Owners of perpetually barking dogs -- perpetually being defined in this case as 30 continuous minutes with no break of greater than five minutes -- will be subject to fines of up to $500 and could lose their dogs upon a third conviction under an ordinance approved last night by the Board of Supervisors in Albemarle County, Va.

The original proposal subjected dogs that were repeat offenders to the death penalty, but that was removed from the law at the last minute.

“We need to give recourse to people, particularly in the urban areas, with regards to nuisance dogs,” Supervisor David L. Slutzky said.

The new ordinance makes it unlawful for an owner to harbor a dog that disturbs the neighborhood’s peace and quiet through loud barking. As described in an article in today's Charlottesville Daily Progress, a neighbor upset with a barking dog can go to the magistrate’s office and swear out a warrant. If the magistrate finds the complaint is justified, a court date is set.

In court, the complainant must show proof that the dog’s barking lasted at least 30 consecutive minutes, with no cessation greater than five minutes. If the judge agrees that the dog’s barking disturbed the peace, the dog’s owner can be fined up to $500.

If three violations occur within 12 months, the judge can order the dog taken away. The supervisors passed the measure Wednesday on the condition that euthanizing the dogs -- the “death penalty,” as Supervisor Sally H. Thomas termed it -- was taken out of the ordinance.

The city of Charlottesville has had a similar ordinance since 1953. No dog has been taken away from its owner there in recent memory. The county ordinance does not apply to dogs that live on rural properties larger than five acres.

According to the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA, there are more than 30,000 dogs in Albemarle County. In 2007, there were 71 complaints about noisy dogs. So far in 2008, there have been 28 complaints.