Pet Codes

Sec. 10-71. Dogs or animals that attack persons or domestic animals.

Determination that a dog or animal has attacked a person or domestic animal.
1. Upon receipt of a sworn complaint by any person to the municipal court that a dog or animal has caused the death of or serious bodily injury to a person or domestic animal by attacking, biting or mauling the person and on the showing of probable cause to believe that the dog or animal caused the death of or serious bodily injury to the person as stated in the complaint, the municipal court shall issue a warrant authorizing animal control to seize the dog or animal in question.
2. Upon receipt of the warrant from the municipal court, animal control shall seize the dog or animal and impound the dog or animal in secure and humane conditions until the municipal court orders the disposition of the dog or animal.
3. The municipal court shall set a time for a hearing to determine whether the dog or animal caused the death of or serious bodily injury to a person or domestic animal by attacking, biting or mauling the person or domestic animal. The hearing must be held not later than the tenth day after the date on which the warrant for seizing the dog or animal was issued. The municipal court shall give written notice of the time and place of the hearing to:
  1. The owner of the dog or animal or the person from whom the dog or animal was seized.
  2. The person who made the sworn complaint.
4. Any interested party may present evidence at the hearing.
5. The municipal court may make any determination regarding the disposition of the dog or animal that is permitted under V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code ch. 822 which includes determining that the dog or animal is not a dangerous dog or animal, determining that the dog or animal is a dangerous dog or animal and should be released to the owner and the owner be ordered to comply with the requirements for the owner of a dangerous dog as contained in V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code ch. 822 and this Code, determining that the dog or animal is a dangerous dog or animal and must be removed from the City of Euless, or determining that the dog or animal caused the death of or serious bodily injury to a person or domestic animal by attacking, biting or mauling the person or domestic animal and that the dog or animal must be destroyed.
Defenses. The municipal court shall consider the applicable defenses contained in V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code ch. 822.
Attack by a dog or animal.
1. A person commits an offense if the person is the owner of a dog or animal and, with criminal negligence, fails to secure the dog or animal and the dog or animal makes an unprovoked attack on another person or animal that occurs at a location other than the owner's real property or in or on the owner's motor vehicle or boat and that causes serious bodily injury or death to the other person or animal.
2. A person commits an offense if the person is the owner of a dog or animal that the municipal court has determined is a dangerous dog or animal, or otherwise been designated a dangerous animal under V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code ch. 822 or this chapter, and the dog or animal makes an unprovoked attack on another person or animal that occurs at a location other than a secure enclosure in which the dog is restrained in accordance with section 10-72 and that causes serious bodily injury or death to the other person or animal.
3. An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor if the attack is on another animal. If the attack is on a person, such offense is a felony in the third degree unless the attack causes death, in which event the offense is a felony of the second degree, and such felony offense shall be prosecuted by the county district attorney in the Criminal Courts of Tarrant County, Texas, at the discretion of said district attorney.
4. If a person is found guilty of any offense under this section, the municipal court may order the dangerous dog or animal destroyed.
5. The municipal court may consider the defenses to prosecution contained in V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code § 822.006.

Ord. No. 1878, § VI, adopted June 8, 2010, deleted the former § 10-71, and enacted a new § 10-71 as set out herein. The former § 10-71 pertained to vicious animals and derived from Code 1974, § 3-16.

Sec. 10-61. Animals running at large, generally.

It shall be unlawful for any person owning an animal to permit such animal to run at large.
An animal shall be considered to be running at large unless it is restrained under the following circumstances:
- It is securely caged or confined to its owner's home or yard, which yard is enclosed by a fence of sufficient strength and height to prevent the animal from escaping there from, or secured on the premises by a chain, leash or other restraining line of sufficient strength to prevent the animal from escaping from the premises and so arranged that the animal will remain upon the premises when the chain, leash or restraining line is stretched to full length. No such chain, leash or restraining line shall be less than ten feet in length.
- It is accompanied by its owner or trainer at a bona fide show, field trial or exhibition.
- It is secured by a leash or rein of sufficient strength to restrain and control the animal.
- It is a guard dog appropriately registered under the provisions of section 10-72 and is in the performance of duty in an enclosed building or securely fenced and locked area marked as provided in section 10-72.
- Any officer or citizen of the city is hereby authorized to take up and deliver to the animal control officer any animal that may be found running at large in the corporate limits of the city.
- Any peace officer or animal control officer of the city is authorized to impound any animal running at large or otherwise found in violation of this chapter. If the animal running at large, or in violation of this chapter, is on private property, or property of the animal's owner, such peace officer or animal control officer may enter such premises, other than a private dwelling, for the purpose of impoundment or the issuance of a citation, or both, subject to the applicable provisions of the law.

(Code 1974, § 3-4)
State law references: Certain dogs prohibited from running at large, V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code §§ 822.011, 822.042; authority to adopt, V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code § 826.033.

Sec. 10-65. Animal care.

If the following shall occur, the animal may be impounded and the owner shall be guilty of a violation of this chapter:

The owner shall fail to provide an animal with sufficient and wholesome food and water, adequate shelter and protection from weather, veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering, and humane care and treatment.
A person shall beat, cruelly ill treat, torment, abuse, overload, overwork or otherwise harm an animal, or cause, instigate or permit any dog fight, cock fight, bullfight or other combat between animals or between animals and humans.
A person shall abandon or dump any animal.
A person shall willfully wound, trap, maim or cripple by any method any animal, bird or fowl. It shall also be unlawful for a person to kill any animal, bird or fowl, except domesticated fowl considered as general tablefare such as chicken or turkey, within the city.
A person shall sell, offer for sale, barter or give away baby chicks, ducklings or other fowl, rabbits or hamsters as novelties, whether or not dyed, colored or otherwise artificially treated; provided, however, that this section shall not be construed to prohibit the display or sale of natural chicks, ducklings or other fowl in proper brooder facilities from hatcheries or stores engaged in the business of selling such chicks, ducklings or other fowl to be raised for commercial purposes, or the sale of rabbits or hamsters as pets.
A person shall give away any live animal as a prize for, or as an inducement to enter any contest, game or other competition, or as an inducement to enter into any business agreement except as to the offering of offspring in a breeding transaction.
The failure of a person in operation of a motor vehicle who strikes a pet animal or livestock to immediately report such injury or death to the animal's owner, and if the owner cannot be ascertained and located, such person shall fail to report the accident to an animal control officer or peace officer.
A person exposes any known poisonous substance, whether mixed with food or not, so that such poisonous substance shall be liable to be eaten by a pet animal, livestock or person. This section is not intended to prohibit the prudent use of herbicides, insecticides or rodent control materials. A person shall also not expose an open trap or metal jaw-type trap that shall be liable to injure any pet animal, livestock or person.

(Code 1974, § 3-9)
State law references: Cruelty to animals, V.T.C.A., Penal Code § 42.11.