§ 10-231. Cruelty to animals.  


Latest version.
  • (a)

    Any person who intentionally or with criminal negligence commits any of the following shall be guilty of cruelty to animals:

    (1)

    Overdrives, overloads, drives when overloaded, or overworks a living animal;

    (2)

    Tortures, harasses, torments, cruelly beats or unjustifiably injures, maims, mutilates or kills any living animal, whether belonging to himself or another;

    (3)

    Having charge, custody or possession of any animal, either as owner or otherwise, unjustifiably fails to provide it with proper feed, proper drink, proper shelter or proper veterinary care;

    (4)

    Abandons any animal. A person shall not be considered to have abandoned an animal if he delivers to the Lafayette Animal Care Center an animal, which he found running at large. Returning community cats as part of the community diversion program to the location from which it was found does not constitute abandonment;

    (5)

    Impounds or confines or causes to be impounded or confined in a pound or other place a living animal and fails to supply it during such confinement with proper feed, proper drink and proper shelter;

    (6)

    Carries, or causes to be carried, a living animal in or upon a vehicle, or otherwise, in a cruel or inhumane manner;

    (7)

    Unjustifiably administers any poisonous or noxious drug or substance to any domestic animal or unjustifiably exposes any such drug or substance, with intent that the drug or substance shall be taken or swallowed by any domestic animal;

    (8)

    Kills or injures any animal belonging to another person without legal privilege or consent of the owner;

    (9)

    Mistreats any living animal by any act or omission whereby unnecessary or unjustifiable physical pain, suffering or death is caused to or permitted upon the animal;

    (10)

    Tethers, confines or restrains any living animal in such a way as to permit such animal to become entangled in such tether or other instrumentality, or render such animal incapable of consuming food and/or water for more than 24 hours, or from obtaining shelter from the elements. For purposes of this section, a tether or other instrumentality used to effect confinement or restraint of an animal shall be a minimum length of five times the length of the animal, as measured from the nostrils to the base of the tail. However, if the property upon which an animal is located is of an insufficient size to allow the animal to move about safely or without entanglement when a tether or other instrumentality that measures the minimum length required by this section is used, then the restraint used shall be of such a length as to allow the animal to move about safely within the confines of the property without becoming entangled in such tether or other instrumentality and to allow the animal to consume his food and/or water and obtain shelter from the elements. In any event, it shall be such as will restrict the animal to the property of its owner, and the entirety of the area which the tether or other instrumentality might reach must be kept free of obstructions to prevent entanglement;

    (11)

    Fits any animal with a collar that becomes embedded in the animal's skin; and/or

    (12)

    Causes or procures to be done by any person any act enumerated in this section.

    (b)

    Whoever is convicted for the crime of cruelty to animals shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $500.00 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or both such fine and imprisonment.

    (c)

    This section shall not apply to the lawful hunting or trapping of wildlife as provided by law, herding of domestic animals, accepted veterinary practices, and activities carried on for scientific or medical research governed by accepted standards.

(Ord. No. O-142-2017, § 3, 8-8-2017)