SB871: Bill Text

LRB-4621/1

KP:amn

2019 - 2020 LEGISLATURE

2019 Senate BILL 871

February 28, 2020 - Introduced by Senators Shilling, Bewley, Hansen, Wanggaard, Carpenter and L. Taylor, cosponsored by Representatives Billings, Doyle, Emerson, Stubbs, C. Taylor, Sinicki, Cabrera and Bowen. Referred to Committee on Insurance, Financial Services, Government Oversight and Courts.

SB871,1,2 An Act to amend 174.02 (3) (a) 1.; and to create 174.001 (6) of the statutes; relating to: the requirements for a court order to kill a dog.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill modifies the situations under which a court may grant a judgment for an order to kill a dog. Current law authorizes a court to grant a judgment for an order to kill a dog if the court makes the following findings: 1) the dog caused serious injury without reasonable cause to a person or domestic animal on two separate occasions off the dog owner's property; and 2) the dog's owner was notified or knew before the second injury that the dog caused the first injury.

Under the bill, a court may not count an occasion in which a dog causes serious injury if the occasion involves a veterinarian or professional animal care worker who believes that the dog was not behaving aggressively when the dog caused the injury.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB871,1 Section 1 . 174.001 (6) of the statutes is created to read:

SB871,2,2 174.001 (6) “Professional animal care worker” means a person who provides a service to a domestic animal off of the domestic animal owner's property, including training, grooming, day care, and boarding, but does not include a veterinarian or a person employed by a dog breeder, as defined in s. 173.41 (1) (c), or dog dealer, as defined in s. 173.41 (1) (e).

SB871,2 Section 2 . 174.02 (3) (a) 1. of the statutes is amended to read:

SB871,2,8 174.02 (3) (a) 1. The dog caused serious injury to a person or domestic animal on 2 separate occasions off the owner's property, without reasonable cause. The court may not count an occasion under this subdivision if the occasion involves a veterinarian or professional animal care worker who believes that the dog was not behaving aggressively when the dog caused the serious injury.

SB871,2,9 (End)