Control of Movement of Animals Law, 2000

CONTROL OF MOVEMENT OF ANIMALS LAW, 2000

1. Citation and commencement. This Law may be cited as the Control of Movement of Animals Law, 2000 and shall come into force on the 12th day of July, 2000.

2. Interpretation. In this Law- "animal" means cattle, horse, sheep, swine, pig, goat or the young of these animals; "council" means a Local Government Council established within sections 7, 8 and Part I of the First Schedule of the 1999 Constitution; "court" includes a customary court; "damage" includes the destruction of property or the injury to a person; "Governor" means the Governor of Delta State of Nigeria; "impound" means to take and confine in an area or place appointed by the Council to be a pound; "owner" means a person having a possessory right to an animal who has it in his care or acts as its custodian or who knowingly permits it to remain in any premises occupied by him; "poundmaster" means a person appointed by the Council to take charge of a pound.

3. Straying of animals prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any animal to run at large or stray at public places or farms.

4. Grazing ground. There shall be delineated grazing grounds for animals that need pasture.

5. Penalty. (1) Any owner who allows any animal to stray or run at large shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be liable to a fine of two thousand naira. (2) The herding of any animal upon any land, whether enclosed or otherwise, without the consent of the owner shall be deemed to be limning at large or straying under this Law.

6. Establishment of security post. There shall be established for the State, security outposts over the entire delineated grazing ground for the protection of farmlands.

7. Establishment of pound. Every Council shall establish pounds within its area of jurisdiction and appoint poundmasters whose fees and other charges shall be fixed by the Council.

8. Duty of the poundmaster. A poundmaster shall- (a) have the power to dispose of any straying animal on behalf of the Council; (b) take periodic statistics of strayed animals.

9. Impounding of stray animals. (1) From the date of commencement of this Law, any animal found running at large or straying shall be apprehended and impounded. (2) (a) Where an animal is apprehended and impounded in accordance with this Law by a poundmaster, he shall exercise his power under section 8 of this Law if the owner or Keeper is known; (b) if the owner is unknown the animal may be kept and disposed of in accordance with any by-laws of the Council relating to animals, or where there is no such by-laws at the direction of the Council; or (c) if the animal is apprehended by a person other than the poundmaster, such Person shall take the animal to the poundmaster who shall deal with same in accordance with paragraph (a) of this subsection. (3) Nothing in subsection (2) of this section shall be construed as precluding a Council from charging and collecting from the owner or keeper the expenses incurred by the Council in keeping an animal in the pound as may be prescribed by the by-laws of the Council or as may be determined by the Council.

10. Liability for damage and expenses due to trespassing animals. (a) Where an animal belonging to or under the control or custody of any person strays on to the land in possession or occupation of another without being impounded and damage is done by such animal to the land or to property on it which is in the ownership or possession of another person; or (b) any expense is reasonably incurred by that other person in keeping the animal while it cannot be restored to the owner or while it is detained pursuant to section 9 of this Law or while taking or arranging to take the animal to the poundmaster, the owner of the animal shall be liable for the damage and expenses, except as otherwise provided by this Law.

11. Detention and safety of trespassing animals. (1) Notwithstanding section 10 of this Law, where any animal strays on to any land whether or not the animal is lawfully on the highway by virtue of any law and damage is caused to the property thereon, the occupier of the land may detain it subject to subsection (3) of this section unless and until otherwise ordered by a court of law. (2) Where any animal is detained pursuant to this section, the right to detain it ceases at the end of a period of forty-eight hours unless within that period, notice of the detention has been given to the poundmaster or to the police when such amount is paid to the person detaining the animal by the owner as is sufficient to satisfy any claim he may have under section 18 of this Law in respect of any damage done, or if he has no such claim when the animal is claimed by a person entitled to its possession. (3) Where any animal has been detained in pursuance of this section for a period of not less than three days, the person detaining it may sell it at the market or by public auction unless proceedings are then pending for the return of the animal or for any claim under section 16 of this Law in respect thereof. (4) Where any animal is sold in the exercise of the right conferred by this section, the proceeds of such sale shall be paid into the Council treasury and shall be issued with a certificate of sale. (5) A person detaining any animal pursuant to this section shall be liable for any damage caused to it by failure to treat it with reasonable care and supply it with adequate food and water while it is so detained.

12. Duty to take care to prevent damage from animals straying on highway. Where damage is caused by an animal straying from unfenced land to a highway, a person who placed the animal on the land shall not be regarded as having committed a breach of duty to take care by reason only of placing them there if- (a) the land is common land or it is land situated in an area where fencing is not customary or is a town or village green; and (b) he had a right to place the animals on that land.

13. Keeper of animal. (1) A person is a keeper of an animal if- (a) he owns the animal or has it in his possession; or (b) he is the head of a Household of which a member under the age of sixteen owns the animal or has it in his possession. (2) Where an animal is taken into and kept in possession for the purpose of preventing it from causing damage and restoring it to its owner, a person is not a keeper of it by virtue only of that possession.