LAWS ABOUT DOGS 



specific provision, are originated by judges 

 in accord with generally accepted prin- 

 ciples of jurisprudence. 



Almost all of our legal decisions today 

 are based upon the common law, as deter- 

 mined by the supreme or high courts of 

 each state in the United States. Within 

 recent years, most states have enacted 

 specific dog laws and these to a great 

 extent, succeed a court decision held the 

 rule previously. 



7. No Federal Laws 



The United States government as a 

 federal government has passed no laws 

 concerning dogs. We have mentioned al- 

 ready the only two court decisions which 

 have emanated from the highest federal 

 court, the Supreme Court. 



The registration of dogs as purebred 

 animals is not any concern of the govem- 

 ment. The only direct contact with the 

 dog field by the federal government is 

 thru the Food and Drugs Act and the In- 

 secticide Act. 



8. State Legislatures Chief Source 



The respective state legislatures have be- 

 come the chief sources of dog law. 



Usually the state law specifies tlie 

 amount of annual license fee, and all de- 

 tails about it such as the date on which 

 the year begins, use and disposition of 

 moneys collected as fees, classing the dog 

 as personal property, provision for com- 

 pensation where sheep are killed by dogs, 

 and more recently, as in the state of Illi- 

 nois, for instance (enacted in 1927), 

 authority to the Department of Agriculture 

 to take temporary measures to combat the 

 spread of rabies. 



9. City and Other Local Units 



The county, the city and the township 

 may enact certain regulations concerning 

 dogs, on any matter on which tiie state 

 law does not already have its provisions. 



A city may enact in its own ordinance 

 a provision that not more than a certain 

 number of dogs shall be owned by one 

 person within its limits. But unless a 



state law gives authority, it can not enact 

 that what is known as a kennel shall not 

 be maintained within its limits. 



These provisions are legal and constitu- 

 tional and are based upon the public wel- 

 fare provision of law. 



10. Crying Need for Uniformity - 

 There is a crying need for uniformity in 



dog laws both state and local. Too often 

 the provisions are rigid and extreme ; they 

 are enacted upon pressure from those who 

 do not particularly care for dogs. Conse- 

 quently, it would be well that all those 

 interested in the cause of dogs, concen- 

 rate their efforts upon the enactment of 

 a model state law and a model local ordi- 

 nance wherever possible. A suggested model 

 local ordinance has been drafted by the 

 author and is available on request to the 

 publishers of this pamphlet. 



11. Fight for Man's Best Friend 

 There need not be any apology or hesi- 

 tation in demanding for animals their 

 rights under the laws of the land and by 

 the unwritten code of humanity. For 

 those who cannot speak for themselves, we 

 must cry out when pain, whether physical 

 or mental, is inflicted upon them. 



Cruelty is not only a crime in itself but 

 a stage on which most other crimes are 

 committed. Whereas human beings oft- 

 times can do something toward helping 

 themselves and others, the animals are 

 dependent upon us for obtaining justice 

 and fair play and consequently it is for us, 

 the superior animals, to carry out the 

 mandate the Creator has placed upon us, 

 namely that a part of His animal crea- 

 tion, the lower kingdom, receive its due 

 consideration from us. 



Therefore, the subject of law as it con- 

 cerns dogs is exceedingly important not 

 only in the matter of protecting one's 

 property rights in obtaining money dam- 

 ages but also in considering the cause of 

 kindness and the unwritten code of chiv- 

 alry toward all living things high or low. 



B — Title of Ownership in a Dog 



The legal ownership of a dog may be 

 indicated by purchase papers, by general 

 knowledge, by the pajmaent of the annual 

 license tax (presumption only), and by 

 the tax assessor's roll. The ownership of 

 a dog for registration and show privileges 

 is a consideration which we mention here- 

 inafter and may or may not coincide with 

 legal ownership. 



1. Stolen Dogs 



The stolen dog does not bring owner- 

 ship to the thief. Nor can the thief thru 

 sale or otherwise, transfer legal owner- 

 ship of the dog. 



The Penal Law of the State of New 

 York, section 192-A, Article 16, reads: 



"Unauthorized possession of dogs pre- 

 sumptive evidence of larceny. The un- 

 authorized possession of dog or dogs, by 

 any person not the true owner, for a 

 period exceeding ten days, without notify- 

 ing either the owner, the local police 

 authorities, or the Superintendent of the 

 State Police at Albany, New York, of 

 such possession, shall be presumptive evid- 

 ence of larceny." 



2. Harboring Dogs 



He who harbors a dog and permits it to 

 remain about his premises, tho the true 

 owner may be another, thereby makes 

 himself liable for damages done by the 

 dog. 



If one carelessly or negligently permits 

 a stray dog or the dog of a known owner 

 to remain regularly on his premises, when 

 he could remove the dog from the prem- 

 ises, he thereby takes upon himself all the 

 duties and obligations of the legal owner 

 of the dog. 



3. Uncalled-for Dogs 



Title of ownership in uncalled for dogs 

 does not of itself pass to the person who 

 is harboring or keeping the dog. No mat- 

 ter how long a person may harbor a stray 

 dog on his premises, even for years, the 

 true owner can claim the dog as his own. 

 He would need, however, to compensate 

 the harborer of the dog for the care and 

 necessary expenses, including the cost of 

 any advertising to locate the owner. 



The common law and the statute law 



