Austin City Code Section 3-4-29 requires all dogs and cats over six months old to be spayed or neutered. Owners wishing to keep intact animals must obtain an annual breeder or intact-animal permit. The ordinance is among the strongest in Texas.
Austin enacted one of the most aggressive mandatory spay-neuter ordinances among major Texas cities. Section 3-4-29 of Title 3 makes sterilization the default for all dogs and cats over six months. Exemptions apply only with a paid intact-animal or breeder permit, which requires owner attestation, proof of breed-club registration or working-dog status, secure containment, and inspection. Permits are renewed yearly. Service animals, dogs under six months, and animals with veterinarian-documented health risks from anesthesia are exempt. Austin Animal Center operates low-cost spay-neuter clinics and partners with Emancipet and other nonprofits to serve low-income owners. The ordinance directly supports Austin's No-Kill goal by reducing shelter intake and euthanasia citywide.
Owning an unsterilized cat or dog over six months without an intact permit is a Class C misdemeanor with fines up to five hundred dollars per animal. Repeat offenses or refusal to sterilize at impoundment can trigger forfeiture.
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