In addition to providing daily meals and fresh water, these cat caregivers may provide dedicated shelter to protect the cats in inclement weather and provide medical care if the cats become sick or are injured. H028774, 2007 WL 495897 (Cal. A further problem is the relatively limited degree of control exercised by the defendant in Baker . . At the same time, an overly burdensome notice requirement could easily become a strong disincentive to individuals who may have otherwise considered becoming feral cat caretakers. At least one other state, however, has taken a different approach. Division 14.5. This list is not meant to be a comprehensive list of all laws impacting feral/community cats. Many state and local governments have not directly addressed the issues of ownership and responsibility related to feral cats. Under Virginia law, local governments may . (B) Forfeited to the public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group if proof of spaying or neutering is not presented to the animal shelter within 30 business days. "However, if we receive a complaint and it's within a city park, we will either address it or refer it to the department (code enforcement) that would.". Animal Cruelty. at 74850. (e) As used in this division, a business day includes any day that a public or private shelter is open to the public for at least four hours, excluding state holidays. (e) Public animal control agencies or shelters, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelters, humane society shelters, and rescue groups may enter into cooperative agreements with each other and with veterinarians in lieu of requiring spaying and neutering deposits to carry out this section. Code 14-8-2-87 (2009. (b) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group shall sell or give away any cat that has not been spayed or neutered. ), 31754. However, its important to look into the local laws where you live, including laws that may apply to your specific community or neighborhood. Part of the difficulty in determining the default state of the law in the absence of a feral cat statute or ordinance arises from the fact that there are very few court decisions addressing issues related to feral cats. Regulation of Cats Generally. Nongame Mammals. (4) Feral cats pose particular safety hazards for animal shelter employees. Enforcement 6.1.801 Entry on premises to seize and impound animals. Chapter 2. And as their numbers grow, they become impossible to nourish, which can lead them to starve Especially when well-intending neighbors become overwhelmed by the crowd and stop setting out food. Likewise, an Ohio appellate court has upheld a local ordinance that made it a criminal offense for, among other things, an owner, keeper or harborer of a cat to allow the cat to run at large. Second, keepers and caretakers do not exercise the level of control over feral cats that owners of wild animals exercise over those animals. A rabbit, guinea pig, hamster, potbellied pig, bird, lizard, snake, turtle, or tortoise that is legally allowed as personal property and that is impounded in a public or private shelter shall be held for the same period of time, under the same requirements of care, and with the same opportunities for redemption and adoption by new owners or nonprofit, as defined in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code,1 animal rescue or adoption organizations as provided for cats and dogs. For example, an Indiana trial court recently found that a woman who fed feral cats and participated in a TNR program was not liable for negligently allowing the cats to damage the plaintiffs property. (c) If a veterinarian licensed to practice veterinary medicine in this state certifies that a cat is too sick or injured to be spayed or neutered, or that it would otherwise be detrimental to the health of the cat to be spayed or neutered, the adopter or purchaser shall pay the public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group a deposit of not less than forty dollars ($40), and not more than seventy-five dollars ($75). The court rejected this argument because, as a factual matter, the record showed that a local organization returned the cats to the neighborhoodnot the defendant. 2023 Michigan State University College of Law. The plaintiff argued that the store owner was liable under a common law negligence theory for breaching his duty to provide a safe environment for customers. Fish and Game Code. (2) An action for a penalty proposed under this section may be commenced by the administrator of the public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group from which the recipient obtained the animal that is the subject of the violation in a court of competent jurisdiction. The statute defines a keeper as any person or organization, harboring, regularly feeding or having in his or its possession any feral cat. The law further clarifies that an individual is more likely to qualify as a keeper if she attempts to prevent an animal control officer from impounding feral cats. This includes anyone that is abandoning animals at any location in the county. Is she subject to other ownership requirements, such as ordinances requiring registration or sterilization? The law in California that allows non-profit organizations to remove feral cats from animal shelters as an alternative to destruction appears to incorporate past lessons on the need for public support. Will the kindhearted bystander wonder whether feeding the cat will cause her to become the cats legal owner? Chapter 3. Amended by Stats.1977, c. 1208, p. 4083, 10; Stats.2015, c. 154 (A.B.1527), 72, eff. "I would say no, because I've never even had the complaint," Davis said. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 1993, 203, 449-452. Wild Mammals, Defined, Neb. 31750. Rev. The caretaker in that case merely fed and watered the cats. Traffic goes crazy when the train blocks Wible, Akers, Stein, Ashe, Gosford and so on. (a)(1) Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (b), no public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group shall sell or give away to a new owner any cat that has not been spayed or neutered. The raw fur of a nongame mammal otherwise lawfully taken pursuant to this code or regulations adopted pursuant to this code shall not be sold. If a cat has a preexisting microchip or there is reasonable proof of ownership, the agency, shelter, or group shall document and retain a record of all efforts made to contact the microchip's primary registrant or other demonstrated owner for at least two years. Nongame mammal defined; possession and taking; trapping for recreation or commerce; sale of raw fur. Holding period; owner redemption. In the case of any doubt, it's best to consult a trusted specialist. Second, the article addresses the question of . Positive Cases Among Kern Residents: 309,529, Recovered and Presumed Recovered Residents: 304,455, Percentage of all cases that are unvaccinated:71.13, Percentage of all hospitalizations that are unvaccinated:83.13, Source: Kern County Public Health Services Department. . Low 34F. Second, the article addresses the question of whether feral cat keepers or caretakers can be held civilly liable for the actions of feral cats. Id . The court found that the total amount of damage caused by the cats to the plaintiff's property was approximately $2000. 2, 2007) (pdf file - 628.01 KB). Implementation of a Feral Cat Management Program on a University Campus. See David Favre & Murray Loring, Animal Law 2125 (1983) . (2)(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a kitten under eight weeks of age that is reasonably believed to be unowned may be available immediately for adoption beginning on the day on which the kitten is seized, taken up, or impounded, through the entire holding period. Legislative findings and declarations. (2) A deposit that is both of the following: (A) Refundable to the recipient if proof of spaying or neutering of the cat is presented to the public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group not more than 30 business days after the date the cat is spayed or neutered. Amended by Stats.2004, c. 253 (S.B.1301), 9. There is a California law that makes abandoning an animal a crime. The policy rationale supporting strict liability is that a wild animal is so inherently dangerous that the burden should be on the owner, who made a conscious decision to possess the animal, to control the animal at all times. Food & Agric. The problem is the train crossings, the only place you can cross when a train is blocking the tracks is Highway 99. Another indicator that courts may be unwilling to independently determine the rights and responsibilities of feral cat caretakers is the Indiana Superior Court's decision in Baker v. Middleton , C.A. (d) Any funds from unclaimed deposits made pursuant to this section, as it read on January 1, 1999, and any funds from deposits unclaimed after January 1, 2000, may be expended only for programs to spay or neuter cats and dogs, including agreements with a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals or a humane society or licensed veterinarian, to operate a program to spay or neuter cats and dogs. Although feral cats do not necessarily fit within the common understanding of domestic animal ownership either, the ordinary liability imposed on domestic animal owners does not present the significant policy problems raised by strict liability. Also, laws can state that a separate violation occurs to each animal involved. Cal. after obtaining older data from VDACS by filing public record requests under Virginia's sunshine laws, that of the 49,737 dogs and cats PETA received . First, the article discusses issues related to ownership of and responsibility for feral cats, analyzing the treatment of ownership and responsibility under both feral cat statutes and common law. . The county ordinance, which the court found to be the controlling law in the case, stated that [i]t shall be unlawful for a person to provide food, water or shelter to a colony of feral cats. However, the county ordinance explicitly exempted individuals who provide food, water or shelter in conjunction with an authorized TNR program. When a person sees a malnourished kitten roaming her neighborhood, her first instinct is often to stop and help. 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