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I’m going to begin by telling you a little background behind my research in
hopes that it will help explain how I came to some of my conclusions.
Some years ago, I began to wonder how wolfdogs were classified in the State
of Texas. What started out as simple curiosity turned into several years
of earnest research.
Until the early 1990's, one could call Texas A&M and ask questions
concerning health issues pertaining to wolfdogs. Because A&M
considered wolf x dog crosses to be exotic animals, one could call and get free
advice. Then A&M quit answering questions for wolfdog owners.
When I asked why, I was told that wolf x dog crosses were no longer considered
to be an exotic animals. I thought maybe because wolves were once
indigenous to Texas that they did not meet the definition of
"exotic." Later I realized that the reason that A&M
considered them "dogs" and not "exotics" was a very relevant
event.
The species of both the wolf and the dog was
determined in 1993 to be Canis lupis, per the Code of International
Commission on Zoological Nomenclature and the
American Society of Mammalogists.
The Texas Department of Health recognized the changes shortly thereafter.
Texas
Department of Health Letter dated April 21, 1995,
subject: Rabies, quarantine; wolf dog hybrids (this article seems to
acknowledge that wolves and dogs are the same species. Paragraph 2
of said letter states ... The Texas Department of Health has modified its
stance on rabies vaccination of wolf dog hybrids. The species of both
the wolf and the dog was determined in 1993 to be Canis lupis, per the Code of
International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature and the American Society
of Mammalogists...)
During my research, I begin to think that Texas accepted the
federal classification for "wolfdogs" which is:
:
"Hybrid Cross" means an animal resulting
from the Code
of Federal Regulations, Title 9, Chapter 1, Part 1ossbreeding
between two different species or types of animals. Crosses between wild
animal species such as lion and tigers, are considered to be wild animals.
Crosses between wild animal species and domestic animals, such as dogs and
wolves or buffalo and domestic cattle, are considered to be domestic animals.
and
United
States Department of Agriculture Letter dated February 21, 1985
; RE: Clarification of hybrid animal crosses.
Paragraph 2: All hybrid crosses between wild and domestic animals, such as
wolf x dog, cat x Jungle cat, buffalo x domestic cattle, etc., are considered
to be domestic animals. Thus, a wolf x dog cross is considered to be a
dog and must be maintained under the dog standards if it is a regulated
animal.
What seems to confirm that Texas follows the federal
classifications is the wording found in the Texas Statutes:
Health
and Safety Code,
Chapter 822
822.041(3) " Dog
" means a domesticated animal that is a member of the canine
family.
Texas
Administrative Code, Title 25, Chapter 169:
169.22(7) " Dog
" — any canis familiaris, including
hybrid
169.22(8) " Domestic
Animal " — Any animal normally adopted to live in intimate
association with humans or for the advantage of humans.
169.22(4) " Hybrid"
any offspring of two animals of different species.
So after a lot of reading, I was pretty satisfied that in Texas,
wolf x dog crosses are classified as dogs.
BUT THEN Parks & Wildlife gave back regulatory
authority to the counties and municipalities. All at once wolf x dog
crosses were being called "dangerous wild animals" - so it was back to
pulling Statutes. I needed to see if wolf x dog crosses were also
named in the "Dangerous Wild Animal Statutes." Until 2001,
dangerous wild animals were defined as being a lion, tiger, ocelot, cougar,
leopard, cheetah, jaguar, hyena, bear, lesser panda, binturong, wolf, ape,
elephant, and rhinoceros.
When Subchapter E was added tot he
Health & Safety Code, the new statute also included lesser cats, coyotes,
and a number of other animals. Therefore, the Local Government Code had to
be changed in order to comply with the new definitions. Prior to 2001, the
statutes read as follows:
Local
Government Code, Chapter 240, Subchapter A,
240.001 In this subchapter,
" wild animal " means a
nondomestic animal that the commissioners court of a county determines is
dangerous and is in need of control in that county.; and,
240.002(c) In this section " wild
animal " means a lion, tiger, ocelot, cougar, leopard,
cheetah, jaguar, hyena, bear, lesser panda, binturong, wolf, ape, elephant,
and rhinoceros.
Please note that the wording "and their
hybrids" is not included in 240.002(c).
However following the enactment of Subchapter E to the Health and Safety Code
that regulates dangerous wild animals, 240.002(c) was deleted and 240.002
was changed as follows:
§ 240.002. REGULATION.
a) The commissioners court of a county by
order may prohibit or regulate the keeping of a wild animal in the county.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987. Amended by Acts
2001, 77th Leg., ch. 54, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 2001.
That brings us to the new statute passed during 2001 which has proved to be
somewhat bothersome for wolfdogs and a number of lesser cat owners as
well. When the bill was first introduced, it did include wolves on the
list of "dangerous wild animals." However, once it was pointed out
that this would be inclusive of wolfdogs they opted to remove wolves from the
list of dangerous wild animals. The purpose of this statute was to give
the counties more "teeth" in controlling the ownership of
"dangerous wild animals" but was not intended to include the family
dog. The wording " and their hybrids"
needed to be included so that it would cover exotic "wild" crosses
such as ligers (lion x tiger cross).
Because it is illegal to own a pure wolf in the State of Texas, it was
decided that the simplest solution would be to remove wolves from the
list.
Health
& Safety Code:
SUBCHAPTER E. DANGEROUS
WILD ANIMALS
§ 822.101. Definitions
In this subchapter:
(4) " Dangerous
wild animal"
means:
(A) a lion;
(B) a tiger;
(C) an ocelot;
(D) a cougar;
(E) a leopard;
(F) a cheetah;
(G) a jaguar;
(H) a bobcat;
(I) a lynx;
(J) a serval;
(K) a caracal;
(L) a hyena;
(M) a bear;
(N) a coyote;
(O) a jackal;
(P) a baboon;
(Q) a chimpanzee;
(R) an orangutan;
(S) a gorilla; or
(T) any hybrid of an animal listed in this
subdivision.
(5) "Owner" means any person who owns, harbors, or has custody
or control of a dangerous
wild animal.
(6) "Person" means an individual, partnership, corporation,
trust, estate, joint stock company, foundation, or association of
individuals.
(7) "Primary enclosure" means any structure used to immediately
restrict an animal to a limited amount of space, including a cage, pen, run,
room, compartment, or hutch.
There have been several Texas cases concerning wolfdog crosses and their
classification. One such case in Wichita County was ruled in favor
of the wolfdog owner.
Thomas
Bagnetto vs. The City of Wichita Falls.
Another problem faced by wolfdog owners is breed specific ordinances.
Many cities have enacted ordinances against certain breeds of dogs such as
wolfdogs, pit bulls, etc. However, according to the Texas Statutes,
these ordinances are illegal.
Health
& Safety Code
822.047, Local Regulation of Dangerous Dogs
A county may place additional requirements or restrictions on dangerous
dogs if the requirements or restrictions:
(1) are not specific to any breed or several
breeds of dogs;
and
(2) are more stringent than restrictions provided by
this subchapter.
This is further confirmed by a 1993
Attorney General Opinion.
It might also be of benefit to read the Animal
Control Handbook.
When researching laws, Texas
Sources of Information is a great place to start and has links to many
sites concerning regulatory and legislative information.
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