This subtitle does not apply to:
customary and normal veterinary and agricultural husbandry practices, including dehorning, castration, tail docking, and limit feeding;
a laboratory where scientific research is carried out under regulation of a Maryland or federal agency;
an activity that may cause unavoidable physical pain to an animal, including food processing, pest elimination, animal training, and hunting, if the person performing the activity uses the most humane method reasonably available; or
normal human activities in which the infliction of pain to an animal is purely incidental and unavoidable.
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No person may neglect to provide humane care and treatment, as described in <cite data-path="|health|§10-303">§ 10-303 {“Humane care required”} of this title</cite>, for any animal that the person owns, keeps, restrains, or confines, whether as a pet or for any other purpose.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 19, §13
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In this section, “abandon” means to desert, forsake, or absolutely give up an animal without having secured another owner or custodian for the animal’s care.
No person may abandon any animal that the person owns, keeps, restrains, or confines, whether as a pet or for any other purpose.
If an animal has been impounded and is not reclaimed by its owner or custodian after having been impounded for 72 hours, the animal is considered to be abandoned and becomes the property of the City.
If a person releases and transfers ownership of an animal to the Office or to an animal shelter, that is not an abandonment.
If a feral cat caregiver releases a feral cat in accordance with an approved program to trap, alter, vaccinate, ear tip, and return feral cats, the feral cat is not considered abandoned.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §32(c). art. 19, §19
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No person may act cruelly to or abuse animals, which includes the following actions:
teasing, torturing, tormenting, beating, killing, deliberately inciting, intentionally injuring, mutilating, intentionally hitting with a vehicle, overdriving, overloading, or otherwise abusing an animal;
subjecting an animal to conditions detrimental to its health and general welfare;
administering poison to an animal or knowingly placing or leaving any poisonous or other harmful substance with the intent to injure or kill any animal other than vermin;
inflicting unnecessary suffering or pain on an animal or causing unnecessary injury, suffering, of death of an animal under the individual’s charge or custody;
leaving any domestic animal unattended in a parked, standing, or stopped vehicle in a manner that endangers the health, safety, or welfare of the animal;
confining, tethering, or allowing an animal to remain in outside areas during period of extreme weather without access to proper shelter;
hoarding, accumulating, or maintaining a number of animals in a single location, if the number of animals overwhelms a person’s ability to provide nutrition, sanitation, and veterinary care or the person fails to acknowledge the deteriorating health of the animal or condition of the dwelling or facility; or
causing, arranging, permitting, or authorizing any of the actions listed in this section.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §32(b)(1st cl.), art. 19, §14
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In this section, the following terms have the meanings indicated.
“Animal fight” means any dogfight, cockfight, bullfight, or other combat between animals or between animals and humans.
“Animal fighting paraphernalia” means any equipment, product, drug, or other substance or material of any kind that is used or intended or designed for use in the training, preparation, conditioning, or breeding for, in conducting, or otherwise in furtherance of an animal fight.
“Animal fighting paraphernalia” includes:a “breaking stick” or similar device that is designed for insertion behind the molars of a dog for the purpose of breaking the dog’s grip on another animal or object;
a “cat mill” or similar device that rotates around a central support with one arm designed to secure a dog and one arm designed to secure a cat, rabbit, or other small animal beyond the grasp of the dog;
a treadmill or similar device that is designed for animal exercise consisting of an endless belt on which an animal walks or runs without changing places;
a “springpole” or similar device with a biting surface attached to a stretchable device, suspended at a height sufficient to prevent an animal from reaching the biting surface while touching the ground;
a “fighting pit”, walled area, or otherwise confined area that is used to contain an animal fight;
a “breeding stand”, “rape stand”, or similar device that is used to immobilize female dogs for breeding purposes; and
any other instrument or device that is commonly used in the training, preparation, conditioning, or breeding for, in conducting, or otherwise in furtherance of an animal fight.
No person may:conduct, cause, attend, or participate in any animal fight;
permit any animal that the person owns or keeps to participate in an animal fight;
prepare any animal for an animal fight;
wager on any animal fight; or
breed animals to use them for fighting or to sell them for the purpose of fighting.
No person may possess, sell, transfer, or manufacture any item of animal fighting paraphernalia with the intent to engage in or otherwise promote or facilitate an animal fight.
To determine whether an object is an item of animal fighting paraphernalia, the court may consider, among other logically relevant factors, the following:any statement by an owner or a person in control of the object concerning its use;
any prior conviction of an owner or a person in control of the object under a local, state, or federal law relating to animal cruelty or animal fighting;
the proximity of the object, in time and space, to a direct violation of this section or to an animal;
direct or circumstantial evidence of the intent of an owner or a person in control of the object to deliver it to another person who the owner or the person in control knows or should reasonably know intends to use the object to facilitate a violation of this section;
any instructions, oral or written, provided with the object concerning its use;
any descriptive materials accompanying the object that explain or depict its use;
the manner in which the object is displayed for sale;
the existence and scope of legitimate uses for the object in the community;
expert testimony concerning use of the object; and
any other verifiable information that indicates that the object is intended or designed for use in violation of this section.
Each item of paraphernalia that is possessed, sold, transferred, or manufactured in violation of this section is a separate offense.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §32(b)(2nd cl.), art. 19, §10
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No animal show may be conducted or held if any animal is induced or encouraged to perform through the use of any chemical, mechanical, electrical, or manual device that is likely to cause physical injury, pain, or suffering.
All equipment used on or by a performing animal must fit properly and be in good working condition.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §34
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No person may use or expose an animal to any pesticide or poison, whether mixed with food or not, without taking all necessary precautions to protect non-target animals from exposure to the pesticide or poison.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §32(g)
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No person may confine any animal in a cage that consists entirely of solid walls.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §24(8)(2nd sen.)
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No person may tether a dog under unsafe conditions, including harsh or extreme weather conditions, that endanger its health, safety, or welfare.
No person may tether a dog:by any means other than a fitted color or harness;
with a choke collar, training collar, collar with metal spikes, or chain; or
with a tether that:does not have swivels at both ends to prevent kinking and knotting;
weighs more than 1/8 of the dog’s body weight;
is not properly positioned to prevent the tether from becoming entangled in or around objects;
unreasonably limits a dog’s movement;
restricts the dog’s access to suitable and sufficient food, clean water, and appropriate shelter;
is not properly positioned to prevent the dog from reaching or climbing a fence to avoid strangulation;
that does not permit the dog to defecate or urinate in an area separate from the area where it must eat, drink, or lie down;
confines the dog in unsafe or unsanitary conditions; or
causes injury, stress, or demonstrable socialization problems.
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No person may give away or offer to give away any live animal:
as a prize for or as an inducement to enter any contest, game, or other competition;
as an inducement to enter a place of amusement; or
as an incentive to enter into any business agreement.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 11, §32(e)
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No person may:
kill, injure, molest, or attempt to kill, injure, or molest, in any way, any bird; or
destroy, remove, or attempt to destroy or remove, any box placed in any tree or other suitable place in the City for the use of these birds.
City Code, 1976/83, art. 19, §5
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