Vermont Statutes Title 20 Sec. 3911
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 20 Sec. 3911
- Adequate water: means a constant access to a supply of clean, fresh, potable water provided in a sanitary manner or provided at suitable intervals for the species and not to exceed 24 hours at any interval. See
- Animal shelter: means a facility that is used to house or contain animals and 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
- Fair: means any public or privately operated facility where animals are confined for the purpose of display or sale, or both, or for viewing. See
- Person: means any individual, partnership, firm, joint stock company, corporation, association, trust, estate, or other legal entity. See
- Pet shop: means a place of retail or wholesale business, including a flea market, that is not part of a private dwelling, where cats, dogs, wolf-hybrids, rabbits, rodents, birds, fish, reptiles, or other vertebrates are maintained or displayed for the purpose of sale or exchange to the general public. See
- Public auction: means any place or establishment where dogs or cats are sold at auction to the highest bidder, whether individually, as a group, or by weight. See
- Rescue organization: means any organization that accepts more than five animals in a calendar year for the purpose of finding adoptive homes for the animals. See
- Secretary: means the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets. See
§ 3911. Penalties
(a) Any person licensed or registered under this chapter who fails to provide animals under the person’s care or custody with adequate food or adequate water, as defined in section 3901 of this title, or who fails to house animals in the person’s care or custody in a manner that is adequate for their welfare, shall be fined not more than $500.00.
(b) Any person who operates a fair or public auction or who transacts business as a pet shop, animal shelter, or rescue organization without being duly licensed or without possessing a proper certificate of registration, as the case may be, as required under this chapter, or who violates any provision of this chapter or of any rule lawfully adopted under its authority for which no other penalty is provided shall be fined not more than $300.00 or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both.
(c) The Secretary may assess administrative penalties under 6 V.S.A. §§ 15–17, not to exceed $1,000.00, for violations of this chapter. (Added 1971, No. 27, § 5, eff. March 24, 1971; amended 1993, No. 51, § 4; 1997, No. 130 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003; 2009, No. 158 (Adj. Sess.), § 14; 2013, No. 30, § 6.)