1. “Adult” means any animal over the age of 21 weeks.

2. “Animal” means any nonhuman mammal, bird, reptile, or amphibian.

3. “Altered” means an animal that has been spayed or neutered. To qualify as an altered animal, an individual must provide either proof of alteration from a licensed veterinarian or a written statement from a licensed veterinarian that the spay/neuter procedure would be harmful to the animal.

4. “Animal control” or “animal control authority” means a city department or division designated by the mayor to implement and enforce the provisions of this title.

5. “Animal control officer” means any Auburn police officer or an employee of the city authorized by the city and specially commissioned by the chief of police to enforce this title.

6. “Animal shelter, public” means a facility and property that is used to house or contain stray, homeless, abandoned or unwanted animals and that is owned, operated, or maintained by a public body or an established humane society, animal welfare society, or other nonprofit organization under contract with the public body devoted to the welfare, protection and humane treatment of animals. Supporting services may include medical care.

7. “Animal welfare organization” means any public or private charitable organization, whether called a kennel, cattery, shelter, society, or rescue, and includes the organization’s officers, agents, and representatives when acting in the name or on behalf of the organization that controls, rescues, shelters, cares for, or disposes of pets as all or part of the purpose of the organization.

8. “At large” means off the premises of the owner or keeper of the animal, and not under restraint by leash or chain eight feet in length or shorter.

9. “Cat” means a member of the species Felis catus and commonly known as the domestic cat.

10. “Charitable organization” means any organization recognized as a nonprofit corporation under the provisions of Chapter 24.03 RCW and exempt from the Washington State business and occupation tax pursuant to RCW 82.04.3651.

11. “Competent person” means a person who is able to sufficiently care for, control, and restrain an animal and who has the capacity to exercise sound judgment regarding the rights and safety of others.

12. “Court” means the court of limited jurisdiction authorized to hear city of Auburn cases or the superior courts of King and Pierce County, which courts shall have concurrent jurisdiction hereunder.

13. “Dangerous dog” means any dog that has been declared to be a dangerous dog pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, or has been declared to be a dangerous dog pursuant to applicable code provisions by any other jurisdiction, by reason of the fact that the dog:

It is provided, however, that a dog shall not be declared dangerous if the basis for such declaration was a threat, injury, or damage that was sustained by a person who, at the time, was committing a willful trespass or other tort upon the premises occupied by the owner of the dog, or was tormenting, abusing, or assaulting the dog or has, in the past, been observed or reported to have tormented, abused, or assaulted the dog or was committing or attempting to commit a crime.

It is further provided that a dog shall not be declared dangerous if the owner of the dog can show that since the incident or action giving rise to the declaration, the owner has enrolled in and completed the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen (CGC) Program, or a comparable course or program addressing dog ownership responsibilities offered by a similarly recognized entity, which alternate course or program and/or entity shall be approved by the city. However, this proviso (this opportunity to avoid a dangerous dog declaration) shall not apply where the basis for the declaration was that the dog killed or inflicted severe injury on a human being without provocation on public or private property, as set forth in subsection (A)(13)(a) of this section, or has killed or inflicted severe injury on a domestic animal without provocation while the dog was off the owner’s property, as set forth in subsection (A)(13)(b) of this section, or has been previously found to be potentially dangerous because of injury inflicted on a human, the owner having received notice of such, and the dog again aggressively bites, attacks, or endangers the safety of humans, as set forth in subsection (A)(13)(c) of this section. This proviso shall also not apply to instances where a dangerous dog declaration has been previously avoided because such training was given to the same owner for this or any other dog, or to any other person involving this same dog.

It is further provided that for the purposes of subsection (A)(13)(d) of this section, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a dog has been permitted or allowed to run free if the dog has been previously found running free and unrestrained off the property of its owner. This presumption may be rebutted by a showing that, since the effective date of the ordinance codified in this section, the dog has not previously been found running free and unrestrained off the property of its owner, and the owner has taken reasonable steps to prevent the dog from running free and unrestrained off the property of its owner.

14. “Dog” means a member of the species Canis lupus familiaris and commonly known as the domestic dog.

15. “Gross misdemeanor” means a crime with a maximum penalty of 364 days in jail, a $5,000 fine, or both such fine and imprisonment.

16. “Harboring” means knowingly providing food or shelter to an animal.

17. “Humane trap” means a live animal box enclosure trap designed to capture and hold an animal without injury.

18. “Impound” means to receive into the custody of the animal shelter or into the custody of the city animal control officer.

19. “Infraction” means a civil infraction pursuant to Infraction Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (“IRLJ”) and any local rule adopted thereto by the court of limited jurisdiction authorized to hear city of Auburn cases.

20. “Livestock” means all cattle, sheep, goats, or animals of the Bovidae family; all horses, mules, llamas, alpacas, other hoof animals, or animals of the Equidae family; all pigs, swine, or animals of the Suidae family; and ostriches, rhea, and emu; provided, that livestock shall not include domestic fowl, miniature goats, and potbelly pigs, as those animals are defined in Chapter 18.04 ACC.

21. “Misdemeanor” means a crime with a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both such fine and imprisonment.

22. “Owner” means any person, firm, corporation, organization, trust, or partnership possessing, harboring, keeping, having an interest in, or having control, custody, or possession of an animal.

23. “Person” shall include any person, partnership, corporation, trust, or association of persons.

24. Police Dog. The definition of “police dog” in RCW 4.24.410, including all future amendments, additions, or deletions, is adopted by reference.

25. “Potentially dangerous dog” means any dog that when unprovoked:

26. Reserved.

27. “Proper enclosure of a dangerous dog” means, while on the owner’s property, a dangerous dog shall be securely confined indoors or in a securely enclosed and locked pen or structure, suitable to prevent the entry of young children and designed to prevent the animal from escaping. Such pen or structure shall have secure sides and a secure top, shall also provide protection from the elements for the dog, and shall either have a concrete floor or shall have secure fencing material buried not less than one foot below the surface. Additionally, the animal control authority, as defined herein, may determine, based on objective and identifiable reasons, that the enclosure is not adequate or proper, in which case the animal control authority shall communicate in writing to the owner of the dangerous dog the deficiencies in the enclosure and the objective and identifiable reasons that the enclosure is not adequate or proper, and the owner shall correct the deficiencies identified by the animal control officer before the enclosure shall constitute a proper enclosure. The owner of the dangerous dog may appeal the animal control authority’s determination that the enclosure is not adequate or proper, which appeal shall be filed in writing not more than 10 days from the date the animal control authority communicates their determination that the enclosure is not adequate or proper, and which appeal shall be heard by the police chief or designee. The police chief or designee shall decide the appeal based on (a) whether the objective and identifiable reasons which were the basis of the animal control authority’s determination have been shown, and (b) whether they reasonably support the decision that the enclosure is not adequate or proper. It is provided, however, that regardless of the materials used, or type and description of the enclosure, and regardless of the correction of any identified deficiencies, if the dangerous dog escapes from the enclosure, that escape shall constitute prima facie evidence that the enclosure was not a proper enclosure, and shall constitute prima facie evidence, as well, that the dog owner is not in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

28. “Securely enclosed and locked” means a pen or structure which has secure sides and a secure top suitable to prevent the entry of young children and designed to prevent the animal from escaping. If the pen or structure has no bottom secured to the sides, then the sides must be embedded in the ground no less than one foot below the surface of the ground.

29. “Severe injury” means any physical injury that results in (a) broken bones, (b) muscle, ligament, or tendon tears, (c) skin lacerations or puncture wounds that require sutures or surgery, or (d) transmission of an infectious or contagious disease.

30. “Unconfined” means not securely confined indoors or in a securely enclosed and locked pen or structure upon the premises of the person owning, harboring, or having the care of the animal.