New Mexico Statutes
Article 2 - Livestock Board
Section 77-2-1.1 - Definitions.

As used in The Livestock Code:
A. "animals" or "livestock" means all domestic or domesticated animals that are used or raised on a farm or ranch, including the carcasses thereof, and exotic animals in captivity and includes horses, asses, mules, cattle, sheep, goats, swine, bison, poultry, ostriches, emus, rheas, camelids and farmed cervidae upon any land in New Mexico. "Animals" or "livestock" does not include canine or feline animals;
B. "bill of sale" means an instrument in substantially the form specified in The Livestock Code by which the owner or the owner's authorized agent transfers to the buyer the title to animals described in the bill of sale;
C. "bison" or "buffalo" means a bovine animal of the species bison;
D. "board" means the New Mexico livestock board;
E. "bond" means cash or an insurance agreement from a New Mexico licensed surety or insurance corporation pledging surety for financial loss caused to another, including certificate of deposit, letter of credit or other surety as may be approved by the grain inspection, packers and stockyards administration of the United States department of agriculture or the board;
F. "brand" means a symbol or device in a form approved by and recorded with the board as may be sufficient to readily distinguish livestock should they become intermixed with other livestock;
G. "brand inspector" means an inspector who is not certified as a peace officer;
H. "carcasses" means dead or dressed bodies of livestock or parts thereof;
I. "cattle" means animals of the genus bos, including dairy cattle, and does not include any other kind of livestock;
J. "dairy cattle" means animals of the genus bos raised not for consumption but for dairy products and distinguished from meat breed cattle;
K. "director" means the executive director of the board;
L. "disease" means a communicable, infectious or contagious disease;
M. "district" means a livestock inspection district;
N. "estray" means livestock found running at large upon public or private lands, either fenced or unfenced, whose owner is unknown, or that is branded with a brand that is not on record in the office of the board or is a freshly branded or marked offspring not with its branded or marked mother, unless other proof of ownership is produced;
O. "inspector" means a livestock or brand inspector;
P. "livestock inspector" means a certified inspector who is granted full law enforcement powers for enforcement of The Livestock Code and other criminal laws relating to livestock;
Q. "mark" means an ear tag or ownership mark that is not a brand;
R. "meat" means the edible flesh of poultry, birds or animals sold for human consumption and includes livestock, poultry and livestock and poultry products;
S. "mule" means a hybrid resulting from the cross of a horse and an ass; and
T. "person" means an individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation or similar legal entity.
History: 1978 Comp., § 77-2-1.1, enacted by Laws 1993, ch. 248, § 2; 1995, ch. 111, § 1; 1999, ch. 282, § 2; 2001, ch. 8, § 2; 2001, ch. 341, § 2; 2015, ch. 22, § 1.
Cross references. — For definition of "livestock" for property tax purposes, see 7-35-2 NMSA 1978.
The 2015 amendment, effective June 19, 2015, clarified certain definitions as used in the Livestock Code; in Subsection A, after "New Mexico", deleted "provided that for the purposes of Chapter 77, Article 9 NMSA 1978, "animals" or "livestock" have the meaning defined in that article", and after "feline animals", deleted "For the purpose of the rules governing meat inspection, wild animals, poultry and birds used for human consumption shall also be included within the meaning of 'animals' or 'livestock'"; in Subsection B, after "owner or", deleted "his" and added "the owner's"; in Subsection E, after "approved by the", added "grain inspection, packers and stockyards administration of the", and after "agriculture", deleted "packers and stockyards administration".
The 2001 amendment, effective June 15, 2001, substituted "in the bill of sale" for "therein" in Subsection B; deleted "animals or" preceding "livestock" in the last line of Subsection F; and added "and other criminal laws relating to livestock" in Subsection P.
The 1999 amendment, effective July 1, 1999, added Subsections C, G, K, M, O, P, S and deleted former Subsections F, I, and O, which defined "bureau", "commissioned livestock inspector", and "noncommissioned brand inspector", respectively; redesignated former Subsections C to E, G, H, K to N, and P as Subsections D to F, H, I, L, N, Q, R, and T, respectively; deleted "unless the context clearly indicates otherwise" at the end of the introductory paragraph; in Subsection A, substituted the language beginning "horses, asses, mules" for "all horses and cattle" at the end of the first sentence, and deleted "and regulations" following "rules" in the last sentence; deleted "but not limited to" preceding "certificate of deposit" in Subsection E; in Subsection F, substituted "symbol or device" for "mark, notch or device", and deleted "No animal shall be branded at any location more than once such that no subsequent brand shall be placed upon an existing brand, thus altering the prior placed brand" at the end; substituted "of livestock or parts thereof" for "or parts thereof; not less than one quarter of a carcass" in Subsection H; substituted "including dairy cattle, and does not include any other kind of livestock" for "only, and does not include any other kind of domestic animals" in Subsection I; substituted the present language for "'mark' refers to a sheep ear tag or ownership mark" in Subsection Q; and inserted "or similar legal entity" in Subsection T.
The 1995 amendment, effective April 5, 1995, inserted "and includes all horses and cattle" in the first sentence in Subsection A, added the second sentence in Subsection E, deleted "raised for consumption only" following "genus bos" in Subsection H, added Subsection I, redesignated former Subsections I through M as Subsections J through N, deleted "or diseases" following "disease" in two places in Subsection K, added Subsection O, redesignated former Subsection N as Subsection P, and made a minor stylistic change in Subsection N.
Elk are not livestock. — Definitions of livestock in Livestock Code and Property Tax Code include different animals in their enumerated lists and each provides different blanket definition for animals not listed. Jicarilla Apache Nation v. Rodarte, 2004-NMSC-035, 136 N.M. 630, 103 P.3d 554.
Undomesticated and unowned animals are not livestock. — Wild, undomesticated horses cannot be estray because they do not fit within the definition of "livestock" under the Livestock Code. Wild Horse Observers Ass'n, Inc. v. N.M. Livestock Bd., 2016-NMCA-001, cert. denied, 2015-NMCERT-010.
Wild horses are not livestock. — The wild horses on the White Sands Missile Range do not fit within the definition of "livestock" and, therefore, the Livestock Board does not have the authority to take possession of and sell them as estrays. 1994 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 94-06.

Structure New Mexico Statutes

New Mexico Statutes

Chapter 77 - Animals and Livestock

Article 2 - Livestock Board

Section 77-2-1 - Short title; purpose.

Section 77-2-1.1 - Definitions.

Section 77-2-2 - New Mexico livestock board created; transfer of powers; transfer of property.

Section 77-2-3 - New Mexico livestock board; scope; composition; qualifications; terms; meetings.

Section 77-2-4 - Compensation of members.

Section 77-2-5 - Report of board.

Section 77-2-6 - Livestock board attached to New Mexico department of agriculture.

Section 77-2-7 - Additional powers of the board.

Section 77-2-7.1 - Brands; subject to change in ownership; fees for transfer.

Section 77-2-7.2 - Registration of brands and marks; board.

Section 77-2-7.3 - Brand books.

Section 77-2-7.4 - Recording before use; recording fee; conflicting brands.

Section 77-2-7.5 - Fees; disposition.

Section 77-2-7.6 - Brand book.

Section 77-2-7.7 - More than one brand unlawful; exceptions; penalty.

Section 77-2-7.8 - Brands of minors.

Section 77-2-7.9 - Filing of facsimile; designation of brands; holding brand renewal and fee; branding increase; offenses; penalty.

Section 77-2-7.10 - Brands; board may reject.

Section 77-2-7.11 - Brand; priority of right to.

Section 77-2-7.12 - Re-recording of brands; notice; publication; fees.

Section 77-2-8 - Research and promotion of meat and meat products.

Section 77-2-9 - Reports of inspectors; prosecution of violations of livestock laws.

Section 77-2-10 - Receipts; deposit of funds.

Section 77-2-11 - Repealed.

Section 77-2-12 - Executive director; duties, oath and bond.

Section 77-2-13 - Records; certified copy evidence.

Section 77-2-14 - Attorney; duties.

Section 77-2-15 - Special taxes; levy; collection.

Section 77-2-16 - Financial report and tax estimate; state levy; maximum rate.

Section 77-2-17 - Payment of tax collections to state treasurer; disbursement.

Section 77-2-18 - Compensation of employees.

Section 77-2-19 - Limitation on expenditures.

Section 77-2-20 - Repealed.

Section 77-2-21 - Fees.

Section 77-2-22 - Penalty for violating rule.

Section 77-2-24 - Repealed.

Section 77-2-25 - Interim receipts and disbursements fund created.

Section 77-2-26 - Board not to be assessed for general administrative overhead.

Section 77-2-27 - Repealed.

Section 77-2-28 - Repealed.

Section 77-2-29 - Fees.

Section 77-2-30 - Horse rescue or retirement facility; registration; board powers and duties; fees.

Section 77-2-31 - Horse rescue or retirement facilities; inspections; reinspection.

Section 77-2-32 - Horse shelter rescue fund; created.