THEPRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY GOVERNMENT

OFFICE OF LAW
JackB. Johnson County Ertculivc Stephanic f'. Andcrson Oountl,Al{ornc1,

February, 20,2009
Mr. Timothy W. Saffell,president PrinceGeorge's FeralFriends. SpCA. Inc. P O .B o x 1 0 3 6 Bowie,\4aryland 20T18 Re: Feral/Slray Cals Dear\4r. Saffell:

Tharrkyou for your con'espondence regardingyour concerns aboutthe interpretation of tirePrinceGeorge's Countl,CodeSubtirle 3 as it uppli.r to thekeeping, feedingund/o,harboring of feral/straycatsin PrinceGeorge'sCount1,, Maryiand ("County"). Your specificconcemis u4relher the Departmenlof Environmental Resources ("DER") hasproperlyissuedcitations to cilizensfor feedingferal/straycatsand allowing the samecatsto roamthe communiq,. We appreciate tiris opportunityto provideclarity as ro DER responsibilities pursuarr and obligations to Subtitle3 of the PrinceGeorge's CountyCode. The County hasreviewedyour interpretation and afler serious consideration has determined that DER has beenproperlyenforcingtire Countl,Code. A companionadmal, as defined b)'Section3-101,includes a dornestic or feral cat,whereas ai'e wild or gamespecies not. As such,it is the County's posilionthat when a persoll exercises controlover a companion animal,for example,providing rnedicalcar"e, shelterand/orfeedingthe anirnalwhetheron a tenlporar}or pennanent basis,that personis considered the custodian/owner. Indivjdualsthat providecaremust also ensure that the anirnalsare not violatingSection3- i 35, Anintalsat large prohibited, rvhich requiresthat the companionanimal nust be confinedor secured on the properlyof the custodian/owner. The custodian/orauer musl alsoensu'ethat the animalis properil,licensed, vaccinated and must preventan)/nuisance that the animal(s)may ipPore on a community. In addition,PrinceGeorge's Countl,Code Section 3-140, Stt"a1,s and uny,anted anintals "Stray dogs,cats,and otireranimalsfor whicir ownership states: camot readily be established shall autornatically becomethe propertyof Prince George'sCounty,Maryland..." It is clea:that the County hasthe authorityto regulate 1hecommunily;f suchanimals. Therefore, identifyinga cat as feral or an animal that "exists" in tlie wild does not prevenr ilre County from regulating the species'In fact, DER, on its own initiative or by public complaint, hasan obligationto regulale publicnuisance animalsand conditions (which in.tuo" citingindividuals for the feeding of cats that crealetlre nuisance) pursuant to Section3-132,Pubtic n'uisance condilionsand anintalsof tire County Code' Please note that citizenshave tire right to file anonymous conrplaints againsl thosethat are suspected of violatingthe County Code. DER, in r.rpondilg to anon),mous r4741Gov. oden BowieDrive,Suite5121, UpperMarlboro, Maryland20772 (301)952-5225 FAX (307) 952_3077

l\4r.Timoth),W. Saffell,presidenl FebruarS, 20,2009 PageTu,o

cornplaints, perfomrsits ou,n invesligations pursuant to Section 3-l l5 l/iolati'tt Notices at-td delemrines u'hetlierthereis evidenoe suflcient enough to issuea warningor a citatiol. We hopethis clearsup any rlisunderstandings asto the inteqrretation of Subtitle 3 of the PrjnceGeorge's County Code. As alu,ays, cilizenshavethe riglir to appeal AnirnalControl violationnotices/citations issued by DER to the Comrnission Ibr AnirnalColtrol. Sincerely,

,JU'*il.tt ,J. }.'cia.j

Janelle J. Jordan Associate CountyAtlontel' JJJ\dao cc: Ms. SusanC. Brounr, Citizenv,, Ms. Evelyn Marie Faust,Citizen Mr. Tom Spencer, Citizen Ms. LaurenDu1,er,Citizen Ir4r.Jeffrey A. Hartzok, Citizen Ir4s. Yetta Hoffman, Citizen

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