West Virginia is the Only Remaining State That Doesn’t Ban Bestiality

Contact: media@aldf.org

SAN FRANCISCO — For the second year in a row, Oregon ranks as the top state for animal protection laws according to the annual U.S. State Animal Protection Laws Ranking Report published by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, the nation’s preeminent legal advocacy organization for animals.

The longest-running and most authoritative report of its kind, the 19th annual year-end report (2024) assesses the relative strengths and weaknesses of each U.S. state and territory’s animal protection laws, and ranks them accordingly.  The report also highlights ways in which certain state animal protection laws, or the lack thereof, are unique in the U.S. – such as the fact that West Virginia is the only state that still does not criminalize sexual assault of animals.”

Oregon is followed by Maine (2), Illinois (3), Massachusetts (4), and Colorado (5). In 2024, North Dakota holds the bottom of the rankings in 50th place for the second year in a row, with Alabama (49), Idaho (48), Kentucky (47), and Mississippi (46) rounding out the states with the weakest animal protection laws.

A continuing trend in 2024 was the enactment of laws prohibiting convicted animal cruelty offenders from owning, possessing, or residing with an animal for a specified period of time. Possession bans are one of the most effective ways to prevent repeat offenses. They restrict an abuser’s access to animals, drastically limiting the pool of potential victims. They also allow law enforcement to intervene quickly to protect at-risk animals. In 2024, Louisiana, Oregon, and Virginia all strengthened their existing possession ban laws. 

A new trend highlighted in the report is laws including animal cruelty in definitions of “coercive control.” Abusers will often threaten or harm companion animals as a way of controlling and intimidating their human victims. It is vital that the law recognize this link so that both humans and animals can access the resources they need to get to safety, such as obtaining domestic violence protection orders. This year, Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont all added animal cruelty to their definitions of “coercive control.”

“There is a large gap between the legal protections for animals that people think exist — or think should exist — and the laws that are actually on the books,” says ALDF Senior Staff Attorney Kathleen Wood. “Regardless of rank, every state and territory has room for improvement. Our Rankings Report highlights the ways each of these jurisdictions can strengthen their laws to ensure that all animals receive the protections they need and deserve.”

The rankings track which states are taking animal protection seriously and are based on a comprehensive review of each jurisdiction’s animal protection laws, including over 3,600 pages of statutes.

The full report, including details about each state, is available at www.aldf.org/staterankings.