2019 Arkansas Code
Title 5 - Criminal Offenses
Subtitle 6 - Offenses Against Public Health, Safety, or Welfare
Chapter 62 - Animals
Subchapter 1 - General Provisions
§ 5-62-102. Definitions

(1) “Abandon” means to desert, surrender, forsake, or to give up absolutely;

(2) “Animal” means any living vertebrate creature, except human beings and fish;

(3) “Animal control officer” means an officer employed by or under contract with an agency of the state, county, municipality, or other governmental or political subdivision of the state that is responsible for animal control operations in its jurisdiction;

(4)

• (A) “Animal husbandry practices” means the breeding, raising, production, and management of animals.

• (B) “Animal husbandry practices” includes without limitation dehorning, docking, and castration;

(5) “Animal identification” means the use of a microchip, tattoo, an ear tag, an ear notch, branding, or any similar technology to identify the owner of an animal and that is generally accepted for the breed, species, and type of animal being identified;

(6) “Appropriate place of custody” means any of the following within this state and, if practicable, within twenty (20) miles of the residence of the owner or other place owned by the owner:

• (A) A nonprofit animal shelter;

• (B) An animal pound;

• (C) A location owned or managed by a society incorporated for the prevention of cruelty to animals;

• (D) A location owned or managed by an agency of the state, county, municipality, or other governmental or political subdivision of the state that is responsible for animal control operations in its jurisdiction;

• (E) A location owned or managed by a public or private custodian that provides shelter, care, and necessary medical treatment to an animal; or

• (F) The residence or other place owned by the owner of the animal, if approved by written order of a court of competent jurisdiction;

(7) “Competitive activity” means a lawful activity that is generally recognized as having an established schedule of events involving competition of animals or exhibitions of animals;

(8) “Cruel mistreatment” means any act that causes or permits the continuation of unjustifiable pain or suffering;

(9) “Equine” means a horse, pony, mule, donkey, or hinny;

(10) “Equine activity” means:

• (A) Equine participation in equine shows, fairs, competitions, performances, or parades that involve any breed of equine and any of the equine disciplines, including without limitation dressage, hunter and jumper horse shows, grand prix jumping, three-day events, combined training, rodeos, pulling, cutting, polo, steeplechasing, endurance trail riding and western games, and hunting;

• (B) Teaching and training activities of an equine show or rodeo;

• (C) Boarding an equine;

• (D) Riding, inspecting, or evaluating an equine owned by another person, whether or not the owner has received some monetary consideration or other thing of value for the use of the equine or is permitting a prospective purchaser of the equine to ride, inspect, or evaluate the equine; or

• (E) Any activity that involves riding or hunting;

(11) “Euthanizing” means humanely killing an animal accomplished by a method that utilizes anesthesia produced by an agent that causes painless loss of consciousness and subsequent death, and administered by a licensed veterinarian or a euthanasia technician licensed by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and certified by the Department of Health;

(12) “Humanely killing” means causing the death of an animal in a manner intended to limit the pain or suffering of the animal as much as reasonably possible under the circumstances;

(13) “Law enforcement officer” means any public servant vested by law with a duty to maintain public order or to make an arrest for an offense;

(14) “Licensed veterinarian” means a veterinarian licensed to engage in the practice of veterinary medicine in Arkansas in accordance with applicable Arkansas laws;

(15) “Livestock” means a horse, mule, bovine animal, goat, sheep, swine, chicken, duck, or similar animal or fowl commonly raised or used for farm purposes;

(16) “Local law enforcement agency” means the police force of a municipality or the office of the county sheriff;

(17) “Owner” means a person that:

• (A) Has a right of property or title in an animal;

• (B) Keeps or harbors an animal;

• (C) Has an animal in his, her, or its care;

• (D) Acts as an animal's custodian; or

• (E) Knowingly permits an animal to remain on or about any premises occupied by him or her or it;

(18) “Person” means an individual, company, partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, joint agreement, mutual association or other, corporation, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, trustee, syndicate, or any other private entity;

(19) “Professional pest control activities” means those activities governed by the Arkansas Pesticide Control Act, § 2-16-401 et seq., and the Arkansas Pest Control Law, § 17-37-101 et seq.;

(20) “Rodeo” means an event involving a practice accepted by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association on January 1, 2009; and

(21) “Torture” means:

• (A) The knowing commission of physical injury to a dog, cat, or horse by the infliction of inhumane treatment or gross physical abuse, causing the dog, cat, or horse intensive or prolonged pain, serious physical injury, or thereby causing death; and

• (B) Mutilating, maiming, burning, poisoning, drowning, or starving a dog, cat, or horse.