2005 Arizona Revised Statutes - Revised Statutes §11-1014  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. 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. 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. Whenever an animal bites any person, the incident shall be reported to the county enforcement agent immediately by any person having direct knowledge.

E. 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. Any animal subject to licensing under this article found without a tag identifying its owner shall be deemed unowned.

G. 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. 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.