Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 11-1014, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE11-1014. Biting animals; reporting; handling
and destruction
A. An unvaccinated dog or cat that bites any person
shall be confined and quarantined in a county pound or, on request of and at
the expense of the owner, at a veterinary hospital for a period of not less
than ten days. The quarantine period shall start on the day of the bite
incident. If the day of the bite is not known, the quarantine period shall
start on the first day of impoundment. A dog properly vaccinated pursuant to
this article that bites any person may be confined and quarantined at the home
of the owner or wherever the dog is harbored and maintained with the consent of
and in a manner prescribed by the county enforcement agent.
B. A dog or
cat that is impounded as the result of biting any person shall not be released
from the pound to its owner unless one of the following applies:
1. The dog
has a current dog license pursuant to section 11‑1008 at the time the dog
entered the pound.
2. The dog
or cat has been previously spayed or neutered before impound or has been spayed
or neutered and implanted with a microchip before release from the pound.
3. There is
no veterinary facility capable of performing surgical sterilization within a
twenty mile radius of the pound.
4. A
veterinarian determines that a medical contraindication for surgery exists that
reasonably requires postponement of the surgery until the surgery can be
performed in a safe and humane manner.
5. The bite
occurred in the premises of the owner and the victim is a member of the same
household.
6. The owner
pays a two hundred fifty dollars breeder's fee, in addition to any fees or
costs otherwise required pursuant to this article.
B. c. Any domestic
animal, other than a dog, a cat or a caged or pet rodent or rabbit, that bites
any person shall be confined and quarantined in a county pound or, on the
request and at the expense of the owner, at a veterinary hospital for a period
of not less than fourteen days. Livestock shall be confined and quarantined
for the fourteen‑day period in a manner regulated by the Arizona department of agriculture. Caged or pet rodents or rabbits shall not be
quarantined or laboratory tested.
C. d. With the
exception of a wild rodent or rabbit, any wild animal that bites any person or
directly exposes any person to its saliva may be killed and submitted to the
county enforcement agent or the agent's deputies for transport to an
appropriate diagnostic laboratory. A wild rodent or rabbit may be submitted
for laboratory testing if the animal has bitten a person and either the
animal's health or behavior indicates that the animal may have rabies or the
bite occurred in an area that contains a rabies epizootic, as determined by the
department of health services.
D. E. Whenever If an animal bites any person, the incident shall be
reported to the county enforcement agent immediately by any person having
direct knowledge.
E. f. The county
enforcement agent may destroy any animal confined and quarantined pursuant to
this section before the termination of the minimum confinement period for
laboratory examination for rabies if:
1. The animal shows clear clinical signs of rabies.
2. The animal's owner consents to its destruction.
F. g. Any animal
subject to licensing under this article found without a tag identifying its
owner shall be deemed unowned.
G. h. The county
enforcement agent shall destroy a vicious animal by order of a justice of the
peace or a city magistrate. A justice of the peace or city magistrate may
issue an order to destroy a vicious animal after notice to the owner, if any,
and the person who was bitten, and a hearing. The justice of the peace or city
magistrate may impose additional procedures and processes to protect all
parties in the interest of justice,
and any decision by the justice of the peace or magistrate may be appealed to
the superior court.
H. i. The owner of a
vicious animal shall be responsible for any fees incurred by the enforcement
agent for the impounding, sheltering and disposing of the vicious animal. END_STATUTE
Sec. 2. Section 11-1022, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE11-1022. Sterilization of impounded dogs and
cats; definition
A. A dog or cat shall not be released for adoption
from a county, city or town pound or from an animal shelter unless one of the
following applies:
1. The dog or cat has been first surgically spayed
or neutered.
2. There is no veterinary facility capable of
performing surgical sterilization within a twenty mile radius of the pound or
shelter.
3. A veterinarian determines that a medical
contraindication for surgery exists that reasonably requires postponement of
the surgery until the surgery can be performed in a safe and humane manner.
B. If subsection A, paragraph 2 or 3 of this section applies, the adopting party
shall sign an agreement to have the dog or cat spayed or neutered by a
veterinarian within thirty days or within fifteen days of a veterinarian's
determination that surgical sterilization may be performed in a safe and humane
manner and shall deposit with the pound or shelter an amount sufficient to
ensure that the dog or cat will be sterilized.
C. If the adoption fee includes the cost of spaying
or neutering, then no
deposit is required. The amount of the deposit required by subsection B of this section shall be
determined by the pound or shelter to be comparable to the lowest fee charged
by veterinarians in the county. The pound or shelter shall refund to the
adopting party any monies deposited pursuant to the agreement if within the
time provided in the agreement there is presented a written statement signed by
a licensed veterinarian that the adopted dog or cat has been spayed or
neutered.
D. Any deposit monies that are not refunded under
subsection C of this section shall
be used only for the following purposes:
1. Spaying or neutering dogs and cats.
2. Public education to prevent overpopulation of
dogs and cats.
3. Costs of confirming that adopted dogs and cats
are spayed or neutered.
E. This section does not apply to a county or
incorporated city or town that adopts an ordinance or resolution for dog and
cat sterilization that exceeds the requirements of this section.
F. A dog or
cat shall not be released to its owner from a county, city or town pound or
from an animal shelter unless one of the following applies:
1. The dog
has a current dog license pursuant to section 11‑1008 at the time the dog
entered the pound or shelter.
2. The dog
or cat has been surgically spayed or neutered and implanted with a microchip
for the purposes of identification at the dog or cat owner's expense.
3. There is
no veterinary facility capable of performing surgical sterilization within a
twenty mile radius of the pound or shelter.
4. A
veterinarian determines that a medical contraindication for surgery exists that
reasonably requires postponement of the surgery until the surgery can be
performed in a safe and humane manner.
5. The owner
pays a two hundred and fifty dollar breeder's fee, in addition to any fees and
costs otherwise required pursuant to this article.
F. g. For the purposes
of this section, "animal shelter" means a duly incorporated humane
society, animal welfare society, society for the prevention of cruelty to
animals or other nonprofit corporate organization devoted to the welfare,
protection and humane treatment of animals. END_STATUTE
