Mauritius
Animal Welfare Act
Act 19 of 2013
- Commenced on 30 October 2013
- [This is the version of this document at 30 June 2017.]
Part I – Preliminary
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Animal Welfare Act.2. Interpretation
In this Act—"adult dog" means a dog which is more than 18 months old;"animal" means a living vertebrate, other than a human being;"attack" includes to behave in such a manner as to cause an apprehension of being attacked;"authorised officer" means a public officer designated as such by the supervising officer under section 4;“Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the Council designated under section 15;"Council" means the Council referred to in section 15;"dangerous dog" means a dog of a breed, kind or description listed in the First Schedule;"Director" means the Director of the Society appointed under section 18;"dispose of" means to sell, euthanise, exchange or give away for adoption or as gift;"dog" means a dog of any age or sex;"dog breeder" means a person referred to in section 36 (2);"dog show" includes a—(a)companion dog show;(b)championship dog show;(c)single breed open dog show;(d)dog show within a circus;"domestic animal"—(a)means an animal kept by, or living close to, a human being, which is—(i)dependent on the human being for its care and sustenance; or(ii)kept by the human being in a state of captivity;(b)includes—(i)a bird or reptile kept as a domestic pet;(ii)a dog kept by the police or Customs authorities, the Mauritius Prisons Service, a person issued with a license to operate a private security service under the Private Security Service Act, or the National Parks and Conservation Service or an officer of that department; and(iii)any other animal kept by a person for commercial or recreational purposes, or a person's occupation or employment;"domestic pet" means a domestic animal, other than an animal kept by a person for commercial or recreational purposes or a person's occupation or employment;"DVS" means the Division of Veterinary Services of the Ministry;"euthanasia" means painless killing of an animal carried out by a veterinary surgeon;"experiment" means any experiment performed on an animal and calculated not to give pain;"license" means a license issued under section 8;"member", in relation to the Society, means—(a)a life member; or(b)an ordinary member;"Minister" means the Minister to whom responsibility for the subject of agriculture is assigned;"neuter", in relation to a dog—(a)means to spay or castrate; but(b)does not include to vasectomies;"officer"—(a)means a person appointed as such under section 19; and(b)includes the Director;"owner", in relation to an animal—(a)means a person aged 16 or more who—(i)owns the animal; or(ii)is in charge of the animal; and(b)includes—(i)the registered owner of the animal; or(ii)the parent or guardian of a minor under the age of 16 who owns or is in charge of the animal; but(c)does not include a person who has impounded or seized the animal under this Act;"pedigree certificate", in relation to an animal, means a certificate containing genealogical information indicating the ancestral line of descent of the animal;"protected wildlife" has the same meaning as in the Wildlife and National Parks Act;"protection order" means an order referred to in section 6;"public place"—(a)means a road or other place, whether enclosed or not, to which any person is permitted to have access, whether against payment or otherwise; and(b)includes the common parts of a building containing 2 or more separate apartments;"road" has the same meaning as in the Road Traffic Act;“Society” means the Mauritius Society for Animal Welfare established under section 12;"stray", in relation to an animal, means to be at large and not under the control or charge of any person;"supervising officer" means the supervising officer of the Ministry;"vehicle"—(a)means any means of transport on land; and(b)includes any aircraft or watercraft;"veterinary surgeon" has the same meaning as in the Veterinary Council Act.Part II – Promotion of animal welfare
3. Offences of cruelty to animals
4. Authorised officer
5. Power of entry and search
6. Protection order
7. Apprehension of offenders
Where an offence is committed under section 3, a police officer may, without any authority or warrant and in presence of an authorised officer, forthwith arrest the offender and convey him as soon as is reasonably practicable before the Magistrate of the district where the offence has been committed, to be dealt with according to law.Part III – Experiments
8. Experiment on animal
9. Restrictions on experiment
10. Records, inspections and returns
Every licensee shall—11. Offences under Part III
Part IV – The Society
A – Establishment of Society
12. The Society
13. Objects and functions of Society
14. Membership of Society
B – Administration of Society
15. The Council
16. Meetings of Council
17. Powers of Council
18. Director of Society
19. Officers of Society
20. Powers of Minister
C – Financial provisions
21. Funds of Society
22. Donations and exemptions
23. Estimates
24. Annual report
D – Miscellaneous
25. Execution of documents
26. Legal proceedings
27. Confidentiality
28. Winding up
Where the Society is wound up, all the assets, after payment of all debts and meeting all liabilities of the Society, shall be transferred to the Consolidated Fund.29. Affiliation
The Society may, subject to the approval of the Minister, affiliate with any other society or body corporate, in Mauritius or elsewhere, which has the same objects as those of the Society.30. Rules
The Council may, subject to the approval of the Minister, make rules—Part V – Control of dogs
31. Registration of dogs and other domestic pets
32. Obligations of dog owners
33. Dogs attacking, chasing or rushing at persons, domestic animals or vehicles
34. Inciting or urging dog to attack
35. Protected wildlife
36. Breeding and connected matters
37. Dog shows and pedigree certificates
38. Importation of dogs
39. Notice to comply
40. Power to request information
41. Stray dogs
Part VI – Miscellaneous
42. Powers of Court
Where a person is convicted of an offence under this Act, the Court may, in addition to any penalty imposed on the owner—43. Euthanasia of animal
44. Protection from liability
45. Regulations
46. ***
47. ***
48. ***
49. ***
History of this document
30 June 2017 this version
Consolidation
30 October 2013
Commenced