When used in this chapter, the following words and terms, unless the context indicates a different meaning, shall be interpreted as follows:
means to cease to support, care for or look after an animal without making reasonable arrangements for assumption of custody and care by another person.
means a dog that, while at large:
means any nonhuman vertebrate.
means any spectacle, display, act or event in which animals are used.
means equipment, products, implements, or materials of any kind that are used, intended for use, or designed for use in the training, preparation, conditioning, or furtherance of animal fighting. This includes, but is not limited to, cat mills, fighting pits, sparring muffs, springpoles, flirt poles and tables, and mounting blocks; unprescribed veterinary medicines and treatment supplies; descriptive materials and instructions for conditioning and use of implements; and gaffs, slashers, heels, and any other sharp implement designed to be attached in place of the natural spur of a cock or game fowl.
means a minimum of two (2) separate recorded noise events within a period of twenty-four (24) hours where the animal can be heard continuously for a twenty-minute period of time, at least one hundred (100) yards away or behind the wall of a structure used for human habitation.
means the city-operated division for the purpose of animal care, control, and enforcement of this chapter.
means the manager of animal services or his/her designated representative.
means an employee of animal services, who meets all of the requirements to be an animal control officer, as defined and described in the Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 829, to act as the animal control authority under state law and to help carry out and enforce the provisions of this chapter.
means any animal not confined by some physical means of sufficient height, strength, length, and/or manner of construction to preclude the animal from leaving the premises of the owner; or any animal which is not physically and continually restrained by some person, by means of a leash or chain of proper strength and length to preclude the animal from making unsolicited contact with any person, their clothing, their property, and/or their premises.
means all life stages of the common domestic honeybee, Apis mellifera species.
means a person who owns, maintains or possesses one (1) or more colonies of bees.
means a cut, wound or tear caused by contact with teeth which breaks the skin.
means any damage to the physical condition of an animal or person, including but not limited to physical harm, illness or injury.
means the mating of animals and production of offspring.
means the only domesticated species of the family Felidae, Felis catus, and which is not a hybrid of Felis catus and another feline species.
means all breeds of Gallus gallus domesticus, a common domesticated fowl widely kept for meat and eggs.
means the City of Irving, Texas.
means the Irving Animal Care Campus, a city-owned and operated facility established for the impoundment, quarantine, care, adoption, euthanasia, and other disposition of animals.
means an aggregate of bees consisting principally of workers with one (1) queen and many drones, including brood, combs, honey and the receptacle inhabited by the bees.
means any pet shop, animal auction, riding school or stable, zoological park, circus, recurring animal exhibition or commercial kennel.
means an animal kept for pleasure rather than utility, of a species that has been bred and raised to live in or about the habitation of humans, and is dependent on people for food and shelter. The term specifically includes, but is not limited to, dogs, cats, canaries, parakeets, parrots, cockatiels and other birds commonly maintained in households in cages, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, rabbits and ferrets. For purposes of this chapter, neither "livestock," "domestic fowl," "chickens," nor "wild animal" as defined herein shall be considered a companion animal.
means to restrict an animal to an area, effectively preventing the animal from being free to roam or run at large.
means causing or permitting unjustified or unwarranted pain or suffering.
means vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian, with a rabies vaccine licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for that species, at or after the minimum age requirement and using the recommended route of administration for the vaccine, and:
At least thirty (30) days have elapsed since the initial vaccination; and
Not more than twelve (12) months have elapsed since the animal's most recent vaccination date, if the most recent vaccination was with a one-year rabies vaccine or was the animal's initial vaccination; or
Not more than thirty-six (36) months have elapsed since the animal's most recent vaccination date, if the most recent vaccination was with a three-year rabies vaccine and the animal is a dog or cat that has received at least two (2) vaccinations.
means responsibility for the health, safety, and welfare of an animal subject to the person's care and control, regardless of ownership of the animal.
means a dog that:
Makes an unprovoked attack on a person that causes bodily injury and occurs in a place other than an enclosure in which the dog was being kept and that was reasonably certain to prevent the dog from leaving the enclosure on its own; or
Commits unprovoked acts in a place other than an enclosure in which the dog was being kept and that was reasonably certain to prevent the dog from leaving the enclosure on its own and those acts cause a person to reasonably believe that the dog will attack and cause bodily injury to that person; or
Has previously been declared a dangerous dog, as defined by Texas Health and Safety Code, Title 10, § 822.041(2), by an animal control authority, municipal court, justice court or county court.
means the animal services division.
means the provisional assumption of ownership for the purposes of administering preventative immunizations and treatment including emergency euthanasia in the event of suffering during an animal's stray hold period at an impound facility.
means near enough to the animal to exercise physical control over the animal in the event it should become necessary to do so to protect the animal, a human, or another animal from harm.
means the only domesticated species of the family Canidae, Canis familiaris, and which is not a hybrid of Canis familiaris and another canine species.
means the Irving Dog Park, or a public park designed for dogs to exercise and play off leash in a controlled environment under the supervision of their owners or keepers, which is enclosed to prevent the dogs from running at large.
means any animal normally adapted to live in intimate association with humans, or for the advantage of humans, which is commonly and universally accepted as being domesticated, including companion animals and livestock.
means birds kept for the purpose of meat production, egg laying or purely for ornament or show, including but not limited to peacocks, guineafowl, ducks, geese, turkeys, partridges and pigeons, and excludes chickens for the purposes of this chapter.
means to cause the death of an animal implementing a technique that is in accordance with the methods, recommendations, and procedures prepared by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and set forth in the latest edition of the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals.
means living in a wild state but descended from a domesticated animal.
means the only domesticated species of the family Mustelidae, Mustela putorius furo.
means to provide care for, sustenance, shelter, refuge, or to exercise custody or control over a domestic animal. Harbor does not include providing assistance in an emergency to an injured or ill animal.
means a female chicken.
means an animal which has a high probability of transmitting rabies. Such animals include skunks, bats, foxes, coyotes, and raccoons.
means an animal trap designed to capture animals without a holding mechanism, to capture the animals alive without causing trauma, injury or death.
means the collecting and confining of an animal by a government entity or government contractor pursuant to a state or local ordinance.
means any person holding, caring for, having an interest in, or having control or custody of an animal.
means a veterinarian licensed by the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.
means any farm animal regarded as an asset, including cattle, horses, ponies, mules, donkeys, hinnies, sheep, goats, llamas, alpacas, swine, and exotic livestock as defined by Agriculture Code Section 142.001, as amended.
means an animal which has a low probability of transmitting rabies. Such animals include all animals of the orders Didelphimorphia, Insectivora, Rodentia, Lagomorpha, and Xenarthra.
means a passive electronic device that is injected into an animal which contains a unique number. The microchip can be read by an electronic scanning device for purposes of animal identification.
means a domesticated pot-bellied pig, not exceeding one hundred fifty (150) pounds in weight and twenty (20) inches in height measured at the highest point of the front shoulder when fully grown, which includes several subspecies of the family Suidae, Sus scrofa.
means the city municipal court(s) of record.
means the time following a potential rabies exposure during which the health status of the animal responsible for the potential exposure must be monitored. The observation period for dogs, cats, and domestic ferrets is ten (10) days (two hundred forty (240) hours); the observation period for other animals, not including those defined as high risk, unless otherwise specified in the Texas Administrative Code, Title 25, §169.27, or a low-risk animal, is thirty (30) days. All observation periods are calculated from the time of the potential exposure. A potential exposure is an incident in which an animal has bitten a human or in which there is probable cause to believe that an animal has otherwise exposed a human to rabies.
means a person who owns, harbors, keeps, shelters, maintains or has permanent or temporary custody or control of an animal.
means an individual or group of individuals acting in concert, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, firm, foundation, or other legal entity.
means a business establishment where animals including dogs, cats, fish, birds, reptiles, or rodents are kept for sale or commercial barter.
means a substance that is capable of causing illness or death of a living organism if introduced or absorbed.
means a sworn employee of the Irving Police Department.
means an animal used by a trained law enforcement handler that is specifically trained for law enforcement, corrections, prison or jail security, or investigative purposes.
means a collar or harness that:
means the impoundment of an animal:
means a strict isolation and physical confinement imposed to prevent the spread of disease.
means any ostrich, rhea, emu, cassowary, or kiwi.
means the act of recording or entering information on an official list.
means a male chicken.
means contact with claws or nails that breaks the skin.
means a fenced area or structure that is:
Locked; and
Capable of preventing the entry of the general public, including children; and
Capable of preventing the escape or release of a dog; and
Clearly marked as containing a dangerous or aggressive dog as applicable; and
Enclosed by a secure top and sides with a solid bottom or, constructed in such a manner which would prevent the animal from tunneling under the enclosure and escaping; and
In conformance with the requirements for enclosures established by the animal services manager or by this chapter.
means an injury characterized by severe bite wounds or severe ripping and tearing of muscle that would cause a reasonably prudent person to seek treatment from a medical professional and would require hospitalization without regard to whether the person actually sought medical treatment.
means a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks directly related to a disability for a person with disabilities, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §12101, as amended. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support are not considered service animals under the ADA.
means rendered permanently incapable of reproduction by means approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association.
means a domestic animal which is found to be at large within the city.
means any of various stout-bodied, short-legged omnivorous artiodactyl mammals of the Suborder Suina, including pigs, hogs and boars.
means any act that causes unjustifiable pain or suffering.
means a device consisting of a horizontal cable, line, rope or chain attached to two (2) or more stationary objects, and designed or adapted for use with a tether that attaches to a dog's collar or harness.
means any animal for which an owner has not been identified.
means an act of physical force by an animal resulting in bodily injury that is not:
means inoculated with a substance used to stimulate the production of antibodies and provide immunity against one (1) or several diseases.
means capable of injecting venom by means of a bite or sting.
means all species of animals that have not been domesticated and usually live in a natural environment, regardless of state or duration of captivity. The term includes, but is not limited to:
A "dangerous wild animal" as that term is defined in Texas Health and Safety Code, Title 10, § 822.101, as amended; and
A margay, badger, elephant, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, non-human primate, crocodile, alligator, caiman, gavial, raptor, marsupial; and
Any venomous animal; and
Any non-venomous snake longer than six (6) feet; and
Any member of the genus Canis including wolf, hybrid wolf, coyote, jackal or fox, and similar species except Canis familiaris; and
Any member of the genus Felis including leopard, lion, panther, tiger, lynx, bobcat, cheetah, ocelot, margay, jaguarundi, and any similar species except Felis domesticus; and
Any mustelid other than the domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo); and
Any skunk, raccoon, opossum, armadillo or squirrel; and
Any hybrid of a wild animal.
means any facility, other than a pet shop or commercial boarding kennel, displaying or exhibiting one (1) or more species of non-domesticated animals, operated by a person, partnership, corporation or government agency.
(Ordinance 2021-10468, § 2, adopted 7/22/2021)