H 3125 Session 112 (1997-1998)
H 3125 General Bill, By Seithel and Knotts
Similar(S 275)
A BILL TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 8
TO CHAPTER 3, TITLE 47, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE STERILIZATION OF DOGS AND
CATS ACQUIRED FROM AN ANIMAL SHELTER, AN ANIMAL CONTROL AGENCY, A HUMANE
SOCIETY, OR AN ANIMAL REFUGE.
01/08/97 House Prefiled
01/08/97 House Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Natural
Resources and Environmental Affairs
01/14/97 House Introduced and read first time HJ-53
01/14/97 House Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Natural
Resources and Environmental Affairs HJ-53
A BILL
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA,
1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 8 TO CHAPTER 3, TITLE 47, SO
AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE STERILIZATION OF DOGS AND
CATS ACQUIRED FROM AN ANIMAL SHELTER, AN ANIMAL
CONTROL AGENCY, A HUMANE SOCIETY, OR AN ANIMAL
REFUGE.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South
Carolina:
SECTION 1. Chapter 3, Title 47 of the 1976 Code is amended by
adding:
"Article 8
Sterilization of Dogs and Cats
Section 47-3-470. As used in this article:
(1) 'Animal Shelter' means:
(a) a facility operated by or under contract for the State or a
county, a municipal corporation, or other political subdivision of the
State for the purpose of impounding or harboring seized, stray,
homeless, abandoned, or unwanted dogs, cats, and other animals;
(b) a veterinary hospital or clinic operated by a veterinarian
or veterinarians which operates for the purpose set forth in subitem
(a) in addition to its customary purposes;
(c) a facility operated, owned, or maintained by an
incorporated humane society, animal welfare society, or other
nonprofit organization for the purpose of providing for and
promoting the welfare, protection, and humane treatment of animals.
(2) 'Humane society' means an unincorporated nonprofit
organization existing for the purpose of prevention of cruelty to
animals.
(3) 'Public or private animal refuge' means harborers of
unwanted animals of any breed, including crossbreeds, who provide
food, shelter, and confinement for a group of dogs, a group of cats,
or a combination of dogs and cats.
(4) 'Sexually mature anima' means a dog or cat that has reached
the age of one hundred eighty days or six months or more.
(5) 'Sterilization' means the surgical removal of the
reproductive organs of a dog or cat in order to render the animal
unable to reproduce.
Section 47-3-480. (A) A public or private animal shelter, animal
control agency operated by a political subdivision of this State,
humane society, or public or private animal refuge shall make
provisions for the sterilization of all dogs or cats acquired from the
shelter, agency, society, or refuge by:
(1) providing sterilization by a licensed veterinarian before
relinquishing custody of the animal; or
(2) entering into a written agreement with the person acquiring
the animal guaranteeing that sterilization will be performed by a
licensed veterinarian within thirty days after acquisition of the animal
in the case of an adult animal or within thirty days of the sexual
maturity of the animal in the case of an immature animal.
(B) This section does not apply to a privately owned animal which
the shelter, agency, society, or refuge may have in its possession for
any reason if the owner of the animal claims or presents evidence that
the animal is his property.
(C) All costs of sterilization pursuant to this section are the
responsibility of the person acquiring the animal and, if performed
before acquisition, may be included in the fees charged by the shelter,
agency, society, or refuge for the animal.
(D) A person acquiring an animal from a shelter, an agency, a
society, or a refuge which is not sterile at the time of acquisition shall
submit to the shelter, agency, society, or refuge a signed statement
from the licensed veterinarian performing the sterilization required
by subsection (A) within seven days after sterilization attesting that
the sterilization has been performed.
(E) A shelter, an agency, a society, or a refuge selling or offering
for sale or exchange a dog or cat shall maintain and furnish to a
person acquiring an animal from the shelter, agency, society, or
refuge a current list of veterinarians licensed in this State who have
notified the shelter, agency, society, or refuge that they are willing to
perform sterilizations and the cost for the procedures.
Section 47-3-490. A person who fails or refuses to comply with
this article is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be
fined not more than two hundred dollars.
Section 47-3-500. This article does not prohibit the adoption by a
political subdivision of this State of shelter policies which are more
stringent than the requirements of this article."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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