Bill prohibiting wrongful tethering of dogs moves through House committee

An Alabama House committee Wednesday approved a bill that would make it a crime to not provide a dog with adequate shelter, food and water.

SB 361, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Garlan Gudger, R-Cullman, does not apply to hunting or herding dogs, or temporary tethering at a campsite. Rep. Danny Crawford, R-Athens, chair of the House Agriculture Forestry Committee, carried the bill in Gudger’s absence.

“I know it’s not a perfect bill. I know I’ve been here 11 years. I don’t think we’ve ever passed a perfect bill, but we can always fix things if we do not have it exactly right,” Crawford said.

The bill, which passed the Senate on March 12, prohibits the use of logging chains, choke and pinch collars to tether dogs. Under the bill, a dog may not be tethered to a stationary object unless it meets certain conditions.

Rep. Reed Ingram, R-Pike Road, offered a substitute that exempts commercial breeders from the prohibition.

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“They just had reasons for wanting to be taken out. They’re not the ones that are doing the bad acting,” Ingram said in an interview after the meeting.

Ingram’s substitute also elevated the punishment for wrongful tethering to a Class A misdemeanor, punishable up to a year in jail and $6,000 fine, up from a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by up to 3 months in jail.

The substitute also allows animal control officers to remove a dog in a harmful situation and order the dog’s owner to provide adequate care, which was limited to law enforcement.

The bill moves to the House floor. There are six days left in the 2026 legislative session.