Revised
August, 2003
Administration: These statutes are for informational purposes.
Revisions: These statutes were last revised in the 2003 session of the Nebraska Legislature.
Rules: The Department of Agriculture has no authority to promulgate regulations under these statutes.
28-1008 Terms, defined.
28-1009 Abandonment; cruelty; harassment of a police animal;
penalty.
28-1010 Indecency with an animal; penalty.
28-1011 Violations; liability for expenses.
28-1012 Law enforcement officer; powers; immunity; seizure;
court powers.
28-1013 Sections; exemptions.
28-1014 Local regulation; authorized.
28-1015 Ownership by child; applicability of
penalties.
28-1016 Game and Parks Commission; Game Law; sections,
how construed.
28-1017 Animal abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel
mistreatment; report required by certain employees; violation; penalty.
(2) Animal means any vertebrate member of the animal kingdom. The term does not
include an uncaptured wild creature;
(3) Cruelly mistreat means to knowingly and intentionally kill, maim, disfigure, torture,
beat, mutilate, burn, scald, or otherwise inflict harm upon any animal;
(4) Cruelly neglect means to fail to provide any animal in one's care, whether as owner or
custodian, with food, water, or other care as is reasonably necessary for the animal's health;
(5) Humane killing means the destruction of an animal by a method which causes the
animal a minimum of pain and suffering;
(6) Law enforcement officer means any member of the Nebraska State Patrol, any county
or deputy sheriff, any member of the police force of any city or village, or any other public
official authorized by a city or village to enforce state or local animal control laws, rules,
regulations, or ordinances; and
(7) Police animal means a horse or dog owned or controlled by the State of Nebraska for
the purpose of assisting a Nebraska state trooper in the performance of his or her official
enforcement duties.
28-1009 Abandonment; cruelty; harassment of a police animal;
penalty.
(2)
(b) A person who cruelly mistreats an animal is guilty of a Class IV felony if such cruel
mistreatment involves the knowing and intentional torture, repeated beating, or mutilation of the
animal.
28-1010 Indecency with an animal; penalty. A
person commits indecency with an animal when such person subjects an animal to sexual
penetration as defined in subdivision (6) of section 28-318. Indecency with an animal is a Class
III misdemeanor.
28-1011 Violations; liability for expenses.
(2) Even if reimbursement for expenses is not ordered under subsection (1) of this
section, the defendant shall be liable for all expenses incurred by a public or private agency in
conjunction with the care, impoundment, or disposal of an animal. The expenses shall be a lien
upon the animal.
28-1012 Law enforcement officer; powers; immunity; seizure; court
powers.
(2) Any law enforcement officer who has reason to believe that an animal has been
abandoned or is being cruelly neglected or cruelly mistreated may issue a citation to the owner as
prescribed in sections 29-422 to 29-429.
(3) Any animal, equipment, device, or other property or things involved in a violation of
section 28-1009 or 28-1010 shall be subject to seizure and distribution or disposition may be
made in such manner as the court may direct.
(4) Any animal involved in a violation of section 28-1009 or 28-1010 shall be subject to
seizure. Distribution or disposition may be made in such manner as the court may direct. The
court may consider adoption alternatives through humane societies or comparable institutions
and the protection of such animal's welfare. For a humane society or comparable institution to be
considered as an adoption alternative under this subsection, it must first be licensed by the
Department of Agriculture as having passed the inspection requirements in the Commercial Dog
and Cat Operator Inspection Act and paid the fee for inspection under the act. The court may
prohibit an adopting or purchasing party from selling such animal for a period not to exceed one
year.
(5) Any law enforcement officer acting under this section shall not be liable for damage
to property if such damage is not the result of the officer's negligence.
28-1013 Sections; exemptions. Sections 28-1008 to
28-1017 shall not apply to:
(2) Commonly accepted care or treatment of a police animal by a law enforcement officer
in the normal course of his or her duties;
(3) Research activity carried on by any research facility currently meeting the standards of
the federal Animal Welfare Act, 7 U.S.C. 2131 et seq., as such act existed on January 1, 2003;
(4) Commonly accepted practices of hunting, fishing, or trapping;
(5) Commonly accepted practices occurring in conjunction with rodeos, animal racing, or
pulling contests;
(6) Humane killing of an animal by the owner or by his or her agent or a veterinarian
upon the owner's request;
(7) Commonly accepted practices of animal husbandry with respect to farm animals,
including their transport from one location to another and nonnegligent actions taken by
personnel or agents of the Nebraska Department of Agriculture or the United States Department
of Agriculture in the performance of duties prescribed by law;
(8) Use of reasonable force against an animal, other than a police animal, which is
working, including killing, capture, or restraint, if the animal is outside the owned or rented
property of its owner or custodian and is injuring or posing an immediate threat to any person or
other animal;
(9) Killing of house or garden pests;
(10) Commonly followed practices occurring in conjunction with the slaughter of animals
for food or byproducts; and
(11) Commonly accepted animal training practices.
28-1014 Local regulation; authorized. Any city,
village, or county may adopt and promulgate rules, regulations, and ordinances which are not
inconsistent with the provisions of sections 28-1008 to 28-1017 for the protection of the public,
public health, and animals within its jurisdiction.
28-1015 Ownership by child; applicability of penalties.
When an animal is owned by a minor child, the parent of such minor child with whom
the child resides or legal guardian with whom the child resides shall be subject to the penalties
provided under sections 28-1008 to 28-1017 if the animal is abandoned or cruelly neglected.
28-1016 Game and Parks Commission; Game Law; sections, how
construed. Nothing in sections 28-1008 to 28-1017 shall be construed as
amending or changing the authority of the Game and Parks Commission as established in the
Game Law or to prohibit any conduct authorized or permitted by such law.
28-1017 Animal abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel mistreatment;
report required by certain employees; violation; penalty.
(b) Employee means any employee of an agency relating to a governmental child or adult
protective services, animal control, or animal abuse.
(3) The report shall be made within two working days of acquiring the information
concerning the animal by facsimile transmission of a written report presented in the form
described in subsection (6) of this section or by telephone. When an immediate response is
necessary to protect the health and safety of the animal or others, the report shall be made by
telephone as soon as possible.
(4) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose a duty to investigate observed or
reasonably suspected animal abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel mistreatment. Any person
making a report under this section is immune from liability except for false statements of fact
made with malicious intent.
(5) Reports made pursuant to this section shall include:
(b) The name, if known, of the animal owner or custodian, whether a business or
individual;
(c) A description of the animal or animals involved, person or persons involved, and
location of the animal or animals and the premises; and
(d) The date, time, and a description of the observation or incident which led the reporter
to reasonably suspect animal abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel mistreatment and any other
information the reporter believes may be relevant.
(7) When two or more employees jointly have observed or reasonably suspected animal
abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel mistreatment and there is agreement between or among
them, a report may be made by one person by mutual agreement. Any reporter who has
knowledge that the person designated to report has failed to do so shall thereafter make the
report.
(8) Any employee failing to report under this section shall be guilty of an infraction.
28-1008 Terms, defined. For purposes of sections
28-1008 to 28-1017:
(1) Abandon means to leave any animal for any length of time without making effective
provision for its food, water, or other care as is reasonably necessary for the animal's health;
(1) A person who abandons or cruelly neglects an animal is guilty of a Class I misdemeanor.
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b) of this subsection, a person who cruelly
mistreats an animal is guilty of a Class I misdemeanor for the first offense and a Class IV felony
for any subsequent offense.
(3) A person commits harassment of a police animal if he or she knowingly and
intentionally teases or harasses a police animal in order to distract, agitate, or harm the police
animal for the purpose of preventing such animal from performing its legitimate official duties.
Harassment of a police animal is a Class IV misdemeanor unless the harassment is the proximate
cause of the death of the police animal, in which case it is a Class IV felony.
(1) In addition to any other sentence given for a violation of section 28-1009 or 28-1010, the
sentencing court may order the defendant to reimburse a public or private agency for expenses
incurred in conjunction with the care, impoundment, or disposal of an animal involved in the
violation of such section. Whenever the court believes that such reimbursement may be a proper
sentence or the prosecuting attorney requests, the court shall order that the presentence
investigation report include documentation regarding the nature and amount of the expenses
incurred. The court may order that reimbursement be made immediately, in specified
installments, or within a specified period of time, not to exceed five years after the date of
judgment.
(1) Any law enforcement officer who has reason to believe that an animal has been abandoned or
is being cruelly neglected or cruelly mistreated may seek a warrant authorizing entry upon private
property to inspect, care for, or impound the animal.
(1) Care or treatment of an animal by a veterinarian licensed under the Nebraska Veterinary
Practice Act;
(1) For purposes of this section:
(a) Reasonably suspects means a basis for reporting knowledge or a set of facts that
would lead a person of ordinary care and prudence to believe and conscientiously entertain a
strong suspicion that criminal activity is at hand or that a crime has been committed; and
(2) Any employee, while acting in his or her professional capacity or within the scope of
his or her employment, who observes or is involved in an incident which leads the employee to
reasonably suspect that an animal has been abandoned, cruelly neglected, or cruelly mistreated
shall report such to the entity or entities that investigate such reports in that jurisdiction.
(a) The reporter's name and title, business address, and telephone number;
(6) Reports made pursuant to this section may be made on preprinted forms prepared by
the entity or entities that investigate reports of animal abandonment, cruel neglect, or cruel
mistreatment in that jurisdiction. The form shall include space for the information required
under subsection (5) of this section.