Providing that certain portions of the crime of cruelty to animals do not apply to any person who catches a feral cat to provide vaccination, spaying or neutering and returns such cat back to the location where such cat is caught.

As Amended by Senate Committee
Session of 2026
HOUSE BILL No. 2535
By Committee on Judiciary
Requested by Reily Goyne on behalf of Kansas Pet Advocates
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AN ACT concerning crimes, punishment and criminal procedure; relating
to cruelty to animals; providing that certain portions of such crime do
not apply to any person who catches a feral cat to provide vaccination,
spaying or neutering and returns such cat back to the location where
such cat is caught; amending K.S.A. 21-6412 and repealing the existing
section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 21-6412 is hereby amended to read as follows: 21-
6412. (a) Cruelty to animals is:
(1) Knowingly and maliciously killing, injuring, maiming, torturing,
burning or mutilating any animal;
(2) knowingly abandoning any animal in any place without making
provisions for its proper care;
(3) having physical custody of any animal and knowingly failing to
provide such food, potable water, protection from the elements,
opportunity for exercise and other care as is needed for the health or well-
being of such kind of animal;
(4) intentionally using a wire, pole, stick, rope or any other object to
cause an equine to lose its balance or fall, for the purpose of sport or
entertainment;
(5) knowingly but not maliciously killing or injuring any animal; or
(6) knowingly and maliciously administering any poison to any
domestic animal.
(b) Cruelty to animals as defined in:
(1) Subsection (a)(1) or (a)(6) is a nonperson felony. Upon conviction
of subsection (a)(1) or (a)(6), a person shall be sentenced to not less than
30 days or more than one year's imprisonment and be fined not less than
$500 nor more than $5,000. The person convicted shall not be eligible for
release on probation, suspension or reduction of sentence or parole until
the person has served the minimum mandatory sentence as provided
herein. During the mandatory 30 days imprisonment, such offender shall
have a psychological evaluation prepared for the court to assist the court in
determining conditions of probation. Such conditions shall include, but not
be limited to, the completion of an anger management program; and
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HB 2535—Am. by SC 2
(2) subsection (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(4) or (a)(5) is a:
(A) Class A nonperson misdemeanor, except as provided in
subsection (b)(2)(B); and
(B) nonperson felony upon the second or subsequent conviction of
cruelty to animals as defined in subsection (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(4) or (a)(5).
Upon such conviction, a person shall be sentenced to not less than five
days or more than one year's imprisonment and be fined not less than $500
nor more than $2,500. The person convicted shall not be eligible for
release on probation, suspension or reduction of sentence or parole until
the person has served the minimum mandatory sentence as provided
herein.
(c) The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
(1) Normal or accepted veterinary practices;
(2) bona fide experiments carried on by commonly recognized
research facilities;
(3) killing, attempting to kill, trapping, catching or taking of any
animal in accordance with the provisions of chapter 32 or chapter 47 of the
Kansas Statutes Annotated, and amendments thereto;
(4) rodeo practices accepted by the rodeo cowboys' association;
(5) the humane killing of an animal that is diseased or disabled
beyond recovery for any useful purpose, or the humane killing of animals
for population control, by the owner thereof or the agent of such owner
residing outside of a city or the owner thereof within a city if no animal
shelter or licensed veterinarian is within the city, or by a licensed
veterinarian at the request of the owner thereof, or by any officer or agent
of an animal shelter, a local or state health officer or a licensed
veterinarian three business days following the receipt of any such animal
at such shelter;
(6) with respect to farm animals, normal or accepted practices of
animal husbandry, including the normal and accepted practices for the
slaughter of such animals for food or by-products and the careful or thrifty
management of one's herd or animals, including animal care practices
common in the industry or region;
(7) the killing of any animal by any person at any time that may be
found outside of the owned or rented property of the owner or custodian of
such animal and that is found injuring or posing a threat to any person,
farm animal or property;
(8) an animal control officer trained by a licensed veterinarian in the
use of a tranquilizer gun, using such gun with the appropriate dosage for
the size of the animal, when such animal is vicious or could not be
captured after reasonable attempts using other methods;
(9) laying an equine down for medical or identification purposes;
(10) normal or accepted practices of pest control, as defined in K.S.A.
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HB 2535—Am. by SC 3
2-2438a(x), and amendments thereto; or
(11) accepted practices of animal husbandry pursuant to regulations
promulgated by the United States department of agriculture for domestic
pet animals under the animal welfare act, public law 89-544, as amended
and in effect on July 1, 2006.
(d) The provisions of subsections (a)(2) and (a)(3) shall not apply to
any person who catches a feral cat to provide vaccination, spaying or
neutering and returns such cat back to the location where such cat is
caught after providing the vaccination, spaying or neutering.
(e) The provisions of subsection (a)(6) shall not apply to any person
exposing who exposes poison upon their premises for the purpose of
destroying wolves, coyotes or other predatory animals.
(e)(f) Any public health officer, law enforcement officer, licensed
veterinarian or officer or agent of any animal shelter or other appropriate
facility may take into custody any animal, upon either private or public
property, that clearly shows evidence of cruelty to animals. Such officer,
agent or veterinarian may inspect, care for or treat such animal or place
such animal in the care of an animal shelter or licensed veterinarian for
treatment, boarding or other care or, if an officer of such animal shelter or
such veterinarian determines that the animal appears to be diseased or
disabled beyond recovery for any useful purpose, for humane killing. The
owner or custodian, if known or reasonably ascertainable , shall be notified
in writing . If the owner or custodian is charged with a violation of this
section, the law enforcement agency, district attorney's office, county
prosecutor, veterinarian or animal shelter may petition the district court in
the county in which the animal was taken into custody to transfer
ownership of the animal at any time after 21 days after the owner or
custodian is notified, unless the owner or custodian of the animal files and
maintains a renewable cash or performance bond with the county clerk of
the county in which the animal was taken into custody in an amount equal
to not less than the cost of care and treatment of the animal for 30 days.
Such cash or performance bond shall be maintained and renewed every 30
days as necessary to cover the cost of care and treatment of such animal
until disposition of the animal by the court. If the owner or custodian is not
known or reasonably ascertainable after 21 days after the animal is taken
into custody, the law enforcement agency, district attorney's office, county
prosecutor, veterinarian or animal shelter may petition the district court in
the county in which the animal was taken into custody to transfer
ownership of the animal . Upon receiving such petition, the court shall
determine whether the animal may be transferred.
(f)(g) The owner or custodian of an animal transferred pursuant to
subsection (e) (f) shall not be entitled to recover damages for the transfer
of such animal unless the owner proves that such transfer was
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HB 2535—Am. by SC 4
unwarranted.
(g)(h) Expenses incurred for the care, treatment or boarding of any
animal, taken into custody pursuant to subsection (e) (f) , pending
prosecution of the owner or custodian of such animal for the crime of
cruelty to animals, shall be assessed to the owner or custodian as a cost of
the case if the owner or custodian is adjudicated guilty of such crime. Any
costs collected by the court or through the cash or performance bond
described in subsection (e) (f) shall be transferred to the entity responsible
for paying the cost of the care, treatment or boarding of the animal.
(h)(i) If a person is adjudicated guilty of the crime convicted of
cruelty to animals, such animal shall not be returned to or remain with
such person. Such animal may be turned over to an animal shelter or
licensed veterinarian for sale or other disposition.
(i)(j) As used in this section:
(1) "Animal shelter" means the same as such term is defined in
K.S.A. 47-1701, and amendments thereto;
(2) "equine" means a horse, pony, mule, jenny, donkey or hinny; and
(3) "feral cat" means a cat that has no apparent owner or
identification and appears to be unsocialized to humans and
unmanageable or otherwise demonstrates characteristics normally
associated with a wild or undomesticated animal; and
(4) "maliciously" means a state of mind characterized by actual evil-
mindedness or specific intent to do a harmful act without a reasonable
justification or excuse.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 21-6412 is hereby repealed.
Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book Kansas register.
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