Biting Dog Was Unlicensed, Unvaccinated: Yorktown Police

YORKTOWN, NY — A Yorktown man is due in town court Tuesday to answer charges of failure to license his dog and failure to have it vaccinated for rabies.

One is a violation of town code and the other is a public health violation.

Police said Thursday that they had been called about a dog bite in June. The animal control officer conducted an investigation and applied for a criminal summons, which was served Thursday to Cliff Mascarenhas, 31, of Parmly Road.

The dog was quarantined for 10 days as required under state law, police said.

State law requires rabies vaccinations (shots) for all cats, dogs and domesticated ferrets. After the second rabies shot, they need to get additional booster shots either annually or every three years, depending on the type of vaccine administered.

The law requires the veterinarian to provide the vaccination certificate to any public health official for any case involving your dog, cat or ferret that may have been exposed to rabies, or in any case of possible exposure of a person or another animal to rabies.

If your pet bites a person and you wish to avoid euthanizing and testing it for rabies, it must be confined and observed for 10 days. If your pet is not up-to-date on its rabies shots, the 10-day confinement/observation period must take place, at the owner's expense, at an appropriate facility such as an animal shelter, veterinarian's office, or kennel.

All counties (excluding New York City) are required to provide a free vaccination clinic every four months. Contact your county health department for the schedule in your area. Rabies vaccinations are also available from your veterinarian.