NY
State Guide

New York bite reporting.

A practical guide for New York animal control officers, local health departments, and Agriculture & Markets enforcement. Statute, clock, agencies, and how the platform handles each piece.

Reviewed June 2026 · Not legal advice

The five-second answer: New York requires bite reporting to the local health authority within 24 hours under PHL §2140–§2147. The "dangerous dog" process is civil and lives under Agriculture & Markets §123. 10-day observation is standard. AnimalShelterIQ runs the report, the clock, the §123 petition, and the local-court appearance scheduling.

1. The statutory framework

  • NY Public Health Law §2140–§2147 — rabies prevention; reporting of animal bites
  • 10 NYCRR Subpart 2.14 — rabies control regulations
  • NY Agriculture & Markets §108, §121, §123 — dog control; dangerous dog process
  • NY Agriculture & Markets §117–§118 — municipal dog control responsibilities
  • NYC Health Code Article 11 — separate framework inside the five boroughs

2. Who must report

  • Physicians, dentists, nurses, veterinarians, hospital intake (PHL §2141)
  • Animal control officers (per municipal designation under Ag & Markets §117)
  • Shelter staff and licensed kennels
  • The owner of the biting animal

3. The 24-hour reporting clock

Under PHL §2141 and 10 NYCRR 2.14, reports to the local health authority (county health department, or NYC DOHMH inside the five boroughs) must occur within 24 hours of the bite becoming known to the reporting party.

4. The 10-day observation clock

Dogs, cats, and ferrets that bite a human are observed for 10 days per 10 NYCRR 2.14. Home observation is permitted if the animal is currently vaccinated and the local health authority agrees. Otherwise observation occurs at an animal-control facility or licensed veterinarian.

5. The dangerous-dog process — Ag & Markets §123

Separate from rabies reporting, §123 creates a civil process initiated by sworn complaint in the local justice court (town, village, or city court):

  1. Complaint: any person, dog control officer, or police officer may file a sworn complaint with a justice court
  2. Securing order: the court may order the dog secured pending hearing
  3. Hearing: held within five business days; standard is "clear and convincing evidence"
  4. If dangerous: court may order microchipping, sterilization, secure enclosure, leash/muzzle, evaluation, restitution, liability insurance up to $100,000
  5. Aggravating circumstances (serious physical injury / prior unprovoked attack): court may order humane euthanasia under §123(3)

6. What the bite report must contain

  • Victim: name, age, sex, contact, body location of bite, treating provider
  • Animal: species, breed, sex, age, weight, color, vaccination status
  • Owner: name, address, phone (or "stray / unknown")
  • Incident: date, time, location, narrative, provoked / unprovoked
  • Rabies vaccination certificate & expiration
  • Quarantine location and observation dates

7. Notification chain

  1. Reporter → local health authority within 24 hours (county DOH / NYC DOHMH)
  2. Animal control → local health authority coordinates observation
  3. Local health authority → NYSDOH Bureau of Communicable Disease Control for rabies-positive cases
  4. Complainant → local justice court for §123 dangerous-dog petitions

8. How AnimalShelterIQ handles New York

  • 24-hour clock: auto-started on report receipt; local health authority notification queued and timestamped
  • Voice-to-form drafting: officer dictates the narrative; AI populates the county bite-report form (NYC DOHMH variant ships in the box)
  • 10-day observation: clock auto-started; daily check-in; day-10 release prompt
  • §123 petition kit: sworn complaint, witness affidavits, prior-incident history at the address compiled into a justice-court-filing-ready packet
  • Justice-court calendar: 5-business-day hearing window tracked; court appearances surfaced on the officer's dashboard
  • Mandated insurance/sterilization tracking: court-ordered conditions become recurring compliance items on the dangerous-dog registry
  • NYC vs. rest-of-state: NYC DOHMH and Ag & Markets workflows route differently — the platform handles both

9. Common pitfalls we automate around

  • Dog control officers are municipal designees under Ag & Markets §117 — we capture the designating ordinance for each user
  • NYC sits outside the standard county-health-department chain; the platform detects the borough and routes accordingly
  • The §123 "clear and convincing evidence" standard is higher than civil preponderance; the platform structures the witness affidavits to meet it
  • The five-business-day hearing window can fall over a weekend or court holiday; the platform calculates the deadline correctly

10. References

  • NY Public Health Law §2140–§2147
  • 10 NYCRR Subpart 2.14 (Rabies)
  • NY Agriculture & Markets Law §108, §117, §118, §121, §123
  • NYC Health Code Article 11
  • NYSDOH Bureau of Communicable Disease Control rabies guidance
  • NASPHV Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control

This guide summarizes the regulatory framework as of the review date above. County and NYC procedures differ. We work with your local health authority and dog control officer designee to confirm requirements before go-live.

Run New York bite reporting on autopilot.

24-hour clock. 10-day observation. §123 petition kit. Justice-court calendar. We will sit on a call with your local health authority before signing.

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