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132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 133
S.P. 69 In Senate, January 8, 2025
An Act to Amend the Laws Regarding Nuisance Dogs
Reference to the Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry suggested and
ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator BENNETT of Oxford.
Cosponsored by Representative WADSWORTH of Hiram and
Senator: BALDACCI of Penobscot, Representative: WOODSOME of Waterboro.
Page 1 - 132LR0408(01)
1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 7 MRSA §3907, sub-§20-A, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 404, §3, is amended
3 to read:
420-A. Nuisance dog. "Nuisance dog" means a dog or wolf hybrid that causes bodily
5 injury, other than serious bodily injury, to an individual or a domesticated animal who is
6 not trespassing on the dog or wolf hybrid owner's or keeper's premises at the time of the
7 injury; a dog or wolf hybrid that causes a reasonable and prudent person who is not on the
8 dog or wolf hybrid owner's or keeper's premises and is acting in a reasonable and
9 nonaggressive manner to fear bodily injury, other than serious bodily injury, by assaulting
10 or threatening to assault that individual or individual's domesticated animal; or a dog or
11 wolf hybrid that causes damage to property or crops not owned by the dog or wolf hybrid
12 owner or keeper while the dog or wolf hybrid is not on the owner's or keeper's premises; or
13 a dog or wolf hybrid that disturbs the peace of an individual by excessive barking, howling
14 or yelping, and the individual is not trespassing on the dog or wolf hybrid owner's or
15 keeper's premises at the time of the excessive barking, howling or yelping.
16 "Nuisance dog" does not include:
17 A. A dog certified by the State and used for law enforcement use;
18 B. A dog or wolf hybrid that injures or threatens to assault an individual who is on the
19 dog or wolf hybrid owner's or keeper's premises if the dog or wolf hybrid has no prior
20 history of assault and was provoked by the individual immediately prior to the injury
21 or threatened assault; or
22 C. A dog or wolf hybrid that inflicts bodily injury on an individual who is committing
23 a crime against an individual or property owned by the dog or wolf hybrid owner or
24 keeper.
25 For the purposes of this definition, "dog or wolf hybrid owner's or keeper's premises" means
26 the residence or residences, including buildings and land and motor vehicles, belonging to
27 the owner or keeper of the dog or wolf hybrid.
28Sec. 2. 7 MRSA §3952-A, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 404, §12, is amended
29 to read:
301. Procedure. A person who is assaulted or threatened with bodily injury by a dog or
31 a person witnessing such an assault or threatened assault against a person or domesticated
32 animal or a person with knowledge of such an assault or threatened assault against a minor,
33 or a person whose property or crops have been damaged by a dog, within 30 days of the
34 incident, may make written complaint to the a sheriff, local law enforcement officer or
35 animal control officer that the a dog is a dangerous dog or a nuisance dog within 30 days
36 of an incident for any of the following. For the purposes of this chapter, "domesticated
37 animal" includes, but is not limited to, livestock as defined in section 3907, subsection
3818‑A.
39 A. The person is assaulted or threatened with bodily injury by a dog.
40 B. The person witnesses an assault or threatened assault against another person or
41 domesticated animal by a dog.
Page 2 - 132LR0408(01)
1 C. The person has knowledge of an assault or threatened assault against a minor by a
2 dog.
3 D. The person's property or crops have been damaged by a dog.
4 E. The person's peace has been disrupted by a dog that barks, howls or yelps
5 excessively.
6 A representative of the sheriff's department, a local law enforcement officer or an animal
7 control officer appointed by the municipality shall investigate and document the complaint.
8 Upon completion of the investigation of the complaint, the investigator may issue a civil
9 violation summons for keeping a dangerous dog or a nuisance dog.
10 All records of the outcome of the investigation must be kept by the municipality for the life
11 of the dog, plus 2 years.
12 For the purposes of this chapter, "domesticated animal" includes, but is not limited to,
13 livestock as defined in section 3907, subsection 18‑A.
14SUMMARY
15 This bill amends the definition of "nuisance dog" to include a dog or wolf hybrid that
16 disturbs the peace of an individual by excessive barking, howling or yelping, and the
17 individual is not trespassing on the dog or wolf hybrid owner's or keeper's premises at the
18 time of the excessive barking, howling or yelping. The bill also explicitly authorizes a
19 person to file a written complaint to a sheriff, local law enforcement officer or animal
20 control officer if the person's peace has been disrupted by a dog that barks, howls or yelps
21 excessively.
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