6.04.150 Keeping wild animals.

A. No person shall keep or permit to be kept on his premises any wild or vicious animal as a pet, for display, or for exhibition purposes without first obtaining a permit therefor.

B. Permit applications must be submitted annually to animal care and control or its designee on a form provided by that department accompanied by a fifty dollars ($50.00) application fee or such amended fee as Colleton County council may later establish. The application shall include the name, address, and telephone number of the applicant; the breed, sex, color and age of the animal(s); and the duration and method of containment including location and dimensions of any cage, pen, or confinement area in which the animal will be kept.

C. No permit will be issued unless the applicant provides satisfactory assurances that the animal is not capable of being returned to its natural environment (in the case of wild animals) and that the applicant will provide the animal with sufficient good and wholesome food and water, proper shelter and protection from the weather, veterinary care when needed, and humane care and treatment. The applicant must further provide assurances that the animal will not be cruelly treated, tormented, overloaded, overworked, or otherwise abused, and that adequate protective devises are provided to prevent it from escaping or injuring the public.

E. No permit will be issued unless the applicant is in compliance with all state and federal regulations concerning the possession, display or exhibition of wild or vicious animals.

G. The animal care and control director may decline to grant a permit or may revoke a permit if, in the opinion of the director, said animal is capable of being returned to its natural environment (in the case of wild animals) or if there is any violation of any of the conditions specified in subsection (C) of this section.

1. Upon determination that a permit should not be granted, the application fee shall be returned with a written explanation for the denial.

2. Upon determination that a permit should be revoked, no fee shall be returned, but a written explanation for the revocation shall be provided.

3. Any person aggrieved by this section may appeal to the county administrator who, after due investigation, may modify, overturn, or amend the determination of animal care and control. The determination of the administrator shall be final.

H. In the event a permit is not granted or is revoked or in the event a person is found to be keeping wild animal(s) without applying for a permit, animal care and control shall take custody of said animals if said animals are in the possession of the applicant.

I. Animal care and control may issue a temporary permit, when appropriate, without a fee, for the keeping, care, and protection of an infant animal native to this area which has been deemed to be orphaned or displaced from its natural environment and is unsuitable for return to the wild due to its age. An applicant may obtain said permit through verbal or telephonic communication, provided that a written application is submitted and physical examination of the animal by an animal control officer is conducted within fifteen (15) days. No permit shall be issued unless the applicant is in compliance with all state and federal regulations.

J. Animal care and control is authorized to release or order the release of any infant wild animal kept under temporary permit, if the animal is deemed capable of surviving in its natural environment.

K. Animal care and control may take custody of any infant wild animal when the applicant is unable to properly care for and protect the animal.