Livestock hauling: the 28-hour law, the hours exception and the software that keeps you legal
A livestock hauler works under two clocks at once. The animals' clock is the federal Twenty-Eight Hour Law (49 U.S.C. 80502): animals moved interstate may not be confined for more than 28 consecutive hours without being unloaded for at least five hours of feed, water and rest, or 36 hours if the owner asks in writing. The driver's clock is hours of service, with an exception in 49 CFR 395.1(k)(4) for livestock moves within 150 air miles of the final destination during the planting and harvesting periods each state sets. A TMS for livestock work has to keep load times, driver logs and paperwork together so both clocks can be shown.
Key points
- Plan the trip around 28 hours of confinement, with loading and unloading time not counted.
- An extension to 36 hours needs the owner's written request, separate from the bill of lading.
- The law does not apply when the animals have food, water, space and room to rest in the trailer.
- The livestock hours exception covers the last 150 air miles to the final destination, in the state's season.
- Record loading time, any rest stop and arrival time on every load.
The Twenty-Eight Hour Law
The Twenty-Eight Hour Law is one of the oldest federal animal welfare laws, first passed for rail cattle cars and now at 49 U.S.C. 80502. As written today, a rail carrier, express carrier or common carrier (except by air or water) moving animals from one state to another may not confine them in a vehicle or vessel for more than 28 consecutive hours without unloading them for feeding, water and rest. In 2006 the US Department of Agriculture said publicly that the law covers trucks as well, and it is the baseline every interstate livestock carrier plans around.
The details matter for planning:
- Loading and unloading time does not count toward the 28 hours.
- Sheep may be confined for an additional 8 hours when the 28-hour period ends at night.
- 36 hours is allowed when the owner or person with custody of the animals asks for it in writing, in a request separate from the bill of lading.
- Longer confinement is allowed only when the animals cannot be unloaded for accidental or unavoidable reasons that could not have been foreseen.
- When the animals are unloaded, it must be in a humane way, into pens equipped for feed, water and rest, for at least five consecutive hours.
- The law does not apply when the animals are transported in a vehicle in which they have food, water, space and an opportunity for rest.
The USDA's regulations at 9 CFR Part 89 set out how livestock should be fed, watered and rested in transit, including how long they should stay in the pens. They were written in the railcar era, but they explain what the agency expects at a rest stop.
Planning a long haul around 28 hours
Most livestock loads are short: farm to sale barn, sale barn to feedlot, feedlot to packer. The 28-hour limit bites on long hauls, such as feeder cattle moving from the Southeast to the Plains, or breeding stock and horses crossing several states. For those trips, plan backwards from the limit:
- Record the time loading finished. The clock runs from when the animals are confined, not from dispatch.
- Estimate driving time honestly. Use realistic speeds for a loaded pot trailer, fuel stops, weather and the driver's own hours limits.
- Find the rest facility before you leave. If the trip cannot finish inside the limit, the driver needs a place with pens, feed and water, booked in advance, and five hours of downtime built into the plan.
- Get the 36-hour request in writing before loading if the owner wants it, on its own document, not the bill of lading.
- Record arrival time at the rest stop and at the destination, so the confinement periods can be shown.
A trip that is legal on paper can still go wrong: a breakdown, a closed highway or a long wait at the packer. The law's exception for unavoidable causes is narrow, so dispatch should know where the nearest unloading facility is on every long route.
Hours of service and the livestock exception
Livestock drivers follow the same Part 395 hours-of-service rules as other property carriers, with one important exception. During the planting and harvesting periods determined by each state, 49 CFR 395.1(k)(4) says the hours rules do not apply to drivers transporting livestock within a 150 air-mile radius of the livestock's final destination. Section 395.2 defines livestock broadly: the animals covered by the Emergency Livestock Feed Assistance Act, insects, and all other living animals cultivated, grown or raised for commercial purposes, including aquatic animals.
Two things are easy to get wrong:
- The radius is measured from the destination. For crops and farm supplies, 395.1(k) measures from the source or distribution point. For livestock, it measures from the final destination, which means the last 150 air miles of a long trip can be exempt even though the first part is not.
- The season still applies. The exception follows the state's planting and harvesting periods. Many states set them as the whole year, but the carrier should check the states it runs through rather than assume.
Hours of service and the 28-hour law can pull in opposite directions. A driver who runs out of hours with animals on board cannot simply park for ten hours if the animals are near their confinement limit. That is why long livestock hauls are often planned with team drivers or a relay, and why the office needs to see the driver's remaining hours alongside the animals' time on board.
The records a livestock load should carry
Whatever your state requires for health papers and brand inspection, a livestock carrier protects itself by recording the same few facts on every load:
| Record | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Shipper, consignee and owner contact | Who to call if the trip is delayed or an animal goes down |
| Number and kind of animals, and weight | Settles counts and shrink disputes at delivery; drives pay and invoice when rated by weight |
| Time loading finished | Starts the 28-hour clock |
| Any rest stop: place, arrival, departure | Shows the animals were unloaded for at least five hours |
| Arrival time at destination | Ends the confinement period |
| Written 36-hour request, if any | The only basis for running past 28 hours |
| Health certificate or brand papers where required | Required by many destination states |
| Trailer washout before loading | Biosecurity: buyers and packers increasingly ask for it |
If a driver keeps these on paper in the cab, they are gone the first time the paperwork gets wet. Photographs uploaded to the load from the driver's phone survive the trip, and the office can see them before the truck gets back.
What a livestock carrier needs from a TMS
- Trailers typed as livestock, so cattle and hog loads only go to pot or livestock trailers.
- Times on every stop: when loading finished, when the truck reached a rest stop and when it arrived.
- Documents from the cab: health papers, scale tickets and delivery receipts photographed into the load.
- Driver hours in the same place, from the ELD, so dispatch can see whether the driver can finish the trip.
- Driver pay that follows how you pay: per mile, percentage of the load or a flat amount, with settlements the driver can read.
How TruckerPro fits livestock carriers
TruckerPro is a TMS for US and Canadian carriers. Trailer records can be typed as Livestock next to Reefer, Flatbed, Dump and the other trailer types, so your pots appear in the fleet list as what they are. Loads hold pickup, delivery and waypoint stops, each with its scheduled window and actual arrival and departure times, so a rest stop can sit on the load as a waypoint with its own times. Drivers on the TruckerPro driver app (Mobile plan and up) upload BOLs, PODs, scale tickets and other paperwork, including named custom documents such as a health certificate, to the load from their phone. The Part 395 hours-of-service audit runs on Samsara, Motive or Geotab logs on every carrier plan, with each finding citing the rule. Owner-operator and contractor pay are on the Operate plan and up, and invoicing is on every plan.
What it does not do: TruckerPro has no livestock-specific clock. It does not count the 28 hours of confinement, warn before the limit or find rest facilities, so record loading and rest times on the load and plan the long trips yourself. The hours audit does not know which trips fall under the 395.1(k)(4) livestock exception, so review its findings on those trips. It does not track trailer washouts, health papers or brand inspections as compliance records.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Twenty-Eight Hour Law apply to trucks?
Yes. The law at 49 U.S.C. 80502 covers rail, express and common carriers moving animals between states in a vehicle or vessel, and the US Department of Agriculture said in 2006 that it applies to animals transported by truck.
Can livestock be on a truck for more than 28 hours?
Only in three cases: up to 36 hours when the owner or person with custody asks in writing, separately from the bill of lading; 8 extra hours for sheep when the period ends at night; or when unloading is prevented by accidental or unavoidable causes that could not have been foreseen. The law also does not apply when the animals have food, water, space and room to rest in the trailer.
Does loading time count toward the 28 hours?
No. Time spent loading and unloading the animals is not counted as part of the confinement period. The rest stop itself must last at least five consecutive hours, in pens with feed and water.
Are livestock haulers exempt from hours of service?
Partly. Under 49 CFR 395.1(k)(4), during the planting and harvesting periods each state sets, the hours rules do not apply to drivers transporting livestock within 150 air miles of the livestock's final destination. Beyond that radius, Part 395 applies as normal.
Does TruckerPro track the 28-hour confinement limit?
No. TruckerPro has no livestock-specific clock. It holds the load's stop times, the driver's ELD hours audit and the documents the driver uploads, but the 28-hour plan and rest stops are yours to set and record.
Sources
- 49 U.S.C. 80502, Transportation of animals (GovInfo)
- 9 CFR Part 89, Statement of policy under the Twenty-Eight Hour Law (eCFR)
- 49 CFR 395.1(k), Agricultural operations (eCFR)
- 49 CFR 395.2, Definitions: livestock (eCFR)
- USDA concedes the 28 hour law applies to trucks (American Association of Swine Veterinarians, 2006)
Regulations change. Check the current rule at the source before you act on it; this page is general information, not legal or tax advice.