Laredo, TX Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

Sec. 6-80 states the rule flatly: the ownership, possession, confinement, transportation or care of a dangerous wild animal or prohibited animal within the city is prohibited unless otherwise provided for in this chapter. Sec. 6-1 defines a dangerous wild animal as a lion, tiger, ocelot, cougar, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, bobcat, lynx, serval, caracal, hyena, bear, coyote, jackal, baboon, chimpanzee, orangutan, gorilla, any hybrid of those species, or anything listed under Texas Health and Safety Code Sec. 101. The definitions section separately lists thirteen categories of prohibited animals, covering any non-human primate; any member of genus Canis other than the domestic dog, including wolves, hybrid wolves, coyotes, jackals, and foxes; big cats and hybrids other than the domestic cat, including leopards, lions, panthers, tigers, lynx, bobcats, cheetahs, ocelots, margays, and jaguarundis; mustelids other than the domestic ferret; skunks; poisonous reptiles or venomous species except bees; pythons, boa constrictors, or any snake over six feet long; crocodiles, alligators, caimans, and related species; miniature Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs; ostriches, emus, cassowaries, and other ratites; the entire bear family Ursidae; giraffes, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, hyenas, monotremes, and marsupials; and, as a catch-all, any other mammal living in a natural, undomesticated state, such as opossums, raccoons, and armadillos.

The ban is not absolute: Sec. 6-66 lets the director issue a special permit for veterinary hospitals and clinics, medical and research institutions, zoological parks, circuses, rodeos, bona fide scientific or educational programs sponsored by a licensed school, law enforcement, and, notably, prohibited animals already purchased before March 1, 2010, provided the director first finds the animal will not unreasonably endanger anyone or become a nuisance. Any permitted prohibited animal must still be registered with the health department, with fees paid and keeping conditions followed.