What they do: The history of leash laws and why they need to end: At the very least, they should exclude community cats so people can freely carry out TNR. Relying on testimony from the director of Indy Feral, a local organization that works with feral cat colonies, the court found that feral cats will stay with their colonies in a specific location regardless of whether they are fed and watered. Exposing Cruelty at Berkeley County Animal Control in West Virginia, Cat-alyst Society Monthly Giving Program, Forget-Me-Not Legacy Society: Planned Giving, Tribute Cards and Plaques to Support Feline Rescue, mandatory spay/neuter does not help community cats because they have no owner. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendants, but the appellate court rejected the trial courts analysis of the plaintiffs nuisance claim. Many local laws are punitive. Implementation of a Feral Cat Management Program on a University Campus. Id. Normand, C.M. Animal Control: Dont worry, weve got a warrant. ; Nielsen, C.K. The result of this approach is that the law of feral cats can, and often does, vary drastically within the same state. Further, feral cat caretakers in these jurisdictions may have a difficult time protecting feral cat colonies from animal control agencies and the actions of private citizens. Feral cats are included in many anti-cruelty laws but may be specifically excluded in certain provisions. "Feral cat" means a cat that (i) is born in the wild or is the offspring of an owned or feral cat and is not socialized, or (ii) is a formerly owned cat that has been abandoned and is no longer socialized or lives on a farm. The county animal welfare officer, who has 20 years of experience, said, "It`s legal to kill feral cats in Wisconsin Is she right? Therefore, a notice requirement like that suggested by the Baker court would have to be drafted carefully to avoid creating a significant burden on potential feral cat caretakers. also survives summary adjudication. Thus, the appellate court partially reversed the trial courts grant of summary judgment, holding that the defendants could, in fact, be liable under a nuisance theory for damages arising from actions that caused the presence of [a] large number of cats on Plaintiffs property. See i d. at *1, *56, *1314. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 2002, 5, 285298. Sign this form so we can trap them." You: Animal Control: "Our local ordinance prohibits feeding animals on public property." You: Animal Control: "You will receive a citation." You: Officers cannot search beyond what the warrant allows. $35 $50. However, on . This rationale is less persuasive when applied to feral cats for two reasons. TNR/Community Cat Care Financial Resources, How Rescuers Can Effectively Adopt Out Cats, Debunking the Myths and Misinformation: Cat Predation, Solutions to Prevent Surrendering your cat, Press Release on African Wildcat Campaign, Differences between AWCs and domestic cats, click here to see why feeding bans do not work, http://cfa.org/Portals/0/documents/legislative/cat-leash-laws.pdf, https://idfg.idaho.gov/question/it-legal-kill-feral-cats, http://www.accord3.com/docs/TNR%20Law%20Kortis.pdf, http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/pets/feral-cats/nirenburg_hsus_cat_outdoors.pdf. In many instances, you may ask animal control to return at a future date or time so that you may first speak with your attorney. Donate. Ct. App. Help us continue our work for cats: Join our online community and become part of the movement to save cats lives! The question, then, is if a feral cat is not quite a wild animal and not quite a domestic animal, how will a court determine ownership? Many state and local governments have not directly addressed the issues of ownership and responsibility related to feral cats. Hughes, K.L. At common law, the answer to this question is unclear. Under Virginia law, local governments may . Say that youd like to remain silent, and consult an attorney right away to determine if an animal control officer is violating your rights. at *14. When included as part of targeted TNR efforts, regular feeding of free-roaming cats can reduce potential impacts on public health, wildlife, and the environment because targeted TNR efforts can be implemented more efficiently when cats are fed regularly. When damage to property or persons is reasonably foreseeable, a court in these jurisdictions could impose civil liability on keepers and caretakers for breaching their duty to control the feral cats in their care. leaving pet dogs or cats for a long period of . Trap them and bring them to the shelter. Second, keepers and caretakers do not exercise the level of control over feral cats that owners of wild animals exercise over those animals. As discussed above, there are serious policy concerns that would likely preclude the imposition of strict liability on feral cat keepers or caretakers, making it implausible to define feral cats as wild animals. ; Turick, S.L. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 2002, 5, 1528. at 96667. The truth about cats and dogs: Landscape composition and human occupation mediate the distribution and potential impact of non-native carnivores. Such findings correspond well with those indicating that free-roaming cats are more likely to be found in close proximity to humans. They cant search your property, stop and question you, or cite you without a reason. Remember: You dont have to give permission just because they ask for it. Because the statute database is maintained primarily for legislative drafting purposes, statutory changes are sometimes included in the statute database before they take effect. The answer to this question is likely to depend on the degree of control that the individual exercises over the cats. Code 14-8-2-87 (2009. 22-339d . And remember: less is often more. Animal Control: Im responding to a complaint, I do not need your consent. The officer then proceeds to enter your house or yard. You can find tips by referring to our factsheet How to Find Laws that Relate to Cats.. 510 ILCS 5/2.11b. As long as you are shooting feral cats on your own property, it is not illegal to shoot a cat. feeding and cat colonies are illegal. Increasingly, communities are passing local ordinances with positive, proactive language related to Trap-Neuter-Return or Shelter-Neuter-Return. In some communities, animal-related ordinances are enforced by full-time animal control officers; in others, police officers, sheriffs, or code enforcement officers might be assigned to animal control duties or wear several hats, including animal control. Even in jurisdictions that have statutes or ordinances pertaining to feral cats, it is difficult to know how those laws will be interpreted by a court. read more about how Alley Cat Allies is creating community change. 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. The most significant responsibility would be the imposition of strict liability on keepers and caretakers of feral cats in jurisdictions where keepers and caretakers are considered owners. See Restatement (Third) of Torts: Physical and Emotional Harm 22(a) (2005). RI ST 4-24-3 . This article addresses three primary legal questions. You cannot trap a cat and then shoot it if the cat is trapped on your property. Two researchers undertaking a detailed study of TNR in Randolph County, North Carolina, noted, for example, their remarkable success trapping feral cats perhaps because the cats were well acclimated to humans and used to being fed in particular locations [16]. The caretaker in that case merely fed and watered the cats. An SNR program - Spay, Neuter, Release - is also a good way to reduce the numbers of feral cats in a given area. (See If the officer asks to search your property). ; Sieving, K.E. Do not add any meat scraps to a compost pile. Id. One commentator who has analyzed the issue in Texas raised the possibility that an individual who cares for a feral cat could be held criminally liable for abandonment if that individual ceased to provide the cat with food and water or failed to pay for the cats necessary medical treatment. 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. ; Zhou, T.; Ruan, S. Analysis of Rabies in China: Transmission Dynamics and Control. Animal Control: You will receive a citation. We seek to change them into positive laws that save animals and meet the needs of cats, caregivers, owners, and the community at large. Often known as leash laws, these regulations prohibit cats from being loose in the community. 510 I.L.C.S. St. 37-246 (2008). The statute further defines keepers as owners. Id. Do some research to find out about your local animal control. C. 8217 . Generally, legislatures pass laws to correct perceived deficiencies in existing law, particularly when there is no indication that the new legislation is intended to codify the current common law rule. Remove Food Sources. Chang explained when nn eat cat food, it can make them sick and can even kill them. When a person sees a malnourished kitten roaming her neighborhood, her first instinct is often to stop and help. Animal Control: Id like to search the property. The cats also urinated and defecated in the crawl space of the home. Wild Mammals, Defined, Neb. It may be legal when protecting your property, such as feral cats engaged in the taking of your livestock or even pets. Lord, L.K. St. 37-246 (2008). Zaunbrecher, K.I. If the source note at the end of a Section of the statutes includes a Public Act that has not yet taken effect, the version of the law that is currently in effect may have already been removed from the database and you should refer to that Public Act to see the changes made to the current law. Recent laws may not yet be included in the ILCS database, but they are found on this site as. In Fiori , a customer sued a store owner after the customer was attacked by a cat that had taken up residence in the store and was being fed by store employees. See, e.g. Further, cases like Kyles are limited in their usefulness since they do not present a single, bright-line legal rule for determining ownership of feral cats. 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. ; Weng, H.-Y. The first problem is the question of whether feral cats are wild or domestic animals. A further problem is the relatively limited degree of control exercised by the defendant in Baker . [d]oes not become a public nuisance, does not run at large, and [d]oes not defecate on the property of another . Alley Cat Allies is a 501(c)3 organization. ; Kays, R.; OConnell, A.F. . Further, the statute provides that any refusal to permit any animal control officer to impound such cat shall be deemed evidence of ownership . Regular feeding of free-roaming cats is also known (by TNR group volunteers and other community cat caretakers) to make trapping these cats for sterilization/vaccination significantly easier. ; Elsevier Health Sciences, 2007. Further, the court stated that the plaintiffs claim of severe emotional distress that arises out of the alleged nuisance of having to deal with a large number of cats on their property . Exceptions: Special area restriction apply in Unit 14C Source Arizona - AZ Species you can Trap: Small game (cottontail rabbits and tree squirrels), skunks, muskrats, badger beavers, raccoons, and weasels require a permit to trap. The court did not, however, address the question of whether a feral cat caretaker could be held criminally liable under the ordinancea distinct possibility, given the ordinances broad definition of ownership. She is unlikely to provide shelter or regular veterinary care, and she would presumably be less likely to assert ownership over the cat or try to keep it from straying. Generally, the state laws that do address these issues do not create substantive guidelines. Although often well-meaning, mandatory spay/neuter does not increase the amount of spay/neuter taking place in a community. Second, the article addresses the question of whether feral cat keepers or caretakers can be held civilly liable for the actions of feral cats.
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