Bergenfield, NJ Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Chapter 95, Article II of the Borough Code, adopted by Ordinance No. 2110 in 1991, is Bergenfield's cat ordinance. Section 95-12 requires any cat over six months of age kept in the Borough to be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed New Jersey veterinarian, following the current national rabies-vaccine compendium, unless the Board of Health grants a time-limited medical exemption on a vet's certificate; cats held at a veterinary establishment for treatment are exempt. Section 95-13 requires the owner to obtain an annual license from the Borough Clerk, displayed by an official tag or a registration sleeve on a breakaway or elastic collar, within 10 days of acquiring a cat of licensing age (six months, or once it has a full set of permanent teeth); a nonresident keeping a cat in Bergenfield under 90 days is exempt, and the Clerk cannot issue a license without proof of the Section 95-12 rabies vaccination or exemption.

Fees run $11 for the first nonaltered cat and $8 for the first altered cat, dropping to $5 for each additional altered cat and $8 for each additional nonaltered cat licensed at the same time; licenses expire every September 30, and a valid tag or sleeve from another New Jersey municipality is accepted as proof of compliance. Section 95-14 lets the Health Officer or Animal Control Officer order a 10-day quarantine, at the owner's expense, for any cat showing signs of illness or a disposition change suggesting rabies, or that has bitten a person or another animal, with a lab exam for rabies ordered if the cat dies during quarantine.

Bergenfield's ordinance does not separately regulate outdoor cats running at large or feral colonies; it addresses cats only through vaccination, licensing, and the six-cat household cap.