The Pennsylvania SPCA has been protecting animals from cruelty and neglect for nearly 160 years. It's in our DNA, our founding principle and is the work that sets us apart. <br /> If you believe an animal is being abused, neglected, or is in danger, we’re here to help.
The PSPCA enforces animal cruelty laws across 18 Pennsylvania counties. Here’s what the law covers and how to take action if you witness abuse or neglect.
Under Pennsylvania law, neglect includes failure to provide food and water, clean and sanitary shelter with protection from weather, and necessary veterinary care.
A person commits an offense if they intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly illtreat, overload, beat, torture, abandon, or abuse an animal. Transporting animals in a cruel manner is also an offense under Pennsylvania law.
An unattended dog may only be tethered for nine hours or less in a 24-hour period. The tether must be commonly used for the size and breed of dog and at least three times the length of the dog (measured from nose to base of tail) or 10 feet, whichever is longer. It must be secured to a well-fitted collar or harness with a swivel anchor or similar mechanism to prevent entanglement. The dog must have access to water and shade, and may not be tethered for longer than 30 minutes in temperatures above 90°F or below 32°F.
Pennsylvania law prohibits animal mutilation and related offenses, including cropping of ears, debarking, docking of tails, surgical birth, and dewclawing of dogs.
Animal fighting offenses include causing or allowing an animal to engage in fighting, receiving compensation for admission to a place used for fighting, owning, training, promoting, purchasing, or selling an animal for fighting, wagering on the outcome of a fight, attending a fight, knowingly permitting a place under your control to be used for fighting, possession of animal fighting paraphernalia, and taunting or abusing police animals.
Call 866-601-7722 or fill out our online form. The Pennsylvania SPCA’s Animal Law Enforcement program is the only operation of its kind in our region. Our Animal Law Encorcment team has jursidiction in the following counties: Bucks, Chester, Columbia, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Lycoming, Mifflin, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Philadelphia, Potter, Snyder, and Union.
Our Officers enforce the cruelty laws under the authority granted by state statute 22 Pa.C.S.A. Chapter 37 (HSPOS).
The PSPCA enforces animal cruelty laws in 18 Pennsylvania counties:
Bucks, Chester, Columbia, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Lycoming, Mifflin, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Philadelphia, Potter, Snyder, and Union. If you witness cruelty outside these counties, contact your local SPCA or call the Pennsylvania State Police.
Our Animal Law Enforcement team doesn’t just rescue animals. They build the cases that bring abusers to justice. With a 90% conviction rate in prosecuted cases, we send a clear message that animal cruelty will not be tolerated in Pennsylvania. But our ultimate goal is preventing cruelty from happening in the first place. That’s why we’ve invested in Philadelphia’s only Humane Education program, which helps youth develop compassion and empathy, fostering a generation that treats all living beings with respect.
Our in-house shelter hospital treats nearly 2,000 animals annually, with a forensics team that collects evidence and testifies in court. We are one of the country’s only animal welfare organizations equipped to treat conditions associated with severe abuse (emaciation, burns, broken limbs, embedded collars, and the devastating effects of hoarding, puppy mills, and forced fighting). Our Behavior and Enrichment team helps animals work through the emotional scars of abuse, building confidence and learning to trust again. Because cruelty cases can take months or years to resolve, many rescued animals are placed in protective custody, unable to be adopted until a judge rules. Our Protective Custody Foster Program gives these animals a loving home while they wait.
Animals saved through individual rescues ranging from one to 300 animals at a time
Counties across Pennsylvania where our officers enforce cruelty laws
Investigations conducted by our Animal Law Enforcement officers over the last three years
Conviction rate in prosecuted cases, holding abusers accountable for their crimes
Every report, every donation, every act of compassion makes a difference
