Texas Stock Laws by County: Who Is Liable for Livestock Accidents on Texas Roads?

Texas is an open range state by default, meaning livestock owners are not required to fence their animals in. About 60% of Texas counties have adopted stock laws requiring animals to be confined. State and federal highways are always closed range under Texas Agriculture Code §143.102. 

What Is the Texas Stock Law? Open Range vs. Closed Range Explained

The Texas Stock Law is the framework that determines whether livestock owners must fence their animals in or whether neighboring landowners must fence them out. It is governed by Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 143, which gives each county the power to hold a local election and adopt rules that change the default open range status.

Whether a county is open range or closed range directly affects who is liable in a livestock accident.

Open Range

In open range counties, livestock owners are not legally required to keep their animals fenced in. The burden falls on neighboring landowners to fence livestock out of their property. This was the default common law rule in Texas at-fault state rules dating back to the 1800s and still applies in counties that have never adopted a stock law.

Closed Range

In closed range counties, livestock owners are legally required to confine their animals. A closed range designation means the county (or sometimes an individual precinct) held an election and voted to adopt a stock law under Chapter 143. Closed range can apply to all livestock or only specific animals like cattle, hogs, or horses, depending on what the local election covered.

Texas is one of the few states where the rule changes county by county, and sometimes within a single county.

The Highway Exception: When Livestock Owners Are Always Liable

State and federal highways in Texas are always closed range, regardless of the county. Under Texas Agriculture Code §143.102, a livestock owner may not knowingly permit a horse, mule, donkey, cow, bull, steer, hog, sheep, or goat to roam at large or unattended on the right-of-way of a highway.

The statute defines “highway” as a U.S. highway or a state highway. It does not include numbered farm-to-market roads, which fall under the default open range rule unless a local stock law applies.

If a livestock owner allows their animals onto a highway and a crash occurs, they can be held liable for damages caused by the animals. They can also face a Class C misdemeanor charge for the violation itself, separate from any civil liability for the accident.

The highway exception is the most powerful tool for accident victims in open range counties. Even if the crash happened in a county that has never adopted a stock law, the highway rule still applies, which means the livestock owner can still be held responsible.

The 22 Restricted Counties: Where Cattle Stock Laws Cannot Apply

Twenty-two Texas counties are statutorily prohibited from adopting stock laws that restrict cattle. Under Texas Agriculture Code §143.072, these counties cannot hold a local election to confine cattle, meaning cattle remain under the default open range rule regardless of what the county or its voters might want.

The 22 counties where cattle stock laws are not permitted:

• Andrews
• Coke
• Culberson
• Hardin
• Hemphill
• Hudspeth
• Jasper
• Jefferson
• Kenedy
• Kinney
• La Salle
• Loving
• Motley
• Newton
• Presidio
• Roberts
• Schleicher
• Terry
• Tyler
• Upton
• Wharton
• Yoakum

The statutory prohibition applies only to cattle. Some of these counties have adopted stock laws for other animals (horses, hogs, sheep, or goats), so the closed range status can vary by species within the same county.

If you were hit by cattle in one of these 22 counties on a non-highway road, the open range rule almost always controls liability, and proving the owner’s negligence becomes significantly harder. If the crash happened on a state or federal highway, the highway exception applies even in these counties, and the owner can still be held liable.

How to Find Out If Your County Has a Stock Law

Texas does not maintain a centralized state database of stock laws, which makes confirming a county’s status one of the most common pain points after a livestock accident. The information is scattered across local clerk offices, county records, and old election results.

Here are the practical ways to confirm whether the county where your accident happened is open range or closed range:

1. Check the reference table in this article: the table further down lists the stock law status of every Texas county and the specific livestock each law covers.
2. Call the county clerk’s office: the clerk maintains records of every stock law election held in the county and can confirm which animals are covered.
3. Call the county sheriff’s office: sheriffs enforce stock law violations and typically know which areas of the county are closed range, especially in counties where status varies by precinct.
4. Request the official stock law document: you can request a copy of the recorded stock law from the county clerk, usually for a small fee. This document is the strongest proof in a liability claim.
5. Talk to a Texas livestock accident lawyer: an attorney can pull the records faster and apply them to the specific facts of your case, which is critical when status varies by precinct.

If the records are unclear or the stock law status varies by precinct within your county, a livestock accident lawyer can pull the official documents faster and apply them to the specific facts of your case. 

Who Is Liable in a Texas Livestock Accident?

The livestock owner is the primary party liable in a Texas livestock accident, but liability is never automatic. Whether the owner can be held responsible depends on where the crash occurred and whether their conduct meets the legal standard for negligence.

Parties that can be held liable in a Texas livestock accident:

• The livestock owner: the most common defendant, especially in closed range counties or when the accident occurred on a state or federal highway.
• The property owner or tenant: if different from the livestock owner, such as when a tenant grazes cattle on leased land and fails to maintain the fences.
• A ranch operator or caretaker: when the day-to-day responsibility for the animals belongs to someone other than the legal owner.
• A third party who damaged a fence: if a person or company cut, damaged, or left open a gate, fence, or cattle guard that allowed the livestock to escape, they can share liability.

Under Texas personal injury laws, fault in a livestock accident is determined the same way as any other negligence case. How fault is determined in a Texas car accident involves accident reconstruction, photos of the scene, witness statements, fence and gate inspection records, and prior reports of escapes from the same property.

Identifying every potentially liable party is one of the most important steps in maximizing recovery, especially when the livestock owner’s insurance is insufficient to cover the full damages.

How to Prove Negligence in a Texas Livestock Accident

Proving negligence in a Texas livestock accident requires the same four elements as any other personal injury claim, but each element has to be tied to the specific facts of how the animal ended up on the road. Missing any one of them can end the case.

1. Duty: The livestock owner owed a legal duty to keep the animal off the road. In closed range counties, the duty comes from the local stock law. On state and federal highways, the duty comes from Texas Agriculture Code §143.102. In open range counties without a stock law, the duty is harder to establish but still possible if the owner knowingly allowed the animal to roam. 

1. Breach: The owner failed to meet that duty. Common examples include a fence in disrepair, a gate left open, prior escapes from the same property that were never fixed, or knowingly letting livestock out near a highway.
2. Causation: The breach directly caused the accident. The animal must have escaped because of the owner’s failure, not because of an unrelated event like a third party cutting a fence or a natural disaster opening a gate.
3. Damages: The accident caused real, measurable losses. Medical bills, lost wages, vehicle damage, and pain and suffering all qualify as recoverable damages in a livestock accident claim.

If you bear any share of the blame for the crash, comparative negligence in car accidents applies. Texas follows a modified comparative fault rule: if you are more than 50% at fault, you cannot recover anything.

Strong evidence on all four elements is what separates a winning claim from a denied one.

What to Do After Hitting Livestock on a Texas Road

The steps you take in the first hour after hitting livestock often decide whether the owner can be held liable. Move through these in order, and document everything you can before leaving the scene.

1. Move to safety and check for injuries: if your vehicle is drivable, get off the roadway. Check yourself and any passengers for visible or hidden injuries.
2. Call 911: report the crash, request medical help if needed, and ask for police and (when possible) a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper to respond.
3. Don’t approach the animal: injured or frightened livestock can be dangerous. Wait for law enforcement or animal control to handle it.
4. Photograph the scene: the animal, your vehicle damage, the road, skid marks, fences nearby, open gates, any visible brand or ear tag on the animal, and the surrounding area. Photos of damaged or missing fences are critical evidence of negligence.
5. Identify the owner if possible: check for brands, ear tags, or contact information. If neighbors or witnesses know whose property the animal came from, get their information.
6. Get a copy of the police or DPS report: the responding officer’s report often includes the owner’s name, fence condition, and any prior reports of escapes from the same property.
7. Document the animal’s path: look for tracks, broken fencing, or open gates that show where and how the animal got onto the road. This evidence disappears quickly.
8. See a doctor the same day: even minor symptoms from a livestock collision (whiplash, soft tissue injuries) can worsen over hours. Same-day records tie your injuries directly to the crash.

The evidence you capture in this window is what makes the owner’s negligence provable later.

What Happens If You Hit a Wild Animal Instead of Livestock?

Wild animals have no owner, which means there is usually no one to hold liable when you hit one. Deer, hogs, coyotes, and other wildlife are not covered by Texas stock laws, and the highway exception in §143.102 applies only to domesticated livestock.

If your collision involved a wild animal, your only path to financial recovery is through your own auto insurance. Collision and comprehensive coverage typically pay for vehicle damage from wildlife strikes, and personal injury protection or medical payments coverage can help with injuries.

There are narrow exceptions. If the wild animal came from a fenced game ranch or exotic game operation and escaped because of poor fencing, the ranch owner may be liable under negligence principles. The same can apply to feral hogs released or maintained by a property owner who knew they were a hazard.

For everything else involving deer or native wildlife, what to do after hitting a deer in Texas covers the insurance and safety steps that apply to those crashes.

Texas Stock Laws by County: Open Range and Closed Range Reference Table

The table below summarizes the stock law status for most Texas counties. Laws change as new local elections are held, and some counties have stock laws that vary by precinct, so this table is a general guide and not a substitute for legal advice.  

If the crash happened on a state or federal highway, the county’s stock law status does not change the outcome. The highway exception under Texas Agriculture Code §143.102 applies statewide, and the livestock owner can still be held liable.

When to Contact a Texas Livestock Accident Lawyer

Call a Texas livestock accident lawyer as soon as possible after the crash, ideally within the first 48 hours. Livestock collisions happen most often on rural roads and at the edges of metro areas, including places like the McKinney area, where rural Collin County highways can still see livestock-related crashes.

These are some of the most complex personal injury claims in Texas because they require pulling county records, identifying the owner, proving fence negligence, and applying the right legal rule based on where the accident occurred.

You especially need a lawyer if any of these apply:

• Your injuries required medical treatment or hospitalization: the higher the damages, the more aggressively the owner’s insurance fights the claim.
• The accident happened in an open range county: proving negligence is harder, and an attorney can identify whether the highway exception or another doctrine applies.
• The livestock owner is denying ownership or responsibility: brand records, county records, and witness statements all need to be pulled quickly.
• The crash happened on a state or federal highway: the highway exception under §143.102 changes the analysis entirely, and an attorney can use it to shift liability onto the owner.
• You suffered significant vehicle damage or a totaled vehicle: livestock collisions often result in heavy property damage that the owner’s insurance will try to minimize.

Experienced personal injury lawyers who handle Texas livestock cases pull county stock law records, investigate fence conditions, identify prior escapes from the same property, and push back against the insurer’s attempt to deny the claim.

At Thompson Law, we handle livestock accident cases across Texas. The first conversation is a free consultation. There’s no fee unless we win your case. Call us at (844) 308-8180 to talk through what happened.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who pays for damages if I hit a cow on a Texas highway?

The livestock owner can be held liable for damages caused by a cow on a state or federal highway, regardless of the county’s stock law status. Texas Agriculture Code §143.102 prohibits owners from knowingly letting cattle, horses, hogs, sheep, or goats roam on a highway right-of-way, and you can recover compensation by proving the owner’s negligence.

Can I sue if the livestock owner says the fence was vandalized?

Yes, you can still pursue a claim, but the analysis changes. If a third party cut the fence or opened a gate, the owner may have a defense, but they still have a duty to maintain reasonable fencing and respond to prior escapes. If the owner had multiple prior escapes from the same property, the vandalism defense becomes much harder to sustain.

Is Texas an open range or closed range state?

Texas is an open range state by default, but about 60% of Texas counties have adopted stock laws that make them closed range for some or all livestock. State and federal highways are always closed range under Texas Agriculture Code §143.102, regardless of the county where the highway runs.

What if my neighbor’s cows wander onto my property in Texas?

In open range counties, you are responsible for fencing the animals out, and the neighbor is generally not liable for property damage. In closed range counties, the neighbor must keep their livestock confined and can be liable for damage their animals cause on your property. The county’s stock law status controls the outcome.

¿Atienden casos de accidentes con ganado en Texas en español?

Sí. En Thompson Law atendemos en español a víctimas de accidentes con ganado en todo Texas, incluyendo casos en condados abiertos y cerrados. Llámenos al (844) 308-8180 para una consulta gratuita con alguien que hable su idioma, sin pagar nada a menos que ganemos su caso.