Woodbury, MN Animal Ordinances: Animal Hoarding (2026)

Animal hoarding in Woodbury is addressed through a combination of the city's pet-limit rules and Minnesota's statewide animal-cruelty law. Locally, the City Code allows up to three domestic pets per property; four or more domesticated pets is treated as a kennel, which is prohibited except under an interim conditional use permit. That cap is the city's front-line tool against the accumulation of large numbers of animals at a single residence. When accumulation rises to neglect or unsafe conditions, Minnesota Statutes section 343.21 applies. That statute prohibits torture, cruel beating, neglect and unjustifiable injury to animals, and specifically bars depriving any animal in a person's charge of necessary food, water or shelter, as well as abandoning animals or keeping animals in enclosures without adequate exercise and air. Violations are generally misdemeanors, with more serious cases carrying enhanced penalties. Because hoarding situations typically involve both too many animals and inadequate care, enforcement in Woodbury can draw on the city's pet-limit and kennel provisions for the count, and on state cruelty law for the welfare conditions. Residents who suspect an animal-hoarding or neglect situation can report it to the Police Department's Community Service Officers at 651-714-3600; serious cruelty or neglect may also be referred for action under the state statute. The practical guidance is that keeping more than three pets requires city approval, and animals must always be provided adequate food, water, shelter and humane conditions.