Title 4, Title 4 and Animal Husbandry

(a) The RI state veterinarian, the general/special agent of the RI Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RISPCA), or any duly sworn and authorized state or municipal law enforcement officer may lawfully take charge and possession of any animal found abandoned or negle…

Any authorized person making a seizure may file with a district court that has jurisdiction over the matter a verified petition plainly stating those facts as to bring such animal within the jurisdiction of the court and praying for appropriate action by the court in accordance w…

(a) If it appears from the allegations of the petition and other affirmations of fact accompanying the petition, or provided subsequent thereto, that there is reasonable cause to find that the animal’s condition or the circumstances surrounding its care require that its custody b…

(a) If the court issues an order pursuant to § 4-1.2-3 vesting the animal’s temporary care and custody in some suitable state, municipal, or other public or private agency or person, the owner(s) shall either surrender ownership of the animal or post a surety bond or cash bond wi…

(a) If a seized animal is forfeited or surrendered pursuant to § 4-1.2-4, or after hearing the court finds that the animal is neglected or cruelly treated, it may transfer ownership of the animal in any state, municipal, or other public or private agency that is permitted by law …

Sections 4-12-1 — 4-12-17 shall be known as the “Rhode Island Apiculture Law”.

(a) Whenever the director finds there exists in this state, or any part of this state, a harmful disease or pest of honey bees, which, for the protection of the apiculture and/or agriculture industry within the state, should be prevented from spreading and be controlled or eradic…

Any permit for the movement of bees or used beekeeping equipment into the state, or any health certificate, issued by the director or authorized personnel, may be revoked for cause by the director or authorized personnel. Notice of this revocation shall be in writing and shall be…

(a) All apiaries in the state must be registered, annually, with the director of environmental management not later than March first. All persons owning honey bees within the state shall annually notify the director of the keeping of bees, their location and number of colonies. (…

(a) Each colony within an apiary shall be identified with the owner’s name and address. This identification may be affixed to external parts of the colony or placed between the inner and outer covers of each colony. (b) When a colony or apiary is deemed to be abandoned written no…

The inspector of apiaries shall make annual written reports to the director of the department of environmental management, giving the number of colonies inspected, the number of diseased colonies found, the number of colonies treated, and the number of colonies destroyed. A recor…

The director shall, from time to time, make regulations carrying out the provisions and requirements of §§ 4-12-1 — 4-12-17, including regulations under which inspectors and other employees shall: (1) Inspect apiaries and equipment associated with beekeeping; (2) Investigate, con…

(a) A beekeeping advisory board shall be established. (b) The board shall consist of six (6) members appointed for terms as indicated: (1) The president of the Rhode Island beekeeping association (1 year). (2) Two (2) members from the Rhode Island beekeeping association appointed…

Any person who violates any provision or requirement of §§ 4-12-1 — 4-12-16 or who forges, counterfeits, defaces, destroys, or wrongfully uses or possesses any certificate provided for in §§ 4-12-5 — 4-12-14 shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be pun…

As used in §§ 4-12-2 — 4-12-17 unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the following terms mean: (1) “Abandoned colony or apiary” means any colony or apiary that is not currently registered and has not been registered within the preceding two (2) years and/or that the insp…

The director of environmental management shall appoint an inspector of apiaries, who shall assist in the enforcement of this chapter, under the supervision of the director. For those purposes, this inspector may, with the approval of the director, employ any deputies and assistan…

Any person appointed by the director as an apiary inspector shall be a practical beekeeper who before being appointed shall furnish the director with satisfactory evidence that the appointee possesses a practical knowledge of beekeeping and is familiar with the diagnosis and trea…

(a) The director of environmental management, to determine the presence or absence of infectious, contagious or communicable diseases or honey bee pests, shall annually either: (1) Inspect twenty percent (20%) of the bee colonies located within thirty-three percent (33%) of the s…

(a) Any bees kept in anything other than a hive with removable frames (which must be reasonably removable) such as box hives or other receptacles, natural or artificial, shall be deemed impossible to inspect unless the owner of these bees removes the brood or makes the brood acce…

(a) If, by reason of an owner requested inspection, the director is satisfied that no apparent disease or pest exists in any colony in an apiary, the director shall issue to the owner a certificate of health setting out the date of the inspection, the number of colonies and the r…

(a) It is unlawful to move, carry, transport, or ship bees, bees on comb, combs, or used beekeeping equipment into the state unless accompanied by a valid permit issued by the director of environmental management. Applications for a permit to transport bees or used beekeeping equ…

Whenever the director finds that there exists in any other state, territory, or district or part of any state, territory, or district, any harmful pests or diseases of honey bees, the director shall promulgate, and enforce by appropriate regulations, a quarantine prohibiting the …

(a) City or town councils may make any ordinances concerning dogs in their cities or towns as they deem expedient, to be enforced by the destruction or disposition of the animal, or by pecuniary penalties not exceeding ten dollars ($10.00) for the first offense, not exceeding fif…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section or the general laws to the contrary, the town councils of the towns of Portsmouth, West Warwick and Middletown may, by ordinance, provide that the owner or keeper of any dog that assaults any person shall be fined an amount…

(1) “Adequate shelter” means the provision of and access to shelter that is suitable for the species, age, condition, size, and type of each dog; provides sufficient space for the dog to maintain comfortable rest, normal posture, and range of movement; and is safe to protect each…

(a) There shall be a rabies control board consisting of seven (7) people as follows: (1) The director of the Rhode Island department of environmental management, or his or her designee; (2) The director of the Rhode Island department of health, or his or her designee; (3) A Rhode…

No license fee is imposed on any thoroughbred dogs kept for breeding and stud purposes only; provided, that the dog is owned by a breeder or annual exhibitor of thoroughbred dogs; and provided, further, that the dogs are kept in a breeding kennel licensed in accordance with the p…

The city or town sergeant of each city or town, or any special constables as the city or town council of the city or town may appoint, annually in the month of April, shall ascertain and make a list of the owners or keepers of dogs in the city or town and return the list to the c…

Whoever wrongfully removes the collar from the neck of a dog licensed and collared according to the provisions of this chapter, or steals a dog licensed or collared, or kills, maims, entices, carries away, or detains a licensed dog, or distributes or exposes a poisonous substance…

The duties imposed on town and city clerks by this chapter shall be performed by the boards of police commissioners, respectively, in the cities and towns where these boards grant the dog licenses, and in the city of Newport by the chief of police of that city.

(a) Every owner or keeper of a dog shall cause the dog to wear a collar around its neck distinctly marked with its owner’s or keeper’s name and with its registered number. Any person may cause any dog not so collared to be impounded in the public pound of the town or city where t…

(a) City or town councils may make any ordinances concerning dogs in their cities or towns as the councils deem expedient, pertaining to the conduct of dogs, which ordinances shall include regulations relating to unrestricted dogs, leash laws, confinement, and destruction of vici…

If any dog kills, wounds, worries, or assists in killing, wounding or worrying, any sheep, lamb, cattle, horse, hog, swine, fowl, or other domestic animal belonging to or in the possession of any person, or assaults, bites, or otherwise injures any person while traveling the high…

If any dog kills, wounds, or worries, or assists in killing, wounding, or worrying, any seeing-eye dog certified for use as a guide-dog for a person who is blind or visually impaired, belonging to or in the possession of any person who is blind or visually impaired and under harn…

Any person keeping or harboring in his or her house or on his or her lands any dog, or knowingly suffering this to be done by any other person, shall be liable for all damages done by the dog in the same manner as if he or she were the owner.

Any person may kill any dog that suddenly assaults him or her or any person of his or her family or in his or her company, while the person assaulted is out of the enclosure of the owner or keeper of that dog and any person may kill any dog found out of the enclosure of its owner…

(a) If any person, or any member of his or her family shall be assaulted by any dog, out of the enclosure of its owner or keeper, or if any person shall have reason to believe that any dog will, out of that enclosure, do any injury to his or her person, family or property, and sh…

The city or town council of any city or town may impose a yearly tax upon every person in their city or town for every dog owned or kept by him or her as the council shall judge proper; and also make any laws to prevent damage to sheep and cattle as they may deem necessary.

Each town or city council, excepting the town and city councils in the cities of Newport and Pawtucket and in the towns of Jamestown, Little Compton, New Shoreham, Tiverton, Exeter, and Burrillville shall annually in the month of April appoint one or more suitable persons as appr…

Each town or city council in the county of Newport, except in the towns of Middletown and Portsmouth, shall annually in the month of April appoint one or more suitable persons appraisers, who shall be sworn to the faithful discharge of their duties, to appraise the damage that ma…

Upon drawing an order as provided in §§ 4-13-20 and 4-13-21, the town or city may recover, in a civil action against the keeper or owner of any dog involved in the damage, full compensation for the damage done by his or her dog and costs of appraisal. Should the person suffering …

Whenever any owner of a sheep or lamb, cattle, horse, hog or fowl, suffering loss by reason of the biting, maiming or killing by any dog, notifies the appraiser as provided in §§ 4-13-20 and 4-13-21, the appraiser shall require the owner and any other person to be sworn before hi…

Any person appointed under the provisions of this chapter who qualifies himself or herself to act, and every city or town clerk and every city or town council, who willfully neglects to perform any of the duties imposed upon him, her, or them by the provisions, shall forfeit one …

The council of the city of Pawtucket shall in the month of February in each year elect a special constable under the dog law, and an appraiser of damage done by dogs.

(a) The rabies control board of Rhode Island is empowered to issue any rules and regulations not contrary to law that may be necessary in setting the terms and conditions of each type of quarantine or to quarantine any area or areas within the state that the board may from time t…

Each city and town is required to provide for the control of rabies in cats, dogs, and ferrets within its boundaries. The municipality may elect to adopt into ordinance provisions at least as stringent as this chapter and the regulations adopted by the board or it may choose to a…