Certain exotic animals legal in Missouri; Zebra on the loose in Miller County
MILLER COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Joe McDevitt is the owner of a 3-year-old zebra, named Marty, that has been on the loose in Miller County for three days now.
McDevitt said he believes the zebra hopped his fence and is rooming on his neighbor's 600 acres of land that is fenced in.
McDevitt said he legally owns the Zebra in Missouri, "as far as we know we've done everything we're supposed to."
In Missouri, it is legal to own exotic animals, as long as the owner has a permit through Missouri's Department of Agriculture's Division of Animal Health.
The Department of Agriculture requires any animal entering Missouri to receive a certificate of veterinary inspection within seven days, prior to entering Missouri. The animal can not have any clinical signs of Vesicular Stomatitis and a zebra must test negative for Equine Infection Anemia within 12 months prior to ownership.
While Missouri does allow people to own Zebras, other animals like large carnivores have much stricter requirements including:
- 21 or older
- NOT guilty of felony animal neglect or mistreatment in prior 10 years
- Inform local law enforcement of permit
- Microchipping of carnivore
- Health and ownership records for life
- Meeting USDA standards
- Inspection
- Veterinary care agreement
- Collecting DNA sample
- $250,000 liability insurance
- Disaster Response and Evacuation Plan
- Digital color photo
- Annual inventory
- Kept in primary enclosure except for vet care, law enforcement orders and ownership transfer
- $250/carnivore up to $2500 initial and $100/carnivore renewal
In Missouri under the diseased animal law, the Department of Agriculture has the authority to enter any premises to check for livestock disease or animal health violations. If the owner is found guilty of violating animal health laws, may be subject to civil penalties with a fine of up to $10,000 per violation.
