| (1) | Whenever an owner or user, as the case may be, of land finds on such land or whenever an owner of animals find amongst his or her animals, any animal, which he or she knows has strayed thereto or has been unlawfully removed from a place outside the Republic, or which can reasonably be suspected of having so strayed or been removed, he or she must— |
| (a) | immediately isolate such animal; |
| (c) | detain the animal in isolation on the land on which it was found pending further instruction from the national executive officer. |
| (2) | The national executive officer may, after the presence of a foreign animal has been reported to him or her in terms of paragraph (b) of subsection (1)— |
| (i) | any person who proves that hoer she is the owner of the animal, submits within two days after such report to the national executive officer, a written request to the national executive officer for the restoration to him or her of the animal and reimburses the State for any expenses incurred in connection with the animal within seven days after having been requested to do so; and |
| (ii) | the animal or any progeny or product thereof, does not pose a disease threat or is not concerned in or may not afford evidence in the commission or suspected commission of an offence, and that the circumstances under which the animal has been found justifies such a restoration, |
direct that the animal and any such progeny or product thereof be restored to the owner;
| (b) | direct that the person who found the animal must immediately move the animal and any such progeny or product thereof to a place indicated by the national executive officer for purposes of the performance of controlled veterinary procedures in respect thereof by the national executive officer, or destroy it, or otherwise dispose of it in accordance with the instructions of the national executive officer; |
| (c) | himself or herself deal with the animal, and any such progeny or product thereof, in accordance with any applicable provision of section 20; or |
| (d) | seize the animal or any such progeny or product thereof, in accordance with any applicable provisions of section 20, and in his or her discretion destroy it or dispose thereof for the benefit of the State. |
| (3) | Subsections (1), (2) and (4) apply with the necessary changes in respect of any animal and any progeny or product thereof found on land by the owner or user, as the case may be, of the land, or by any owner of animals thereon, if such person knows that it has strayed thereto, or has been unlawfully removed, or if it can reasonably be suspected of having so strayed or been removed from any other place in the Republic, and if such person knows that any circumstance referred to in section 17(1)(b) is present in respect thereof, or can reasonably be so suspected. |
| (4) | No person may, except pursuant to a provision of subsection (2) or under authority of the national executive officer— |
| (a) | remove any animal or any progeny or product thereof, referred to in subsection (1) or (3) from any place where it is being detained in isolation in terms of any provision of this section; or |
| (b) | contravene or fail to comply with any direction or instruction referred to in subsection (2)(b) that has been addressed to him or her. |
