Texas City, TX Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

Section 95.029(B) of the Texas City Code of Ordinances does not ban exotic pets by name. It does something with more force: it presumes any wild and exotic animal to be a vicious animal, which pulls the animal into the same declaration and owner-requirement system that applies to dangerous dogs. The definition reaches any mammal, amphibian, reptile or fowl of a species that is wild by nature and, due to size, vicious nature or other characteristic, dangerous to human beings.

The list printed in the code is not limited to big cats. It names lions, tigers, leopards, panthers, lynx, wolves, raccoons, skunks (whether deodorized or not), apes, gorillas, monkeys, foxes, elephants, rhinoceroses, alligators, crocodiles and all forms of poisonous reptiles, and adds any other animal that is not indigenous to the county. The carve-out is short: the term wild animal does not include gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, mice, rabbits and ferrets.

The presumption is enforced by the city's Environmental Crimes Officer, or a designee. Under § 95.029(C)(2) that officer can find and declare an animal vicious under division (B), and § 95.029(D) requires notice to the owner. The owner then has ten calendar days to ask for a hearing in writing and ten calendar days to register the animal. Once declared, the owner must meet the § 95.029(H) requirements within 30 days, including a locked enclosure with six secure sides, a certificate of public liability insurance in the amount of $100,000, a warning sign readable from the street, and spaying or neutering with a microchip. An animal declared vicious cannot be offered for adoption or sale, and it cannot be moved from the approved enclosure or the city without written permission from the regulatory authority.