§ 4-2. Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated. No attempt is made to define any words which are used in accordance with their established dictionary meaning, except when necessary to avoid misunderstandings.

(a)

Abandon shall mean to forsake a dog or cat in a street, road, or public or private place without providing for the care, sustenance, protection, and shelter of such animal. Community cats shall not be considered abandoned when returned to the original point of pick-up or other suitable location as part of a community cat management program.

(b)

Aggressive dog shall mean any dog that, according to the records of the Division, has killed a domestic animal while unprovoked and off the owner's property.

(c)

Animal shall mean every living vertebrate other than a human being.

(d)

Animal care specialist shall mean any person employed by the County, or such agents or employees as are lawfully designated by such animal care specialist to perform the duties of such animal care specialist, who is authorized to investigate, on public or private property, civil infractions relating to animal control or cruelty and to issue citations as provided herein. An animal care specialist is not authorized to bear arms or make arrests.

(e)

Animal rescue organization shall mean a humane society or other non-profit organization that is dedicated to the protection of domestic animals, duly registered with the Florida Department of State, and properly organized as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(f)

At large shall mean not on the owner's property, and not under restraint or the direct control, custody, charge, or possession of the owner or other responsible person.

(g)

Citation shall mean a written notice or an electronically-generated notice, issued to a person by an officer, or by the Division, with probable cause to believe that the person has committed a civil infraction in violation of this chapter.

(h)

Commission shall mean the Board of County Commissioners of Broward County, Florida.

(i)

Community cat shall mean any free-roaming, unowned cat living in an outdoor environment that may or may not be a part of a cat colony. A community cat may or may not be feral. Community cats shall be exempt from the rabies registration license requirements of Section 4-11 and the stray animal provisions of Section 4-23. Community cats shall be subject to the rabies vaccination requirements of Section 4-10.

(j)

Control shall mean the regulation of the possession, ownership, care, and custody of animals.

(k)

County shall mean Broward County.

(l)

Cruelty shall mean action, omission to act, or neglect by which unnecessary or unjustifiable pain or suffering is caused, permitted, or allowed to continue when there is reasonable remedy or relief, except when done in the interest of medical science and performed in compliance with applicable Florida Statutes, rules, and regulations.

(m)

Dangerous dog means any dog that according to the records of the Division:

(1)

Has aggressively bitten, attacked, endangered, or inflicted severe injury on, a human being on public or private property;

(2)

Has more than once severely injured or killed a domestic animal while off the owner's property; or

(3)

Has, when not under the direct control of any person and, when unprovoked, chased or approached a person upon the streets, sidewalks, or any public grounds in a menacing fashion or apparent attitude of attack, provided that such actions are attested to in a sworn statement by one (1) or more persons and dutifully investigated by the appropriate authority.

Notwithstanding anything else contained in this chapter, a dog shall not be classified by the Division or a Hearing Officer as dangerous if the threat, injury, or damage sustained by a person was sustained at a time when the person was unlawfully on the property of the dog's owner, or while a person was lawfully on the property of the dog's owner but was tormenting, abusing, or assaulting the dog, its owner, or a family member or guest of the owner; or if the dog was protecting or defending a human being within the immediate vicinity of the dog from an unjustified attack or assault.

(n)

Direct control shall mean immediate, continuous physical control of an animal at all times, such as by means of a fence, leash, cord, or chain of sufficient strength to restrain the animal.

(o)

Director shall mean the Director of the Animal Care and Adoption Division for Broward County.

(p)

Division shall mean the Broward County Animal Care and Adoption Division, or any successor agency.

(q)

Domestic animal shall mean any equine or bovine animal, goat, sheep, swine, domestic cat, dog, poultry, ostrich, emu, rhea, or other tamed, raised, or kept beast or bird.

(r)

Feral shall mean a dog or cat that exists in an untamed state or that has returned to an untamed state, generally not socialized to human contact, and is no longer considered domesticated

(s)

Foster shall mean to provide a transition from intake by the Division to an adoptable age or status for dogs and cats by maintaining human contact with the fostered animal in a home-like environment.

(t)

Harboring shall mean the act of keeping and caring for a dog or cat, or of providing premises to which the dog or cat returns for food, shelter, or care, for a period of at least forty-eight (48) hours. Harboring shall not include circumstances in which an individual captures a dog or cat, locates, and attempts to find the dog's or cat's owner in good faith. Persons maintaining community cats living in a colony pursuant to Section 4-38 shall not be considered to be harboring cats and shall be regulated in accordance with said management initiative.

(u)

Health Department shall mean the Florida Department of Health.

(v)

Hoarding shall mean the intentional accumulation of a group of animals which has overwhelmed a person's ability to provide minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, and care to the animals, coupled with an inability or refusal to acknowledge that the condition of the animals is deteriorating.

(w)

Home confinement shall mean that the animal is kept isolated from the public within the owner's physical dwelling or attachment thereon or, if outside, properly secured in the owner's yard or under the direct control of the owner or member of the owner's family.

(x)

Individual with disability shall mean a person who is visually impaired, blind, hearing impaired, deaf, or physically challenged, or a similarly health-impaired person who by reason thereof is aided by a service animal.

(y)

Kennel shall mean any place of business at which dogs or cats are kept for sale, breeding, boarding, treatment, or grooming purposes as allowed by the applicable zoning regulations. "Kennel" shall not include any humane society, animal protection agency, veterinarian clinic, or hobby breeder.

(z)

Officer shall mean any law enforcement officer as defined in Section 943.10, Florida Statutes, or any animal care specialist.

(aa)

Owner shall mean any natural person, firm, association, or corporation that owns, keeps, or harbors an animal. Animal shelters that keep or harbor animals on a temporary basis shall not be deemed to be owners. For purposes of this chapter, the knowledge and acts of agents and employees of business entities in regard to animals transported, owned, employed by, or in the custody of a business entity shall be deemed to be the knowledge and acts of such business entity. If the owner is a minor, as defined by statute, the minor's parent(s) or legal guardian(s) shall be deemed the owner for purposes of this chapter.

(bb)

Proper enclosure of a dangerous dog shall mean that, while on the owner's property, a dangerous dog is securely confined indoors or in a securely enclosed and locked pen or structure, suitable to prevent the entry of young children and adequately designed to prevent the animal from escaping. Such pen or structure shall have secure sides and a secure top to prevent the dog from escaping over, under, or through the structure, shall provide access to clean water and food, and shall also provide protection from the elements.

(cc)

Rabies vaccination shall mean the vaccination of a dog, cat, or ferret with a rabies vaccine approved by the United States Department of Agriculture and the Compendium of Rabies Control developed by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians or other organization as authorized pursuant to the Florida Statutes and administered by a veterinarian.

(dd)

Rescue Partnership, Animal Rescue Group, or Rescue Group means a group of persons who possess a current, valid Broward County Rescue Partner agreement, hold themselves out as an animal rescue group, accept or solicit dogs, cats, or other animals with the intent of finding permanent adoptive homes or providing lifelong care for such dogs, cats, or other animals, and who use foster homes as the primary means of housing animals; or a group of persons formed for the prevention of cruelty to animals.

(ee)

Service animal shall mean an animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability (as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. Section 12102), including without limitation, guiding individuals with impaired vision, alerting individuals with impaired hearing to intruders or sounds, providing minimal protection or rescue work, pulling a wheelchair, or fetching dropped items. Additionally, "service animal" shall mean an animal used for medical reasons, including without limitation, cancer, diabetes, and seizure detection, and any animal used for emotional support pursuant to a doctor's prescription.

(ff)

Severe injury shall mean any physical injury to a human being or domestic animal that results in broken bones, multiple bites, or disfiguring lacerations requiring sutures or reconstructive surgery, or as further defined in Section 767.11, Florida Statutes.

(gg)

Stray shall mean any dog or cat that is found to be at large, whether lost by its owner or otherwise, or that is on the common areas of multifamily residential properties or premises, that does not have an identification tag, and for which there is no identifiable owner. Community cats shall not be considered stray.

(hh)

Unprovoked shall mean that the victim, who has been conducting himself or herself peacefully and lawfully, has been bitten or chased in a menacing fashion or attacked by a dog or cat.

(ii)

Veterinarian shall mean a veterinarian duly licensed and regulated by the State of Florida in accordance with Chapter 474, Florida Statutes.

(jj)

Wild animal shall mean any nonhuman primate, raccoon, skunk, fox, poisonous snake, leopard, panther, tiger, lion, lynx, or any other animal so classified by the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission.

(kk)

Wildlife trapper or nuisance trapper shall mean an individual or business charging a fee and acting as an agent for a property owner, legal occupant, or local jurisdiction or agency to take nuisance animals, including feral cats and wildlife, for the purpose of controlling or preventing property damage, preventing a threat to public safety, alleviating nuisance problems, or resolving public health risk concerns.

(ll)

Breeder shall mean any person who engages in the sale, stud, or breeding of either dogs or cats.

(mm)

OCVI Health Certificate shall mean "Official Certificate of Veterinary Inspection for Intrastate Sale of a Dog or Cat," Form DACS-09085, issued in accordance with Section 828.29, Florida Statutes, by a Florida licensed veterinarian accredited by the United States Department of Agriculture.

(nn)

Business day shall mean any day that the animal shelter is open to the public.

(oo)

Colony shall mean more than one (1) community cat living together in an outdoor environment that is under the supervision of a community cat caregiver(s) providing food and care pursuant to Section 4-38.

(pp)

Community cat caregiver shall mean a person who provides food and care for one (1) or more community cats, but who does not own, harbor, keep, or have custody, control, or charge of such cats.

(qq)

Exotic shall mean any animal that is not indigenous to the area, and that requires special housing and a permit through the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

(rr)

Return-to-field shall mean trapping, or otherwise obtaining a community cat, and providing for the sterilization, rabies vaccination, and ear-tipping of the cat. Upon determination that the cat is healthy and capable of living independently or in a managed colony, the cat shall be returned and released to the original point of pick-up. In instances in which releasing to the original location is determined a nuisance by the Division, the cat shall be released to an alternate suitable outdoor location.

(Ord. No. 87-21, § 1, 5-12-87; Ord. No. 95-42, § 2, 10-24-95; Ord. No. 1998-41, § 1, 11-10-98; Ord. No. 1999-72, § 1, 12-14-99; Ord. No. 2001-56, § 1, 11-13-01; 2001-67, § 1, 12-11-00; Ord. No. 2002-23, § 1, 6-11-02; Ord. No. 2005-35, § 1, 9-13-05; Ord. No. 2008-21, § 1, 5-13-08; Ord. No. 2011-03, § 1, 1-25-11; Ord. No. 2013-10, § 1, 2-12-13; Ord. No. 2013-34, § 1, 10-8-13; Ord. No. 2015-37 , § 1, 9-10-15; Ord. No. 2016-35 , § 1, 12-13-16)