A. A person shall not impound an estray except when the estray is found on property the person owns or controls. When a person impounds an estray, he shall, within five days of the impoundment, notify the director or an inspector of the impoundment.

B. A person having knowledge of an estray upon any public or private range, fenced or unfenced, may notify the director or an inspector, giving description of the estray, and upon instructions from the board or inspector the estray shall be turned over to an inspector for disposition as the board may direct according to law.

C. It is lawful for a person having knowledge of an estray grazing on public land, public highways or other lands used for grazing purposes in conjunction with public land and who has the prior approval of or is acting in cooperation with an agent of the board to impound and detain the estray for the purpose of ascertaining ownership by brand or other means of identification. The owner of the estray found to be in trespass shall be allowed forty-eight hours from receipt of notice of impoundment within which to claim the animal and make settlement for trespass damage. If the owner fails to claim the animal and effect a settlement for trespass damages within the time allowed, the estray detained shall be turned over to an inspector or other agent of the board for disposition in the same manner as provided for other estrays under Chapter 77, Article 13 NMSA 1978.

History: Laws 1907, ch. 80, § 2; Code 1915, § 158; C.S. 1929, § 4-1502; 1941 Comp., § 49-1502; Laws 1951, ch. 122, § 1; 1953 Comp., § 47-14-2; Laws 1977, ch. 165, § 1; 1999, ch. 282, § 81.

The 1999 amendment, effective July 1, 1999, updated the statutory references in Subsection C, and made stylistic changes throughout the section.

The 1977 amendment rewrote this section, which formerly dealt with reporting the taking up of estray animals to the secretary of the cattle sanitary board.

Board may sell unclaimed animals. — The cattle sanitary board of New Mexico (now livestock board) can sell impounded livestock which have a legally recorded brand and whose owners are known, and have been notified of impoundment, but who refuse to claim such impounded animals within the specified time, if the statutory procedure is followed. 1954 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 54-5954.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 4 Am. Jur. 2d Animals § 68.

3A C.J.S. Animals §§ 87, 124, 125.