Summary of Missouri Animal Abandonment Laws
The general idea behind animal abandonment laws is that Missouri does not allow people to purposely or willfully separate their animals from their owners. Any omission or failure to perform an act, such as providing food or shelter to an animal, is considered animal abandonment under the Animal Care Facilities Act . However, causing an agent, employee, or other entity to separate the property owner from his or her animals is also considered animal abandonment, since it is the deliberate exertion of power and control over the animals to deprive the property owner of their right to possess his or her animals. Such acts violate the statute, and are punishable by a Class C misdemeanor (imprisonment for not more than 15 days, fine of not more than $300 or both); each day a violation occurs constitutes a separate offense.
Main Provisions of Missouri Statutes
A holistic understanding of what constitutes animal abandonment under Missouri law requires a close examination of the relevant provisions within Missouri’s statutes. While the current statute in Missouri dealing with abandonment is relatively straightforward, animal abandonment has a rich and complex history.
The concept of abandonment is at the core of Missouri’s animal abandonment statutes. Abandonment is even addressed in Missouri’s Non-Statutory Family Law provisions of the law.
The key provisions of Missouri’s anti-cruelty laws addressing animal abandonment are found in Missouri Revised Statutes sections 578.005 through 578.075, which set out an extensive list of definitions, prohibitions, and potential penalties specifically dealing with animals.
As it relates to animal abandonment, Missouri Revised Statute section 578.205 defines abandoned as: "the relinquishment of a living animal by its owner, whether intentionally, neglectfully, or through an improper or unintentional act or omission." The statute also provides definitions for animal shelter, animal control officer, animal shelter employee or volunteer, caretaker, domestic animal and properly.
Missouri Revised Statute section 578.215 sets forth the general prohibitions and penalties for violations. Any person or persons "who abandon a living animal when the animal has not been exposed to environmental conditions harmful to the animal’s health; or where another living person has, immediately prior to abandonment, assured the person abandoning the animal that the abandoned animal will be cared for" is guilty of a class B misdemeanor if the actor has no prior convictions. This penalty is increased to a class A misdemeanor if the person or persons committing abandonment have a prior conviction. Missouri Revised Statute section 578.225 identifies a number of specific acts relating to the abandonment of domestic bovine animals and horses. Any person who abandons a horse or cattle without making any reasonable effort to notify the owner, is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
Missouri Revised Statute section 578.235 addresses abandonment, neglect, and failure to provide care for "livestock, fowl, or domestic animals." A violation of this section results in penalties that correspond to the number of animals involved with the violation. A person or persons having 10 or fewer animals is guilty of a class B misdemeanor if the animal or animals involved were not injured. If the violation involved the abandonment or neglect of "11 to 24 animals", the person or persons are guilty of a class A misdemeanor. A violation involving the abandonment or neglect of over 24 animals is a class D felony. Additionally, a person or persons do not have to be the owner of the animals in order to be guilty of a violation under this section.
Abandonment Penalties in Missouri
Conviction for violating this statute is a class A misdemeanor, unless the animal is a lion, tiger, bear or venomous snake or is abandoned under circumstances showing extreme indifference to human life. In that case, it’s a class D felony (up to 7 years in prison and up to $10,000 fine). In addition to fines, a person found guilty must pay restitution to the proper authorities for the care and maintenance of the animal or animals or complete community service hours.
Prevention Tips and Community Support
Prevention measures and support: Abandonment laws in Missouri
The Humane Society of Missouri and other organizations also offer support for Missouri residents who are struggling to care for their animals. They foster and offer adoption for animals found wandering at large, picked up by law enforcement, and transferred from other shelters.
Additionally, shelters across Missouri offer low-cost vaccination clinics, discounted spay and neuter programs, and sometimes even financial or meal assistance. Many times, low-cost health services will get animals spayed or neutered and vaccinated so that they can be placed in new homes rather than being left to roam and become stray.
As an animal lover, neglect, abuse, and abandonment hurt me. Nobody wants to see families give up on their pets, but sometimes life and circumstances outside of our control make it difficult or impossible to keep pets. The good news is, several organizations are dedicated to reducing pet homelessness in the United States—and that’s both in the communities and with the shelters. Missouri is lucky to have many shelters doing the right things to prevent unwanted puppies and kittens from being born to begin with.
Reporting Instances of Animal Abandonment
In Missouri, there are various avenues through which suspected animal abandonment can be reported depending on the jurisdiction. For instance, in Kansas City, the KC Pet Project is the principal agency responsible for animal complaints, including abandonment, and operates a 24-hour tip line. In St . Louis, the city’s animal control department should be contacted when evidence of animal abandonment is suspected. Many counties in the state have similar provisions and agencies. Attempting to communicate directly with the suspected owner of the abandoned animal is not a recommended practice, especially if the person suspects the owned of being the source of such abandonment.
Examples and Case Illustrations
One highly publicized case in Missouri involved the rescue of over 100 animals from Trendy Tails Exotics and Antiques in Arnold. In September 2019, a family friend of the couple who ran the shop stopped in and found conditions inside the store to be deplorable. She immediately called the authorities. Upon entering the premises, authorities observed that the 87 adult animals and 25 infants were confined to various enclosures emitting foul odors, that most of the animals were very thin and sickly with untreated illnesses and that many were reportedly covered in their own feces. While animal hoarding is not technically animal abandonment, it is often cited as a reason that an owner gets charged with felony animal abandonment. In this instance, the Missouri courts have not yet ruled on whether the couple is guilty of felonious animal abandonment.
Other high-profile cases in Missouri show what happens when laws are not enforced. One example involves a man who was charged with 375 counts of animal neglect in Lincoln County on October 3, 2018. The charges stemmed from the rescue of at least 11 dogs, 45 cats, two kittens and guinea pigs in August. Officials determined that most of the animals were exhibiting signs of neglect, such as starvation, untreated parasites and fleas, untreated injuries and untreated infections. In December 2018, the case came to trial but the man was given a plea deal and ordered to pay restitution. Then, in July 2019, the man was back in court. This time, he was accused of abandoning 14 animals who were found after he was notified that the city had been ordered to vacate his property where the animals were last seen. While the evidence was not disclosed, the man was found guilty of abandoning the animals and was sentenced to 200 hours of community service, 90 days in the county jail and ordered to pay restitution. The prosecutor in this case stated that the situation had a good outcome, given that the animals had been living in inhumane conditions before the case went to court.
Function of Shelters and Rescues
The role of the Animal Shelter or Rescue Organization in Missouri in dealing with animal abandonment is as a community resource in dealing with these issues and in rescue and adoption of abandoned animals. The local shelter or rescue group may work with local law enforcement, animal control and local officials to provide educational information and programs on the prevention of animal abandonment in Missouri.
Some animal shelters and large rescue organizations in Missouri, like the APA Adoption Center in St. Louis, will take an abandoned animal or, if safe, will pick up the abandoned animal. The local community, local animal control and the shelter will be advised of the dog or cat being picked up and shelter or pick up employees will immediately conduct a visual search for any identification attached to the animal (painted collar, microchip, dog tag, collar with an identification tag, etc.). If an identification is located, it will be made available to the owner and perhaps the animal will be returned without any additional steps and costs.
If no identification is located, the shelter will seek out a foster home or rescue organization that can provide a temporary location for the abandoned animal. Some organizations and shelters may have foster homes and volunteer foster care providers. The Missouri Animal Control Association and the Animal Law Section of the Missouri Bar have developed the Missouri Animal Rescue Directory to help find a rescue group that may be able to take in the abandoned animal.
The shelter or rescue group may place the animal in a holding area for its protection and may request any and all necessary inoculations as required by law or their internal policies. The animal will be held for a period of time, perhaps 5-14 days depending on the policies and procedures of the shelter. During this holding period the policy of the shelter may be to make every effort to locate the animal’s owner, including contacting local animal control, animal shelters, humane societies, rescue groups, veterinarians and animal hospitals in the area . The manager of the shelter may also post the animal on a web page showing the lost and found animals. Any animal that is microchipped will be returned to its owner if its microchip is registered.
After this holding period (which may vary by policy of the specific shelter), any best efforts to locate the owner of the abandoned animal will have been made. The animal may now be put up for adoption and put on the "adoptable pets" web page. If the animal is healthy and there is no reason to believe that the animal is dangerous, the animal may be kept in the shelter. The shelter group will have a surplus of animals that need a home and it will consider your application for adoption. If there are too many animals in the shelter, the abandoned animal may be transferred, perhaps at the mutual consent of both organizations, to a local animal rescue group.
When the shelter or rescue group takes in the abandoned animal to position it for adoption, they do so without knowing the history of the animal or whether it may have been abused, neglected or abandoned. The shelter or rescue group may have to consider the possibility that the animal has been involved in dog fighting or be involved in other criminal activity. Missouri law protects abandoned animals and the shelters and rescue groups that take them in from liability. The Missouri General Assembly held that, under certain circumstances, animals may be abandoned but not all animals are abandoned.
This does not mean that a person who abandons an animal is actually entitled to immunity. Section 578.007.2 provides: "Nothing in this section shall limit the civil or criminal liability of a person for abandonment of an animal. This section is not intended to affect any statute or common law establishing civil or criminal liability for acts of animal abandonment or for the treatment and care of animals." (see Section 578.007.1-2 RSMo, House Bill 545, 97th General Assembly) This also does not apply to abuse and neglect cases under Section 578.008.