Ohio Code 935.23 – Requirements for access to antivenom; list of species; liability for treatment of bites
(A) The owner of a restricted snake specified in division (L)(2), (3), or (4) of section 935.01 of the Revised Code shall do both of the following:
Terms Used In Ohio Code 935.23
- agriculture: includes farming; ranching; aquaculture; algaculture meaning the farming of algae; apiculture and related apicultural activities, production of honey, beeswax, honeycomb, and other related products; horticulture; viticulture, winemaking, and related activities; animal husbandry, including, but not limited to, the care and raising of livestock, equine, and fur-bearing animals; poultry husbandry and the production of poultry and poultry products; dairy production; the production of field crops, tobacco, fruits, vegetables, nursery stock, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, flowers, sod, or mushrooms; timber; pasturage; any combination of the foregoing; the processing, drying, storage, and marketing of agricultural products when those activities are conducted in conjunction with, but are secondary to, such husbandry or production; and any additions or modifications to the foregoing made by the director of agriculture by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119 of the Revised Code. See Ohio Code 1.61
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Law enforcement officer: means a sheriff, deputy sheriff, constable, police officer of a township or joint police district, marshal, deputy marshal, municipal police officer, or state highway patrol trooper. See Ohio Code 935.01
- Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Restricted snake: means any of the following:
(1) All of the following constricting snakes that are twelve feet or longer:
(a) Green anacondas;
(b) Yellow anacondas;
(c) Reticulated pythons;
(d) Indian pythons;
(e) Burmese pythons;
(f) North African rock pythons;
(g) South African rock pythons;
(h) Amethystine pythons. See Ohio Code 935.01
(1) Have access to antivenom for each species of snake that the person owns either at the location where each snake is confined or at a hospital, as defined in section 3727.01 of the Revised Code, with which the owner has entered into a written agreement to provide the antivenom. However, an owner may apply to the director of agriculture for a waiver to have access to antivenom in a location that is not specified in division (A)(1) of this section.
(2) Submit proof of having access to the antivenom required by division (A)(1) of this section to the sheriff of the county and the chief law enforcement officer of the township or municipal corporation in which each snake that the person owns is confined.
In addition, the owner shall submit a list that contains the name of each species of restricted snake specified in division (L)(2), (3), or (4) of section 935.01 of the Revised Code that the person owns to the sheriff of the county and the chief law enforcement officer of the township or municipal corporation in which each snake is confined. If the restricted snake or snakes owned by the person change, the owner shall submit an updated list to the sheriff of the county and the chief law enforcement officer of the township or municipal corporation in which each such snake is confined no later than seven days after the change occurs.
(B) If a restricted snake specified in division (L)(2), (3), or (4) of section 935.01 of the Revised Code bites a person other than the snake’s owner, the owner is liable for all costs associated with the treatment of the bite, including the cost of replacement of any antivenom that was used to treat the bite.