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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
By-Law No. 12
Dog By-Law
Title
1.
This By-Law is entitled the "Dog By-Law".
Definitions
2.
In this By-Law:
(1)
"destroy" means kill;
(2)
"dog" means any dog, male or female, or any animal that is the result of
the breeding of a dog with any other animal;
(3)
"domestic animal" includes pets and farm animals;
(4)
"extraordinary expense" means any expense incurred by Municipal Staff
in relation to a dog except for provision of food and shelter;
(5)
"fierce or dangerous dog" has the meaning stipulated in s. 7 of this By-
Law;
(6)
"mitigating factor" means a circumstance which excuses the aggressive
behaviour of a dog where:
(i)
the dog, at the time of the aggressive behaviour, attacked or injured
any trespasser on property occupied by its owner;
(ii)
the dog immediately prior to the aggressive behaviour, was being
abused or tormented by the person attacked or injured;
(7)
"Municipal Staff" means the Municipality's By-Law Enforcement Officer
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
or a person appointed by the Chief Administrative Officer or Council to
act on the Municipality's behalf for the purposes of this By-Law, and
includes the Pound Keeper;
(8)
"owner" means the owner of a dog and any person who possesses, has the
care or control of, or harbours a dog and, where such a person is a minor,
includes a parent, guardian or custodian of such a person;
(9)
"wolf-dog hybrid" means any animal which results from the breeding of a
dog and a wolf or that is or has been advertised or held out for sale as
such;
Dog Control and Pound
3.
Municipal Staff shall be responsible for the enforcement of this By-Law.
4.
Council shall appoint a Pound Keeper who shall:
(1)
collect on behalf of the Municipality any Impounding Fees, Daily Pound
Fees and any other additional charges or fees as are authorized in this By-
Law and as may be set by resolution of Council;
(2)
be responsible for the operation of the pound;
(3)
provide adequate food and water to impounded dogs;
(4)
keep the pound in a reasonable state of cleanliness;
(5)
keep the pound premises neat and tidy in appearance.
Dogs Running at Large
5.
Any dog which is off the premises occupied by the owner without being under the
continuous restraint and control of some person is deemed to be running at large
for the purposes of this By-Law. A dog which is tethered on a tether of sufficient
length to permit the dog to leave the property boundaries of the premises occupied
by the owner is deemed to be running at large.
6.
The owner of a dog shall, while the dog is off the premises occupied by the owner, keep
the dog under control by means of a harness or leash, and the dog shall be
deemed to be running at large where the owner fails to use such apparatus, except
that an unleashed and unharnessed dog that is under continuous effective human
restraint and control shall not be deemed to be running at large. When using Municipal
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
Trails and Sidewalks, dogs must be on a leash, at all times, held by a person able to
control the dog.
Fierce or Dangerous Dogs
7.
For purpose of this By-Law a dog that is fierce or dangerous means any dog:
(1)
that is a wolf-dog hybrid;
(2)
that, in the absence of a mitigating factor as defined herein, has attacked or
injured a person;
(3)
that, in the absence of a mitigating factor as defined herein, has injured a domestic
animal;
(4)
that, in the absence of a mitigating factor as defined herein, when either
unmuzzled or unleashed, in a vicious or terrorizing manner, approaches any
person in an apparent attitude of attack upon streets, sidewalks, any public
grounds or places, or on private property other than the property of the owner;
(5)
owned or harboured in whole or in part for the purpose of dog fighting; or
(6)
trained for dog fighting; provided that no dog shall be deemed fierce or dangerous
if it is a professionally trained guard dog while lawfully engaged for law
enforcement.
Dog Attacks
8.
The owner of a fierce or dangerous dog or a dog which attacks any person or other
animal is guilty of an offence.
9.
This section shall not apply to a dog acting in furtherance of law enforcement work at the
time of the attack.
10.
Where an Enforcement Officer has reason to believe that a dog has attacked a human
being or animal the Enforcement Officer may take any one or combination of the
following actions:
(1)
issue the owner an order to muzzle the dog, which order shall specify the times
and circumstances when the dog must be muzzled;
(2)
issue the owner an order to secure a microchip registration for the dog; or
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
(3)
subject to Section 7, designate the dog as a fierce or dangerous dog.
11.
The owner of a dog designated a fierce or dangerous dog pursuant to Section 7 shall:
(1)
when the dog is on the property of its owner, keep the dog securely restrained
either indoors or inside an escape-proof enclosure while outdoors; and
(2)
when the dog is off the property of its owner,
i. muzzle the dog;
ii. ensure that the dog is under the control of a person not less than eighteen
(18) years of age;
iii. ensure the dog is on a leash; or
iv. is securely restrained indoors or inside an escape-proof enclosure,
including a motor vehicle.
Responsibilities of Owners
12.
Every owner of a dog:
(1)
whose dog runs at large;
(2)
whose dog persistently disturbs the quiet of the neighbourhood by barking,
howling or otherwise;
(3)
who neglects or refuses to provide a written statement required by this By-law;
(4)
who harbours, keeps, or has under care, control or direction a dog that is fierce or
dangerous;
(5)
who fails to remove the feces of a dog, other than a dog that is trained to assist
and is assisting a person with a disability, from public property or private property
other than the owners;
is in contravention of the By-Law.
Impounding
13.
Municipal Staff may, without notice to or complaint against the owner, impound any dog
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
that:
(1)
runs at large contrary to this By-Law;
(2)
is fierce or dangerous;
(3)
is rabid or appears to be rabid or exhibits symptoms of canine madness; or
(4)
persistently disturbs the quiet of the neighborhood by barking, howling or
otherwise.
14.
An Impounding Fee of $25.00 and a Daily Pound Fee of $10.00 shall be payable by any
person seeking to redeem an impounded dog.
15.
Except in the case where a dog is impounded for being fierce or dangerous, or is rabid or
exhibits symptoms of canine madness, the owner of a dog which has been impounded,
upon proof of ownership of the dog, may redeem the dog after payment to the Pound
Keeper, or making arrangement for payment satisfactory to the Pound Keeper, of the
Impounding Fee and the Daily Pound Fee(s), along with reimbursement for any
Extraordinary Expenses incurred by the Municipal Staff in relation to the dog.
16.
Any dog which has not been redeemed by its owner at the expiry of a period of 72 hours
after being impounded may be given away, sold or killed by the Pound Keeper and, if
sold, the proceeds shall belong to the Municipality.
17.
Whenever the 72 hours of impounding time expires on a weekend, the Pound Keeper
shall hold such dog until the expiry of the first business day following the weekend to
permit the owner to redeem the dog.
Notice
18.
Upon any dog being impounded the Pound Keeper shall make at least one attempt to
contact the owner of the dog if ownership can be reasonably determined. Provided
however that if a dog is missing, the onus is on the owner of the dog to ascertain within
the time period provided for impounding under this By-Law, whether the dog has been
impounded, and neither the Pound Keeper not the Municipality shall incur liability in the
event of failure to give Notice to the owner, if the owner has not made inquiry of the
Pound Keeper to determine whether the dog was impounded.
Destroying
19.
Municipal Staff may, without notice to or complaint against the owner, destroy on sight
or after capture any dog that:
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"
(1)
is fierce or dangerous;
(2)
is rabid or appears to be rabid or exhibits symptoms of canine madness;
(3)
is sick or injured such that it requires a veterinarian or would cause undue distress
to the animal or costs to treat would be excessive to the Municipality.
20.
Municipal Staff may, kill on sight any dog that is running at large and which he or she
believes, on reasonable and probable grounds, to pose a danger to a person or a domestic
animal or to property of persons other than the owner.
Penalty
21.
Any person who contravenes any provision of this By-Law is punishable on conviction
by a fine of not less than $100.00 and not more than $500.00 and to imprisonment of not
more than thirty (30) days in default of payment thereof.
Chief Administrative Officer's Annotation for Official By-law Book
Date of first reading:
July 22, 2019
Date of advertisement of Notice of Intent to Consider:
August 7, 2019
Date of second and final reading:
August 26, 2019
*Date of advertisement of Passage of By-law:
September 4, 2019
Date of mailing to Minister a certified copy of By-law:
September 4, 2019
I certify that amendments to By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law" were approved by Council on August
26, 2019 and published as indicated above.
______________________________
_____________________________
Chief Administrative Officer
Date
*Effective Date of the By-law unless otherwise specified in the text of the By-Law.
VERSION LOG
Version Number
Amendment Description
Amendment/Policy Owner
Approved By
Approval Date
1
Adoption of New By-law
Council
Council
July 10, 2002
2
Section 6
Council
Council
Nov. 28, 2011
3
New Sections 8-11
CAO
Council
August 26, 2019
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By-law No. 12 "Dog By-law"