Stafford Township, NJ Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

The rodent and vector rules sit in § 60-19 of Chapter 60 Animals, titled Sanitary requirements and added 12-20-1994 by Ord. No. 94-113. They apply to every premises on which dogs, cats, livestock, birds or other animals are maintained, so the duty falls on whoever keeps the animals.

Five subsections carry the pest control substance. Subsection C requires buildings, food storage bins, appliances, equipment, feeding areas and other facilities on the premises to be constructed with ratproofing materials, maintained so they can be properly cleansed, and cleansed, deodorized and disinfested regularly. Subsection E requires water or other liquid to which mosquitoes have access to be properly drained to prevent breeding. Subsection F requires animal wastes, excrement, garbage, refuse or vegetable matter on the premises to be disposed of so as to prevent insect breeding or rodent infestation, pollution of the air, ground or body of water, or any other unhealthy or unsanitary condition. Subsection G is the catch-all: all necessary measures shall be employed to ensure that rodent or insects hazardous to public health are precluded from infesting the premises. Subsection D requires a water supply adequate for proper sanitation, and subsection I requires adequate facilities to keep the premises sanitary at all times.

Related sections close gaps. Section 60-19B places sheds, pens, runways, stalls and other enclosures for permitted animals no less than 10 feet from the side property lines and 10 feet from the rear property line, excluding fowl, under an amendment of 9-12-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-31. Section 60-26E permits backyard bird feeding only if the property does not become an attractant for rodents or other wild animals, every birdfeeder is at least five feet above the ground, and seed capacity is no more than five pounds. Under § 60-26F and G, an owner who fails to remove material placed in violation within 24 hours after notice from the Township commits a violation. Mobile home parks have their own standards in Chapter 140, which call for ratproofed buildings and rodentproof refuse containers collected at least twice weekly.