§ 14-41. Dogs and cats running At Large.

(a)

No person shall cause, permit, or allow a Dog or cat to stray or in any manner to run At Large, unless the Dog or cat is leashed, in any of the following circumstances:

(1)

Upon any public street, sidewalk, or other public property unless specifically allowed through other ordinance, resolution, or Board action;

(2)

The property of another;

(3)

Common areas of condominium, mobile home park, or other aggregate living where the property is held by an owners association or similar entity.

(b)

This section shall not apply to any Dog actually engaged in the sport of hunting in authorized areas at authorized times and supervised by a competent Person; Dogs used by State, County or municipal law enforcement forces in the exercise of their duties; or Dogs used to work livestock in areas of Sarasota County designated as Rural areas under the Future Land Use Map.

(c)

Officers are authorized to impound any Dog or cat which is At Large and are authorized to enter onto private property for the purpose of capturing such Dog or cat for impoundment.

(d)

In the case of a first offense of a Dog or cat running At large, an Animal Services Officer is authorized to void or cancel a Citation issued to the Owner of an unaltered Dog or cat if the Owner provides evidence to the Officer that the Dog or cat is subsequently altered within ten business days from the date the Citation was issued.

(e)

In order to manage the current feral cat population within Sarasota County for the purpose of providing humane care and to reduce their numbers through humane intervention tactics, the following TNR activities shall be undertaken by the Animal Services Director and/or any Animal Welfare Organization (AWO) recognized by the Animal Services Director, as funding allows:

(1)

Trap feral cats in a humane fashion.

(2)

Sterilize feral cats and kittens over 12 weeks of age.

(3)

Vaccinate feral cats for rabies.

(4)

Provide a means of identification for feral cats through ear notch, tattoo, and/or microchip at which time the animal will be redesignated as a "community cat."

(5)

Release any feral cats that have been trapped and treated as stated in this section to either of the following persons:

a.

An Animal Services representative for disposition; or

b.

A person who has been recognized as providing care for the feral cat colony who shall be exempt from the requirements of Section 14-41(a) provided that person is willing to comply with the following:

1.

Provide food, water, medical care and when possible shelter on a regular basis, to include weekends and holidays. A community cat caregiver shall be someone who has been recognized as the caregiver by the Animal Services Director or his designee, and the Animal Welfare Organization responsible for providing services.

2.

Maintain a record of the number of cats in the colony, and monitor the cats' health, along with a signed agreement that they are the caregiver of record. (agreement and list maintained by the AWO, information available to A/S upon request).

(f)

If any caregiver recognized under Section 14-41(e)(5)b. fails to comply with the requirements therein, the Animal Services Director shall serve a written warning for the first offense. Upon receipt of the written warning, the caregiver will have up to 30 days to come into compliance. Failure to come into compliance within the 30 days' time frame provided in the warning, or any second occurrence of a violation, will result in revocation of permission to care for the community cat colony and prosecution of the violation through code enforcement, including by means of a citation.

(g)

No person shall release, abandon or otherwise place a community cat on the property of another without the property owner's consent, nor shall they be released upon any public property.

(h)

In the event that any feral cat creates a nuisance as defined elsewhere in this article, the provisions governing nuisance animals shall supersede those in Section 14-41(e).

(Ord. No. 95-042, § 11, 5-9-1994; Ord. No. 97-044, § 1(11), 6-17-1997; Ord. No. 2004-111, § 6, 11-10-2004; Ord. No. 2009-050, § 5, 10-13-2009)