SEC. 47A-3.2. REQUIREMENTS FOR HORSES IN SERVICE.
(a) Before any horse may be used in a non- motorized passenger transport service, the operating authority permit holder must furnish the director with:
(1) a state certificate of veterinarian inspection identifying the horse by description or photograph and showing that the horse has been examined at least once within the preceding six months by a veterinarian licensed by the State of Texas who specializes in equine medicine;
(2) proof that the horse has had tetanus, rabies, and Eastern-Western encephalitis vaccinations; and
(3) photographs showing identifying markings of the horse.
(b) A horse used in a non-motorized passenger transport service must:
(1) be appropriately shod to work on paved streets; if a horse loses a shoe while working, an "easy" type boot may be used to finish the scheduled work day;
(2) not have any open wound, oozing sore, cut below skin level, or bleeding wound;
(3) not have evidence of lameness, such as but not limited to head bobbing or irregular rhythm;
(4) be offered not less than five gallons of drinking water at least every two hours;
(5) have at least a 10-minute rest period after every 50 minutes worked;
(6) not work longer than eight hours in a 24-hour period with a minimum of 12 hours rest;
(7) have all harnesses properly fitted and in good repair with no deficiencies that could reasonably be deemed a safety hazard;
(8) be properly cleaned with no offensive odors or caked dirt or mud;
(9) wear a special sanitary device for containing animal excrement;
(10) not work when the outside temperature exceeds 99 degrees Fahrenheit, or the thermal heat index exceeds 150, as measured by the National Weather Service at Love Field; and
(11) be examined at least once every six months by a veterinarian licensed by the State of Texas who specializes in equine medicine and receive a state certificate of veterinarian inspection, which must be submitted to the director.
(c) The director, or a designated representative of the department, may require the operating authority or driver of a horse-drawn carriage to remove from service any horse that appears to be ill, overtired, undernourished, overloaded, injured, or lame or whose health or life, in the opinion of a veterinarian or qualified equine animal services officer, is in imminent danger. To reinstate a horse removed from service, the horse must be re-examined and a new state certificate of veterinarian inspection issued for the horse by a veterinarian licensed by the State of Texas and specializing in equine medicine, which certificate must be submitted to the director.
(d) A person commits an offense if he harasses or startles, or attempts to harass or startle, any horse while the horse is pulling a carriage or at rest or otherwise treats a horse inhumanely while it is working in a non-motorized passenger transport service.
(e) An operating authority and driver shall use a trailer to transport a horse to a job location in the city that is more than three miles from the location where the horse is stabled.
(f) For purposes of this section, a horse is considered to be working any time it is on a public street or sidewalk, or other public right-of-way, during any hour of operation of the non-motorized passenger transport service that is authorized by and on file with the director. (Ord. Nos. 29596; 30240; 31689)
