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(a) No person shall:
(1) Torture an animal, deprive one of necessary sustenance, unnecessarily or cruelly beat, needlessly mutilate or kill, or impound or confine an animal without supplying it during the confinement with a sufficient quantity of good wholesome food and water;
(2) Impound or confine an animal without affording it, during the confinement, access to shelter from wind, rain, snow, or excessive direct sunlight, if it can reasonably be expected that the animal would otherwise become sick or in some other way suffer. This division does not apply to animals impounded or confined prior to slaughter. For the purpose of this section, “shelter” means an artificial enclosure, windbreak, sunshade, or natural windbreak or sunshade that is developed from the earth’s contour, tree development, or vegetation;
(3) Carry or convey an animal in a cruel or inhuman manner;
(4) Keep animals other than cattle, poultry or fowl, swine, sheep, or goats in an enclosure without wholesome exercise and change of air, nor feed cows on food that produces impure or unwholesome milk;
(5) Detain livestock in railroad cars or compartments longer than 28 hours after they are so placed without supplying them with necessary food, water, and attention, nor permit the stock to be so crowded as to overlie, crush, wound, or kill each other.
(b) Upon the written request of the owner or person in custody of any particular shipment of livestock, which written request shall be separate and apart from any printed bill of lading or other railroad form, the length of time in which the livestock may be detained in any cars or compartment without food, water, and attention may be extended to 36 hours without penalty therefor. Division (a) of this section does not prevent the dehorning of cattle.
(c) All fines collected for violations of division (a) of this section shall be paid to the society or association for the prevention of cruelty to animals, if there is one in the municipality; otherwise, all fines shall be paid to the general fund.
(ORC 959.13)
(d) Cruelty to companion animals.
(1) As used in this section:
A. "Animal rescue for dogs." Has the same meaning as in R.C. § 956.01.
B. “Boarding kennel” has the same meaning as in R.C. § 956.01.
C. “Captive white-tailed deer” has the same meaning as in R.C. § 1531.01.
D. “Companion animal” means any animal that is kept inside a residential dwelling and any dog or cat regardless of where it is kept, including a pet store as defined in R.C. § 956.01. “Companion animal” does not include livestock or any wild animal.
E. “Cruelty” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 1717.01.
F. “Dog kennel” means an animal rescue for dogs, a boarding kennel, or a training kennel.
G. “Federal Animal Welfare Act” means the “Laboratory Animal Act of 1966,” Pub. L. No. 89-544, 80 Stat. 350 (1966), 7 U.S.C. 2131 et seq., as amended by the “Animal Welfare Act of 1970,” Pub. L. No. 91-579, 84 Stat. 1560 (1970), the “Animal Welfare Act Amendments of 1976,” Pub. L. No. 94-279, 90 Stat. 417 (1976), and the “Food Security Act of 1985,” Pub. L. No. 99-198, 99 Stat. 1354 (1985), and as it may be subsequently amended.
H. “Livestock” means horses, mules, and other equidae; cattle, sheep, goats, and other bovidae; swine and other suidae; poultry; alpacas; llamas; captive white-tailed deer; and any other animal that is raised or maintained domestically for food or fiber.
I. “Practice of veterinary medicine” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 4741.01.
J. “Residential dwelling” means a structure or shelter or the portion of a structure or shelter that is used by one or more humans for the purpose of a habitation.
K. “Serious physical harm” means any of the following:
1. Physical harm that carries an unnecessary or unjustifiable substantial risk of death;
2. Physical harm that involves either partial or total permanent incapacity;
3. Physical harm that involves acute pain of a duration that results in substantial suffering or that involves any degree of prolonged or intractable pain.
L. “Torment” has the same meaning as in R.C. § 1717.01.
M. “Torture” has the same meaning as in R.C. § 1717.01.
N. “Training kennel” means an establishment operating for profit that keeps, houses, and maintains dogs for the purpose of training the dogs in return for a fee or other consideration.
O. “Wild animal” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 1531.01.
(2) No person shall knowingly torture, torment, needlessly mutilate or maim, cruelly beat, poison, needlessly kill, or commit an act of cruelty against a companion animal.
(3) No person shall knowingly cause serious physical harm to a companion animal.
(4) No person who confines or who is the custodian or caretaker of a companion animal shall negligently do any of the following:
A. Torture, torment, or commit an act of cruelty against the companion animal;
B. Deprive the companion animal of necessary sustenance or confine the companion animal without supplying it during the confinement with sufficient quantities of good, wholesome food and water if it can reasonably be expected that the companion animal would become sick or suffer in any other way as a result of or due to the deprivation or confinement;
C. Impound or confine the companion animal without affording it, during the impoundment or confinement, with access to shelter from heat, cold, wind, rain, snow, or excessive direct sunlight if it can reasonably be expected that the companion animal would become sick or suffer in any other way as a result of or due to the lack of adequate shelter.
(5) No person who confines or who is the custodian or caretaker of a companion animal shall recklessly deprive the companion animal of necessary sustenance or confine the companion animal without supplying it during the confinement with sufficient quantities of good, wholesome food and water.
(6) No owner, manager, or employee of a dog kennel who confines or is the custodian or caretaker of a companion animal shall knowingly do any of the following:
A. Torture, torment, needlessly mutilate or maim, cruelly beat, poison, needlessly kill, or commit an act of cruelty against the companion animal;
B. Deprive the companion animal of necessary sustenance or confine the companion animal without supplying it during the confinement with sufficient quantities of good, wholesome food and water if it is reasonably expected that the companion animal would die or experience unnecessary or unjustifiable pain or suffering as a result of the deprivation or confinement;
C. Impound or confine the companion animal without affording it, during the impoundment or confinement, with access to shelter from heat, cold, wind, rain, snow, or excessive direct sunlight if it is reasonably expected that the companion animal would die or experience unnecessary or unjustifiable pain or suffering as a result of or due to the lack of adequate shelter.
(7) No owner, manager, or employee of a dog kennel who confines or is the custodian or caretaker of a companion animal shall negligently do any of the following:
A. Torture, torment, or commit an act of cruelty against the companion animal;
B. Deprive the companion animal of necessary sustenance or confine the companion animal without supplying it during the confinement with sufficient quantities of good, wholesome food and water if it can reasonably be expected that the companion animal would become sick or suffer in any other way as a result of or due to the deprivation or confinement;
C. Impound or confine the companion animal without affording it, during the impoundment or confinement, with access to shelter from heat, cold, wind, rain, snow, or excessive direct sunlight if it can reasonably be expected that the companion animal would become sick or suffer in any other way as a result of or due to the lack of adequate shelter.
(8) Divisions (d)(2), (d)(3), (d)(4), (d)(5),(d)(6), and (d)(7) of this section do not apply to any of the following:
A. A companion animal used in scientific research conducted by an institution in accordance with the federal animal welfare act and related regulations;
B. The lawful practice of veterinary medicine by a person who has been issued a license, temporary permit, or registration certificate to do so under R.C. Chapter 4741;
C. Dogs being used or intended for use for hunting or field trial purposes, provided that the dogs are being treated in accordance with usual and commonly accepted practices for the care of hunting dogs;
D. The use of common training devices, if the companion animal is being treated in accordance with usual and commonly accepted practices for the training of animals;
E. The administering of medicine to a companion animal that was properly prescribed by a person who has been issued a license, temporary permit, or registration certificate under R.C. Chapter 4741.
(9) Notwithstanding any section of the Ohio Revised Code that otherwise provides for the distribution of fine moneys, the Clerk of Court shall forward all fines the Clerk collects that are so imposed for any violation of this division (d) to the Treasurer of the municipality, whose county humane society or law enforcement agency is to be paid the fine money as determined under this division. The Treasurer shall pay the fine moneys to the county humane society or the county, township, municipal corporation, or state law enforcement agency in this state that primarily was responsible for or involved in the investigation and prosecution of the violation. If a county humane society receives any fine moneys under this division, the county humane society shall use the fine moneys either to provide the training that is required for humane society agents under R.C. § 1717.061 or to provide additional training for humane society agents.
(R.C. § 959.131)
(e) Whoever violates division (a) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree. In addition, the court may order the offender to forfeit the animal or livestock and may provide for its disposition including, but not limited to, the sale of the animal or livestock. If an animal or livestock is forfeited and sold pursuant to this division, the proceeds from the sale first shall be applied to pay the expenses incurred with regard to the care of the animal from the time it was taken from the custody of the former owner. The balance of the proceeds from the sale, if any, shall be paid to the former owner of the animal.
(R.C. § 959.99(D))
(f) (1) Whoever violates division (d)(2) or (d)(5) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree on a first offense and a felony to be prosecuted under appropriate state law on each subsequent offense.
(2) Whoever violates division (d)(3) of this section is guilty of a felony to be prosecuted under appropriate state law.
(3) Whoever violates division (d)(4) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree on a first offense and a misdemeanor of the first degree on each subsequent offense.
(4) Whoever violates division (d)(6) of this section is guilty of a felony to be prosecuted under appropriate state law.
(5) Whoever violates division (d)(7) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree.
(6) A. A court may order a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty to a violation of division (d) of this section to forfeit to an impounding agency, as defined in Ohio R.C. 959.132, any or all of the companion animals in that person’s ownership or care. The court also may prohibit or place limitations on the person’s ability to own or care for any companion animals for a specified or indefinite period of time.
B. A court may order a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty to a violation of division (a) of this section or division (d) of this section to reimburse an impounding agency for the reasonably necessary costs incurred by the agency for the care of a companion animal that the agency impounded as a result of the investigation or prosecution of the violation, provided that the costs were not otherwise paid under R.C. § 959.132.
(7) If a court has reason to believe that a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty to a violation of division (d) of this section has a mental or emotional disorder that contributed to the violation, the court may impose as a community control sanction or as a condition of probation a requirement that the offender undergo psychological evaluation or counseling. The court shall order the offender to pay the costs of the evaluation or counseling.
(R.C. § 959.99(E))
Statutory reference:
Impoundment of companion animals; notice and hearing, see Ohio R.C. 959.132
(a) No person shall dye or otherwise color any rabbit or baby poultry, including, but not limited to, chicks and ducklings. No person shall sell, offer for sale, expose for sale, raffle or give away any rabbit or baby poultry which has been dyed or otherwise colored. No poultry younger than four weeks of age may be sold, given away or otherwise distributed to any person in lots of less than three. Stores, shops, vendors and others offering young poultry for sale or other distribution shall provide and operate brooders or other heating devices that may be necessary to maintain poultry in good health, and shall keep adequate food and water available to the poultry at all times.
(ORC 925.62)
(b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree on a first offense; each subsequent offense is a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(ORC 925.99(B))
(a) No person shall own, harbor or keep in custody a dog which disturbs the peace by barking, yelping, howling or making other loud noises to the annoyance and/or discomfort of any person. Continuous barking, yelping, howling and/or making other loud noises for 15 consecutive minutes by such dog, whether confined inside a residence or building or to the outside area, shall be deemed to have disturbed the peace and to have caused the annoyance and discomfort of persons; provided, that at the time of the complaint, no person or persons were trespassing or threatening to trespass upon the private property of the owner, and provided that the dog was not being teased or provoked in any manner.
(b) Any person who shall allow any dog habitually to remain, be lodged or fed within any dwelling, building, yard or enclosure owned or occupied by such person shall be considered as harboring or keeping such dog.
(c) Upon an initial complaint, an enforcement officer shall warn the person in writing of the violation. Upon a second such complaint within 30 days, the enforcement officer shall charge the person with a violation of this section.
(d) Division (a) of this section does not apply to owners, operators or employees of licensed veterinary hospitals, licensed kennels, or licensed animal boarding establishments, nor does this section apply to blind, deaf or hearing impaired, or mobility impaired persons when the dog serves as an assistance dog.
(e) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(a) No owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog more than three months of age, nor owner of a dog kennel, shall fail to file an application for registration required by Ohio R.C. 955.01, nor shall he or she fail to pay the legal fee therefor.
(ORC 955.21)
(b) Whoever violates this section shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100.00) on a first offense, and on each subsequent offense shall be fined not less than seventy-five dollars ($75.00) nor more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) and may be imprisoned for not more than 30 days.
(ORC 955.99(E))
(a) No owner of a dog, except a dog constantly confined to a dog kennel registered under Ohio R.C. Chapter 955 or one licensed under Ohio R.C. Chapter 956, shall fail to require the dog to wear, at all times, a valid tag issued in connection with a certificate of registration. A dog found not wearing at any time a valid tag shall be prima-facie evidence of lack of registration and shall subject any dog found not wearing such a tag to impounding, sale, or destruction.
(ORC 955.10)
(b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(ORC 955.99(B))
(a) No person shall own, keep, or harbor a dog wearing a fictitious, altered, or invalid registration tag or a registration tag not issued by the County Auditor in connection with the registration of that animal.
(ORC 955.25)
(b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(ORC 955.99(B))
(a) No person having knowledge of the existence of rabies in an animal, or knowledge that an animal has exhibited symptoms or behavior suggestive of rabies, or knowledge that an animal has bitten any person, shall fail to immediately report such information to the Mayor or the Chief of Police.
(b) Whenever it is established by the Mayor or Chief of Police that any animal has bitten any person or exhibits symptoms or behavior suggestive of rabies, the person who owns, harbors or otherwise cares for such animal shall confine it in close quarantine and isolation or shall place such animal in the establishment of a veterinarian until, in either case, it is determined by the County Board of Health that the animal is not afflicted with rabies. The isolation and quarantine period hereby required shall be not less than ten days from the date the person was bitten. If the animal has, or develops, any symptoms suspicious of rabies during the ten-day period, the County Board of Health shall be notified immediately. All expenses incurred for the keeping of such animal, or the necessary tests to determine whether rabies exists, shall be borne exclusively by the person who owns, harbors or otherwise cares for such animal.
(c) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(a) The hunting of animals or fowl within the municipality is prohibited. No person shall hunt, kill or attempt to kill any animal or fowl by the use of firearms or any other means. However, nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit the killing of rats and other undesirable rodents authorized to be killed by the Chief of Police using means for such killing which are also authorized by the Chief.
(b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
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