Sec. 8-16. Handling of biting animals; responsibility for reporting animal bites; authority to destroy animals.
A. Any dog or cat that bites any person shall be confined and quarantined in a County pound or, upon request of and at the expense of the owner, at a veterinary hospital for a period of not less than seven days. A dog properly licensed and vaccinated pursuant to this article that bites any person may be confined and quarantined at the home of the owner or wherever the dog is harbored and maintained with the consent of and in a manner prescribed by the enforcement agent.
B. Any animal other than a dog or cat that bites any person shall be confined and quarantined in a County pound or, upon the request of and at the expense of the owner, at a veterinary hospital for a period of not less than fourteen days, provided that livestock shall be confined and quarantined for the fourteen-day period in a manner regulated by the Arizona Livestock Board. If the animal is a caged rodent, it may be confined and quarantined at the home of the owner or where it is harbored or maintained, for the required period of time, with the consent of and in a manner prescribed by the enforcement agent.
C. Any wild animal which bites any person may be killed and submitted to the enforcement agent or his deputies for transmission to an appropriate diagnostic laboratory.
D. Whenever an animal bites any person, the incident shall be reported to the enforcement agent immediately by any person having direct knowledge.
E. The County enforcement agent may destroy any animal confined and quarantined pursuant to this section prior to the termination of the minimum confinement period for laboratory examination for rabies if:
1. Such animal shows clear clinical signs of rabies.
2. The owner of such animal consents to its destruction. Any animal subject to licensing under this article found without a tag identifying its owner shall be deemed unknown.
F. Any animal quarantined under the provisions of this section may be impounded and kept beyond the quarantine period pending the resolution of any criminal complaint or petition filed pursuant to section 8-16.01 arising out of or connected with the biting incident, provided that such complaint or petition is filed within thirty days of the biting incident. (Ord. No. G-1872, § 3; Ord. No. G-1909, § 3; Ord. No. G-2932, § 2; Ord. No. G-3224, § 2)
State law reference—Biting animals, A.R.S. § 11-1014.