Possession of Wild Animal: Related Articles

Authorsort descending Article Name Summary
Matthew Bacon British Game Law

A full explaination of the laws of game for the British. 1800-1850 with notes from US experience.

Katherine A. Burke Looking for a Nexus Between Trust Compassion, and Regulation: Colorados Search for Standards of Care for Private, Non-Profit Wildlife Sanctuaries In 2004, the Colorado legislature amended its wildlife statutes, formally recognizing the existence of private, non-profit wildlife sanctuaries under the jurisdiction of the Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW). Opponents to the 2004 amendments and CDOW staff have repeatedly expressed concerns that private sanctuaries should not be authorized in the absence of regulations and enforcement mechanisms sufficient to protect the animals and the people who come into contact with them. In implementing the sanctuary statute, CDOW has followed a familiar pattern, relying on the accreditation program of the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (AZA) to provide the basis of its regulations. In doing so, CDOW has failed to understand that the AZA standards are wholly inappropriate for sanctuaries; they are inadequate to protect the safety of animals and humans; and they are overly burdensome and even diametrically opposed to the status and goals of private, non-profit wildlife sanctuaries. Instead, CDOW could have acknowledged the stringent, comprehensive, extensive standards promulgated by The Association of Sanctuaries (TAOS), which are carefully tailored to the operations of sanctuaries. This article considers the plight of Colorado wildlife sanctuaries, which is by no means peculiar to the state of Colorado, and carefully examines the standards promulgated by the AZA and by TAOS. The article concludes that the TAOS accreditation program would have provided a significantly better basis for sanctuary regulation, and that by failing to take advantage of this, CDOW has missed an important opportunity to create a nexus between trust, compassion, and regulation.
Martha Drouet (updated by Asia Siev) Detailed Discussion of Exotic Pet Laws Update First, this paper details the various policy concerns that private exotic animal ownership presents to the public, the animals, and the environment. Next, this paper briefly lays out the few federal laws that apply and the effects they have on private exotic animal ownership. State laws are then analyzed under four regulatory schemes: bans on private wildlife possession, partial bans on certain wild or exotic animals, a licensing scheme for owning exotic or wild animals, and states with miscellaneous or no regulations, including an analysis of states that ban or regulate hybrids of domestic and exotic or wild animals. Then, a few local regulations are discussed, followed by the way these laws and regulations are enforced. Finally, trends over the last decade are discussed along with conclusions and possible recommendations for comprehensive protection.
Fund for Animals Canned Hunts: Unfair at Any Price

This article explores the issues surrounding "canned hunts." Section I provides an introduction and overview; explores the ethical objections to canned hunts based on standards generally accepted by the sport hunting community; raises questions about the appropriate legal analogy that should be applied to canned hunts; and discusses the serious animal health and public health issues raised by canned hunts. Section II catalogs the relevant statutes and regulations of each state with an example of a model ordinance relating to the regulation of canned hunts.

Kali S. Grech Overview of the Laws Affecting Zoos

This overview outlines the laws pertaining to zoo animals on the state, federal, and international level. It also discusses the importance of voluntary compliance by zoos to maintain appropriate standards, including membership in the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA). Until the laws are improved, there is stricter control and more enforcement, then zoo animals will continue to suffer.

James M. Green Brief Summary of the International Trade in Wild-Caught Reptiles

This brief summary overviews the problems associated with the international illegal reptile trade.

James M. Green Biological Information: Reptile Biology and Physiology

This overview describes the fundamental characteristics of reptile biology and physiology.

James M. Green Detailed Discussion of International Trade in Wild-Caught Reptiles

The international trade in wild-caught reptiles has been cause for increasing concern, especially over the last few years. Federal, state and foreign laws are seemingly broken everyday as hundreds of thousands of reptiles are imported and exported each, mostly for the pet trade. In addition to depleting our natural resources and threatening many species with extinction, the reptiles are treated inhumanely and can even pose a health risk to people and the environment.

James M. Green Overview of the International Trade in Wild-Caught Reptiles

This overview discusses the nature of the international trade in wild reptiles and the impediments to enforcing those laws that protect reptile species. The concerns of ownership, such as zoonotic disease, injury to the animal itself, and threats to public safety, are also presented.

Pamela Jo Hatley Feral Cat Colonies in Florida: The Fur and Feathers are Flying

An enormous and growing population of free-roaming cats exists in Florida, posing a threat to the state's native animal species, and creating a serious public health concern. Proponents of trap-neuter-release (TNR) and maintenance of cat colonies have been pressing local governments to enact ordinances to permit establishment and registration of cat colonies in local jurisdictions. But TNR and managing large numbers of cats in colonies does not effectively control cat overpopulation. Additionally, federal and state wildlife laws designed to protect endangered and threatened species conflict with the practice of releasing non-indigenous predators into the wild. An intense public education campaign, together with licensing incentives, animal control laws that enforce high penalties against violators, and other methods of reducing the flow of non-indigenous species into the wild, are essential components to a long-term solution to pet over-population in general, and particularly to cat over-population and the resulting predation on wildlife.

Alicia S Ivory Brief Overview of Chimpanzee Laws

This article briefly covers the main threats to chimpanzee welfare, the tools currently in place to protect them, and suggestions for improving their status.

Alicia S Ivory Overview of Laws Affecting Chimpanzees

This article summarizes international and federal laws affecting chimpanzees.

Angela Nicole Johnson Overview of Wildlife Rehabilitation Laws

This article presents an overview of the laws affecting wildlife rehabilitators. The statutes and regulations of nine states (Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, New York, Maine, North Dakota, Oregon, and Texas) are compared as to requirements for licensing. Legal issues that arise in the practice of rehabilitation are also discussed.

Angela Nicole Johnson Brief Summary of Wildlife Rehabilitation Laws

This article presents a brief summary of the laws affecting wildlife rehabilitators. Wildlife rehabilitators care for orphaned and/or injured wildlife with the goal of returning animals back into their native habitat. Although a rehabilitator’s focus is on the care of wildlife, rehabilitators necessarily spend time complying with local, state, and federal laws, fundraising activities, coordinating volunteers, and educating the public about wildlife.

Angela Nicole Johnson Detailed Discussion of Wildlife Rehabilitation Laws

This paper introduces the role of a wildlife rehabilitator, including the goals of rehabilitation. Section III discusses the permit and licensing requirements of wildlife rehabilitators, including demonstrating competency, preparedness, continuing education requirements, and permit renewals; Section IV addresses facility adequacy and standards of care. Section V discusses the types of wildlife which may be rehabilitated and procedures for non-rehabitable or non-releasable wildlife. Section VI addresses other compliance considerations which are unique to some of the nine states studied. Section VII discusses the non-permit related legal issues that affect wildlife rehabilitators.

Jeffrey S. Kerr, Martina Bernstein, Amanda Schwoerke, Matthew D. Strugar, Jared S. Goodman A SLAVE BY ANY OTHER NAME IS STILL A SLAVE: THE TILIKUM CASE AND APPLICATION OF THE THIRTEENTH AMENDMENT TO NONHUMAN ANIMALS On its face, the Thirteenth Amendment outlaws the conditions and practices of slavery and involuntary servitude wherever they may exist in this country—irrespective of the victim’s race, creed, sex, or species. In 2011, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, on behalf of five wild-captured orcas, sued SeaWorld for enslaving the orcas in violation of the Thirteenth Amendment. The case presented, for the first time, the question of whether the Thirteenth Amendment’s protections can extend to nonhuman animals. This Article examines the lawsuit’s factual, theoretical, and strategic underpinnings, and argues that the district court’s opinion ultimately dismissing the suit failed to address the critical issues that animated this case of first impression: Who “counts” as a legal person for the purposes of law? Is it time to recognize nonhuman animals as legal persons, based on progressing scientific and normative views? What principles underlie the Thirteenth Amendment? When and how does the application of the Constitution expand? Can the meaning of the Constitution evolve to encompass the interests of nonhuman animals? Drawing on the United States Supreme Court’s long history of evolving constitutional interpretation, this Article presents four theories of constitutional change, under which the meanings of “slavery” and “involuntary servitude” are expansive enough to include nonhuman animals. Despite the district court’s decision, the case can be properly viewed as the first step toward the legal recognition that the Thirteenth Amendment protects the rights of nonhuman animals to be free from bondage.
Anthony E. LaCroix Overview of Feral Cat Population Control

This is an overview of issues regarding feral cats. Concerns about feral cat populations include the spread of disease and predation of endangered or protected species of birds. There is disagreement over how best to deal with cat overpopulation.

Matthew G. Liebman Brief Summary of Exotic Pet Laws

This brief summary examines the issues that affect ownership of exotic pets. It also discusses the type of laws that regulate such ownership.

Matthew G. Liebman Detailed Discussion of Exotic Pet Laws

This paper examines state and local statutes and regulations regarding private possession of captive wildlife, or exotic pets. It also discusses the policy and constitutional issues surrounding these regulations.

Matthew G. Liebman Overview of Exotic Pet Laws

This overview examines the pertinent laws that govern ownership of exotic pets. It also discusses the public safety and health issues implicated by exotic pets.

Alyce Miller and Anuj Shah Invented Cages: The Plight of Wild Animals in Captivity

The rate of private possession of wild animals in the United States has escalated in recent years. Laws at the federal, state, and local levels remain woefully inadequate to the task of addressing the treatment and welfare of the animals themselves and many animals “slip through the cracks,” resulting in abuse, neglect, and often death. This article explores numerous facets of problems inherent in the private possession of exotic animals.

Sarah R Morgan Brief Overview of Polar Bears

This article provides a brief overview of the threats facing polar bears.

Stacy A. Nowicki YOU DON’T OWN ME: FERAL DOGS AND THE QUESTION OF OWNERSHIP Feral dogs occupy an ambiguous position, challenging standard categories of domestication, wildness, and property ownership. This ambiguity, in turn, complicates the legal status of feral dogs. Feral dogs’ property status is particularly critical, as whether a feral dog is owned by someone, or no one at all, hold implications not only for civil and criminal liability in incidents involving feral dogs, but also the legal ability of animal rescue organizations to intervene in the lives of feral dogs. Part II of this Article summarizes the application of property law to animals, particularly highlighting the role played by an animal’s status as wild or domestic; Part III explores the factors distinguishing feral dogs from other canines, determining that feral dogs should properly be situated as domestic animals; Part IV discusses the legal landscape relevant to feral dogs, focusing particularly on ownership and liability; and Part V examines the ways in which the property status of feral dogs may impact an animal rescue organization’s ability to care for those animals.
Gianna M. Ravenscroft Overview of Texas Animal Cruelty Laws

This overview of Texas animal cruelty laws summarizes the currently enacted laws, addresses the unique aspects of Texas cruelty laws, mentions current controversies, and introduces the new laws dealing with dangerous wild animals.

Gianna M. Ravenscroft Detailed Discussion of Texas Animal Cruelty Laws

This article provides an in-depth look at the intricacies of Texas animal cruelty laws. Both the criminal and civil statutes are discussed, as is relevant case law. Additionally, this article introduces a new Texas law governing the keeping of dangerous wild animals.

Kaela S. Sculthorpe Ethical Management of Invasive Species The Burmese Python Burmese pythons and other invasive species wreak havoc on local environments and threaten biodiversity globally. Beginning with an overview of the unique challenges posed by the Burmese python in Florida, this article addresses invasive species laws and management that currently exist both in the United States as well as across the globe. The current method for addressing the complications created by the pythons is to capture and destroy them. This process is not the most effective means of addressing biodiversity loss as Burmese python populations are now declining in its native habitat due to overexploitation. The following discussion proposes that these pythons not be captured and killed, but rather humanely captured then released back into its native habitat. This is a logical alternative because (1) capture and release is a more ethical solution and (2) capture and release promotes biodiversity. In addition to managing the current threat of these invasive species, countries must also work to prevent the future growth of unwanted populations. In order to successfully rid South Florida of the Burmese python, while preventing the future spread of invasive species, the laws that allow these invasions to happen must change. This article will explore state and federal controls regarding the management of invasive species as well as offer solutions to strengthening these protections.
Asia Siev Detailed Discussion of the Exotic Pet Trade

I. Introduction

The term ‘exotic pet’ is vague and nebulous. It contains anything from the common parakeet to a Bengal tiger. They are undomesticated, their genetics and traits have not been selectively chosen by humans for millennia like dogs or cats.
Trevor J. Smith BULLHOOKS AND THE LAW: IS PAIN AND SUFFERING THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM? In the United States, violent use of “bullhooks”—sharpened, steel-tipped rods—on captive elephants at carnivals, circuses, and zoos is all too routine. Yet animal-welfare advocates struggle to protect elephants from the (mis)use of bullhooks under the current regulatory regime. At the federal level, advocates cannot consistently rely on either the Animal Welfare Act or the Endangered Species Act, due to these statutes’ narrow provisions, standing limitations, and inconsistent enforcement. State animal-protection laws are equally deficient, as only two states have defined suffering and abuse clearly enough in their statutes to enable effective prosecution of elephant mistreatment, and plaintiffs in even these states frequently fail for lack of standing. Ultimately, the most effective solution to the problem of bullhooks may lie with local lawmaking authorities. Many counties and municipalities have begun to protect captive elephants by enacting ordinances that expressly ban these devices within their jurisdictions. These local laws, which are growing increasingly popular, could offer the most effective protections against elephant abuse to date.
Song Wei China Case Studies: 2. Wolves Escape from a Zoo

A short case study about the killing of wolves that escaped from a zoo in China.

Steven M. Wise, Elizabeth Stein, Monica Miller & Sarah Stone The Power of Municipalities to Enact Legislation Granting Legal Rights to Nonhuman Animals Pursuant to Home Rule This Article broadly explores whether a state’s political subdivisions may exercise home rule jurisdiction to enact ordinances or bylaws that grant a legal right to nonhuman animals. While this Article is not premised on the granting of a specific legal right to a specific species of nonhuman animal, as such a determination will be unique to the particular municipality, it discusses why an ordinance or bylaw that enacted a law granting the right to bodily liberty to appropriate nonhuman animals within its jurisdiction would be upheld if it were challenged.