Indiana

IC 35-46-3-0.5. Definitions

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4) “Neglect” means:
(A) endangering an animal’s health by failing to provide or arrange to provide the animal with food or drink, if the animal is dependent upon the person for the provision of food or drink;
(B) restraining an animal for more than a brief period in a manner that endangers the animal’s life or health by the use of a rope, chain, or tether that:
(i) is less than three (3) times the length of the animal;
(ii) is too heavy to permit the animal to move freely; or
(iii) causes the animal to choke;
(C) restraining an animal in a manner that seriously endangers the animal’s life or health;
(D) failing to:
(i) provide reasonable care for; or
(ii) seek veterinary care for;
an injury or illness to a dog or cat that seriously endangers the life or health of the dog or cat; or
(E) leaving a dog or cat outside and exposed to:
(i) excessive heat without providing the animal with a means of shade from the heat; or
(ii) excessive cold if the animal is not provided with straw or another means of protection from the cold; regardless of whether the animal is restrained or kept in a kennel.

IC 35-46-3-7 Abandonment or neglect of vertebrate animals

(a) A person who:
(1) has a vertebrate animal in the person’s custody; and
(2) recklessly, knowingly, or intentionally abandons or neglects the animal;
commits cruelty to an animal, a Class A misdemeanor. However, except for a conviction under section 1 of this chapter, the offense is a Level 6 felony if the person has a prior unrelated conviction under this chapter.
(b) It is a defense to a prosecution for abandoning a vertebrate animal under this section that the person who had the animal in the person’s custody reasonably believed that the vertebrate animal was capable of surviving on its own.
(c) For purposes of this section, an animal that is feral is not in a person’s custody.
As added by P.L.193-1987, SEC.10. Amended by P.L.171-2007, SEC.8; P.L.111-2009, SEC.12; P.L.158-2013, SEC.558.