time of making application. The license fee for dogs and cats shall be three ($3.00) dollars for each altered dog and cat and seven ($7.00) dollars for each unaltered dog and/or cat. At the time of obtaining a license for a dog or cat the person applying shall give proof to the City that said animal has had implanted by a licensed veterinarian, an identifying microchip. All costs of the I.D. chip and the implanting, if any, shall be borne by the license applicant.
(f) Exemption from License Fee. License fees shall not be required for Seeing Eye dogs, government police dogs or dogs or cats belonging to a nonresident of the City and kept within the boundaries of the City for not longer than thirty (30) days; provided that all dogs or cats of nonresidents shall at the time of entry into the City be properly vaccinated against rabies, and while kept within the City, meet all other requirements of this Article. Any owner claiming any of these exemptions has the burden of proving to the satisfaction of the licensing authority that the animal in question is entitled to such exemption.
(g) Penalties. Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this Section shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined in a sum of not less than twenty five ($25.00) dollars nor more than two hundred ($200.00) dollars and upon conviction of a second violation of a similar offense be so fined in a sum of not less than fifty ($50.00) dollars nor more than five hundred ($500.00) dollars, and upon conviction of a third violation be fined in a sum of not less than seventy five ($75.00) dollars nor more than five hundred ($500.00) dollars.
(Ord. 1658)
Upon payment and acceptance of the license fee, the licensing authority shall issue a receipt to the owner for the fee paid. Any license issued for the keeping of a dog or cat shall be valid for the period of time that the dog or cat's rabies vaccination remains valid. Upon the expiration of the validity of the rabies vaccination, the owner shall be required to re-license said dog or cat for the new period of immunity. Every dog or cat for which the owner is required to obtain a license must be implanted with an I.D. chip as provided in Section 2-116(e).
(Ord. 1658)
(a) In addition to any other remedies provided in this Article, an animal control warden or a police officer may seize, impound and humanely confine to an animal shelter or hospital any of the following animals:
(1) Any dog or cat without a valid license;
(2) Any animal at large;
(3) Any animal constituting a public nuisance or considered a danger to the public;
(4) Any animal that is in violation of any quarantine or confinement order of the City's Animal Warden.
(5) Any unattended animal that is ill, injured or otherwise in need of care;
(6) Any animal that is reasonably believed to have been abused or neglected;
(7) Any animal that is reasonably suspected of having rabies;
(8) Any animal that is charged with being potentially dangerous, or dangerous where an animal control warden determines that there is a threat to public health and safety;
(9) Any animal that a court of competent jurisdiction has ordered impounded or destroyed;
(10) Any animal that is considered unattended or abandoned, as in a situation where the owner is deceased, has been arrested or evicted from his regular place of residence.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) Upon impoundment of an animal, the Animal Warden shall immediately attempt to notify the owner by telephone or written notice. If the owner is unknown, the department shall post written notice for at least three (3) days at a conspicuous place in the City describing the animal and the time and place of taking. Any notice to the owner shall also include the location of the shelter or hospital where the animal is confined, hours during which the animal can be reclaimed, and fees to be charged to the owner. The owner shall also be advised that the failure to claim the animal within a specified period of time may result in the disposition of the animal.
(b) An owner reclaiming an impounded animal shall pay a fifteen dollar ($15.00) impoundment fee and a fee of six ($6.00) dollars for each day the animal has been impounded. The daily rate charged for any subsequent impoundment occurring within twelve (12) months shall be double that which was charged for each day of confinement during the first impoundment.
(c) Any animal not reclaimed by its owner within three (3) working days shall become the property of the City and shall be placed for adoption in a suitable home or euthanized in a manner prescribed by state statute.
(Ord. 1658)
Animal control warden or other designees of the Chief of Police shall be the enforcement officials for this Article. These officials, along with police officers, shall have the authority to act on behalf of the City in investigating complaints, impounding and destroying animals, issuing citations, and taking other lawful actions as required to enforce the provisions of this Ordinance. It shall be a violation of this Ordinance to interfere with any animal control warden or other enforcement official in the performance of his/her duties.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) It shall be a violation of this Article to:
(1) Fail to comply with any provision of this Article;
(2) Fail to comply with any lawful order of the animal control warden, or police officer unless such order is lawfully stayed or reversed;
(b) Any person who violates any provision of this Article shall be deemed guilty of a municipal infraction and shall be punished by a fine of not less than fifty ($50.00) dollars nor more than five hundred ($500.00) dollars. If a violation continues, each day's violation shall be deemed a separate offense.
(Ord. 1658)
(a) The cost of the microchip obtained by the City of Russell, Kansas, and made available to the veterinarians for implantation pursuant to section 2-116(e) shall be the actual cost to the City of Russell for the purchasing of such microchips.
(b) The charge made for said microchips by any veterinarian receiving the microchips from the City of Russell, Kansas, shall be the same amount as the City charges for said microchips when distributed to the veterinarians doing the implanting.
(c) The cost for the services of implanting said microchips shall be in the sole discretion of the veterinarians doing the implanting, the fee for such services shall be determined and established by such veterinarians.
(Ord. 1674, Secs. 1:3; Code 2011)