Rhode Island

Summary: This Rhode Island statute provides that 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 not less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than two hundred dollars.  The investigation must prove that the dog was off the owner's property or that the assault was the result of owner negligence.  It further provides that, in the city of Woonsocket, an owner shall not be declared negligent if an injury is sustained by a person who was committing a trespass or other tort upon the owner's premises or was teasing, tormenting, provoking, abusing or assaulting the dog or was committing or attempting to commit a crime.

Summary: These Rhode Island statutes comprise the state's anti-cruelty and animal fighting provisions.  The cruelty law provides that whoever overdrives, overloads, overworks, tortures, torments, deprives of necessary sustenance, or cruelly beats, mutilates or kills any animal , is subject to imprisonment up to 11 months, or a fine of $50.00 - $500, or both.  The intentional cruelty provision expands the penalty to 2 years possible imprisonment or a fine of $1,000, or both.

Summary: This Rhode Island chapter of laws was enacted to to prohibit the confinement of calves raised for veal and sows during gestation, subject to exceptions. It becomes effective June 19, 2013.

Summary: These laws mandate how fur-bearing mammals may be hunted and trapped, and the issuance of trapping licenses. In order to set traps for fur-bearers, a person must have a trapping license from the department of environmental management. Steel jawed leghold traps are not allowed with some exceptions, A violation may result in a fine and/or imprisonment, and the revocation of the trapping license.

Summary: This law reflects Rhode Island's hunter harassment law. The law provides that no person shall obstruct or interfere with the lawful taking of wildlife by another person at the location where the activity is taking place with intent to prevent the lawful taking. The language states that the listed actions must be done intentionally or knowingly. Violation results in a "civil violation" with a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more $500.

Summary: The following statutes comprise the state's relevant assistance/service animal laws.

Summary: These Rhode Island section is entitled the "Cat Identification Program."  Under this law, cats are required to display some form of identification (tag, tattoo, etc.) in an effort to reduce the feral/stray cat problem.  The law reduces the retention period for cats impounded without some form of identification.

Summary: This Rhode Island statute requires poultry be shipped in sanitary, warm, and ventilated containers.

Summary: These Rhode Island statutes set out the legislative policy and definitions related to state endangered species law, including the definition of "animal" and what constitutes an "endangered species."  By statute commerce is strictly prohibited, as it it illegal to "buy, sell, offer for sale, store, transport, import, export, or otherwise traffic in any animal or plant or any part of any animal or plant whether living, dead, processed, manufactured, preserved, or raw if the animal or plant has been declared to be an endangered species by either the United States secretaries of the interior or commerce or the director of the Rhode Island department of environmental management."  Violation of the Act results in fines from $500-5,000 or up to one year imprisonment, or both.

Summary: A collection of the laws concerning cruelty to animals from Rhode Island for the years 1857-1872.  The act covers such topics as bird fighting, cruelty to animals, enforcement of the act, and  procedural issues concerning the act.