Pet owners and dog park users are now bound by law to follow rules regarding pets at city parks.
Maricopa City Council unanimously passed an ordinance Tuesday during their regular meeting which establishes already posted guidelines as law, allowing for any violation to be punishable by citation.
Interim Parks Director Fred Gray said the move gives police and animal-control officers the ability to enforce the rules with possible citations.
“Our rules don’t necessarily correspond with the ordinance, so this is merely asking that the rules be incorporated in the ordinance,” Gray said to council prior to approval.
Regulations now enforceable by law include mandatory removal and “sanitary” disposal of pet feces, barring of children 11-years-old or younger and prohibiting smoking, drinking alcohol or eating in dog parks or “off-leash areas.”
Additional legally enforceable regulations require that pets must be at least 4-months-old, be spayed or neutered and have proper vaccinations such as “rabies, bordetella, parvo and distemper.”
Though many of the regulations pertain to the dog park specifically, language within the amendment suggest ordinances could be enforced elsewhere in city parks or on city property.
Subsection T of the ordinance states, “Dog owners, dog custodians, and all other visitors to the City Parks including, but not limited to, the dog parks or off-leash areas, assume all risks related to their visit and use of the areas.”
See below for the amendment to section 18-4-2 of the Maricopa City Code.
Sec. 18-4-2 Pets
(I) It is unlawful for any person to allow a domesticated pet under their care to leave feces on the ground within any City Park and depart the area without cleaning it up and disposing of it in a sanitary manner.
(J) Users of parks must keep their dogs securely leashed at all times. Users of dog parks and off-leash areas must keep their dogs securely leashed at all times prior to entering and exiting the designated off-leash areas and securing the entrance gates.
(K) Dogs in parks including, but not limited to, the dog parks and off-leash areas, must be accompanied by their owner or authorized custodian at all times. It is unlawful for owners or custodians to leave their dogs unattended in any portion of a City park.
(L) Dog owners or custodians must keep their dogs under voice control and within line of sight at all times while they are inside the dog parks or off-leash areas.
(M) Dog owners or custodians are required to leash their dogs and remove them from the dog parks or off-leash areas immediately following any indication of aggressive behavior.
(N) It is unlawful for persons to groom dogs within any portion of a City Park including, but not limited to, dog parks or off-leash areas.
(O) All dogs in any are of a City Park must be at least four months old and be currently vaccinated against Rabies, Bordetella, Parvo, and Distemper.
(P) Children eleven (11) years of age and younger are at all times prohibited within the boundaries of all designated off-leash areas and dog parks owned and/or operated by the City of Maricopa.
(Q) Dogs inside the dog parks or off-leash areas must be spayed or neutered.
(R) It is unlawful to smoke, consume alcohol, or eat inside the dog parks or off-leash areas.
(S) Dog owners or custodians are responsible for the conduct of their animals at all times.
(T) Dog owners, dog custodians, and all other visitors to the City Parks including, but not limited to, the dog parks or off-leash areas, assume all risks related to their visit and use of the areas.
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