Title HS, Health and Safety Code

Sec. 826.023. USE AND SALE OF RABIES VACCINE. (a) Rabies vaccine for animals may be administered only by or under the direct supervision of a veterinarian. (b) A veterinarian may not administer or directly supervise the administration of rabies vaccine in this state unless the pe…

Sec. 826.024. USE AND SALE OF RABIES VACCINE; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if the person: (1) administers or attempts to administer rabies vaccine in a manner not authorized by Section 826.023; (2) dispenses or attempts to dispense rabies vaccine in a manner …

Sec. 826.025. PROVISION OF VACCINE AND SERUM. (a) The department may provide vaccine and hyperimmune serum in accordance with department policies or procedures for the use and benefit of a person exposed, or suspected of having been exposed, to rabies. (b) In accordance with depa…

Sec. 826.031. REGISTRATION OF DOGS AND CATS BY LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. (a) The governing body of a municipality and the commissioners court of a county may adopt ordinances or rules under Section 826.014 or 826.015 requiring the registration of each dog and cat within the jurisdiction…

Sec. 826.0311. CONFIDENTIALITY OF CERTAIN INFORMATION IN DOG AND CAT REGISTRY; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) Information that is contained in a municipal or county registry of dogs and cats under Section 826.031 that identifies or tends to identify the owner or an address, telephone numb…

Sec. 826.032. REGISTRATION; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if: (1) the person fails or refuses to register or present for registration a dog or cat owned by the person; and (2) the animal is required to be registered under the ordinances or rules adopted under …

Sec. 826.033. RESTRAINT, IMPOUNDMENT, AND DISPOSITION OF DOGS AND CATS. (a) The governing body of a municipality and the commissioners court of a county may adopt ordinances or rules under Section 826.014 or 826.015 to require that: (1) each dog or cat be restrained by its owner;…

Sec. 826.034. RESTRAINT; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if: (1) the person fails or refuses to restrain a dog or cat owned by the person; and (2) the animal is required to be restrained under the ordinances or rules adopted under this chapter by a county or mun…

Sec. 826.041. REPORTS OF RABIES. (a) A person who knows of an animal bite or scratch to an individual that the person could reasonably foresee as capable of transmitting rabies, or who knows of an animal that the person suspects is rabid, shall report the incident or animal to th…

Sec. 826.042. QUARANTINE OF ANIMALS. (a) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules governing the testing of quarantined animals and the procedure for and method of quarantine. (b) The local rabies control authority or a veterinarian shall quarantine or test in accordance with …

Sec. 826.043. RELEASE OR DISPOSITION OF QUARANTINED ANIMAL. (a) If a veterinarian determines that a quarantined animal does not show the clinical signs of rabies, the veterinarian or local rabies control authority shall release the animal to its owner when the quarantine period e…

Sec. 826.044. QUARANTINE; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if the person fails or refuses to quarantine or present for quarantine or testing an animal that: (1) is required to be placed in quarantine or presented for testing under Section 826.042 and department r…

Sec. 826.045. AREA RABIES QUARANTINE. (a) If rabies is known to exist in an area, the department or its designee may declare an area rabies quarantine to prevent or contain a rabies epizootic. (b) On the declaration that a quarantine exists, the executive commissioner shall: (1) …

Sec. 826.046. VIOLATION OF AREA RABIES QUARANTINE; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if the person violates or attempts to violate a department rule adopted under Section 826.045 governing an area rabies quarantine. (b) An offense under this section is a Class C m…

Sec. 826.047. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. A veterinarian performing duties under this chapter is not liable to the owner of an animal for the death of or injury to the animal except in a case of wilful misconduct or gross negligence. Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 44, Sec. 11, e…

Sec. 826.048. EXEMPTION FROM QUARANTINE REQUIREMENT FOR POLICE SERVICE ANIMALS. (a) In this section, "handler or rider" and "police service animal" have the meanings assigned by Section 38.151, Penal Code. (b) A police service animal is exempt from the quarantine requirement of t…

Sec. 826.051. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR QUARANTINE AND IMPOUNDMENT FACILITIES. (a) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules governing the types of facilities that may be used to quarantine animals. (b) The executive commissioner by rule shall establish minimum standards for impou…

Sec. 826.052. INSPECTIONS. An employee of the department, on the presentation of appropriate credentials to the local rabies control authority or the authority's designee, may conduct a reasonable inspection of a quarantine or impoundment facility at a reasonable hour to determin…

Sec. 826.053. HEARING. (a) A person aggrieved by an action of the department in amending, limiting, suspending, or revoking any approval required of the department by this chapter may request a hearing. (b) A hearing held under this section must be conducted in accordance with Ch…

Sec. 826.054. SUITS TO ENJOIN OPERATION OF QUARANTINE OR IMPOUNDMENT FACILITY. (a) At the request of the commissioner, the attorney general may bring suit in the name of the state to enjoin the operation of a quarantine or impoundment facility that fails to meet the minimum stand…

Sec. 826.055. QUARANTINE OR IMPOUNDMENT FACILITY; CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a facility for quarantined or impounded animals that fails to meet standards for approval established by: (1) department rules; or (2) ordinances or rules ad…

Sec. 828.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: (1) "New owner" means a person who is legally competent to enter into a binding contract and who is adopting a dog or cat from a releasing agency. (2) "Releasing agency" means a public or private animal pound, shelter, or humane organiz…

Sec. 828.002. REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTION. Except as provided by Section 828.013, a releasing agency may not release a dog or cat for adoption unless the animal has been sterilized or the release is made to a new owner who signs an agreement to have the animal sterilized. Added by …

Sec. 828.003. STERILIZATION AGREEMENT. (a) The sterilization agreement used by a releasing agency must contain: (1) the date of the agreement; (2) the names, addresses, and signatures of the releasing agency and the new owner; (3) a description of the animal to be adopted; (4) th…

Sec. 828.0035. STATE BOARD OF VETERINARY MEDICAL EXAMINERS. The State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners shall: (1) develop information sheets regarding surgical or nonsurgical sterilization to be distributed by a releasing agency to a new owner; and (2) adopt rules requiring …

Sec. 828.004. STERILIZATION REQUIRED. (a) Except as provided by this section, a new owner who signs an agreement under Section 828.002 shall have the adopted animal sterilized on or before the sterilization completion date stated in the agreement. (b) If the sterilization complet…

Sec. 828.0045. NONSURGICAL STERILIZATION. A licensed veterinarian may use nonsurgical methods and technologies as labeled and approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration or the United States Department of Agriculture for use by veterinarians to humanely and permane…

Sec. 828.005. CONFIRMATION OF STERILIZATION. (a) Except as provided by Section 828.006 or 828.007, each new owner who signs a sterilization agreement under Section 828.002 shall deliver to the releasing agency from which the animal was adopted a letter signed by the veterinarian …

Sec. 828.006. LETTER CONCERNING ANIMAL'S DEATH. (a) If an adopted animal dies on or before the sterilization completion date agreed to under Section 828.002, the new owner shall deliver to the releasing agency a signed letter stating that the animal is dead. (b) The letter must b…

Sec. 828.007. LETTER CONCERNING LOST OR STOLEN ANIMAL. (a) If an adopted animal is lost or stolen before the sterilization completion date agreed to under Section 828.002, the new owner shall deliver to the releasing agency a signed letter stating that the animal is lost or stole…

Sec. 828.008. NOTICE OF FAILURE TO RECEIVE LETTER. A releasing agency that does not receive a letter under Section 828.005, 828.006, or 828.007 before the expiration of the seventh day after the sterilization completion date agreed to under Section 828.002 shall cause a complaint…

Sec. 828.009. RECLAMATION. (a) A releasing agency that does not receive a letter under Section 828.005, 828.006, or 828.007 after the expiration of the seventh day after the sterilization completion date agreed to under Section 828.002 may promptly reclaim the animal from the new…

Sec. 828.010. CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A new owner that violates this chapter commits an offense. (b) An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor. Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 373, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1992.

Sec. 828.011. ADOPTION STANDARDS. (a) Each releasing agency may set its own standards for potential adopters if those standards are applied in a fair and equal manner. (b) If the releasing agency is a public facility, the standards must be reasonably related to the prevention of …

Sec. 828.012. SURGERY AND OTHER VETERINARY SERVICES. (a) Surgery or nonsurgical sterilization performed in accordance with this chapter must be performed by a veterinarian or a full-time student of an accredited college of veterinary medicine as provided by Chapter 801, Occupatio…

Sec. 828.013. EXEMPTIONS. This chapter does not apply to: (1) a dog or cat that is claimed from a releasing agency by a person who already owns the animal; (2) a releasing agency located in a municipality that has in effect an ordinance providing standards for dog and cat sterili…

Sec. 828.014. ANIMAL FRIENDLY ACCOUNT; DEDICATION. (a) The animal friendly account is a separate account in the general revenue fund. The account is composed of: (1) money deposited to the credit of the account under former Section 502.291, Transportation Code, and under Section …

Sec. 829.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: (1) "Animal control officer" means a person who: (A) is employed, appointed, or otherwise engaged primarily to enforce laws relating to animal control; and (B) is not a peace officer. (2) "Department" means the Department of State Healt…

Sec. 829.0015. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. The commissioners court of a county that has a population of 75,000 or less may adopt an order exempting the county from the application of this chapter. This chapter does not apply within the boundaries of a county for which an order is a…

Sec. 829.002. TRAINING REQUIRED. A person may not perform the duties of an animal control officer unless: (1) the person: (A) completes a basic animal control course under this chapter not later than the first anniversary of the date the person assumes animal control duties; or (…

Sec. 829.003. TRAINING COURSES. (a) The department shall prescribe the standards and curriculum for basic and continuing education animal control courses. The curriculum for both the basic and continuing education courses must include the following topics: (1) state laws governin…

Sec. 829.004. AVAILABILITY OF COURSES. (a) The department or the department's designee shall offer at least two basic animal control courses every calendar year in each of the department's zoonosis control regions. (b) The department or the department's designee shall offer at le…

Sec. 829.005. FEE. The department and any authorized animal control course sponsor, in accordance with department rules, may collect reasonable fees to cover the cost of arranging and conducting an animal control course. Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1331 (S.B. 1562), …

Sec. 829.006. ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE. (a) The department or the department's designee shall: (1) maintain the training records for each person satisfactorily completing any course offered under this chapter for the purpose of documenting and ensuring that the person is in compli…

Sec. 829.007. FACILITY CERTIFICATE. The department shall issue a certificate to an animal shelter inspected under Section 823.003 or a quarantine or impoundment facility inspected under Section 826.052 that the department or the veterinarian conducting the inspection, as applicab…

Sec. 829.008. PAYMENT OF FEE. A political subdivision of this state may require that an individual pay a fee for a course or certificate under this chapter. Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1331 (S.B. 1562), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2007.