(a)  A certificate of registration may be denied to any pound or animal shelter, rescue, or broker, and a license may be denied to any public auction, kennel, breeder, pet shop, trainer, or dealer or, if granted, the certificate or license may be revoked by the director if, after a hearing, it is determined that the housing facilities and/or primary enclosures are inadequate for the purposes of this chapter or if the feeding, watering, sanitizing, and housing practices at the pound, animal shelter, public auction, pet shop, or kennel are not consistent with the intent of this chapter or with the intent of the rules and regulations that may be promulgated pursuant to the authority of this chapter.

Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-8

  • Animal: means any dog or cat, rabbit, rodent, nonhuman primate, bird or other warm-blooded vertebrate, amphibian, fish, or reptile but shall not include horses, cattle, sheep, goats, swine, and domestic fowl. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Animal shelter: means a brick-and-mortar facility that is used to house or contain animals and that is owned, operated, or maintained by a duly incorporated humane society, animal welfare society, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or other nonprofit organization devoted to the welfare, protection, and humane treatment of animals. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Breeder: means a person engaged in the propagation of purebred or crossbred dogs and/or cats for the purpose of improving and enhancing a breed recognized and registered by the American Kennel Club, American Field Stud Book, a registered cat breed association, or for sale at wholesale or retail, unless otherwise exempted as a hobby breeder as defined below. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Broker: means any third party who arranges, delivers, or otherwise facilitates transfer of ownership of animal(s), through adoption or fostering, from one party to another, whether or not the party receives a fee for providing that service and whether or not the party takes physical possession of the animal(s) at any point. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Dealer: means any person who sells, exchanges, or donates, or offers to sell, exchange, or donate, animals to another dealer, pet shop, or research facility, or who breeds animals for the purpose of selling or donating to another dealer or pet shop or research facility. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Director: means the director of environmental management of the state of Rhode Island. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Kennel: means a place or establishment, other than a pound or animal shelter, or veterinary hospital that is housing animals during their treatment, where animals not owned by the proprietor are sheltered, fed, and watered in return for a fee. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Licensed releasing agency: means any animal shelter, animal-rescue, pound, animal-control officer, or broker that is required to be licensed or registered with the director pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and is so licensed or registered. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Pet shop: means an establishment where animals are bought, sold, exchanged, or offered for sale or exchange to the general public at retail. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Public auction: means any place or location where dogs or cats are sold at auction to the highest bidder regardless of whether those dogs or cats are offered as individuals, as a group, or by weight. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • rescue: means an entity, without a physical brick-and-mortar facility, that is owned, operated, or maintained by a duly incorporated humane society, animal welfare society, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or other nonprofit organization devoted to the welfare, protection, and humane treatment of animals intended for adoption. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2
  • Trainer: means those persons who actively engage in the application of behavior analysis using the environmental events of antecedents and consequences to modify the behavior of an animal, either for the animal to assist in specific activities or undertake particular tasks, or for the animal to participate effectively in contemporary domestic life, and who keep, board, or retain possession of the animal for at least one overnight period, with the exception of those persons engaged in these activities for dog training programs operated by government agencies and for dog training programs operated by a not-for-profit or exempt nonprofit organization pursuant to 26 U. See Rhode Island General Laws 4-19-2

(b)  Upon revocation of a certificate of registration, all animals in the possession of the pound, rescue, broker, or animal shelter must be transferred to another licensed releasing agency for disposition.

(c)  Upon the revocation of a license, all animals in the possession of the public auction, kennel, pet shop, breeder, trainer, or dealer must be disposed of by the former licensee in a manner approved by the department. Such disposition must not be for profit and must occur in a timeframe that is determined by the department. Inspectors from the department or from the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals must have access to the facility where the animals being housed by the former licensee are being held until disposition so that the welfare of said animals can be assured.

History of Section.
P.L. 1972, ch. 46, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 488, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 490, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 447, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 475, §; P.L. 2019, ch. 120, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 145, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 182, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 252, § 1.