82R4956 MAW-F
By: Miller of Erath H.B. No. 721
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the practice of animal husbandry and the performance of
certain dental procedures by non-veterinarians.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 801.002, Occupations Code, is amended by
adding Subdivisions (4-a) and (5-a) to read as follows:
(4-a) "Practice of animal husbandry" means the care,
breeding, management, and marketing of bovine, caprine, equine,
porcine, poultry, or other livestock.
(5-a) "Tooth floating" means the performance of a
dental procedure on bovine, equine, porcine, or other livestock,
without the administration of a sedative, tranquilizer, or general
anesthetic that is available only by prescription, to:
(A) remove enamel points;
(B) smooth, contour, or level incisors or dental
arcades; or
(C) extract deciduous or vestigial teeth.
SECTION 2. Section 801.004, Occupations Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 801.004. APPLICATION OF CHAPTER. This chapter does
not apply to:
(1) the treatment or care of an animal in any manner by
the owner of the animal, an employee of the owner, or a designated
caretaker of the animal, unless the ownership, employment, or
designation is established with the intent to violate this chapter;
(2) a person who performs an act prescribed by the
board as an accepted livestock management practice, including:
(A) castrating a male animal raised for human
consumption;
(B) docking or earmarking an animal raised for
human consumption;
(C) dehorning cattle;
(D) aiding in the nonsurgical birth process of a
large animal, as defined by board rule;
(E) treating an animal for disease prevention
with a nonprescription medicine or vaccine;
(F) branding or identifying an animal in any
manner;
(G) artificially inseminating an animal,
including training, inseminating, and compensating for services
related to artificial insemination; [and]
(H) shoeing a horse;
(I) trimming a horse's hooves; and
(J) tooth floating;
(3) the performance of a cosmetic or production
technique to reduce injury in poultry intended for human
consumption;
(4) the performance of a duty by a veterinarian's
employee if:
(A) the duty involves food production animals;
(B) the duty does not involve diagnosis,
prescription, or surgery;
(C) the employee is under the direction and
general supervision of the veterinarian; and
(D) the veterinarian is responsible for the
employee's performance;
(5) the performance of an act by a person who is a
full-time student of an accredited college of veterinary medicine
or is a foreign graduate of a board-approved equivalent competency
program for foreign veterinary graduates and who is participating
in a board-approved extern or preceptor program if the act is
performed under the direct supervision of a veterinarian employing
the person;
(6) an animal shelter employee who performs euthanasia
in the course and scope of the person's employment if the person has
successfully completed training in accordance with Chapter 829,
Health and Safety Code;
(7) a person who is engaged in a recognized
state-federal cooperative disease eradication or control program
or an external parasite control program while the person is
performing official duties required by the program;
(8) a person who, without expectation of compensation,
provides emergency care in an emergency or disaster; [or]
(9) a consultation given to a veterinarian in this
state by a person who:
(A) resides in another state; and
(B) is lawfully qualified to practice veterinary
medicine under the laws of that state; or
(10) a person who engages in the practice of animal
husbandry.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.