Strange Laws: Animal Edition
I recently bought the first pet I’ve owned since I was a child, so I’ve been thinking about animals a lot, lately. That’s why this week’s Strange Laws post is all about animals.
My pet isn’t exactly the impressive variety—it’s just a betta fish (aka: Siamese fighting fish)—but some of these animal-related laws are…well, maybe impressive isn’t the right word, but they’re definitely unusual.
- If you’ve ever considered riding a camel down the highway in Nevada, think twice: it’s illegal to drive a camel on the highway in the Silver State.
- In California, there are laws legislating the mating practices of animals. Animals are banned from publicly mating with 1,500 feet of a school, tavern, or place of worship.
- You may not use an elephant to plow cotton fields in North Carolina.
- Missouri also has an elephant-related law. In Natchez, MO, it is unlawful to provide elephants with beer or other intoxicants.
- Pennsylvania has quite a range of laws regarding fishing, including one that forbids the use of dynamite for fishing (sorry, Crocodile Dundee).
- It’s not surprising that Alaska has an abundance of animal-related legislation, but you might be surprised by what some of those laws state. For example, moose may not be viewed from airplanes in that state.
- Horses in South Dakota are required to wear pants—at least if they want to get into Fountain Inn.
For more strange laws like these, visit DumbLaws.com.
March 10th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Strange indeed.
One of my favorite strange laws comes from England. Apparently it is not illegal to kill a Scottish man in the ancient part of the city of York if he is carrying an arrow and a bow.
Scottish people, take care!
March 11th, 2008 at 11:29 am
I believe it, Guilherme. It’s probably back from the days when the Scots and the English were enemies.
In many US states there are still laws stating that groups of Native Americans that are larger than a certain number (it depends on the state, but I think it’s usually 5 or more people), they are considered a war party and can be shot.
Obviously, these laws are no longer enforced.